Auction Score, only a little used...

Picked up a 67 year old Singer 66 sewing machine at an auction last weekend. Seventy bucks. Heck of a deal!
Did some cleaning and lubing, rewired a few parts due to age, and away it runs…
No modern piece of plastic is going to be running after that many years.

I like reworking old tech. So far I’ve done two treadle machines and another older electric.
And yes, I do sew with them. Poorly. Very poorly…
Made masks when the covid thing started on the Singer Featherweight (my other electric).

I’ve been on the lookout for a walking foot leather machine for a while now. There are deals, but shipping on an industrial machine is often more than the cost of the machine. Don’t really have any projects in mind, but it would be so cool to make my own pouches for lights and other toys.

Any other budding seamstresses out there in the BLF world?

All the Best,
Jeff

One of my favorite things to do is breathe new life into old things like this. The build quality is amazing. I also do all my own repairs on appliances, electronics etc.
Sadly many newer things are not as fixable as the older ones, but I figure if a repair person can fix it, so can I with the proper manual. I think I am more attentive to my repairs because I’m the end user.
Saving repair cost $$ leaves me more $$ for my hobbies (motorcycles, Casio watches and flashlights)

Those old Singers were made to last. Many still use them overseas in textiles. Wouldn’t want to drop one on my foot!

Good looking Singer!

Can relate to the old precision, made to last appliances.

Have a thing for Old Fans with Brass Blades, Bullet style Art Deco Electrolux Vac’s, Mechanical Scales, etc.
Have a Sewing Machine that have never seen another before in person, there are a few shown on wonderful world of The Googler, it is a Strawbridge & Clothier branded unit.
Probably a Singer underneath but do not know for sure. It is a Suitcase tabletop style.

Very cool. I don’t have the space. Wonder if it was owned by a person or company? Wow, mid 50’s. Back then companies wanted to maintain their good reputation. So they built stuff to last forever. Today if they lose their reputation, they just change their name and start over.

Their is someone on BLF that collects vintage microscopes. He shared some pics as well.

Congrats.

I think we have the same model Singer! The stand its on, does the sewing machine flip under to make a flat top table when not in use?
My wife recently got the Singer from her late Grandmother, my wife enjoys sewing/making and her Gran agreed when she passed it would go to my wife. Sadly she passed away just before last Christmas, at 101 years old!!

I don’t really have the space either but that doesn’t seem to hinder me when something catches my fancy.
There is no such thing as too many closets or garage space.
My ideal house is a 10,000sq/ft shop with a nice kitchen and bedroom attached.

Essexman,
This is a model 66-16. According to the serial number it was made in 1954. This is toward the end of the model run.
Started in 1900 with treadle power. Motor added in 1920.
Some version were “portable” tabletop models. Came with nifty wood case. But at something like 30lbs… People were tougher back then.
Mine does indeed flip down into the table and the wing folds from the left onto the top to hide the opening.

These are home type sewing machines. Though I’m sure some got used in commercial settings.
Real commercial machines from that era, to current, are scary fast with huge motors. Like 1,800 stitches per minute. Takes real skill to run one without risking sewing fingers.

The 66 in it’s glory days was something to see

Mine is a plain Jane version. It’s not in good cosmetic shape, so I’m not going to worry if I make some changes like adding an LED light bar or maybe a servo motor.
Parts are still readily available to keep it running. Lots of fun to play with.
All the Best,
Jeff

i have 2 singer featherweights, a 1939 and an 1951

11 lbs - the singer 66 is 30! (i see you have one of those too)

great simple machines

made of aluminum {cast} instead of steel

i also sew poorly, just repair and crude alterations like waist take-ins

i also made my own pandemic masks for a while

i also like to make hankies out of bandanas :slight_smile: the problem is the edge seams, for which i have an attachment that does a decent job

It’s getting harder to do repairs as it is often the case that parts are unservicable.
Years ago my dishwasher was leaking around a motor shaft seal.

Got the pump and motor assembly out, and spent some time getting it down to the the assembly over the leaking seal.
Took it to the Maytag repair guy and said “I need that seal, and I need you to tell me how to get it out”
He chuckled a bit and said “You know that whole thing you pulled out before stripping it down? That’s one part number. You replace the whole thing”

Harrumph…
Was taking some stuff to the dumpster in the alley. Saw an extension cord in there. Pulled it out. It had been partially cut perhaps by tugging it around a sharp corner. The owner saw a bad cord.
I saw 75 feet of 14 gauge wire that could be used to hookup stuff and add to my junk pile.
All the Best,
Jeff

PS welcome to the BLF

This reminds me of my mandatory Home Economics class in 7th or 8th grade. Everyone had to make something on a sewing machine. Now a days, clothes are cheap enough to throw away and buy new. No one sews.

Its the same with shoes. No one repairs shoes anymore. Shoe repair is a dying/dead artform.

Too True. There are some shoe repair guys on youtube. Fun to watch what is involved.
Some of them are stitching on 100 year old machines.

Craft persons were something every town had. Now it’s few and far between.
Now it commands premium prices in our throw away culture.
All the Best,
Jeff

Actually, material has turned into crap and quality in general went down the toilet.

Back in the day, I’d get a pair of Wranglers that were made out of tarp material. It’d take me months to “break ’em in”, and I’d be doing the Frankenstein walk the whole time until that happened.

Last 2 pair I got, the material was so thin and flimsy it ripped open in the same place on my front thigh. Not on the knee or any stress point, nope.

Shirts? I had one “terrycloth” shirt that I was given as a b’day present in probably high-school, that I kept wearing in regular rotation for decades. Sis who gave it to me said that it grew right along with me over the years. Perfect condition until the piping around the collar finally started detaching. I wanted to spring for a formal burial, but people talked me out of it.

Today? They stretch and rip and seams pop and they develop Mystery Holes in ’em. One shirt that I thought would last forever because (at first) the material felt thick and durable, ripped at the seams at the underarms, and whatever fluff was stiffening and thickening the shirt started wearing off, until just the base material remained.

Teeshirts? Had one that turned into what I called “my dress”. Only wore it inside the house, because it was intact but stretched to 4-5 sizes too big. Most cheap shirts are like that nowadays. They’ll stretch out of shape, hang like bags, and otherwise just rip for no reason.

So now it pays to get Carhartt shirts that have a rep for durability. I’m trying to “wear out” my crap shirts ’til I’m left with the good’uns, which I’m “saving”.

But I do have a pair of BB shorts that my gf got me, caught the pocket on a kitchen chair and ripped the pocket at the seams, but did hand-sew it because I didn’t want to toss ’em. Again, I’m “wearing ’em out” before I reluctantly start regularly wearing 2 other virtually-new BB shorts.

I can’t understand how people just toss perfectly good clothes just because they’re “old”, or even if need of some minor repair.

The average person disposes 36kg of textile clothing per year…it’s a disaster that getting worse, everyone want fast cheap fashion. Watched a documentary about it, some in the industry want to change this but we’re hooked on clothes that often get worn once or twice. Very hard to find good natural fibres these days mostly it’s synthetics made from toxic chemicals. A quote from an industry insider when people would ask him what they should buy, he’d say, ‘NOTHING…you already have too MUCH’!

we agree with all the above.

quality is down and fashion wears out quickly.
this is why we shop at Goodwill (or similar) for clothes, shoes, etc.
$2 shirts which are new with tags, $4 shoes with the sticker still on the bottom.

I give away so many clothes, the people at the local salvation army know me.

Gildans 6 oz tees are still good and they come in tall sizes.