Oiling and Cleaning a Vibrating Shuttle Sewing Machine

Recently I have acquired a number of new machines, including two vibrating shuttle machines.  I decided to create a post detailing how to oil and clean one, particularly in the case of the machine being seized through being left to sit.

From the front

The machine used below is called The Valley B.G. and is made in Germany.  I suspect it could be a re-badged Vesta.  It should be noted not all machines are identical although most parts operate in a fairly similar fashion.  A White vibrating shuttle, for example, has a different mechanism for operating the shuttle movement.  If the machine is seized, gently clean the oil holes to try an reduce the amount of dust likely to fall inside and apply oil to all oil holes on the arm of the machine, see below:

Oil holes on arm of machine

There is another oil hole just out of frame which lubricates the main shaft as it leaves the head and is attached to the hand-wheel.  This machine had no oil holes on the bed but some machines do, so check yours and oil if need be.

Now turn the machine on its back so that you can see underneath.  Referring to the diagram below oil the machine, applying grease to the roller and its track (see close up below).  Use all oil holes but if there doesn't seem to be one just drip or spray oil into the join between two moving parts as much as possible.  The top left hand arrow in the picture which says 'grease' should actually say 'oil' instead.  Using steel wool and oil, you can clean all the rods, being sure to remove any rust and wiping the parts clean with a rag afterwards.

Underneath of machine showing oiling and greasing

Oil hole in shuttle mechanism

Showing where to grease roller for shuttle mechanism

Remove the back plate on the machine and thoroughly grease the cam and fork and the rocking mechanism, as indicated in the image below.

Showing greasing under back plate.

Now remove the face-plate, needle, foot and throat plate.  Take note of which way the needle was inserted and if in doubt about whether it is a standard size, hang on to it for later comparisons.  If the machine is still seized and with the needle down, removing the needle may be impossible, in which case the throatplate will not come off either.  However, if you have oiled the machine as above, some gentle force may help your cause.  Sometimes you will have to repeat oil them and leave them to sit for a few days before they will yield.

Shows screws to remove throatplate, needle and foot

Now turn your attention to under the faceplate (the metal cover that sits on your left if you are facing the machine).  Underneath you will have the needlebar, presser bar, take-up lever and other delights which won't concern us yet.  Clean the needle and presser bars well with oil and steel wool and then evenly oil so that they glide smoothly up and down.

Under the faceplate

Both the take-up lever (seen above) and the needle bar are moved up and down by a cam stud roller following a cam.  These rollers and cams need to be well greased so that the move freely without dragging.  The rollers are supposed to rotate as they travel around the cam so they do not drag an wear it.  This can be hard to test though, watching closely with a torch is your best bet.  Below are close-up images showing these rollers and their cams in relation to the surrounding parts and showing where to grease.

Take-up lever operation from under face-plate

Take-up lever roller and track from front

Roller for moving needlebar up and down from under face-plate

Now turn the machine upside down again and clean the arch of the shuttle's track well with steel wool and oil.  Once clean, smear a film of grease across it using your finger.  This is to lubricate the shuttle as it runs across.

Shuttle track, clean and grease.

Shows shuttle sitting on its track

 Now dismantle the tension assembly carefully.  Remove the thumbnut all the way and then carefully take the pieces off, laying them in order so that you know how to replace them.  Leave the take-up spring on the shaft and clean the threads with a soft wire brush and some oil.  Clean the tension discs well so that they don't snag thread and ensure the tension spring is put back on with the final loop facing downwards.

After removal of tension assembly

Parts of tension assembly in order of reassembly

Showing correct placement of tension spring

Now turn your attention to the shuttle.  You should remove the tension spring and clean it well with steel wool and oil and clean the shuttle thoroughly in the same way.  Tension on the thread is adjusted using the screw you remove to take out the spring.

Removing tension spring

Tension spring and screw, before cleaning

Showing lint under spring which will interfere with tension regulation

Once reassembled, grease flat edges of shuttle lightly.

Where to grease shuttle

Now you can thread the shuttle with a long bobbin.  Using two hands, hold the shuttle in one ( the left if you are right-handed) and the bobbin in the other, so that the bobbin thread is across the bobbin and the end is on the right, as below but I only had one hand spare!

Showing bobbin thread direction and cut in shuttle.

Now drop the bobbin into the shuttle, dragging the thread down the cut in the side until it reaches the end and moves up the other side.

Thread at end of cut

Now pull the thread to the left until it goes under the finger on the tension spring.

Showing thread under finger

Bring thread back to the right over the finger and your shuttle is ready to go into the machine.

Finished threading

To insert the shuttle into the machine, place it point first into the shuttle carrier and drop the other end gently guiding it to sit straight and evenly into it, as below:

Inserting the shuttle

Hopefully the above can serve as a starting point to anyone wishing to work on a vibrating shuttle sewing machine.  Any questions feel free to contact me and I will do my best to help.

Elna Contessa 400 Threading Diagram

Recently I was asked how to thread the Elna Contessa 400.  As I result I created some diagrams, which I thought might be of use to others so I will share them here.

Threading - overview

Close-up of needle threading

In the top threading images above, the red arrows point to the thread guides and the black line shows the approximate path of the thread.  Click on the images to see them and the instructions larger.

How to wind a bobbin

The path of the thread for bobbin winding is show in blue.  There was actually no bobbin winder on this machine when the image was taken, consequently the grey block that I added is where it should be.

The bobbin case of this machine threads as they do on most machines, hold the bobbin case in your left hand, with the open end facing to the right.  Hold the bobbin in your right hand with the end of the thread going away from you.  Put the bobbin in the bobbin case and pull the thread through the slot in the bobbin case and under the tension spring.  That's the bobbin case threaded.

As usual, if you have any questions, drop me a line and I will do my best to answer them!

Re-timing the Singer 320K

I have had a few enquiries about re-timing or removing the hook on the 320.  After the removal of the throatplate, the instructions would be the same for a Singer 306 and 319 and probably a 206, although I've never re-timed mine.  This method can be followed to re-time the machines to take standard needles instead of their special size, just use a needle of the size you wish when actually timing the hook.

Just to refresh your memory, the Singer 320 is the green free-arm with a wooden flatbed.

Singer 320 from front

Before you commence this operation ensure that no cams are engaged (all the 'keys' on top are lying down), that the width is set to zero and needle position is in the centre of the throatplate.  If you don't, the timing will be off when you come to stitch zig-zag with it and you run the risk of hitting your hook, which is bad for both hook and needle.

Firstly you will have this:

Remove the bobbin case, foot and needle before going in further.  Keep the needle handy because you will need it again to re-time the machine.  Now remove the throatplate.  For those of you not familiar with this, take a narrow flat-head screwdriver and slide it into the depression on the LHS of the free arm, between the body and the throatplate of the machine.  Gently twist the screwdriver and the throatplate will pop off.  See image below if my instructions are bad!

Now you will have something that looks like this:

Next remove the feed dogs by unscrewing the screws circled in red in the image above.

For the next step use a fine point black marker to put marks on the machine as indicated by the arrows above.  Make sure that the needle is at a point you will remember, ie. at the top or bottom of its cycle, when you do the markings on the hook assembly.  These markings will give you a vague idea of how to fit things back together.  Even though we are altering the timing and thus the marks on the assembly will not line up when we've finished, it gives an idea of approximately where the hook should be.

If you do not intend on removing the hook assembly and just wish to re-time the machine, skip the marking and just loosen the two grub screws holding the hook assembly on the shaft.

Once you have marked the machine, completely remove the screw holding the crooked piece of metal on and remove that piece too.  Now loosen the grub screws holding the hook assembly on enough that you can slide the whole assembly off in your hand.  You will need to wiggle it gently to ease it off.

The arrow in the image points to the hook.

You can now clean out the assembly and dismantle it further using the screws and metal clips on the side.  When it comes to re-assembly, place the hook assembly back on the shaft, ensuring needle is in the appropriate position for the marks and replace the crooked piece of metal, aligning it with your marks and screw it into place.  We can now re-time the machine.

For those of you who just want to re-time their machine, join us again here.  Now put a needle in your machine.  If you want to re-time your machine to take a standard needle, put a standard needle in your machine, flat to back.  Gently rotate the machine until the needle is in its lowest position and just starting to ascend.  Now hold the needle still and rotate the hook assembly by hand until the hook is tip is just near the edge of the needle and about 1/2 way across it.  The arrows in the images below point to the hook and the eye of the needle.

A bit too far away, the hook is not passing near enough to the eye of the needle

The hook is passing close to the needle and closer to the eye.

You do not necessarily push the hook assembly onto the shaft as far as it will go, you can pull it out slightly so that it is closer to the needle.  However, make it too close and the slightest deflection caused by sewing will cause the needle to scrape the hook.

Once you have the hook positioned to your liking, tighten the grub screws tightly.  You should be able to reach one with the hook in that position, tighten it hard and then very gently rotate the machine until you can reach the other and tighten that hard too.  Once you have tightened the screws, carefully rotate the machine ensuring that the needle is not hitting or being deflected by any part of the hook assembly.  Now set the machine to the widest zig-zag and do the same, ensuring there is adequate clearance at all times between the hook and the needle of the machine.  And that's it!  Screw the feed dogs back on and carefully press the throatplate back into position.  Sew a test swatch and check that the machine is picking up properly on all needle widths and you're done.  

Don't worry if you stuff up your first attempts, whilst it's irritating to have to pull the thing apart and start again, once it's timed properly it will be a joy to sew on.

Singer Featherweight 222K

About a month ago I had the most incredible stroke of luck.  I managed to obtain the highly sought after Featherweight 222K for only $350.  The 221's fetch more than that here normally.  For those who are wondering what I am going on about, a Singer 221 Featherweight is a very collectable, very small, portable flatbed machine.  They are very popular amongst quilters and fetch a very good price.  However, they were making them for a number of years and made quite a few.  The Singer 222K, on the other hand, was made in very limited numbers, I think they only did about three runs and they are very, very collectable.  The 222K has a few added features that the 221 lacked.  It is a convertible, free-arm machine and drops the feed for darning.  Mine also came with its original instruction manual, box and accessories.  Unfortunately, as I discovered when I got home, it didn't come with a bobbin winder.  This is an extremely irritating fact and I will have to look into buying one to complete my machine.  When I bought it, I was informed that the machine itself was seized, although the hand wheel turned freely.  Further investigation showed that it is missing the stop motion bushing screw, which attaches the bushing the hand wheel sits on, to the main drive shaft of the machine.  If the machine were not seized, it would probably be almost unnoticeable due to the friction between the parts.  So far I have been unsuccessful in locating a spare.

I have given her a slight clean and oiling but she will have to wait until I have more time before I really get to look at her.  She has a name too; Gina, which has always been one of my favourite names.

Various attachments in their metal tray inside her box

Stitch length and feed height adjusters

From front with flat bed attached

Without flatbed

Gina is incredibly small.  When I first saw her I could not believe my eyes, she was almost toy-like.  You can see her size in relation to an average size computer mouse above.  I cannot wait to have enough time to get her cleaned up and stitching.

Interestingly, whilst typing this post I was listening to T. Rex and have just discovered that today is Marc Bolan's birthday.

New White Peerless Sewing Machine

A couple of weeks ago I added a new baby to the collection.  Trawling through gumtree aimlessly, as I am apt to do, I discovered this sad-looking machine, covered in dust but with absolutely beautiful lilly-of-the-valley decals.  A few years ago I was at a machine vendors house and he had a beautiful machine with lily-of-the-valley decals on it and I fell head over heels for it.  I think that man is partly to blame for my obsession actually but that's a whole different story.

Anyway, I ummed and ahhed over this machine for a few days and it still hadn't sold so I rang and enquired about it.  The gentleman was very helpful and more than willing for me to come and look at it.  Sadly, it didn't have a bobbin case (and they are very hard to find) but for $15- and with hardly a spot of rust in sight I couldn't resist.  The handcrank attachment alone was worth that!  I brought it back to Grandma's and spent the next couple of days (when time allowed) taking it apart and cleaning it.

From the front, exactly as I bought it.

As well as missing its bobbin case it was also missing the front slide plate (that should be relatively easy to make do without), the two screws necessary for holding the faceplate on and its wooden cover.  But I still loved it!  The patents on the back slide plate date it to 1890, so it is now officially the oldest machine in my collection.  That distinction was previously held by as singer 127, I think it was, that I haven't yet written about here.

Underneath the machine is very nice and I could watch this machine in operation all day.  I spent quite a while scrubbing caked on oil off but I never mind doing that as I know that is what has saved it from being a rust bucket.

The faceplate is separate at the moment until I find screws to fit it.  Here you can see the interesting tension assembly, which I think is exclusive to White sewing machines (don't hold me to that!).  The feet are also like the rebadged White we have, so no shortage of them!

Before cleaning.

The bobbin winding mechanism and stitch length adjuster are in good condition and still move freely.  It needs a new winding tyre though.

Bobbin winder (right) and stitch length adjuster (left).

Around the feed dogs and under the throatplate was rather dirty but all rust free and moving very well.  (No, I don't normally wear nail polish when I'm working on machines!)

Throatplate being removed.

As I mentioned before it did not have a bobbin case for it, which is very disappointing because I can't sew with it.  I tried another White case in it but it did not fit.  This machine is tiny, apparently a 3/4 size White machine and the other case was too large.

Shuttle run.

I have done a small amount of research and apparently this is the model 'B' of these machines.  I have to say I am very happy with it and it cleaned up very well.

From the front, after cleaning.

Singer 29K53

It has been a long time since I posted.  There are reasons, I've been busy, stressed and a few other things as well.  I have acquired a few new machines and done a little sewing but I haven't really had the time or inclination to post about any of it.  Until now!

A few months ago I was trawling gumtree (why are the machines I like always in a different state?) and I came across an advert for an industrial patcher, a Singer 29K53 from 1920.  I have been looking to add to my industrial collection for a while now, not in the least because I wanted a clutch drive motor to set up at Grandma's.  Not that Grandma is aware of my plans yet, she does not approve of my machine obsession.  After a bit of negotiation the machine was mine, for $300 I think.

Unfortunately I haven't had a lot of time to work on it, so this post is not going to include dizzying instructions for dismantling it.  The first thing I checked when I went to look at it was that it had a bobbin.  Although I think they are still readily available, I didn't want to go to the bother of buying one without knowing if my machine worked.  Sadly I didn't check that it had both steering handles.  It doesn't.  I would have asked for a 'bit off' if I had noticed that before I got it home.  Still, it's not the end of the world, just irritating.  Anyhow, I'll show you some pictures.

I hope to have more posts soon!