TD Mattress

[bledsoe3]

My mother-inlaw has a machine that takes two men and a small boy to move. It's weird because it has a tray you fill with oil before you set the machine in the base. The working parts are lubed by the oil. I think that's just one of about 5 sewing machines she has. She can sew like nobody. If she went shopping and saw a dress she liked, she would buy it, take it home and take it apart to make a pattern. She could sew it back together and return it with out them being able to tell. The talent was lost. My wife can't sew buttons on.

[cracker39]

You guys are just using the wrong sewing machines. I have an old Singer cabinet machine and that baby will sew almost anything.

Yeah, the old Singers were tough machines. And, they would sew slowly. That's important for sewing heavier fabrics on a light machine...slow and easy. But lots of newer machines won't go slow enough and the fabric transporter (walking foot?) on the newer machines don't seem to move the fabric as good, and it bunches and the thread gets knotted up and then it jams. And THEN, the needle breaks. A new neighbor was having a yard sale a few weeks ago, and she had an old cabinet machine (wasn't a Singer) that looked a lot like the Singer in Nitetimes' pic. My wife wanted me to go buy it, but I didn't. Now, I wish I had. It may have been good for sewing heavy fabrics.

[Steve_Cox]

You guys are just using the wrong sewing machines. I have an old Singer cabinet machine and that baby will sew almost anything.

Yeah, the old Singers were tough machines. And, they would sew slowly. That's important for sewing heavier fabrics on a light machine...slow and easy. But lots of newer machines won't go slow enough and the fabric transporter (walking foot?) on the newer machines don't seem to move the fabric as good, and it bunches and the thread gets knotted up and then it jams. And THEN, the needle breaks. A new neighbor was having a yard sale a few weeks ago, and she had an old cabinet machine (wasn't a Singer) that looked a lot like the Singer in Nitetimes' pic. My wife wanted me to go buy it, but I didn't. Now, I wish I had. It may have been good for sewing heavy fabrics.

I got an old White Dressmaker for $5 in a yard sale years ago, I found a book on how to tune up and retime a sewing machine for sewing sail cloth. I used that machine to mend and make sails, covers and awnings for about 10 years, finally wore it out. It did take a lot of effort to keep it in time after punching holes in layers of sailcloth (round point needles) and sewing leather chaffing gear, but they don't make em' like they used too, that's for sure.

Steve

[angib]

I have an old Singer cabinet machine

Nope. You have a new Singer machine. Mine is from 1895 and is powered by my feet through a treadle - none of that un-natural electricity for me - it can kill you, you know!

Now, if my 4-year-old camera was as reliable as my sewing machine, I'd show it to you. Its record is sewing through four thicknesses of leathercloth (=naugahyde?) - a bit of belt slip, but it did it.

Andrew

[Nitetimes]

Nope, it's not that old, the one you have is probably the same or similar to the one my grandma had. Mine is a model 15-91 made in 1948 so in relative terms, it's still old! lol No belt slip here, direct drive.
I have a newer something or other in a cabinet on the opposite side of the room that was my mother-in-laws, don't even know what it is, never even opened it. Really don't care, I like my old Singer