Kenmore Antique Sewing Machine

I have acquired this antique Kenmore Sewing Machine, I have done a lot of research and found it it was manufactured by the White Sewing Machine Company probably in the 1920's. I have found some similar but none like this one. The numbers on the machine doesn't pull up any search results. The closest one I found was a White Sewing Machine but the thread tension control on mine is a slider up and down and the White Sewing Machine has a twist knob instead.

The machine was locked up and rusted when I acquired it, I took it apart and oiled everything and got it turning. The motor is still good and works. I had to order a bobbin and bobbin case from eBay, it uses the old wishbone style bobbin. The machine now works great, I have already been sewing several blankets, jeans and other clothes.

What is strange this machine has no reverse, according to what I read you have to put the stich on short #1 to tie off the ending.

If anyone can provide any information, I would really appreciate it I'm going to upload images, the only numbers on the machine are 63X8625 on the back copper plate, 9095-R on the back, and 813 underneath.

Thanks.

 

@Drew
@Shangas
@Roaring20s

....may have some thoughts here........

 

Looks like a pretty standard sewing machine from the mid-to-late 20s. The model is a WHITE "Rotary" unless I'm mistaken. The black-crackle finish came out in the 20s, but it didn't last very long. I think it was harder to clean or less durable or something, and people weren't interested in it.

Machines of this era rarely had reverse-mechanisms on them. I have a machine from about 1900, 1910, which has forward-reverse gearing, but that's a German vibrating-shuttle machine. On American machines like this, forward-reverse stitching didn't happen until the late 1950s, I believe.

 

I don't know if this helpful in any way, or even related, but 'Kenmore' was the name Sears & Roebuck (later just Sears) used on appliances they sold as the house brand. I have no idea when they first began to do this.

 

One thing I would suggest is getting the machine re-wired. Something that's on 95-100 years old will likely have very dodgy electrics by modern standards. Find an electrician or sewing machine tech who does that sorta stuff, and get them to completely re-wire the machine.

It only has to be done once, and you'll be glad it has been. I got my grandmother's SINGER rewired back in '24, because it'd been 75 years since it was new. The repairman even updated the lights to LED!!