Featured Singer 128 V.S. Domestic Sewing Machine (1936)

Sewing machines have always fascinated me. Probably because my grandmother was a dressmaker for 40 years.

Either way, I've always loved antique sewing machines. Their beauty and decorations, their functionality, and the fact that they were one of the marvels of 19th century design, styling and engineering.

I have two sewing machines. My grandmother's which I inherited when she died, and this one:



I bought this in 2012 and it took me two years to restore it. I had to find bobbins, attachments, the oil-can, the lid, the key, the second cover-plate, I had to clean it, oil it, scrub it over to remove 80 years of dust and grime. I had to fix the hand-crank and the bobbin-winder (it took three attempts but I finally got it working flawlessly!).



Here is the 'Puzzle Box' that went along with the machine. It's 99% complete. The sharp-eyed will notice ONE item missing. One day, I'll track it down, and return it to the fold.

The machine is fully functional and everything works. I use it every now and then for small projects, and to repair clothes.

--- --- --- ---

Just to clarify, the missing item in the puzzle-box is the secondary, miniature screwdriver. Not the bobbin! I have a full set of five original antique Singer bobbins for the machine. Four in the box, one in the shuttle.

 

NICE

When I was a kid in the 60's I learned how to sew on my Grandmother's old Singer. I still remember the bullet bobbin as opposed to the round ones of today.

I still have my Morse machine I bought used in the late 60's and I still love and prefer it over the modern ones.



I found a better one like mine

 

Beautiful job cleaning it up!

My mother has one just like it but it folds into a table. She still uses it.

 

This took quite a while to clean. Every time I thought I was done with it, something else popped up that needed fixing/cleaning. First I had to fix the bobbin-winder, which was an absolute nightmare. I tried cleaning it.

Nothing.

Tightening the screw.

Nothing.

Loosening the screw.

Nothing.

Lubricating the gears.

Nothing.

The thing that FINALLY stopped it from jamming up was inserting a new washer. It provided the tension or whatever, that stopped the screw from getting too tight, and jamming up the movement. It now works perfectly.

The decals on this machine were brown with dust and grime and cigarette smoke and God knows what else. I tried cleaning it off with oil...which did nothing at all. In the end I used extremely fine steel wool to scrape off all the gunk.

Here's a few BEFORE & AFTER pictures I took, of when I was cleaning the machine's decals. You'll soon see what I mean when I say they were BROWN with gunk!!




The white specks are all just dust. I didn't damage the japanning or anything.




Just to be clear - I'm not scraping off any PAINT. I'm just scrubbing off 80 years' worth of gunk and grime that's caked and dried onto the paintwork, because this thing sat for 50 years in a barn somewhere in England. Scraping all that junk off reveals the original colours of the decals underneath.

Here's a photo of the badge...



And here it is after I scrubbed it over with the steel wool:



Not TOO much of a difference, but at least now it doesn't look like it was dug out of a pond! Oh yes, and you can see the serial number.

EA-556-027.

That dates it to 1936.

 

Gorgeous machine

 

You did a very nice job on it, Shangas!

 

I have never used a hand crank machine but I think it must be quite easy to control, not galloping away under motor power when one is trying to stitch a precise and twisting seam. It's a beauty! Does it stitch backwards as well as forwards?

*stars*

 

Hi Stars,

Yeah like with a treadle machine, this one requires muscle-power to get it going. It's very easy to use and it has very very easy control. One reason why I like using it.

But no, it's a straight-stitch, single-direction machine.

German sewing machines of the same era DID stitch forwards and backwards, but Singer for some reason only started producing two-way machines AFTER WWII.

The Singer 99, manufactured from 1924-1962 or something like that, only started making two-way machines in like...maybe the last...10 years of production?

Singer 201s made from the 1930s onwards, I don't think had reverse-stitching until the 1950s.

Neither did Singer 27/28 models like this. Although the Singer 27/28 model WAS one of the longest-lasting machines they made. It came out in the...1870s I believe. And didn't stop production until the 1960s.

German sewing machines of the same era (Frister & Rossman, Sidel & Naumann etc) all had two-way movement, as well as auto-stop bobbin-winders. Features that Singer 12, Singer 27, Singer 28 models etc, never had. Why, I have no idea. I guess the Americans and British weren't that adventurous.

 

Very informative, Shangas. Thank you!

 

Shangas, I have some old parts that go with a puzzle box. Can you show me a picture of the piece you need to complete your box and I will see if I have it?

 

Oh please! Don't feel the need to send me anything. I'll find it eventually. I'm only a poor writer with not much money for antiques, anyway. Especially if it has to be posted overseas.

 

I'm seeing several puzzle boxes on ebay......maybe the 2nd screw diver is in one of them .
just an fyi..

 

driver......not diver.......that's a whole different thang.....lol..

 

Batches of old Singer parts show up at the local flea-market almost every week. Sooner or later the screwdriver I want will show up for $1.

 

I have some sewing things listed on my site. onlineauction.com/store/4lllls feel free to check the site. I have a thimble collection I started a few years ago. I am not a sewer.
I hope this is ok to do.
Lee

 

Welcome to the site Lee.
There's a place to post items for sale.......but it's the holidays ....so no worries !

 

I have two old Singers - my mother's and my aunt's - and a White - my other aunt's. I also have lots of spare parts. Please do show a photo of what you need and I will send it gratis. I'd rather have someone have it for free than have it sitting in a drawer with many duplicates.

 

Fortunately, my local fabric store also repairs these old machines and has the belts. I much prefer the treadle to the electric. When I step on the electric it whirrs away so fast I feel out of control!

 

Hi Bev,

Here:



The first screwdriver on the extreme right. Then next to it is the large screwdriver (which I have), and then the hole-punch (which I also have). But I don't have that smaller screwdriver. It's the last missing piece to the set.