Buying An Old Sewing Machine
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Why?
Well, for a start, you might find it easier, cheaper, and less frustrating in the long run. Or you might be a sucker for a shiny black coat with gold twiddles on, or you may just like the idea of not throwing the old away just because the new exists..Or you may like tinkering...
I have used old machines all my life, and my regular machines - Singer Class 15 treadle, Bernina 730, and Singer 31k industrial, are all old enough to know how to do it for themselves. My only modern machine is an overlocker - after much experimentation and considerable amounts of swearing, I decided that old overlockers, while charming, are not practical beasties...
Scroll down the page for my machines for sale...
Practicalities
The world is full of old machines, but if you want to use one regularly you need to choose with a little care. If you plan to sew every day or every week it's no good getting something splendid but which has no regular supply of needles, and if you plan to do more than the odd small job, you don't want a Long Bobbin machine (too much bobbin-winding and spares may not be easy to get..)So, you come down to Singer, ideally, and Round Bobbin, absolutely, and the following models:- 15, 66, 99, 201, 185. All take the regular needles, regular feet, and round bobbins which are all still available. This is for a hand-cranked or treadle machine, of course. If you want a machine with a tail (electric) then the big solid mid-twentieth-century machines made by Singer, Jones, Frister and Rossman, Bernina and others may be just the job. If it gives you a hernia when you lift it, it's probably going to last.
Now, don't think I don't like modern machines, I just think that the general selection available is no longer admirable. If you were buying a machine in, say, 1950, you would expect to go to a special shop, pay a lot of money, get some measure of after-sales service, and never have to throw it away. Now you can buy one for about two-pence-three-farthings in Aldi or Tesco, and you get precisely what you don't pay for. The bottom-end machines in all ranges are for people who buy them and put them in the cupboard. I teach regularly, and I now have a note on my Class lists that I do not allow "toy" machines in class. They are very cheap, sure, and lightweight, certainly, and they are not electrically safe or usable for sewing at all. Sad, really...
Sadder still, most of the bottom-end-of-the-range machines are only just functional, and none will sew anything as heavy as canvas, denim, or webbing...
So, where do I find a Machine?
Start by asking your friends and relatives. There's one in almost every attic still. Might be free, or very cheap.Next, I would advertise in the local newsagents, local newspaper, Freecycle or work notice-board in your area. Machines are too heavy to post, and you want it nearby. My treadle came from an advert in the Post Office 30-odd years ago, and the chap delivered it for the (utterly paltry) price...
Then there's eBay. Look for local sellers. Look very carefully at the pictures. Does the machine have all the little plates that cover the bobbin? Is it clean? lit? the right way round? photographed somewhere clean? If not, don't bother to bid.
Does the seller say "I know nothing about this machine"? If they do, it may be broken, and they are covering their backs. Look at their feedback, and levels of literacy, and what else they sell...
I am always happy to give an opinion on eBay lots, providing you send me a link in good time. I don't guarantee the opinion, but I will tell you if something is obviously wrong with the machine. NEVER buy a lot without a picture!
And when you have bought your Dream Machine, do send a picture, and I'll sell you something nice to go with it...
Here's What I Have For Sale
COLLECTION ONLY
Immaculate and complete Singer 401G Slant Shank machine; PAT tested, serviced, with good case, all its cams, feets, book, etc...
£85
I also have a walking foot available for this machine...
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Jones Vibra long-bobbin machine with particularly nice decoration. With book, needles, and 2 bobbins. Case has suffered from 1950s restoration
£45
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4, The Raveningham Centre, Beccles Road, Raveningham, Norfolk, NR14 6NU. United Kingdom
01508 548137