Anyone else have one?
I was in an antique/secondhand store over the weekend, and they had four for sale - a Singer, a White, one with an Italian name, but made in Japan, and another with just letters and numbers but no name. All about the same price (150 - 200 dollars). I have always wanted a treadle for some reason, though I have never used one. I learned to sew on my mother's Singer Featherweight, and loved that machine, but of course it was electric. I just love the looks of the old machines. Modern machines may do more, but they have lost the elegance of the older models. So I thought about it for awhile, and succumbed
. I chose the Singer, assuming that parts etc. would be easier to find. After a bit of internet research I find that my "new" machine was built in 1906, and, indeed, parts, and manuals, are relatively easy to find. In fact, I was able to print out the user's manual from the internet. It needs a bit of clean up, and oiling, but appears to be all there. There were no accessories included, but there are four long, skinny bobbins.
I have had a very basic model electric machine from Montgomery Ward for the last 30+ years. It still does its job, and I won't be tossing it away, but it has no decorative value whatsoever. I am really looking forward to getting to know the Singer. (This is really basic - it only goes forward, no reverse)
I was in an antique/secondhand store over the weekend, and they had four for sale - a Singer, a White, one with an Italian name, but made in Japan, and another with just letters and numbers but no name. All about the same price (150 - 200 dollars). I have always wanted a treadle for some reason, though I have never used one. I learned to sew on my mother's Singer Featherweight, and loved that machine, but of course it was electric. I just love the looks of the old machines. Modern machines may do more, but they have lost the elegance of the older models. So I thought about it for awhile, and succumbed
. I chose the Singer, assuming that parts etc. would be easier to find. After a bit of internet research I find that my "new" machine was built in 1906, and, indeed, parts, and manuals, are relatively easy to find. In fact, I was able to print out the user's manual from the internet. It needs a bit of clean up, and oiling, but appears to be all there. There were no accessories included, but there are four long, skinny bobbins.I have had a very basic model electric machine from Montgomery Ward for the last 30+ years. It still does its job, and I won't be tossing it away, but it has no decorative value whatsoever. I am really looking forward to getting to know the Singer. (This is really basic - it only goes forward, no reverse)
Kidding aside, my wife loved using the thing, but an accident during our move from Louisiana to Arkansas destroyed the wooden case. We still have the machine and the treadle base, though.
You can secure the stitches at the beginning and end of a seam by using the smallest stitch length for about 3 to 5 stitches. You can also leave a 3 or 4 inch tail of thread and use the upper and lower threads to tie an over hand knot at the beginning and end of the seam. 
I bet it's a beautiful machine!
