Anne Bonnys Locker

I go around to farm field days, markets and shows every weekend selling my little and crank machines and at least two or three times a week I get asked if it is a 'saddlery machine'. Short answer "NO", however, I have sold several to saddlers, upholsterers, motor trimmers, leather workers and all manner of other sewers. Why? It is another tool in their arsenal for doing odd jobs. As everyone has been saying, there is no one machine that will do everything. If the budget stretches to a 441 clone then you have a very versatile machine but if you are really serious you will undoubtedly finish up with three or four or more.

All of this effort to run a machine at the speed of a treadle

That machine needs a bloody good clean out before you go too much further. Remove whatever bits come out easily then get in there with a good cleaning brush or even a tooth brush.

Hi ray, I would go for a Servo motor and simply rig up a hand control for it. Do you have sideways knee control to rig up a control that way?

Try the base off an old dentist or barbers chair as they will be more stable. I like the office chair strut idea but fear you will bounce as you stitch.

There is a pin removal tool available. The smallest ones are used on pushbike chains with the design such that the back is supported to avoid bending, or, in this case, terminal cracking. When driving pins out you should use a 'drift', something made of a softer metal than the pin. Brass is good as it will not deform the pin head.

I would be fairly confident that this machine never, ever had reverse. It weighs about 168 pounds, is a flatbed and could possibly sew through 3/4" of plywood (possibly exaggerating there). It is the monster of machines but probably not what you want.

Do you actually need to remove all of them? Once you get the main one out from the top rocker arm the whole rocker arm can be lifted out.

I sell them set up more for the home sewer who wants something that can put in a lot of hours without giving up the ghost.

sort of found an answer. The 97-4 needle is 2 3/4" long, same as the needle for the '7'. So I suppose the next question is why doesn't the Singer 7 needle fit? Can the needle clamp be modified?

Hi Bob, Do you know the dimensions of the needle for the 97-10? I have a couple of contacts with old stock here in Australia so if you know the system I may be able to find something. On a similar note - I have a needle in a hand crank machine from China that is about 1/4" longer than the Singer 7 needle. Any idea what this might be? It is a new production needle but the machine supplier is a bit vague.

The problem with a lot of ebay product is lack of support. Some sellers just sell boxes and know nothing about the contents. This isn't true for all so do some homework on the seller and if sewing machines is not their main business then be very wary.

I am a collector of old machines. Usually that sort of monster, if it is under $300 is best to grab and worry about the details later. Those things can change hands for big bucks.

A quick note about Singer numbering. 20 is the model series. The '-' means made in USA (usually) whereas the 'U' stands for Japan (I think). 'K' is Kilbowie Scotland, 'P' Penrith in Sydney Australia, etc. The last digits indicate the version which in the case of the 20U refers to different stitch widths only. Just to confuse things, the '20' was also used on another model way back pre 1900.........

It is a difficult question to answer. The value is only what someone wants to pay so if you are selling to someone who wants a ready to use machine then it may be worth more but to a collector it is ruined. I suggest making the changes and keeping the bits as right now the real question is the value of what the machine can do for you.

There are two bars, one for the foot, the other driving the mechanism for foot motion. Are both bars moving up and down? Look at what should be happening at the head end. Post a picture of the top of the head from a couple of angles.

Is the cam turning with the shaft or has the screw come loose? The foot lifts via a spring but the bar that drives the walking motion is positively driven. Compare the two machines as it is possible the top of the bar has fatigued and cracked off. The two machines should be similar so try comparing what is going on with the working machine and what isn't happening on the other. I am going off what happens with a Bradbury clone but they are very similar in operation.

Being a collector of machines I would have bought one of the Union Specials just because they are an odd shape.

What they said! Call the guy yesterday and say yes.

They are made in China by half a dozen different companies but the castings and major components seem to originate in the same place by the tooling marks. The new machine does not look much bigger until you place them side by side and you realise it is about 3 times as large. I've only spent about ten minutes with it but punching through 5 layers of 8-9 oz veg tan wasn't too hard even with the rubbish needle supplied and a good quality needle should give better results. I used the heaviest thread I have - probably 8 or 10 ticket poly - and it didn't even touch the sides of the eye!!

Today I picked up a pallet of machines from the customs agents warehouse in Sydney so I can prepare some stock for an event on the weekend. The pallet I picked had some new versions of the machine I call the ABLE290 - have a look at the pics of the standard machine on my facebook page. The new machine is a monster. Imagine a shortened Bradbury on steroids with a 216X1 needle (same as a 132K6) and a foot lift of nearly an inch. Unlike the 29k, the stitch length is constant regardless of material thickness so it will probably sew through the best part of 3/4" of anything and give around a 1/2" stitch length. Obviously I need to put it through it's paces and I can already see one potential problem. These machines use the same pivot arm to drive the needle bar as used on a Singer 15 clone and they are not brilliantly made. In the short term I will get some better quality ones from India but for this beast I might get something custom made for the job. Pics will follow in the next few days. Should have put in my f/b address http://www.facebook.com/AnneBonnysLocker

sort of looks like an enlarged and twisted late model 24 series.

They are one cool looking machine!

I have a lovely Fortuna in Black but shipping would be a killer )

Right emoticon simran. Don't think I've ever seen one. It probably used a heavier version of the standard old treadle with a couple of brackets to widen it. I think we have one somewhere here that houses a Singer 16 so I will see if I can dig it out.