Wyowally

Pictures tomorrow Uwe. This thread: Presser Lift Eccentric Assembly/Disassembly help need Singer 211G165 - Leather Sewing Machines - Leatherworker.net is about a similar problem on a 211G165. That eccentric has a collar and spring which the 111w155 does not - a feature evidently borrowed from the stitch length eccentric. I'm not desperate - my feet are lifting equally almost 1/4" now.

I got a lot of help here with my original list of questions. I'm down to trying to understand this eccentric and it's design, parts, and operation. I've seen the picture of the grooved interior on Superior's catalog. I've fiddled with mine, and not knowing anything have been able to change lift somewhat for both feet. Read the manuals and looked at the illustrations. On mine, it appears there is a blank hole, then a threaded hole with no screw, a smaller headed screw just below the larger headed worm screw. Thinking I need a set screw in that empty threaded hole. When I loosen the smaller screw the whole eccentric spins on the shaft. I can change lift (unpredictably) by turning the large screw. Somewhat. The large screw will also turn with the set screw tight but not sure it changes anything. A description of how this works mechanically would be great! I'm thinking one screw should hold it on the shaft and stay tight, the other screw loosens the two pieces of the eccentric so the one with the worm threading can move or act as a stop for adjusting. I might be over-thinking. I'm loving this and thinking about a total restore. The paint on the inside of the balance wheel is flaky, but no luck so far with those set screws. Done overnight PB Blaster and some heat so far, custom ground a long reach screwdriver tip. Don't have to do it, just want to. Help appreciated!

Sloop, I'll have to measure it in my shop, 3 miles away. It is pretty wide. The BV was marketed as a 'tailor's machine' according to some sources. I think the throat may be a little wider than the Singer 111w155.

Don and Bob, Thanks for your advice and comments. I've nearly got it where I want. Only a few thoughts. Back to the foot lift eccentric. Mine has a set screw, a worm adjuster screw, plus two holes - one threaded and one not. I found a place on the shaft where the collar held by the "set" screw seems happiest. I believe but haven't confirmed that the worm screw is designed to be adjusted without loosening any set screw. At least on mine it does and I can regulate the height of each foot during the sewing cycle from zero to nearly a quarter inch. According to the text in Singer's materials, this "ability to adjust presser height for both feet allows the user to change height to match thicker or thinner materials". Don't know what the other holes are yet. This whole process should not be confused with adjusting the lift using the hand or knee lifter. Don, you've gone to a lot of effort to help me along - appreciated! As I said it is sewing pretty well. I'm still puzzled by what I call check spring bounce and it may all be normal and natural. When the upper thread is brought around by the hook and slips off, it goes by the opener just fine. About the time it is pulled out of view near the bobbin case tab, ready to pull the bobbin thread, the check spring bounces up maybe an eighth inch. Maybe it is just reacting to the stitch getting pulled tight. Probably. Bob, I understand about some places being tighter than others during the wheel rotation cycle. It is working fine. What I've seen on mine is if the foot pressure is screwed down to mid range AND that foot lift height during sewing is way higher than it needs to be for material thickness (like I described in the eccentric adjuster above) - then the machine has more resistance for a longer period of time raising the spring more than it needs to. I have never been able to decipher old illustrations of oiling points. I use the obvious openings, search for wicks, and drip oil on every joint and bushing area I can find. Super Lube on gears. Wondering what others do. I have friends who accuse me of over-analyzing things, researching too much, and reaching incorrect conclusions. Not sure how they arrived at that conclusion.

I haven't found a reference for positioning the lifter eccentric on the shaft. I just kept turning it and setting the setscrew and trying it until it seemed to give me free turning and good motion. Then the worm screw does change operating foot height. Then adjust the exterior pinch screw so there was no interference with the rear presser bar. Tom

Wow, Don, thanks for the information and the catalog! What a resource - just spent 30 minutes looking at illustrated, labeled parts. That helps tremendously. I have adjusted the case opener without knowing - case? what case? what is getting opened? - The relationship between the opener, the tab on the hook base, and the needle plate slot were unknown to me. I just moved the opener to where it worked! Will investigate adjust and polish today. The little "hitch" I feel when turning the hand wheel through the cycle could well be tied to that. What I did notice earlier was some thread hesitation as it came across the back corner of the bobbin case latch itself. Slight, but there. Will polish that today too. I am not hesitant to polish and smooth things. Often, I will use a Dremel with the finest sanding disc available, nearly worn out, slow speed, for shining and polishing. Also use various grades of wet-or-dry paper up to 2000. If something really needs shined up I use Flitz polish on it. (Another gunsmithing common product). Even use fine grit diamond products sometimes. The fishhook sharpeners will touch up a needle in a pinch without shortening it. Thanks again.

Don in Reno, thanks. Yes it is the machine from Rawlins (not Rawlings). We did a barter/swap for some upholstery work and we are both happy. Having worked on a number of really older Singers I found that they had their own screw factory and they had screw sizes and pitches proprietary or unique to them. I'm careful about that. I do some gunsmithing as well, so am fairly well screw educated. (Wife may disagree!) The machine is running well, I believe I have the mechanicals pretty well set. Worked over the knee lifter today. It was mounted too far right resulting in having an angled push rather than a straight shot. Much better now. Also discovered that the last vertical shaft going up to the bell crank cannot be straight, but bent to put zero bind on the crank. After I straightened it, of course. I am experiencing the slightest catch felt when rotating the hand wheel. I think the thread is catching on the tip of the bobbin case latch, just haven't fixed that. I was using V92 bonded poly on vinyl, but the needle was a chisel point and the holes were too big for the thread, and I really don't like starting cuts in vinyl. Changed to an old Singer 16. Much better looking stitches, tighter overall. Pic is the actual machine. It doesn't show the mud dauber nest I found in the hollow below the crank! Thanks again for your input! Tom

Thanks, Bob. I did get the tensioner. Seems like someone lost the internal pin and cobbled one out of a nail. It was truly a nail. I made my own from an extra punch and got it the right length, but did bend the tab as you suggested. Got most of my other concerns taken care of for now. The long rod that gets pushed to the tensioner was worn. I forged the ends down and smoothed them up and gained 2mm or so, that helped, too. Whoever installed the knee lifter didn't take into account the arm going up into the machine needs direct vertical force to overcome the presser spring. They had it off to the side and trying to push from an angle. The last thing today I just kept rotating the lifter eccentric on the shaft a little at a time until things came together OK. Location of each pinch screw clamp for the foot shafts seems to be critical as well, but not much tells you where they go. Loving this project.

Hoping for some answers soon, no replies yet

I acquired one of these just a week ago. It is my first of this type, but I'm not new to machines at all. I've hit all the resources, copied files, read and re-read. Our forum here seems to have the most knowledge. So far I've cleaned up, lubed, checked and reset adjustments. Cleaned up the locked up stitch selector and reset it. Does what it should now. Has a Consew csm550-1 servo motor. I have it stitching pretty well. I have an old Necchi BV with clutch motor that I went through and it sews well. It will start smooth and go pretty slow, I need that. On the Singer I didn't like the fine line between brake release and power on, so removed the brake shoe. Also installed a smaller motor pulley. All good. The questions: The manual lifter barely disengages the thread tension. I think all the pieces are there as there is some movement of the pin coming out that engages the tension unit itself. Just not much. What is normal, what can be done to improve the pin travel? I've watched Uwe's video, but his machine isn't identical. Next: I should have taken a pic, but at the bottom of the rear presser bar is a clamp that the foot lifter rides on. The clamp is held by a small screw accessed from the rear. How do you determine where to set the clamp, once you've moved it without marking original location? Finally, I have tried to eliminate slop in the knee lifter mechanism. When I remove it all, then the rear foot doesn't have adequate pressure on a couple layers of vinyl. Pretty sure I have no force from the lifter, just zero slop. Still puzzling over that. One more: the tensioner check spring doesn't move smoothly, it hops around as the arm is lifting. I think the very end of the outer part of the spring is wanting to rotate and snagging where it rides on the hub of the controller disc. Maybe. Actual tensioner action is smooth, discs clean. Nearly all the screws on this old machine show marks from poor-fitting screwdrivers - making me question the previous work and forcing me to learn and re-do all the common settings. Perfect! No better way to learn a machine. I'm almost there.

I tried something I didn't see talked about here. The grease sort of worked, but even with trying to align and adjust things perfectly, I was still getting an objectionable gronking and groaning sound when trying to start smoothly and go slow. Not knowing the wisdom of it, I went ahead and took a 150 grit sanding disc and slipped it between the clutch face and the flywheel surface then eased them together just enough to feel the drag from the disc. Flipped it 180 degrees and did the other surface as well. All I can tell you is the noise is gone and it all works better. I've got the pedal at an angle that works for me and the clutch brake engages the way I want when I back off. Wyowally

Eric, Would you share what the special grease is, or where to get it? I've seen references from everything like Vaseline to white lithium, and some saying "No, no, it will wreck the facings" to "No problem, white lithium makes it a smoother transition". Wyowally

Mine is a one-holer. I'd sure like to see some of the original instructions to new workers using these machines. We all think it is bad to slip a clutch because of our vehicle experience. The factory workers weren't sewing with these things running wide open constantly were they? My belief was these sewing machine clutches were designed to slip and for the clutch facings to be expendable items. I know I'm liking mine the way it is.

I was chasing this topic here and elsewhere. I tried something I haven't seen mentioned - I just moved the pedal attachment point from the top to a little .less than halfway down the right side. Easy experiment, pedal must move through twice as much arc, sweet spot for slow and backstitching easier to find and maintain. I'm still learning and getting more comfortable with greater speed, but this helps a lot for now. Wyowally