danhopgood

Jimi, Sorry I was mixing my units up there - for 250mm read 10". It's helpful of you to confirm I wasn't too far out with my my guesswork on the treadle wheel diameter. Saw your advert - the 8608 following pinion would fit my machine - thankfully there's not too much play in the shuttle drive on my machine, so I'll let the old parts soldier on I think - they're only 108 years old after all. I went to Scotland on holiday a couple of weeks ago and went to Clydebank Town Hall. where they have some interesting Singer machines on display - including a 29k (58), along with some of the history. From the serial number, my machine was made sometime between July and December 1911. It was interesting to be reminded when at the museum that the manufacture date on my machine was very soon after a serious strike, which ended in April 1911. It obviously didn't affect the quality of the machine.....

I pushed hte boat out and got a replacement , new, presser bar for a "71", which did fit the "15". Took a bit of work to get the taper pin to fit snugly, but once that was done things have been looking up. Nearly all play has been removed and I'm down to 6 stitches per inch, which is as good as it's going to get on a machine where the original spec is 7 stitches an inch. I'm happy with it now, although I'm working on converting my home built treadle table (for a domestic) to suit the 29k. I realise the gearing will be wrong, so I'm using a reduction arrangement with two pulleys. Diameter of the treadle table wheel is 14". I'm taking that to a 6" wheel, then from a 4 1/2" wheel to the machine. That I'm hoping by guesswork of the diameter of the original treadle wheel at 250mm should give roughly the same gearing.

Jimi, Thanks for your kind words and you were spot on to say I'd need to file again. I had to file down the circular section of the bellcrank to stop it jamming and then once I'd sorted that discovered the forked section iof the bellcrank is over a millimetre thicker than the central presser bar, so the presser bar flops about and adds a load of slop. I'll have to file that down too to get it working as well as the old part. Not great at all really. Even when I've done that the stitch length won't relly be any longer. I think the new machines that go up to 5 stitches per inch must have a higher lift on the circular ring to get the extra length.

Thanks for the replies - already I think the mystery has been solved. Having seen your post Jimi, I went and checked the .pdf Singer parts book I downloaded that runs all the way from the 29k1 up into the k30's. Checking the pinon part numbers in the book, the k12, k13, k14, k15 and k16 are different to both the earlier machines and later ones and manufactured with three round pinions, as mine has. Therefore I've revised my thinking and that my machine isn't modified, but is as it was made in 1911. Perhaps I misinterpreted the post I read elsewhere on the forum. I suppose it doesn't actually matter which pinion system is on my machine as parts aren't available for any of the options anyway. I think the pinions I have have got some life left in 'em yet, so I'll just have to look after them. Some pics and a link follow. https://danhopgood.files.wordpress.com/2019/07/1shot_20190709_1239151.jpg https://danhopgood.files.wordpress.com/2019/07/1shot_20190709_1239311.jpg https://danhopgood.wordpress.com/2019/07/05/singer-29-new-parts-on-old-machines/

I've just got a 29k15 that I bought minus lots of missing parts. I have now got it sewing - luckily the bits missing were available as new parts. The shuttle timing was all wrong as the machine had been stripped, cleaned and partly reassembled, but thanks to other posts on this forum I was able to put that right so thank you other posters. I am puzzled by the shuttle mechanism though. I've read on this forum there are three types of pinion system - an early two pinion system, a later, three pinion system and finally the two pinion system fitted to the last Singers and the later clone machines. I was expecting my machine to have the early two pinion system, but it has three pinions. Presumably my machine has been repaired and modified somehow in the past?