$50 white whale SCORE! Singer 29-4!

[ensitmike]

Went to an unlisted estate sale today that I ran across... found my white whale there! The machine I've wanted but couldn't find (or couldn't afford it when I could find it).

 

A cobbler's, very well kept, singer 29-4 patcher! Just $50 out the door.

 

I don't know where to start. This is my first cylinder arm so there is some learning that has to be done. Very excited.

 

[Scoutmom103]

Congratulations.

 

[ensitmike]

1 hour ago, Scoutmom103 said:

Congratulations.

 

Thank you scoutmom. You’re about the only people who can appreciate the find, so I thought I’d share :p

[dikman]

For $50 you can't go wrong! Well done.

[Constabulary]

would have bought it for that money too. Hope its not too worn. But you find tons of information in the forum how to restore it.

[chrisash]

College sewing in the UK have a good selection of spare parts if you need any at reasonable prices, Great Price you did well

https://www.college-sewing.co.uk/store/Singer29K,29USewingMachineParts

[Constabulary]

29-4 only have very few parts in common with the later 29K71 - so be careful with parts from College Sewing.if you are unsure compare the parts lists / parts numbers. However a few parts can be modified to fit the 29-4 (like the bell crank lever). New parts for the 29-4 are almost unavailable. You may find some used parts but questions is are they better than yours?

I once have restored a very similar 29K1 - just to give you some hints:

 

[ensitmike]

7 hours ago, Constabulary said:

would have bought it for that money too. Hope its not too worn. But you find tons of information in the forum how to restore it.

You know, I kind of just used "the nack" and tore it down last night figuring id know how to put it back together. Its actually an amazingly simple machine! I was surprised. What engineers were able to do with cams was amazing.

 

It looks to be in great shape. Everything is there and it had a piece of test leather under the foot so he understood the "it functioned when I left it" thing. I'll post pictures later, because I do have a couple questions.

6 hours ago, Constabulary said:

29-4 only have very few parts in common with the later 29K71 - so be careful with parts from College Sewing.if you are unsure compare the parts lists / parts numbers. However a few parts can be modified to fit the 29-4 (like the bell crank lever). New parts for the 29-4 are almost unavailable. You may find some used parts but questions is are they better than yours?

I once have restored a very similar 29K1 - just to give you some hints:

 

Oh very cool! Thanks! I'll take a look.

9 hours ago, dikman said:

For $50 you can't go wrong! Well done.

Thanks! I'm excited. I plan on keeping it until I can find a later model. 

 

Might be a while haha.

6 hours ago, chrisash said:

College sewing in the UK have a good selection of spare parts if you need any at reasonable prices, Great Price you did well

https://www.college-sewing.co.uk/store/Singer29K,29USewingMachineParts

I was very lucky its in fully working order. Even the motor. 

 

Appreciate the resource though! Maybe if something goes wrong in the future.

[ensitmike]

Hey everyone. Had a question. These rolls are what were in the machine and also what came with it. Do the 29-4 machines not have bobbins?

Is there alternatives or self winding options? Is this obsolete now?

Thanks for any info.

 

Edited May 5, 2019 by ensitmike

[SARK9]

Those are "pre-wound" bobbins which are commercially produced to eliminate the metal bobbins in industrial machines. The "style" for a 29-4 is a (number) 19,  the small bobbin patcher size,  whereas the "large bobbin" version is a style (letter) I as far as I can tell. I have no idea who may still be offering them.

 

-DC

Edited May 5, 2019 by SARK9

[ensitmike]

6 minutes ago, SARK9 said:

Those are "pre-wound" bobbins which are commercially produced to eliminate the metal bobbins in industrial machines. The "style" for a 29-4 is a (number) 19,  the small bobbin patcher size,  whereas the "large bobbin" version is a style (letter) I as far as I can tell. I have no idea who may still be offering them.

 

-DC

Thanks DC. I plan on going to my city's industrial district tomorrow to see if I can grab one.

 

 

Here are some photos after a light cleaning for the rest of you all. Need to grab some kerosene for the caked on bits. Brushing with oil only got me so far. 

Also, what is popular opinion--keep the patina or restore finish on metal parts?

 

Edited May 5, 2019 by ensitmike

[Wizcrafts]

Bobbins, needles and shuttles are available for all 29 series patchers. Prewound bobbins are also still available, but hard to find. The small ones are sold by the gross.

You are missing a tapered pin that holds the needle bar to the take-up barrel. That pin is sold in the aftermarket.

[ensitmike]

31 minutes ago, Wizcrafts said:

Bobbins, needles and shuttles are available for all 29 series patchers. Prewound bobbins are also still available, but hard to find. The small ones are sold by the gross.

You are missing a tapered pin that holds the needle bar to the take-up barrel. That pin is sold in the aftermarket.

That is great news. I've been a bit out of the loop focusing on making rather than machines and forgot along the way that I actually want a large bobbin 29k.

 

I'll restore this one and see what happens from there. Thank you for the info. Will definitely be picking up some bobbins for this on Monday.

[dikman]

A bit hard to tell from your photos but the finish doesn't look too bad. I'd be inclined to clean it up as best I could and leave it at that. Potentially probably has more value with the original lettering etc on it.

[ensitmike]

22 minutes ago, dikman said:

A bit hard to tell from your photos but the finish doesn't look too bad. I'd be inclined to clean it up as best I could and leave it at that. Potentially probably has more value with the original lettering etc on it.

 oh absolutely. when it comes to finish I would only hot rod it if I was planning on keeping it haha. I don't mind the grey and black machine that Constabulary did if I ever find a 29k.

By restore I just mean a proper tear-down and surface rust removal. It's in surprisingly good shape. Doesn't have the largest SPI because of wear but it seem decent.