How I converted a Sewing Machine into a Boat Anchor

[MEASURE TWICE]

I should have at least waited until I sewed the imitation leather vinyl fabric seat covers for my boat with the foam, I cut real nice with my jig arc radius hot wire foam cutter.


I let that job sit for about 6 months and just today I wanted to shorted the sleeves om my Polartec Dry Suit Undergarment Jump Suit used with my Dry Suit for SCUBA.

The trouble started when trying to sew the thick fleece fabric and jamming thread at the needle under the foot plate.

It was not total broken as I was able to sew some light fabric and then tried using Frog Tape to paste on the thick fleece and have it help get the needle to not jam as I heard helps for this kind of fabric.

Just when it did not help and another jam happened, how are you supposed to clear a jam so as not to stress anything to breaking point. Well, I did just try to turn the flywheel enough to get at the threads and clear it.

That I guess with so many years and the prior owner that used it and forwarded it to me. The fix I thought was going to be an adjustment after the clearing of the jam as the needle was not in synchronicity with the thing that is underneath the foot with the bobbin. A moving pointed edge thingy supposed to line up with the area where a loop of thread right by the eye of the needle.


I believe it is called the shuttle. It was off a bit and I went to adjust it by loosening a set screw on a gear and repositioning to get synchronized again. Just like in the YouTube video.



Only problem was multiple problems. Once it was adjusted then trying a full revolution of the flywheel it was off again. Why in &$%& nation? OK, then I find gears not meshing elsewhere. Then Ah Ha moment and hidden are half the plastic gear teeth on what I thought were metal teeth. No those were where the plastic used to be attached to the metal part of the gear. I found the set of teeth broken off. Hey would Crazy Glue do it! 3D printer?



Back in 1970 the machine was made and I expect that plastic used to create this.... well, ½ a century I guess is what it was good for. Now I can salvage the table and use it for another machine that used full metal gears.



I expect it will be OK. May have to do some adjustment to the table so I can drop the older machine in.



Say what would be the likelihood of getting that gear part? It either has very small 2 set screws, but I think really it is a roll pin. An access hole relieved itself after I removed a panel on the front of the machine.

 

[Tom from Rubicon]

MT,
Name and model no. google search. Commercial equipment is usually rebuildable. Plastic gears act like shear pins.
Tom

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Looks like in a week for 21 dollars I'll have the replacement gear for the one that broke and the one it meshes with just as a precaution, buying the set.

Have to figure how to remove jam without turning any thing. Maybe take out needle and foot plate if possible and use tweezers & cutters?

Saw a few videos. Both with different machines, but close enough to tell how I can do on my Singer 648. Upper Vert Hook Gear and Horizontal Drive Gear that meshes with Hook Gear. Parts on Ebay seller has the model matching and also pictures and pictorial where the parts are in the machine.

One guy in the video has a few long scratches on his forearm. Hope I can avoid that. The second video has non-English speaking, but excellent quality picture. So all in all I have a good idea what to do. Did not want to really do the second gear which is not broken as it seems like a lot of other stuff to remove and put back, but you know if one gear broke and the one it meshes with is not replaced. The what ifs will haut!

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

One of the gears looks a little different than the replacement. It has a hex set screw instead of a screw driver slotted. There is a difference in the metal part of the gear. There is still the same metal with plastic attached teeth. Will just maybe use the other machine mean while.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Parts arrived. I was thinking maybe too much work without exact disassembly/assembly/adjust videos for my specific machine. One part is hard to get at without removing a lot of stuff. If I change only one gear that broke, the gear that meshes with the replacement maybe compromised. Just because both parts did not break was not enough for me to not order both parts. After looking around the machine I see how I may be able to get the thing disassembled and back again. There seems to be no other adjustment than what I think I see on the shaft that holds the needle. Since all the drives have gears and flat spot on shaft for set screw, this one looks as though it has possibly a clamp effect with a set screw. That would allows small adjustment to get needle to be where it should be adjacent to the shuttle catch for top thread under the foot plate. Too tired to look at it after errands today. One of the replacement parts I though was made wrong. Drilled off center for the shaft. A picture later. It is sort of cheesy made. Since the gear teeth are plastic molded onto metal, they have a hole drilled in the metal part. But it is drilled off center. Still the plastic gear teeth are centered in relation to the hole in the metal. Then I realized it will work. And I could see the side off center allows for more metal for the threads on the set screw. But is this how to save money on a part using less metal? It does not spin fast enough for a problem with balance so I guess it is OK. Even the heavier original part is not evenly balanced, so there should not be any problem. Will take lots of pictures so I can remember how it goes back together. This should fair better than a camera that the frame counter would not move and I tried to fix. The pieces are bigger in a sewing machine. Also in todays world with digital cameras in phones that you can have a gizillion photos on, I hope I get all the details saved.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

I know my Dad was not too happy with my trying to fix that camera, but he did always want me to learn to fix stuff so he kept it down I suppose. If I just had not lost the nice old fashioned counter that my grand father gave me I could have used that. Steam ship job he had he used that counter I had him tell me. Stories of competitor steam ship running a river in races to get more of the passenger loads. I think he was on the winning ship. Would races with passengers aboard be allowed today like back then, I think not?