How to Select, Service, Repair & Maintain your Vintage Sewing Machine Paperback – January 11, 2015

My husband & I both enjoy sewing - and tinkering. We have at this moment seven vintage (1905-1967) sewing machines, acquired through inheritance, Ebay (well-researched and under-priced work horses), thrift sales and free-for-the-hauling. Beyond general cleaning instructions, we were on our own - until this wonderful book! Features include clear, well-labelled, up-close photos and detailed, orderly instructions for servicing, as well as URLs to resources I hadn't been able to find. The sections on motors were thorough from cleaning to re-wiring. This is way better than poorly filmed and unedited YouTubes you have to replay to decipher the audio. We may even resuscitate a White Family Rotary treadle machine - I couldn't believe there was a threading diagram for our machine. You must have this book before you purchase a vintage machine, if only to refer the seller to the vastly important, but all too often skipped, packaging steps. [We're on our way to competing with our friend who has *15* machines! But you have to divide our collection by 2...] Armed with this book, we're prepared for the maintenance tasks ahead. Onward to sewing adventures!

This may be the only book available out there on this subject, designed for real people not shop pros. Covers basic knowledge of vintage and why they are worth it to restore. Gives actual recommendations on products, with names and where sold. Tells clearly what to avoid to not damage machines with wrong methods or products. Starts you with cleaning machine and NOT turning it on or plugging in until you determine it is safe and or won't damage motor if frozen up. Eventually gets into basic wiring. I found it extremely easy to follow and it gave me the courage to tackle what doesn't have extensive damage or is rusted and unsaveable. She reminds us that these vintage machines ARE still around 199 years later because they were so well made, simple to maintain, simple to fix, and meant to last. It is only lack of care that damages them. So go for it ladies!

Lots of great photos from a variety of pre 1960s machines to give the reader a lot of information on how to refurbish a sewing machine. She uses the Singer Featherweight, Singer 201-2, Singer 27 and 66 as examples. I liked the information on the 201 the most because I have not seen a lot of information on it. Also provides information on what to look for if you want to buy and refurbish a machine, how to pack for shipping and some tips on what to do if you have problems. Overall a great book to have on hand to give you ideas on what to consider when you have problems with these types of machines. And a good explanation on timing which I plan to use on the Singer 29k to see if I can get it working.

If you have no clue how machines from the golden age work and how to make them work better, this is the book for you. The text and photos are clear and instructive. It's not the most comprehensive, but it will give you a great place to start and for many people there will be no need to go further, unless you get the bug. A great value from a self published book.

A succinct but very well written, richly illustrated introduction to vintage sewing machine maintenance and repair. Annotated with many web links and resources for finding additional information on specific manufacturers/brands, parts, tools, supplies and manuals. Superb photographic images and repair-how-to illustrations, of machines from the 1890s to the late 1960s. Specific chapters cover such topics as machine dating, maintenance procedures, timing, motors, restoration, refurbishing, storage, packaging/shipping and general topics such as threading and needle/thread/fabric combinations. If you own or collect older classic, made-to-last vintage machines, then this book belongs in your library.

Good book for newbies.

I actually purchased this book for my husband as I mentioned to him I love my "old" machines (at the time I had 2- one I've owned since I was 12 yrs old). Well he has since acquired the "bug" and looks for me machines, cleans them, services them and is even considering going into it as a side-business! When I received the book in the mail- I sat down and started reading- it is so easy to follow and I learned SO much!!! Excellent resource for the novice and advanced collector! Can't wait for edition 2! :)

This book has so much information. I can now service and troubleshoot all but two of my sewing machines, those two are computerized. I mainly ordered this because of a treadle machine recently found at a yard sale, complete with stand. It took some research to figure out how to measure and get the belt, and how to clean it properly, but this book appears to have all the information I need. And if the book doesn't have what I'm looking for, there are websites and contacts to get assistance from.