Vintage Sewing Machines

I dove into the Vintage Sewing Machine (VSM) world shortly after I decided I needed to upgrade my existing beginner, computerized Brother sewing machine. I had a list of firm requirements. Yours my be different than mine, but I mostly sew garments.

My Requirements:

- Sturdy and well-built; can handle almost anything I throw at it (and maybe light weight leather?)

- Most important stitches I want are straight, zigzag, buttonhole. Bonus for an overcast stitch. 

- Presser foot pressure adjustment. The Brother doesn't have it. 

- Easy to Service/have a service center close by

- Bobbin tension adjustment (should I need to adjust it)

I originally had my eyes set on a Juki. They're well-engineered, have tons of stitches including embroidery, and this cool feature to lock stitch in the beginning and end of the sewing with the foot pedal. But one look at the price tag and I realized I'll have to save up for it. Then, I stumble upon vintage sewing machines in my research for a slightly cheaper machine. 

My requirement list sent me towards the Singer 401A, as some of you may already know. All the cams that are built into the machine easily has straight, zigzag, buttonhole, and even an overcast stitch! There is also the ability to put in separate cams for additional decorative stitches that I will likely never use. The best thing is that they're a fraction of the price for a Juki! When I finally bought my 401 from a local person, I was so excited at how quietly and smoothly it sews. Upon cleaning and servicing it, I fell in love with the wonderful engineering of the sewing machine. 

I recently acquired my second vintage sewing machine, and while I'm still a total newbie at this, I hope my experience and lessons learned can help you if you are also looking into getting a vintage sewing machine. 

Why vintage sewing machines 

They're built to last, especially the all metal parts ones! 

A major reason I turn to vintage sewing machines when I considered upgrading my beginner computerized Brother sewing machine is that I can service it myself. The Juki computerized sewing machines I had my eyes set on were wonderful and all, but for a fraction of the price, I can find a vintage machine that has all the basic features I want, is well-built, and doesn't require a trip to a designated service center hundreds of miles away. Knowing I can fix my own sewing machine is actually quite freeing. 

If you're interested in vintage sewing machines...

If you're interested in buying a vintage sewing machine, here are a few tips and resources I found helpful for me. And if you're like me, someone who would pore over the details and do research for a while, here is a game plan that worked for me.

1. Pick a couple models that you would like to have.

Singer sewing machines are obviously a popular choice. However, there are tons of other ones out there! Vintage Bernina still retain a lot of value these days. Pfaff and Elna are also popular European manufacturer choices. White or Jones are popular in the UK, I believe. Another option are Japanese sewing machines, which are essentially copy cats of western machines. They were rebranded under another name and popped up during the WW2 era. 

It's important to also consider your ability to acquire bobbins, sewing machine needles, and pressor feet attachments associated with the machine. How easy is it to find matching needles and bobbins? Can you use generic pressor foot that are standardized/popular these days? 

2. What machine condition/appearance should you pay attention to when browsing and buying one

https://mermaidsden.com/blog/2016/11/20/buying-a-vintage-sewing-machine

https://www.chatterboxquilts.com/blog/save-money-by-researching-your-vintage-sewing-machine

3. Learn how to identify the different Singer machines (It's really fun to go through poor pictures and identify them once you get the hang of it)

http://vssmb.blogspot.com/2011/07/visual-guide-to-identifying-singers.html

4. Read up on the service manuals and get familiar with your target machine model(s)

I personally also like to read up on the service manuals, and look at all the parts on the machine. Being familiar with the machine before you actually see it helps you recognize what is missing or not. 

5. Join VSM Facebook Groups and or groups that specifically deal with the machine model you want. 

- VSM for Beginners 

- Vintage Japanese Sewing Machines

- Machine Model specific groups

Hope that was a tiny bit helpful in your VSM journey. Have fun looking for your machine!