How much is my sewing machine worth?
I seem to get a lot of comments asking this, especially to the Singer 750 post, so I thought I would give a very general answer to this.
Old sewing machines are a dime a dozen. What you have to realize is that from the mid 1950’s back almost every family had one, and into the mid 60’s probably one in four had one. Nowadays maybe one family in a thousand has one. That means for every one who wants a sewing machine today there are a 1000 of them out there. Now 90% of those folks want a brand new one for hobby quilting or something like that. So for the rest of us there are 10,000 machines out their for each of us.
That means it is a buyer’s market. They usually wind up being tossed in the trash or donated to a charity thrift store. All four of my machines (I stopped buying them when I realized the facts I am stating in this post) came from the Local Goodwill store. I actually bought the 750 just for the table, but it turned out to be a far better machine than most of the info on the web says it is, so I put a few bucks into it, but even with that I do not have $100 invested in it.
One of the things about old sewing machines is that the damage on most of them comes from their having been stored in damp basement or or shed for decades. The Singer 301 I have is an example, it has half the paint off of it from mold damage, but runs perfectly (value $nothing). So, a machine that has rust or mold damage is worthless (to a user, depending upon rarity it may be worth a lot to a collector).
The cheaper machines are not worth putting money, nor effort, into. That is because you can find one of the top of the line machines for the same price. The exception is a machine that has been in the family for decades, it is worth fixing because your grandma or great grandma used it. Nothing like waving at a restored to new machine sitting there and saying, “That is my grandma’s old sewing machine”.
How about an old commercial sewing machine? Well, if it is in perfect working condition is is going to be pretty expensive (not compared to a new computerized machine, maybe), $200-$500. The problem is that unlike home machines they are most likely to be worn out. Remember, they probably were run 8-16 hours a day 6 days a week for 10-20 years. However, if you want to sew canvas or leather, you should really look for one of them. Don’t believe the eBay ripoff artists claiming that the old home machine he picked up at a flea market for $10 is perfect for sewing leather and canvas because it has metal gears and he only has a $300BIN on it. Yes you can do occasional canvas and leather sewing on a home machine but it will put a load on it it was never designed for. Commercial machines designed for such use weight about 100 pounds and have a 3/4hp motor not a 1/10hp one.
So, what is you grandma’s old Singer worth? Somewhere between nothing and $100, depending upon its condition, and how much someone wants it. Usually, a bare machine sells for about $15, and one in a nice looking table for about $45, at the local Goodwill; which seems to have higher prices than most do. Unfortunately, they put the same price on junk as they do on nice ones, so you can tell nothing about the condition from the price.
I am sure this info make those of you looking for a machine happy. And, those wanting to sell one unhappy, but remember that “there is a sucker born every minute”, so you may luck out.
Now, maybe folks have noticed that I do not answer comments asking “what is this worth”. The above probably tells you why.
A comment that needs to be a post
“Tom,
Don’t kill this off please. Even if it is not updated often. There is a lot I would like to know you could write about. For example, just exactly how does a sewing machine actually make the stitches? I just can’t work it out in my mind, lol!
The sewing machine has quite a history as well. That would be interesting.
Also, techniques for different materials/threads/how to make button holes etc.
The list is looong!
Alan”
Thank you, Alan,
I have no intention of killing this blog as long as I can afford to keep it up. I do not write merely to please myself. My readers are important to me, and I get enough comments on this blog that I know what I have written is important to them. I feel I would be a rather ungrateful so and so if I took this down for no reason.
There is a rather good animated image that shows how a lock stitch is made on a rotating hook (most of the household models) sewing machine on the Sewing Machine Wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewing_machine (Sorry this older version of Wordpress will not allow me to inserrt a link, even as the admin)
It shows it better than I could ever describe it.
The history? There is plenty of info about that on the web. Only, I, for one, do not believe Mr Singer actually figured out how to do that himself, he was an entrepreneur not an engineer. Much like Thomas Edison inventing the light bulb, I once saw a photo how he did that, he had a 100 employees sitting at benches trying different things for the filament until they found something that worked well. To me, hiring the guy who figured it out does not make me the guy who figured it out, just the guy who owns the patent.
How-tos, are in my area of expertise. Mostly, I try to figure things out from my engineering technician perspective, and then tell people how to do it in a way that works. Too much of the stuff out there does not work. Like my article on how to set the tension on your sewing machine, even the experts do not seem to know that and do it by trial and error.
But, OK, I am open to suggestion for things folks would like explained. Maybe, I can lend a different, or at lease better explained, perspective to it.
Is this Blog Dead?
Not really.
Unfortunately, while I have several interests, sewing machines, bicycles, stereo, audio recording, reading, writing, photography & old cameras, etc. Since I am disabled and on social security, I have little energy and less money, so my interests (hobbies) have to be done one at a time. I tend to get involved in one or the other until I run up against a block of some sort or another and then swap to another of them.
With the sewing, I have been doing nothing but some basic mending, so really have little to write about here. Also, the local Walmart closed out their sewing department so I have no local source of supplies which kind of make it difficult to do projects of any kind.
Originally, I intended to have separate blogs for each interest and thus spun this one off. Then I realized that I did not maintain enough of a flow to keep up several different blogs, and left everything else on my “Subject to Change” blog. That name came about because I had no idea what to call the blog when I started it, and put that in intending to come up with something spiffier, but wound up keeping it because it is appropriate for a blog that keeps changing the subject. Anyone wanting to see that blog or any of my websites can find it at http://tomrit.com
Yea Gatts, I have not written anything in a long time
Actually, one of my resolutions made last year was to make photography my main interest as it was for most of my life. So I have been spending a lot of my spare time on that. I set up a studio in my apartment, bought a cheap DSLR, and started a camera club here in town, so, my only sewing has been a bit of mending. Anyone who is interested in stuff like that can check out my main site at http://www.tomrit.com/
Also the car gods, and the computer gods have been demanding sacrifices. Since money is in very short supply in my life, that limits what I can do. The local Walmart the only real sewing store in town has closed their sewing section as they modernize their store, making it bigger so they can sell less and less. That means I either have to drive an hour each way to get sewing supplies, or mail order them sight unseen. Small towns are great places to visit, but I wish I had the resources of a large city at hand.
I really did want to learn to make nice shirts, but it looks like time, money, and resources are lacking. With ill fitting dress shirts costing $50 and more that would be a nice skill to have. I did buy up a bolt of tan canvas when Walmart was closing out the fabric to use for making bags and cases.
The funny thing is the cheapest things about sewing these days are the sewing machine. One can buy a fine old sewing machine for next to nothing. Everything else is pretty expensive. A couple of packs of good needles costs about as much you can pick up a sewing machine for at Good Will.
Long time since the last post
Wow, eight months…
What has happened is I decided to once make photography my central interest as it was for many many years. So that has been where my money has gone. Then the past couple of months the car gods have been demanding sacrifices. In the mean time the local Walmart has quit carrying fabric and a lot of other sewing supplies. While there are two or three quilting stores in town there now are no general sewing supply stores. That is kind of limiting. The nearest place is now a two hour round trip.
Of course having a sewing machine for mending is still nice.
Sewing for Photographers
Interestingly enough, there are a lot of things a semi-pro photographer uses that having a sewing machine and knowing how to use it will save him/her a lot of money. I say semi-pro because a full time photographer will find he makes a lot more money behind the camera than he saves running a sewing machine.
Self-portrait using home sewn backdrop
The other day I sewed rod pockets on a piece of gray fabic I found in the $1.50 section a Walmart. Presto, a 5×8 backdrop for under $5.00 including sales tax. Above you an see how it works in a test shot.
Home sewn backdrop
In this photo there is a piece of plastic pipe in the bottom pocket to hold it in place. The top pocket is not being used.
The Singer 750 Works Fine
I finally got around to sorting out the Singer 750 Golden Touch & Sew that came with the table in the previous post. It turned out to be in pretty good shape. I had to replace the rubber feed dog as the rubber had turned to a blob over the years, otherwise it only needed a CLA (Cleaning, Lubrication, and Adjustment).
Singer 750
Someone, presumably a so-called technician, had adusted the upper tension setting so it sewed properly at about “1″ on the dial. Singer spec’s “4″ for most of their machines, but this one has a lot of special stitches that have to have very loose tension. The dial shows zig-zag from 1 to 4, and straight stitches from 6-9). I wound up setting it so it sews evenly with my standard needle and thread at about 6, and so far that seems to work well (I do not have a service manual for the machine). There is a web expert out there that says he always sets upper tension at 2; I think that leaves you SOL if you try to use a very heavy thread.
I have read a lot about the nylon gears in these machines and how bad they are. Only problem I do not see those nylon gears in there, although they may have made several versions of the 750 over the years. The drive gears are metal, the sub-gears are either anoized aluminum or something like Deldrin (a very high tech super durable plastic). The cam stack and related parts does seem to be nylon however.
Also the housing on this machine is alloy, not plastic as sometimes reported. It remains to be seen if the reported timing problems show up. I am beginning to suspect that most of the problems reported about these machices is a case of the service tech not being very knowledgable about them, as they are different in many ways than the earlier machines.
This machine that I only got because it came with the table I wanted, has now become my main machine. The Singer 337 is planned to go to a young lady I know who has lots of kids to sew for.
*****
I am not so lucky all the time. I recently bought a Singer 301 at the local Goodwill store for not too much money.
Singer 301
It had a lot of mold on it as it had apparently been stored for decades in a damp basement or some such place. Unfortunately, the mold had eaten into the paint. OK, so I can not clean it up and sell it, but it did come with a complete set of feet that I can use on the 750, they are both Slant Needle machines. Or did it? Nope, unfortunately, those feet are for commercial high shank machines. I cleaned most of the mold off it, and plugged it in. It does run. I guess I can put it up on eBay for parts or something. It would cost more to restore it than you can buy a minty one for.
Nice Table
Library style table with the old Singer erected.
I picked up a sewing machine table today at the local Goodwill store. Cost about what it would have off ebay, but I did not have to pay postage and I got another sewing machine with it. It replaces the old TV tray table plus shelf I was using.
The library table closed
With the machine retracted into the table it just looks like a simple library table. I may get a piece of glass cut to put fit top of it so I can use it as a writing table too.
The machine that came with it is a 750 Singer Touch & Sew. I will have to find the time to check it out and service it if worthwhile. Then I will have to decide which zig-zag machine to keep and which to sell or give away. I will retain the White Fair Lady straight stitch in any case.
I know I have not written anything here in a while, and want to apologize to my readers. It is simply a matter of not having enough time, energy, and money to keep up with all my hobbies all the time. I am now taking a class at the university as well. My intention was to set up a separate blog for each of my main hobbies, and do at least a post a week. This was the first of them, and I guess the lack of posts here proves that was not really a viable idea.
Happy New Year All
Have not written anything here in a while. Sewing machine has been waiting that belt, I have been busy with other things, the holidays were distracting. Other than that, No excuse, Sir!
About all I have done was mend a seam or two, so nice not having to do that by hand anymore. I finally got a belt that fit the Singer. Only it was plastic not rubber, seemed to be for use with cogged pulleys. In short, it slips. What I wound up doing for a temporary fix is use a couple of pieces of bicycle tube patch to repair the cracks on the back of the old belt. That seems to be working OK for the time being. I have several other projects I have to spend money on so it will be awhile before I try to get another belt. I do think the plastic belt might work on the White, it has a cogged belt, I have not checked to see if they are the same size.
I will be taking a class at the local University this semester so that will be taking up some of my time also. And people think I just sit here in my apartment watching TV. I have not even turned the TV on since before Christmas. I guess it is good that I do not have much money to spend on my hobbies, if I did I would be running around like a dervish.
Shirts
Still waiting on the motor drive belt. This past couple of weeks has been busy in a negative sort of way. Things that should be simple have taken a lot of time. So nothing has gotten done sewing wise despite having several projects I want to do. I want to make a better quality bag for the tape recorders, a english style saddle bag for the bike, and then try my hand at making a dress shirt.
Dress shirts seem to be a place that is worthwhile from a price as well as a fit point of view. A decent man’s dress shirt costs $30-$50 or more . Unless you are an guy who had no problem with off the rack fit, few of us guys are so lucky, you either have to make your own shirts or buy custom shirts if you want proper fit.
As best as I can tell with out actually having done it yet, it looks like there is about an hours labor in making a shirt once you know what you are doing. Of course that means there is four or five hours each involved before getting to that point –going by the old 20/80% rule. So once I am skilled at it, I should be able to make a custom fitted $100 shirt for an hour’s labor and about three yards of decent shirting fabric.