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Joined 22 days ago
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Cake day: February 15th, 2025

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  • My sewing expert tells me the slider on the right side the front of the machine controls the stitch length and should be all the way down to set it to maximum. The knobs on the top control zig zag and should probably be all the way left for a straight stitch. If that doesn’t get what you want this machine probably can’t do it.

    As far as what it is: that’s a good mystery. It looks like one of machines to come out of the post-WWII Japanese industry. If so, getting info on it will be a challenge.

    Re-engineering it sounds like a fun project but who can say how long that will take you before you’re back on your project. You could probably stitch whatever by hand in less time than it would take to disassemble that machine, fabricate a new part and reassemble it


  • No worries. I can see your frustration and I didn’t want to imply that you didn’t try to figure it out.

    I’ve only restored a couple of old machines of a similar vintage. They’re far better than any modern computerized garbage. I would suggest looking for some Internet forums for help. If it’s a Singer or another popular brand, there should be a few specialized forums where real experts participate that can help you better than I could.


  • Adding to try to be more helpful: post a photo of the front of the machine. Knowing what model it is can help understand what its capabilities are and what controls it has available. It sounds like you want to sew a straight stitch and you want to increase the stitch length. This should be easy to set up on a machine like the one you’ve shown, but I couldn’t tell you from the photo what the maximum stitch length you could do on it is.

    The way the thing works is that the needle goes through the fabric, the bobbin mechanism interlocks a separate thread to the top one, the needle is pulled up, then the feed dogs engage the fabric to move it forward (or backwards even) for one stitch length. This dance is controlled by a careful arrangement of gears, cams and levers. You should be able to adjust it within the design parameters of the machine. To do more than that, you would redesign parts of it. Your time would certainly be better spent looking for a different model that supports your needs.


  • A basic sewing machine is orders of magnitudes more complex than just about anything in a woodworking shop. You won’t get more out of on by putting in a bigger motor. I don’t even think you’re using the right terms to describe its parts and operations.

    If you’re set on doing this yourself, get some books and watch some videos and learn some basics. Then you might be in a better position to ask for help, or even understand the limitations of the machine you have.