It has an original recipt copy from either 1906 or 1900. That being said, i think its the first electric sewing machine by singer?
Either way, it works. The leg lean start and stop works flawlessly. But, the original cord is beginning to fray. Any ideas of where to start looking for that, or if its even an option? Ive just moved her into my house, and i have the original manual and plan to do a deep clean and to replace the really old thread thats still with it.
Thanks in advance! I can get more photos as well, but this was the preliminary one. the storage seat it came with has all the original foots it used, as well as the needles. Im so afraid to touch any of it, but mt grandmother was insistent that my great, great grandmother would be jumping for joy in her grave because i really wanted to get into sewing.
I think that model is actually from the 1950s, maybe late 40s. You can look up the serial number online to get an exact date.
As far as the cords and internals… You really should find a person that specializes in antique machines to make sure everything is adjusted correctly.
I also think that table is from the late 60s/early 70s,those models usually came in a portable case.hard to tell, the tables don’t change much between the 50s and 80s
Ill def check the serial number, it’s just weird that all the stuff it was packed with was marked the early 1900s. Could be that all the stuff was from an even earlier machine as she did have a foot pedal one with it in the house as well! Ill check locally to and see if I can come up with something.
I checked, its an AJ model/ serial number and the earlier AJ models, so I believe its from 1948 (I need to clean to get the last couple digits to see if its that or 1950), possibly 47 according to a few sites and Singer charts I’ve looked at! It’s AJ014 and I cant see the rest so I’ll have to see if I can get that cleaned safely.
I checked the pedal powered one, it doesn’t have a letter and I can only see a few numbers, assuming that one was the one purchased before 1900. Doesn’t work, but it’d be cool to get that one in working order to.
This is all so interesting, I’ve gone down a rabbit hole today. Sewing machines are kinda cool
There are a lot of things that are compatible across the decades, like the pressure feet and needles. I had both an 1886 and a 1901 that shared a lot of parts. And I still used the book from the 1886 with my 1964 model because it had some really good tips in it
And you often find the early treadle ones that were fitted with motor kits to “modernize” them. But it was the light fixture on yours that gives it away as post war but not yet mid century modern…
I personally wouldn’t trade my Brother for an antique machine, but they are super cool looking
Totally! Yeah these were free machines my grandmother wanted me to try, so I thought it’d be a great opportunity to learn some history and be able to work at the places my older grandmothers did.
It looks to be of the same era as my moms 1940s machine. The wiring is gone on mine too. There are kits you can get to connect it to a treadle base.
If you have the attachments you’ll be surprised what you can do with this simple sewing machine. Perhaps an electrician can help.
The cord that is showing some wear is the power cord - am I correct? Any sewing machine repairman can fix you up with a new cord in just a few minutes. If you have a licensed electrician in the family, he can probably replace it also. It is more of a question of the amount of electricity your machine requires rather than being a Singer Model number … etc.
Good luck with your machine. I have one like it and it sews like a dream.
You’ve already found the serial number which does help to date the machine itself. We have found quite a few early 1900s machines which all were originally hand crank ones, but what people began to do during the 1930s to 1950s was to convert the machines to electric by having a motor added at the back of the machine. It is highly unlikely that one would have been electric as early as 1900.
Also around the same time is when people started to have the original 1900s machines placed into bespoke tables, and that could be why your table looks to be 1950s/1960s style.
In addition a lot of the early machines had some really ornate and beautiful enamel work on them. During the Second World War, this was scaled back to the bare minimum, so that is another way of being able to “date” them.
Regarding the power cord, I would definitely have an electrician or sewing machine specialist to replace it for you. You don’t want to risk getting electrocuted.
Have fun with it though, these old machines are simple but work horses. Some of the jobs we get in at our shop work best on the 100yr old machine that we have because the modern ones can’t handle them. Crazy, isn’t it?
It’s not that old because it’s not a foot treadle machine and it appears that a belt was not included in the original design. Looks about the 50-40’s. Cool though. If it’s a plug in cord you’re talking about maybe electrical tape. If could contact a historical machine specialist they could date it for sure and you could work out a historically accurate solution without compromising both historical and functional value.
the storage seat it came with has all the original foots it used, as well as the needles. Im so afraid to touch any of it, but mt grandmother was insistent that my great, great grandmother would be jumping for joy in her grave because i really wanted to get into sewing.