maudeflanagan

Hello All,

I wanted to share my latest vintage machine acquisition. I was given this little Singer 99 last year. I have been wanting to add a handcrank machine to my fleet, but the price has always made me shy away from them. When I realized I could convert the 99 to a handcrank for very little cost, I went for it.

Preferably, I would have picked up a genuine Singer crank, but those are well over $100 if you can get one. I also would have needed to get ahold of a spokes wheel to accept it. Instead, I bought a wheel and crank from overseas and performed the conversion for $40. Later, I would like to get genuine parts, so I will be on the lookout for those. Meanwhile, I have a working machine that I can use. I lovingly refer to it as my apocalyptic sewing machine 😂



The machine was completely locked up when it came to me. The base is one I had laying around. I had to cut an opening in the bottom to allow for the gear underneath to pop out. As a result, thicker rubber feet also had to be added to give everything table clearance.

Thanks for looking!

JoeJr

I have done the same thing with a 99k, although I doubt if I will ever try to find original parts. In my area I see 66 Red Eyes all the time for not a lot of money, which have the spoked hand wheel which should slip right on. In fact I had a Red Eye and took its hand wheel and put it on a 15, now a hand crank, and put the aftermarket hand wheel on the 66 which I sold.

Gymnast2

Singer handcranks are always for sale in Denmark for almost nothing. But the costs and difficulty of shipping to the US makes it difficult to supply the US market with them. It is mostly the 99k.

juliasb

Job well done. Now to find the wheel and crank you want for its next improvement.

Hooligan

Always nice to see another oldie back in working condition
I like to see machines back in original condition personally, so not sure how i feel about the conversion lol

leonf

I have one operating Singer hand crank, two are broken. Another reason they are kinda rare in the states. Breakes are at the casting that holds the hinge pin.for the crank arm.

Hooligan

I find this side of pond that there is more Treadles to be found than Hand Cranks, whereas in the UK...it seems to be the opposite.

maudeflanagan

I saved the original parts for the machine. I don't plan to get rid of them. The machine was just sitting around, so I wanted to get it to a state where I wanted to use it instead of being a shelf piece. I totally agree about oldies, I don't advocate them being turned into tractors or lamps, but I thought this was a reasonable conversion. Especially if I can get some original handcrank parts instead of reproductions.

Hooligan

Reginaromsey

How did you unlock your 99k? I was recently given one that seems in perfect shape, no rust, no thread and fluff. However the hand wheel is locked, it only moves with force. The problem seems to be in the arm beyond the wheel. I can get the wheel off, but from there no screw moves with any torque I am able to apply. I’ve used oil, penetrating oil, but no luck. The local sewing store charges over $100 just to look at it. Hands on care is very extra.
Any ideas?