Caroline S

DD brought her over this morning. The cabinet will be another major wood project. Washington state weather is not kind to cabinets. Even after years being stored in a leaky barn the handwheel still turns. The presser bar lever is frozen but the shuttle mechanism works. I sprayed her liberally with Triflow inside and out. The bobbin plates now both slide easily. The bobbin shuttle is still in place so that is a plus.

J Miller

Well, considering what I'm doing with two Singer cabinets, I'll say without any hesitation ... you got your work cut out for you. Stock up glue, lots of it. Clamps; long ones, short ones and small ones.
And patience, pick up a truck bed load of that. You'll need it.

One thing that's good, it's got all it's wheels. Oh, if they froze up, start soaking them in oil, then get a propane torch and heat 'em up. Gently turn them with a pair of pliers as you oil and heat them. DO NOT try to remove the rivets holding those wheels in by grinding the head off and tapping them out. You risk breaking the fingers that the wheels set between. Don't ask me how I know this.

Joe

Caroline S

Actually, I just finished spraying the treadle base and mechanism with Triflow. Wiped it down and it does not look bad at all. Best of all, the wheels turn. I am thinking that poor wood cabinet "protected" the sewing machine head and irons from the worst of the weather. I also got the presser foot loosened up and functioning. It now feeds like it should. I was able to remove the shuttle, I was afraid it was rusted in, but after the Triflow treatment it came out. The last needle that was used with the machine is still in place and also fairly good. At least it is there. Yep, looks like a trip to the hardware store for more clamps. That's OK. I love tools.

kitsykeel

Caroline,

Be sure to let us see the progress on this machine and her cabinet. I would love to find one, and hubby could help me refinish the cabinet. He used to be in the piano tuning and refinishing business, so he knows what to do. I'll do the machine part if I ever find one of those. Good luck with your adventure.

momto5

Looks like a beautiful project in the making...be sure to share pictures with us!

DanofNJ

Beautiful. I like the cover plate with the pictured needle size on it.

vintagemotif

I would trash the cabinet, clean up the treadle irons, and then put a new top on the irons. I'm just not into restoring wood. I don't mind the easy clean ups, but this looks like too much work for my liking. Oh, if you go with making a new top, make sure to make it a large enough surface area to hold a quilt nicely while quilting.

Only use sewing oil on the machine while cleaning this machine to protect the decals; otherwise the decals will turn green or come off.

The Davis NVF are wonderful machines for quilting! Just follow the cleaning tutorial that the Davis yahoo group has posted. Once cleaned up the machine will sew beautifully for you.

Congrats! The Davis machines are one of my favorites.

thepolyparrot

I would SO love to have a vertical feed machine - lucky you!

I don't think I would even try to restore the wood. I would build a plain top, router out a lip for the machine to sit in and cut slots for the treadle belt.

Some people remove the cabinets and build tables on the irons ( ) and they sell or give away the machines or cabinets. Maybe you can find a sound cabinet that can be modified to accept the VF? Or is it already a standard size?

I hope you have a wonderful time with your project - and that you keep posting on this thread as you make progress. Congratulations!

Janis

The decals on your machine are great!! Can't wait ti see her cleaned up. Keep us posted on your progress, please.

Caroline S

I have been slowly working on this project. Now I am at the cabinet restore stage. So, the question is, how do I remove the cabinet from the irons? The platform the machine sits on is usable. The top is toast. The rest will have to be remade. The drawers are all usable. So I am going to strip the finish from them. The bent veneer oil guard (I think that it is what called) has suffered water damage and is delaminating. The good thing is that I do have another Davis and cabinet to use as a reference. This will be a real test of my woodworking skills.