ArchaicArcane

The lady I got the Winselmann from said that there was a treadle base in her garage., Her mom was the only one who sewed, and only had the Winselmann before getting an electric machine.

As best I can tell, this -used- to be a treadle... and the closest I've come to identifying it is maybe a Davis / Minnesota? (Based on this picture, irons only, not the wood top http://www.flickr.com/photos/majesti...ce/2284104508/)

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Is it worth grabbing from her, if she doesn't want an arm and a leg for it? I know it needs a lot of work... if nothing else, it can help someone else out who may need something off it?

jljack

I don't think the irons really look like Davis...Davis have larger circles, and fewer of them. I have one, and it's not like this. I don't know....it's really old...maybe a very early badged National?

ArchaicArcane

It's possible the flickr site above has misidentified theirs... I know that the legs look "identical" from what I can see, the lower cross piece too, the upper cross piece, looks a little different, so I thought one of them was an updated model...

The left leg looks like a direct replacement for the ones I posted...

Did anyone else make irons for the Minnesotas other than Davis?

Google images just showed me curvier upper cross pieces than the one in my pics. Of course, I don't know "newer" from "older" as far as what I saw in the images google showed me.

I'd been hoping for a great big "Winselmann" or "Singer" on the cross pieces so I could identify it quickly. No such luck!

ArchaicArcane

Got it!
http://kalamazoo.ebayclassifieds.com...2/?ad=20577163
They listed the machine it contains as a "Minnesota Model A from sears"

My guess is that Davis did something "different" for the Minnesotas so they didn't look like Davis irons...

This one says: "Minnesota was the home state of Richard Sears (1863-1914) and was first used as a trade name for sewing machines in Sears' new "Sewing Machine Headquarters" section of its 1894 catalog. Minnesota remained a primary trade name until it was dropped in 1919. Revived in 1934, it was used until the end of World War II.This treadle machine is a Minnesota Model "A" made for Sears by Davis Sewing Machine Co. of Dayton, Ohio, before 1910."

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/lifest...ew-ar-1692113/

I guess my question still stands. Is it worth grabbing if she doesn't want my left arm and leg for it? What would be a fair price?

Caroline S

I would grab it for sure. Not sure about the price. I would offer $25 at the most because it is very incomplete and needs tons of work. Do a lot of whining, crying and moaning about it being a wreck. Might work.

Charlee

I'd offer $15. It's going to have to be stripped and refinished, thanks to someone's idea of an "attractive" paint job.

The flywheel, pitman and pedal are gone, you should be able to find workable replacements on ebay, but they're spendy.

Cabinets and irons weren't necessarily made by the machine's manufacturer, but often were made by a company that specialized in cabinets.

ArchaicArcane

OK,.. I've asked what she's looking for, and will bargain with $15 - 20 in mind. It's about what I was thinking too. I noticed the wheel and pedal too, somehow it didn't occur to me that the pitman was gone, LOL! I'm not sure how that happened.

She's very happy to hear that the Winselmann has been restored and is being used to quilt, so that should earn me some points.