foufymaus

Hello! So tonight i decided to see if i can get the fashionmate to give up her lethargic sewing to wake up a bit more. Because i did see other Fashionmates on youtube with more get up and go.

I first started with the motor after unplugging of course i blew compressed air into the motor, lots of fluff came out. Next i electro contact cleaned its innards, removing old carbon and fluff. While that dried. I decided to work on the foot pedal cleaning out the carbon on the copper contacts inside. There was some pitting and i could see that when pressed the copper bits would have problems making a clean connection. A little extra fine grain sand paper cleaned that right up.

Putting it all back together, making sure the belt isnt too tight. I plug her in and she has oomph, but the motor whines now. So my question is for those who've worked on singer motors or know where exactly to oil these critters. There is no oil holes like on the kenmores, i dont know if there is a wick. It was made sometime in the late 60's (specifically around 1967-68) looks similar to the touch and go but is all metal and uses a 15 class bobbin.

If ya can point me in the right direction i would be grateful. Im not an electrician but do have access to a retired one (40+ years experience) of course he cant hear the whine.... lol and the last time i let him play, there was fire involved.... :-S

Thanks!

jlhmnj

Try a little oil where the motor shaft meets the front and rear bushing. I once saw an excellent mechanic set fire to an breaker box for an industrial table saw using electrical contact cleaner. Seems some of the new stuff is highly flammable. Luckily a fire extinguisher was nearby. Good Luck.

Jon

foufymaus

Lol thats exactlu what happened with my dad and another one of my machines. Yep, your totally right its rather flammable.

Alrighty, oil the front and back bushings. ill try that.

J Miller

"Some" Singer motors have a felt pad surrounding the bronze (or whatever it's made from) bushing at the ends of the armature shaft. You can see this through the air vents. Oiling that and then letting the motor sit so the oil soaks in will usually improve the motor's performance and quiet it down. I've done that to several of them.

I've also used break cleaner and denatured alcohol to clean the commutator, brushes, and brush tubes. So far I've not set any of them on fire by doing so.

The cure for setting things on fire with electrical contact cleaner or other flammable chemicals is to let it evaporate and dry before powering up the motor or electrical system. That's only common sense and is probably mentioned in the warnings on the can.


Joe