Hummer Lady

I've been working on a newly acquired $25 thrift store rescue. Lots of cleaning and de-gunking. I initially thought the balance wheel was bad, as it would not turn, however, when I took it off, everything on the machine moved smoothly (by hand), and the balance wheel had a funny spring-like movement in it. I originally thought there was a thread hang up in the bobbin area, but all was clear (after much cleaning). When I finally plugged it in to try it with the balance wheel removed, I discovered it was the motor not wanting to turn over, and after a second push on the foot pedal, she let loose and purred like a kitten. I replaced the balance wheel and all is well.

I took the bobbin winder off to replace the tire, and the spring dropped off before I could see how to put it back together. The service manual isn't exactly clear on how to reassemble...except to put it back on the same way it was removed. Can someone please post a photo of how the bobbin winder and the spring are supposed to look? Or if you have some useful tips, that would be appreciated. Although I put it back together, it does not stay engaged, so I must be missing something.

Thanks so much. BTW - her name is "Mercury" after the 1961 space program...since she is a Rocketeer.

SingerCLA

Here is a diagram on Sew-Classic that shows how that spring is installed:

http://shop.sew-classic.com/Bobbin-W...SCBW172552.htm

...but even installed 'properly' it never was quite right on the machines I worked: the tail of the spring would ride down onto the spindle, slowing it down with the extra drag. I fixed this problem by cutting a small notch into the spindle housing with a dremel cutoff wheel; The notch positioned to hold the spring from dropping onto the spinning part of the spindle.

This spring is to pull the rubber wheel back from the motor. From your pictures it looks like your rubber 'tire' may be a bit too big for the 503. The tire is engaged by that tab that rides on the cam, pushing the tire against the motor.
When the bobbin is full, the thread pushes the tab off the cam and stops the winder.
Your picture shows it is not engaged onto the cam, but the tire is already against the motor. There is some adjustment possible for tire size; the slotted adjustment on the screw next to the bobbin spindle... but looks like there is not enough room for adjustment on that tire size. The 500 series takes a slightly smaller tire.
Sew-Classic has the right tire size as well.

...hope all that makes sense and is helpful.

Hummer Lady

Thank you. Most helpful SingerCLA.
I didn't know about the smaller sized tire. The original was so dry & brittle, it crumbled to pieces when I touched it. Looking at the diagram, it appears that the spring is squeezed so that both ends are on one side nearest the bobbin spindle. Is that correct, or am I seeing it wrong? Again, thanks for your help.

SingerCLA

The spring end with the bend rests against the back of the machine. The other end pushes the bobbin spindle away from the motor. The spring center is around the pivot point of the winder.

Hummer Lady

I think I got it...but can you post a picture?

DKuehn

Got the pic shortly before I broke the spring. Be careful with yours. I had a fat tire on there too, so I swapped it for a smaller one, but then managed to break my spring.

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Hummer Lady

Oops, sorry to hear that. The picture was great, and your instructions were great, as I had reinstalled it this way. Thank you so much. Just awaiting my smaller bobbin tire. I so appreciate your help.