Getting a replacement belt for the White Featherweight 221

    Determining the birth date of your Featherweight is fairly straight forward but the information you find can be a little misleading as well.
   If you go to; singer.com you will find a "button" that will take you to "Singer support" and from there you go to "machine serial numbers". There were several variations of the serial numbers on Singer sewing machines over the years. The earliest serial numbers for Singer machines were simply six numbers. Then there came a single letter before six numbers, and close on its heals was the double letter with six that Featherweight owners relate to. Select the "Two Letter Prefixes ".
    If the first letter of your Feather's serial number is an "A  your machine was born in Elizabethport, New Jersey, USA. If your serial number is proceeded with an "E" your machine was born at the United Kingdom's Clydebank Scotland site. If you desire to print out all the pages of the Singer serial numbers, even just the single letter serial numbers, you will need a lot of paper in your printer before you begin. I went through a pile of paper and just the twos letter prefix numbers filled a one inch binder.

    Another thing about the serial numbers. When one goes to the Singer web site they will find a very specific date written before the year of the machine's manufacture you are looking up. This date is not the machine's birth date. For production record keeping and production planning a "block" of numbers was set aside on this date shown and thousands of machines were built with numbers in a sequence taken from this block of numbers. The year stated is dead-on, the month/date will be somewhere between the date shown and the date of the next block of numbers having to be set about three months further down the road. The numbers after the prefix can give you a feel for a date by subtracting the first block of serial numbers form the next block of numbers and noting where your serial number fits into that string of numbers, but you cannot come up with an absolute date by day and hour, sorry.

White belts for white Featherweight sewing machines that are green (?)

    It interests me the way the desire/need for products flows in and out like the tides. For years I have not had a single request about a white belt and now I have had three requests in two days, and I now have a well rehearsed answer.

     They don't exist, sorry.

     I've asked around for them a good deal over the years and I even asked about getting some made. I was told that if I would pay the up-front costs for 10,000 belts they would manufacture them for me. I told them I would get with my staff, we would think on it and get back with them. The infamous "be-back".

    The white belt has not been manufactured in 50 years. The demand for the white belt does not justify the expense of gearing up to produce them (even though I know of several who would stand in line for a week in January for the store to open). A supply of originals was found about 10 years ago, in the back of an obscure storeroom, and they sold instantly. They sold to people who pondered later why they so urgently needed a 40 year old rotting piece of rubber covered with white cloth.

    New white belts do not exist any longer I fear. You will have to settle for a black belt. May I caution you that there is a cogged vinyl belt that isn't white and isn't much good in my opinion. These clear to light tan colored belts are difficult to adjust and I don't think they look good on a machine of any color.   

    I have honestly looked pretty hard to find white belts for myself to no avail. The market for black motor belts is strong because there were many more black machines manufactured.

    Black is basic and goes with most everything I have been told.

Times, they are changin'

      Thread has changed over the years since our Featherweights were born. I love many of the new threads and I'm not here to say I have a problem with them, but your Featherweight might.
      Several times this last month I have had people call asking "what is wrong with their Featherweight? The stitch in the fabric is all loopy and loose..........."
      The Featherweight was created at a time when 50 weight thread was the norm. Several times recently I have had people having problems with their machines and the common denominator was that they were using  the "new" fine threads that are becoming quite popular. I don't want to name brand-names because it isn't about any one manufacturer or brand, it's the weight (physical size) of the thread that is causing a problem.
    If you are not happy with your machines stitch or the thread tension try changing to a thread of heavier weight.

Don't replace your bobbin case too quickly!

     In the years that I have been working with Featherweights I've noticed that problems with Feathers seem to happen in clusters. I don't find a problem but what the problem does not repeat itself, repeatedly, within days. Case in point: a bobbin case not adjusting as it should. If yours seems to have but one setting; loose, it might seem like it is "time for a replacement bobbin case", Oh bother!
    How you remove the thread from your bobbin case might determine how you will spend your next $75.00. If you function like I did not so long ago you probably remove your bobbin from the bobbin case to change thread by dumping the bobbin in your hand and pulling the thread out of the case from inside, just jerking on the bobbin and dragging the thread out screaming!. (I'm trying to make it sound like a rude thing, did it work?) But we are not going to do that any more, are we?
     Instead let the bobbin drop gently into your cupped hand and cut the thread with your best gold plated (titanium bladed) stork scissors you keep warm in a velvet lined basket beside your Featherweight.
     Now, pull the thread out of the bobbin case from the outside which is pulling the thread out from the case in the normal direction the thread would travel.
     Why? The bobbin case is designed for the thread to pass through it one way. That's why there are no options as to how to install the bobbin case even though some have tried. If thread is pulled backwards through the bobbin case (as in; jerked removed from the inside) the little metal strap on the outside of the bobbin case (that is the tension spring) will "shave" the lint from the thread making its own lint if there wasn't any. This "free-at-last" lint collection builds up under the open end of the strap spring and it can have enough body (mass) to hold the spring's tip up and off of the side of the bobbin case allowing the thread to just pull through this tension device without resistance (tension). It will be held up and off by the tiniest amount and it will not be easy to see unless you really look.
    Cure? Stop pulling the thread the wrong way. If you already have a zero tension case; remove the tension adjusting screw (over a towel!!!) and loosen the screw at the end of the strap about one turn to loosen the strap. Using a flat tooth-pick, inset the flat end of the tooth-pick under the strap about where the tension screw was and wipe sideways to the tip of the spring where the thread comes out. The pellet of lint that comes out will be tiny and you'll think that I am pulling your leg, but April-fools Day was yesterday and I'm over it.
     Put things back together, reset the tension and enjoy. It is possible you might have to remove both screws to clean out completely from under the strap tension spring. Please work over a towel to keep from loosing one of the screws.

The Ten Most Common Things That Happen To A Featherweight

Question: What single thing contributes to the problems a Featherweight might have?
Answer: A human bought it.

In a class recently, I was asked why I don’t compose a list entitled; “THE TEN MOST COMMON THINGS THAT HAPPEN TO A FEATHERWEIGHT”. You might note that most of the things that do go-bump-in-the-night are not caused by the machine. A brief answer to the question posed, follows that question....

(1)  Why does my machine skip stitches or make frequent “long” stitches?
The needle is installed backwards. There is a flat side ground into the needle’s fat non-pointy end and that flat side must face to the left when the needle is installed.
(2)  My machine has grabbed absolute handfuls of thread and has sucked it down through the throat plate.
You must pull the upper and bobbin threads gently out the back of the machine as you introduce fabric to the needle or thread can get caught in the hook assembly and you will spend tonight picking thread out of the hook assembly. All of tonight.
(3)  There is a bird’s nest of thread under the throat plate and the machine has locked-up solid. Prevention; again, pull the upper and bobbin threads out the back as you introduce fabric to the needle. Have you removed the throat plate to clean under it? Is the positioning finger back in the slot under the throat plate?
(4)  Why does my machine run slow?
More than likely the motor belt is too tight, loosen it. It should be no tighter than it needs be to keep the motor pulley from slipping when you step on the gas. 
There may be thread wrapped around the motors’ shaft behind the flange of the motor pulley. 
Has the motor been lubricated within the last 42 years?
(5)  The foot controller gets hot.
An adjustment is needed within the controller. Unplug the controller. From the wall at least! Open the controller by removing the four screws, one in the center of each of the rubber feet, and locate the screw head in the middle of the metal plate at the end of the ceramic “controller”. Loosen the screw one and one half turns. Close things back up.
(6)  My machine has two speeds: “stop” and “go like crazy”! And nothin’ in between.
An adjustment is needed to the foot controller in the opposite direction of the answer to question number (5) above. That metal plate should be withdrawn one-eighth of an inch (and be accurate) into the ceramic block that is the real controller hiding within what we call the controller.
(7)  My machines’ light flickers and the motor stutters.
The posts of the electrical receptacle below the hand wheel are split so they splay out slightly to provide a positive contact within the plug of the power cord. The split posts may have been pinched     closed. Spread them until the split (gap) is uniform and not pinched.
(8)  The needle does not pick-up the bobbin thread.
Has the needle been threaded from right to left? Is there a three inch tail of thread coming from the bobbin case? Is there a lot of lint under the needle plate?
(9)  “Something just isn't right, I can't put my finger on it.”
Re-thread the machine. No explanation needed.
(10)  Operator error. I know, now I’m meddling.

That’s ten, I hope it helps.


Saturday Night Bath

In classes related to Featherweight maintenance, I can count on the fact that I am not going to get out the door without touching on the subject of how the owners can clean their machines. “Getting them to look like new in five minutes or less would be nice”.
    There are degrees of cleaning and there are degrees of urgency for a “Saturday night bath” with your machine. It will take a little more than five minutes to get your machine back to “like-new” condition though. A rule of thumb I employ is that some things residing on your machine’s paint respond to soap and water and other deposits need a solvent of some sort. Start with the gentlest approach; soap and water. Nothing harsher than you would use on your face. Dry the machine and then spray a fine mist of WD-40 (as a mild solvent) over the entire exterior of the machine. Do not oil the machine using WD-40 (EVER!) but you can use WD-40 to clean the machines’ exterior while grinning. I used the word “solvent” but don’t substitute some other rude solvent instead of WD-40. (Alcohol, acetone, lacquer thinner and stuff like that are not to be used!) Leave the WD-40 on the machine for ten minutes and then vigorously rub the machine down with a soft terry-cloth rag. Let the machine dry for awhile and apply wax. You’ll know you might be a red-neck if WD-40 is considered a great after shave, like I do.
    If you want more of a shine, we have some work to do. First, evaluate the condition of the paint on your machine. If the decals are worn there is something I would like to elaborate on. The paint finish on a black machine is in multiple layers. The base layer (the black) is baked enamel over the aluminum castings on our Featherweight. Enamel paint was sprayed on and the machine was put into what is basically a continuous conveyer belt pizza oven to bake the enamel finish hard. Then the decals were applied, although they were called “transfers” in 1933, and the machine went back to the paint booth to have a “clear coat” of shellac sprayed over everything. If your decals are showing wear the shellac over the decals was compromised first. This is why I recommend you use a wax containing Carnauba wax as it leaves a film over the decals that will protect them from additional wear if waxed every six months.
    If you want to ramp things up a bit, use a “fine” (grade) polishing compound that can be found in automotive parts shops. I use a cream based polishing compound by Turtle-wax, but there are others. A rule of thumb thing is in order again. As you use polishing compound, if you cannot easily see the color of the compound while you rub, you are doing the work and not the compound. Begin with a three inch by three inch square of terry-cloth that is damp. The moisture keeps the terry-cloth from soaking up handfuls of polishing compound. With a cream type of compound, put a US quarter sized blob of compound on the base of the machine and lay your rag centered on it. Work in circles for a full two minutes in an area about 3 inches by 3 inches and then wipe the work area clean with a paper towel. Buff the area a while with the towel. Looking better? Does it need more of the same? A 3 X 3 work area must be worked in a firm circular motion for about five minutes (typically) to get a great a shine on. Move on to the next 3 X 3 area of the machine. The polishing compound does not remove scratches.
    To polish the arm of a Featherweight I put a quarter sized puddle of compound on the base, again, and work on the arm from that surface. Dip in and polish. The polishing compound can be applied to the rag to use and Q-tips will clean out the oil holes.
    If the decals on your black machine are compromised; rub vigorously up to the edge of the decals (in circles) but not over the decals. I find it easier to polish a machine with compromised decals on its base by reaching through and under the arm of the machine to the far side of the machine and rubbing parallel to the edge of the decals. When done polishing feel free to wax over the decals.
    The white (pale celery) Featherweights are painted with baked enamel, but they do not sport a coat of clear shellac as there are no decals to protect. You can do fantastic things removing scuff marks and crud from a white (green) Featherweight using acetone, and I promise acetone will not damage the paint on the body of the white machine. EXCEPT it will instantly trash the black lettering on the lampshade and to the left of where the electrical cord enters the machine’s base. Work up to this lettering by making yourself a finger puppet from terry-cloth over a vinyl gloved finger to be used while working details with acetone. Again, do not wipe over the black lettering. Q-tips are your friend. Oh! The motor of the white (whatever) machine is painted with a different paint that does not like acetone either. That really does leave a lot that can be cleaned using acetone on your white (pale green) machine, especially the brown scum line at the bottom of the arm where it mates with the base.
    OH, yeah. Put out your cigar and work in a well ventilated area when using acetone.

Alternate uses for a pocket knife and stuff like that

What do you do if you want to check your motor brushes and the plastic cap (the black screw) broke off? Singer did us no great favors by making the screw for access to the brushes out of plastic. They can be replaced but at a price you might not like. There is only one place in the world that makes these screws and they can dictate the price accordingly.

To remove the motor brush cap (screw), I use a pocket knife. I like a pointy blade style of pocket knife that I feel naked when I don't have it in my pocket. Open the blade (it took me years to learn that trick) and point the tip of the blade at the center of what is left of the cap on the motor. You need to try to "drill a hole" in the cap using the tip of the knife blade. The knife is to be turned to the left, counter-clockwise while pressing fairly firm (but not hard) on the knife tip. After about twenty turns you are going to be asking what Dave is talking about. The tip of the knife blade is not the best drill, but it becomes the ideal tool shortly. You've made a dimple in the plastic stuck in the hole by this time and sometime shortly the knife blade will start dragging (scraping) in the hole as it is turned. Then the blade will start jamming (sticking) in the hole you are trying to make. Add a little more pressure, turning to the left, and what's left of the old cap in the hole will unscrew and it can be removed. It takes but a minute in reality.

Use care when installing the new cap as well. It breaks easily. I don't know why the new caps are not made out of a superior plastic. My cure is simple. I use my thumb nail as a screw driver and I never get them too tight. But then I use my car keys to scratch in my ears too. If I use a screw driver I do not hold it by the handle but turn it by holding only the metal shank of the screw driver and I sing a little song about it "ain't got to be tight" as it doesn't hold the machine together. And you can sing the next verse about "Dave don't need no more of my money". I don't work for the Government.

Your questions are welcome. My answers are long-winded. It's the price you pay when the answers are free.