SEWING MACHINE FAIRY STRUCK!

I was cleaning out my closet, and you'll never guess what I found -- a lovely tan-and-white Singer 401A in perfect condition. It only has the teeniest of scratches on the bed and absolutely no rust or anything. The bobbin winder looks like it was never used -- still has the little molding joint on it. No power cord, though, but that is a minor technicality. (I wonder if the power cord from my 500A will fit it.)

I saw this SM case and thought, "What machine is this?" and opened it, and I about dropped dead in shock! I don't remember *ever* getting one, although I have looked for them lots to complete my sewing machine garden :). My 500A will be SOOOO happy to have another little sister closer to her age who she is more in common with than my 301A (another tan-and-while model) and 221.

Now to get a power cord for this little angel. Don't need cams -- I bought tons when I got my 500A.

Melinda, floating on thin air

Reply to
Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply
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Oohh...Melinda, those 401s are the best of the vintage Singers IMHO!!! What a nice surprise! =20

Unfortunately the power cords are not interchangeable, Singer went to the newer plug with the 500 series slants.

They are absolutely awesome. I now have 3 401s, just picked up one recently at a thrift (came in it's case). With all the built in stitches the 401 has, I never have to put a cam in them.

-Irene

-------------- You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.=20

--Mae West=20

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Reply to
IMS

I wondered where I left that 401.......... JUST KIDDING!!!

What a nice surprise! Did you lose a tooth? Was it the Tooth Fairy, do you think? I don't suppose you've checked any other closets you haven't checked in a while?

Reply to
Pogonip

Hey, if I ever make it to Reno, you will see a LOT more gone than just a

401. GD&RFC Especially if you have a W&W #8 handcrank *drool*

I only have one closet. The coat closet is full with the vacuum cleaner and board games, the linen closet has no space big enough to fit one, my daughter took the doors off her closet and has a writing table set up in it with a few clothes hanging to the side, and the boys' closet has a bookcase in it under their shirts. *sigh*

I think it was the "Nice things can still happen to you so stop being so pessimistic" fairy myself.

Reply to
Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply

*aaarrrghhh* Do you spoze if you put it back for a while, it'll fix itself?
Reply to
Pogonip

Plastic parts. The Root of All Evil. *sigh* You probably need a donor machine. Or an OSMG who never threw anything away. Best of luck.

Reply to
Pogonip

Ok. You win. I have cleaned out my closets before and found clothing I thought I'd gotten rid of. I have cleaned out my closets before and found books I thought I had gotten rid of. I have cleaned out my closets and found a few things that I didn't remember getting but eventually had an "AH HA!" moment and could name from whence they came.

I have never cleaned out my closet and found a sewing machine that I'd never seen before.

You are the Closet Cleaning Queen, I bow before you. ;)

Have fun with it!! Hope you get it powered up soon.

Sharon

--whose "babies" are mostly all in the sewing machine hospital right now because the movers didn't pack them well. the only good part of this is that said movers will pay off the sewing machine doctor. *sigh*

Reply to
mamahays

They are not at all common, so a donor may never turn up. I've only ever seen one on ebay, for example... However, there is a F&R guru in Finchley who may find it a part. Otherwise, I may try to get a metal replacement made, using the plastic bit as a pattern. I shall ring the fella during the week and see what can be done.

Reply to
Kate Dicey

Sounds like you had the same movers I had. They dumped all the sewing items in boxes, no packing (unlike the individually wrapped remotes and tools). I had embroidery thread everywhere, in a dozen boxes, etc. Still havent found all the notions, rulers, etc. and we have been in here 8 months. I emailed pictures to the ladies in the front office of company. Suggested that if they ever again had someone with a large separate sewing room, that maybe, just maybe it was important that they wrap the items like the ones in the living room. DH was incharge on this move and he was trying to keep them from ruining the pictures and computer/electirc equipment his hobby includes. The boxs all seemed to be labeled "tupperware" or "basement" (and that was a finished walkout lower story the last house). Of the last 6 moves this was the worst. Think best was by barge to Alaska, except it was winter and everything sat out in -20 below for a couple of weeks.

As with your moving company, mine also paid to have my machines checked and fixed. I carried my Pfaff into temp housing so they didnt touch that one. At least I found someone I really trust with my electirc "kids" here in North Dakota. Would love to open a box and find a machine I didnt know I had. After many transfers and moves I pretty much know what I have.

Sorry for the move vent........ still a sore subject. My little brother dr>> I was cleaning out my closet, and you'll never guess what I found -- a

Reply to
twinkle

Have been watching and sympathising - but this has brought back horrible memories of walking into my sewing room a few years ago and seeing a packer put my machine on the floor and roll it in paper like fish and chips! The factory later told me they removed the chip in three pieces. The same packer tipped all the contents of my cabinet drawers into piles (pins, cotton, scirrors, the lot) and wrapped that the same way. I think I know what his real job was!!!

I can look back and smile now - but at the time I was not laughing when I found the machine case carefully wrapped (empty) in a separate carton. I've had 26 moves, 21 of them professional. Only two of the professional ones were what I would call "satisfactory". --

Cheryl >^;;^< >^;;^< >^;;^<

Reply to
Cheryl

I will never forget that a professioner mover rep once told me "Three moves are the equivalent of a fire."

Jean M.

Reply to
Jean D Mahavier

Oh, Sharon!!! How awful, you have my most sincere sympathy. You should casually mention the name of this "moving" company. Really, you should.

Reply to
BEI Design

A lot of times the packers are just sub-contractors for the moving company. So, it doesn't matter which company you call as far as getting the packers.

We usually pack the stuff ourselves and let the guys load it on the truck. We load a u-haul with things like mirrors and the coffee maker.

I hate that I have moved enough to have it down to a science, but I really do. The last time the guys came, they looked at what I had left to pack and said I wouldn't make it. I finished taping the last box as he came walking up the driveway with the dolly.

Also, I try to not use any other company but Graebel. There are lots of horror stories about every company out there, but Graebel has always been very helpful and polite with us.

We had one claim (on my treadle machine, and the driver called me over to show it to me. He pulled the blanket off, and it snagged a corner of the veneer and pulled a chunk off. He gathered up all the little bits for me, which made the repair a snap.

A A >
Reply to
Angrie.Woman

That is who moved us. They have been wonderful about everything. They sent me claim forms and our rep told me to go ahead and take them to the shop, get estimates and send the estimates back with the claim form. That way the money will be coming sooner.

Here's the details on what happened. I packed my industrial. They took one look at it and were intimidated beyond words. LOL So I handled it. It's fine. I gave the packers the original box and packing materials for my serger and my new Viking. I gave them the hard case that would fit over the Singer home machine. I told them to put the machine in the hard case and pad around it. (I've had that machine for almost 15 years so the original box, etc. is long gone.) I told them to pad the embroidery machine very carefully. A layer or two of the heavy padded paper would have been fine.

So. They packed the Viking in the original box and styrofoam. It's fine. (this is why I've not tracked them down and skinned them with a vegetable peeler.) They put one piece of styrofoam in the serger box. Then put the serger in there Sideways and stuffed fabric over the top. The thread tree is bent, and who knows what else could be wrong. The Singer was packed in a box, with very little padding **beside** the hard case. And the embroidery machine was packed, again with almost no padding, in a box with hard objects floating around it. And they completely mutilated my cardboard cutting board. Folded it up the way it's supposed to fold, then folded it roughly in half again. It's mangled and needs to go in the trash. *sigh*

Luckily, there is another gal here who I "know" from another list. She sent me to the sewing shop she's used for years. They said they would look them over thoroughly and do, at minimum, basic cleaning, timing, etc. They will let me know if there are more problems than that. They also told me that they get the majority of their repair work for just this reason. The manager told me he doesn't think there is a moving company out there that knows how to pack sewing machines. I don't think he's wrong. :(

But I will say that Graebel has been very good to us. They didn't even blink when I told them there was a problem. And they are more than willing to make good on all the repairs. This is why I didn't stress myself out about packing the machines myself. I knew if they packed them and there was a problem, they would make good on it. If I packed them and there was a problem, I'd have to pay for all this out of my pocket. So it's really all right. I have lots of other things that I need to take care of right now, and don't really have time to be in my sewing room. Good news is that it ought to all be taken care of by the time the kids get rolling in school and I have more free time. ;)

Thanks for all the support. I knew y'all would be as distressed as I was about the whole thing. I just keep telling myself...this too shall pass.

Sharon

Reply to
mamahays

Oh, I just felt the blood rush to my head in a fit of disbelief when I read that. Your poor babies!

A
Reply to
Angrie.Woman

I had never heard of Graebel till I moved back from SC to Houston and it was such a pleasant surprise to deal with a company like that. I had taken only a few things in the Jeep and bought furniture, etc up there, which had to be moved here. We had a "nightmare from hell' moving from CA to Houston in 1999. Luckily, I had brought my serger with me, but my embroidery machine was broken and DS's collection of rifles and antique hunting bow never made it to the house, although we had watched the guys pack them and signed the paper saying we had seen them loaded onto the truck, which I understand is the common law for firearms. Anyway, they're gone, and we were compensated the retail value, but they were antiques and irreplaceable. One, I had hand engraved for a birthday gift by a well-known engraver. North American moved me to CA and they were okay, no damage to anything except a small typing table that had one corner damaged and a lamp had the shade bent. They paid for both without a problem. The table had cost $30 at Wal-Mart many years earlier BC(before computers) and the shade was so old I don't remember where it was bought. DS hired a local company to move us to this house and he was on site with every load they made, so nothing was lost or damaged. I was in SC, and he took off work, stood watching the guys pack and load the truck, then drove behind them and watched them unload. He knew how upset I'd been when we came to Houston. He moved the portable sewing machines and the Waterford crystal lamp in the car the night before. Hopefully, this is my home for a long, long time. Emily

Reply to
CypSew

I have kept the packing for the Lily and the 910... If we ever move, I shall stand over the packers, prompting them when they get it wrong, but THEY will do all the handling! That way if something does get bust, there can be no arguments... I've seen the results of a well packed (by my father) sewing machine that was dropped into a ship hold! For some things there is only insurance!

Packing of my older machines, for which no original packing exists, will be done according to this site:

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Reply to
Kate Dicey

Pretty sickening huh? I called my friend that does upholstery and told her about it. I think it's the closest I've ever heard her get to a total breakdown. She just kept whispering "oh no, oh no," when I was telling her what happened. She was the most afraid for my industrial, because of its age it could be challenging to find parts if it needed any. I packed it and it appears to be fine. ;)

My non-sewing pals were upset about this too because they knew I was upset. But it sure is nice to know there are folks who really understand how sickened I was.

Sharon

Reply to
mamahays

in, so I can't follow George

Reply to
Cynthia Spilsted

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