Singer 337

Go to your local fabric store and see if they have an intro to sewing course. Take your machine with you and see if you can find someone more experienced who can tell you how to thread it.

There are any number of books on the market, showing the basics of any sewing machine, including the Idiot's Guide to Sewing, which believe it or not is a very good intro to sewing machine and basic sewing. Singer even publishes a book on the same essentials. What Samantha advice is good, if you can find a sewing class at any dealer, or fabric store; but reading is also worthwhile. Do you have the manual? If not, try to get one and it will always be helpful. Good luck in your new venture. Sewing can be therapeutic as well as addictive. Emily

First off, have you cleaned the machine thoroughly? Dust and fluff accumulates in machines, especially under the feed dogs and in the bobbin area. This needs to be cleaned and the machine oiled before use.

If you don't have the manual, you will probably find one really helpful. Try allbrands.com, sewingmanuals.com or sewusa.com for a downloadable manual. It's well worth the $10 or so, if you are having problems.

If you already have a manual, but are having problems understanding the instructions, try posting them here, someone will be able to walk you through.

I'm a bit concerned about "HOnestly, there are so many holes in the darn thing, I dont know what goes where. " What holes? In where?

Try and be a little more specific - even if you don't know the name of something, try describing it. Or find a link to something the same or similar.

Keep at it, it will be worth it in the end

chris :-)

It looks like a standard Singer 66 type drop-in bobbin (solid curved top and bottom, metal or plastic, like this:

Congratulations. Sewing is a rewarding and fullfilling hobby, but for some of us it is a bit more...a way of life. Many folks prefer to make their own rather than buy 'made in china' and for others sewing is their occupation.

The first thing you need to, as with any used mechanical device, is to make sure nothing is broken.

It may also be in need of a good internal cleaning and lubrication.

A manual is the best tool you can get for a sewing machine it shows you how to set it up and maintain and clean it. They can be had for $10 or so from web sites such as

Make sure you have the right kind of bobbins (holders for the thread that go under the slide plate) and the right kind of needles. The manual will tell you what these are.

Read 'how sewing machines work' for a good overview which should help you identify what is what:

-Irene

from my impression a feed dog is the half moon plate near the back of the machine? Under it is a lot of fluff and Ill be sure to clean it out.

what is the best thing to oil the machine with? where do I oil the machine?

Im only 19 and even though I am independant, I refuse to get trapped with a credit card-I am way too irresponsible right now and I know Ill jsut pile up debt. I wont hook up paypal to my bank account-with all the lawsuits paypal has right now. I will look online my college resource to see if I can download one, if not I will go pick up a couple books.

I was referring to all the threading points, the loop at the top, the side, the wheel at the side, 2 holes above the wheel, and one at the bottom by the needle the bottom just looks more complicated.

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Hopefully I can find one.

thanks :)

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stephy had written this in response to

the only plastic part I see is the bobbin. Im pretty sure it is the right bobbin.

I picked this one because I havent bought new clothes for myself in years. anything new is always bought for me. Hopefully, I can put this old machine to good use.

what is a tension mechanism and how do I find it?

stephy

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You do not always need to use a credit card; a US postal money order or another type money order has always worked for me. I use my credit card for a few purchases, but most times, I simply buy a money order at the post office when I buy stamps. Simple to use and you always have a receipt. I have never used Pay Pal and have no intentions of ever doing so. Emily

Just look at the other links I sent that dealt with how to use a sewing machine, that will show you where everything is.

-Irene

stephy had written this in response to

thanks :)

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Not many in the US will as the bank charges often are more then the transaction.

P.S> you do not need a credit card. If you have a checking account the debit card works just as well.

The 337 does not use a 15 class bobbin it is a 66 class.

Congratulations!

I know - they are confusing to start with, then one day you find yourself threading the machine up automatically without thinking about it.

At a guess, having not been able to find a decent picture of your machine, I estimate that the wheel numbers are probably the top thread tension guide (this lets you alter the tension on your top thread to suit different fabrics and stitch combinations - usually runs from 1 to

HTH

Sarah

I think the threading diagram (which shows the bobbin thread path) near the lower part of t his page, for thhe 360 will work for your 337 as well:

Gosh in Canada? Where abouts... if in Calgary then I could come and show you....

Liz

LOL Im a long LONG way from calgary. Im in toronto. But I must say Calgary is a very nice place. I was out there for a bit but missed my family so I moved back. Travelled all over Canada when I was 17. East to west coast.

I managed to figure out how to use it! I found A perfect diagram. first, I was threading the bobbin thread with the top thread. I counldnt find any loops because it kept jamming since I was threading both threads through the needle. Also, I realised I needed to thread the loop through the top. I was just complicating things more than I should have-->typical for me. heres the interactive step-by-step link I found:

before all this, I did a thorough clean. WOW. I guess I underestimated how long it had been sitting in a basement unused. Runs like a dream. Im really amazed that something that old works perfect. and the cabinet is in mint condition too.

I wonder if I decide to get a newer machine later on if I can re-use the cabinet?

stephy

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stephy had written this in response to

I will make sure to post some pictures when I have some spare time (maybe later this week) so you guys can check out this lovely antique.

I think it was an earlier model of the now modernized machines. from all the online reading Ive been doing, I can see how much technology is similiar to later models as well as earlier models. I think this was, when it first came out, a breakthrough in home economics. Its amazing how much technology changes. I think Im going to like this thing a lot better than MSN chat. :)

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