I use pure acetone to remove old oil-CAREFULLY applied via an artist brush. I loosen and then wipe away the dissolved crud. I carefully avoid plastic and the exterior finish. It works beautifully. It’s rated highly as a penetrant and solvent. Once the joints are purely clean, then I lubricate.
@@VintageSewingMachineGarage He is right about the acetone. Acetone & Trans fluid mix is about the best penetration fluid known to exist. If IF you decide to try it be sure to shake it before application as they don't like to stay mixed.
Have you ever used a product called SuperZilla? It is a “green” plant-based product and there is no smell! It is marketed with an ability to “climb threads” on screws etc. I switched to this after getting a headache from the smell of BP Blaster trying to unlock an old Kenmore and it is running beautifully now. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us, you were a key part of me getting my machine unstuck!
I've had great results with Tri-Flo oil, and also with cigarette lighter fluid. Both need to soak in for a few days, and probably should be reapplied every day or so. Chris at Central Michigan told me about the lighter fluid. One of the first machines I was doing was a Singer 503a. It had a stuck handwheel. It took about a week, but finally did the job.
@@cyncyn747He talking about lighter fluid for old fashioned 'petrol' lighters Zippo's and the like. Zippo fluid and Swan lighter fluid are two branded versons.
I've seen another UA-camr doing vintage machine repair - his channel is called something like Curio by bespoke design. He uses a turntable with a tray on top of it to put the machine on. It lets him move it easier for cleaning and also the tray catches the drips of oil. Worth a try to save you a bit of effort with your repairs?
Great videos! I really enjoy them. I recently acquired a Singer 185 j ( I know you’re familiar with that model 😊) from my 93 year old aunt, and have spent the last week or so cleaning, oiling, lubricating and polishing it and have it looking practically brand new, but the final touch will be replacing the tension spring since I realized at some point it’s missing completely. I have the tension knob all dissembled and ready for the new spring to be placed and see them on many sites on the Internet but was wondering do you have a particular place that you order from that you can recommend? Thanks in advance
Eileen, there are many online sources for that check spring since so many of these machines were made. I've had very good service from Central Michigan Sewing and their site is easy to navigate. Here is the link with parts for the 185/185K. Note, it lists the spring as for the Singer 66 and Singer 99 models which share much of their mechanicals with the 185 models. Just to be sure, you can contact the seller as they are a small business and they can confirm for you, but I'm 'pretty sure' that the same spring was used for all of the above Singer models. Here is the link: www.vintagesingerparts.com/collections/singer-model-185-parts
Thank-YOU! You've given me incentive to tackle a couple of machines that are jammed.
I cant wait to see this little girl run smooth. Already looking forward to that video. Good job 👍
You and me both!
Thanks for the tip!
Happy to help!
Good stuff. Thank you.
I use pure acetone to remove old oil-CAREFULLY applied via an artist brush. I loosen and then wipe away the dissolved crud. I carefully avoid plastic and the exterior finish. It works beautifully. It’s rated highly as a penetrant and solvent. Once the joints are purely clean, then I lubricate.
If he can't stand the smell of PB Blaster I don't think he'll like acitone much.
And you would be correct!!
@@VintageSewingMachineGarage I have three colognes-Triflow, WD40, and Acetone. 😂. Love the channel! ❤️
@@VintageSewingMachineGarage He is right about the acetone. Acetone & Trans fluid mix is about the best penetration fluid known to exist. If IF you decide to try it be sure to shake it before application as they don't like to stay mixed.
Have you ever used a product called SuperZilla? It is a “green” plant-based product and there is no smell! It is marketed with an ability to “climb threads” on screws etc. I switched to this after getting a headache from the smell of BP Blaster trying to unlock an old Kenmore and it is running beautifully now. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us, you were a key part of me getting my machine unstuck!
Thank you for sharing as I've not heard of it; but then again, there are so many products out there!
I've had great results with Tri-Flo oil, and also with cigarette lighter fluid. Both need to soak in for a few days, and probably should be reapplied every day or so. Chris at Central Michigan told me about the lighter fluid. One of the first machines I was doing was a Singer 503a. It had a stuck handwheel. It took about a week, but finally did the job.
Do you mean butane?
@@cyncyn747He talking about lighter fluid for old fashioned 'petrol' lighters Zippo's and the like. Zippo fluid and Swan lighter fluid are two branded versons.
I've seen another UA-camr doing vintage machine repair - his channel is called something like Curio by bespoke design. He uses a turntable with a tray on top of it to put the machine on. It lets him move it easier for cleaning and also the tray catches the drips of oil.
Worth a try to save you a bit of effort with your repairs?
Thanks for the tip!
Great videos!
I really enjoy them.
I recently acquired a Singer 185 j ( I know you’re familiar with that model 😊) from my 93 year old aunt, and have spent the last week or so cleaning, oiling, lubricating and polishing it and have it looking practically brand new, but the final touch will be replacing the tension spring since I realized at some point it’s missing completely.
I have the tension knob all dissembled and ready for the new spring to be placed and see them on many sites on the Internet but was wondering do you have a particular place that you order from that you can recommend?
Thanks in advance
Eileen, there are many online sources for that check spring since so many of these machines were made. I've had very good service from Central Michigan Sewing and their site is easy to navigate. Here is the link with parts for the 185/185K. Note, it lists the spring as for the Singer 66 and Singer 99 models which share much of their mechanicals with the 185 models. Just to be sure, you can contact the seller as they are a small business and they can confirm for you, but I'm 'pretty sure' that the same spring was used for all of the above Singer models. Here is the link:
www.vintagesingerparts.com/collections/singer-model-185-parts