For the first time, I'm getting rid of a sewing machine. Here's a quick review of my Singer Touch-N-Sew before it goes to its new home. (Stick around to the end for a sneak peek at what's next!)
Boy, I do love RU-vid! What a treat it is to get to meet experienced sewists like yourself. It is so generous of you and others to share your knowledge and to allow us all to pick your brain. The things you teach are so well presented and practical, all I can say is “thanks”-from a little ,old white haired lady who has been sewing for 60 years. Never too late to learn !
I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Golden Touch & Sew!!! I bought it in the early 70's new, and used it to sew my own clothes, 3-piece suites for my husband, wedding gowns, alterations for a local retail wedding apparel shop, friends' wedding gowns and prom dresses, made my children's clothes, and couture alterations for a local shop!! I still use it several times a week and runs like a CHAMP!! If it "dies" I'm not sure what I'll do!!! LOL. Was fun seeing your video!!
The friend I gave this machine to just contacted me a couple of weeks ago to let me know she finally got to use it. It really is a good machine. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Hi, this machine is a workhorse but where are the feed dogs??????? My left hand gets sore pulling the fabric through...sigh...love the wind in place bobbin though! It was ahead of it's time♥️
The stock feed dogs are rubber but work great but can be replaced with steel toothed ones if you want. If they done move, you may have a broken gear underneath. Worth fixing.
I bought a used Singer Touch n Sew for $25. Used it for years and it quilted beautifully. Then, my sewing repairman told me the plastic gears were wore out. Finally, after holding onto it many years, my husband changed the gears. You can buy them now. It works again!
The slow speed setting is for thick or bulky material. Cuts the speed in half but doubles the torque. There is a hack to swap the motor into a 401,403, 404 for those who are sewing leather.
My Grandma gave me this machine for my highschool grad present in '76. She had purchased it new in '74. (This isn't my device - I'm a woman). The machine came with numerous disc's for decorative sewing, overcasting, and stretch stitches. Also did a buttonhole. It was the top of the line the year my Grandmother purchased it. Unfortunately, one of the plastic gears busted in 1990 and there was no source for getting a replacement - not even Ebay for used parts. It makes me sad that I didn't get to keep it as the gears are now available again. Coincidently, one of my first projects on it after I graduated was recovering the front bucket seats of my car. They turned out great, but my car was in a "slightly"🤣🤣🤣 different class from yours.....it was a 1971 Gremlin!
This was awesome vid. i just realized why thread is not going through bobbin. The plastic bobbin broke in half and I believe it's why it wont wind up properly. mine is singer auto reel lol
Am so grateful to you. My local Adult Ed has had one of these for a couple of years and no one knew how to thread the bobbin. Who dreams these quirky engineering things up? Maybe only to have their own name on a patent? ClaketyClak. Personally, I've come to like the different sounds of all the machines I own. I can tell when each one needs a change of needle, or is struggling, or just needs some TLC. Like kittens and cats and other pets, I suppose.
Good video. You were very objective instead of just beating up on the touch and sews. A couple corrections...the 758s were made in the early and mid 70s. They are much more than zigzag...they take many "fashion" discs giving many stitch options. They also chain stitch and do large and small monograms. Plus, gears and stuff are readily available. It's a very good machine despite what you may have heard.
I’m just running into this video and as I’m reading your comment I just wanted to share that I found one yesterday. Unfortunately the plastic or nylon feed dog is almost dust. They’re about $10 for a replacement unless I wanna get a metal one for a little bit more money, well I’m not gonna keep the machine myself but I wanted to at least get it ready for the next person. And yes I did comment before I read yours that the one I got yesterday there is a cam inside of it.
Don't fight the urge Jason, some will try to tell you, you have enough machines - REALLY! can a guy ever have too many machines, I don't think so!! Regards Colin, UK
You forgot the best feature of the touch and sew bobbins, they unscrew and are really easy to unload. I've been getting rid of my home based machines as well but plan on keeping the 626 touch and sew I have around. I like the slant needle and versatility of it. when I sew all my canvas motorcycle bags on my Kenmore 117 I keep the 626 set up to do all the buttonholes.
Thanks. I found this video really helpful. was given this machine and never saw this bobbin set up before. Not interchangeable with other bobbins! I'll buy some bobbins and try it but I wish I never got rid of my old Domestic!
Just bought one for ten bucks in a thrift store- she dropped it from 20 when it was having difficulty getting up to speed- I think its just dirty! I am going to use it to patch my sails for my freeby boat lol Am on a learnin curve being frugal 78 but carry a needle for splinters etc! , but while cleaning couldant find any plastic gears- all metal that I can see cheers :)
The first 649 I purchased, from a thrift shop in the early late 80s, had plastic gears until they stripped from gassing off and the mechanic changed them out to metal after he explained that at the time the new nylon gears had yet to be perfected and he had a machine he could scavange from so the cost was minimal. It was noiser than the vinyl gears but it worked like a real trooper.
One can never have too many sewing machines OR too much fabric! I probably have 9 or 10 functioning machines. They all serve a purpose in my sewing world.
I have two different touch and sew that I inherited from various relatives. I love the drop in bobbin feature. I heard you say in the video that your new machines have all metal gears and was wondering which models you were talking about. The only machine I ever bought new was a piece of junk singer that never stayed in adjustment--from day one! I was told it was because of the crappy material the gears were made from. I currently work in a fabric store and everyone who has purchased a singer from the late '80's forward said they all have plastic gears and are boat anchors. I am hesitant to get a new machine unless I can get one with all metal gears and I have a bunch of slant needle attachments that I hope to use.
Hi, My only "new" machine is my 2-year-old Sailrite Ultrafeed, portable walking-foot machine, and it is all metal. Basically all of my other machines are pre-1970, many of which are all metal but some have nylon gears. Besides Sailrite, I am not aware of a new, household sewing machine manufacturer that makes anything I would use for my sewing, which tends to involve heavier fabrics and webbing. My wife is a quilter and uses a newer Brother machine, which she adores. I have a strong preference for pre-1970-vintage machines, mostly because they tend to be reliable, effective and cheap! Thanks for the comment, and thanks for watching!
624 or 626 was the last metal to have all metal gears. Unfortunately for some machines, they either stressed out the gears or went to a "quieter" machine by switching to the next generation of plastic gears that about now have gassed off to become brittle if stressed out. So you need to check the insides to make certain the factory installed metal gears remain. If you have a non-metal gear machine you can find one with the same set up of gears as yours and have them switched out. That is what i had done with a 648.
HI Anne, Only sentimentally. I have 12 machines at the moment (I mostly use 3 of them), and this machine didn't do anything that my current collection can't do. But it was a good machine! Thanks for your question, and thanks for watching!
I got a 626 as a gift from somebody moving and I did a project or two on that before the needle started hitting the bobbin case and not sewing. I'd already spent about $100 on getting it tuned up, and didn't have time to wait for that to happen again and so I saw another 626 with a table case for 85 bucks so I went and got that testing it briefly it seemed fine. Within very short order that one started to hit the bobbin case as well and not so. I dropped $300 getting them both fixed and after having sourced one set of metal gears to replace. The other machine didn't need the gear replacement. Now maybe four baby blankets in, while trying to sell the first six feet of thread into a comforter, the needles hitting the bobbin case and not sewing. I'm very frustrated and don't want to continue repairing machines and frankly it's too expensive to invest more into these. I don't know if it's just sewing ignorance but I don't have any money for lessons and repairs either. I still have a few projects that I really wanted to finish but it's very discouraging when I have to learn how to repair a machine after such little/ intermittent use. Any suggestions?
Hi! I'm sorry to hear you're having a frustrating experience. My limited knowledge of these machines only extends to my experience with this particular model, and I'm no expert, so take anything I say with a grain of salt. That said, if the needle is hitting the bobbin case, then either the needle is deflecting (bending), or the timing is off. If it is hitting the case randomly, I would speculate that the needle is deflecting. If that is the case, maybe try a bigger needle. The needle might also deflect if the machine is struggling to feed and if you are having to help the material get under the presser foot. If the machine was sewing fine and now is hitting the bobbin case all the time, not "randomly," then the timing might be off. This is not that hard to adjust, but very difficult for me to explain. If you're not pretty positive that the timing is off, I would not advise messing with it unless you've eliminated all other possibilities. The fact that two different machines are exhibiting the same symptom suggests to me that there is something happening that isn't timing related. It may be that the project you are trying to sew is just too much for these machines, or again maybe a larger needle would help. What fabric and thread are you using, and is this happening more when the assembly is thicker/more layers?
My mom still has hers. I hated that thing. It always jammed up and left grease and was hard to thread. She would act like I was stupid (mom is a bad teacher), then I took mandatory home ec and used a new machine and sewing wasn’t hard at all.
I learned to sew on a Singer Touch and Sew in the 70's. Was a lot better than the Singer Athena my grandmother bought, that was a piece of...well, you know.
I just love your vids. I just got a machine for free that is old. Made in Japan. Nelco Sierra is what it is. It seems to function really well except I can’t move the knob that changes stitch length. Any experience with these things?
Hi! Thanks! I am not familiar with that particular machine, but there are tons of vintage made-in-Japan machines out there, and most have a good reputation. And free is always a good price! I would say that the stitch length knob is likely stuck from the anti-corrosion chemicals applied prior to shipment have turned into varnish, or something similar like corrosion. If you can get some penetrating lubricant in there you might be able to get it loose without disassembly. Just don't force anything, let the lubricant work and go slowly. I hope that helps, thanks for watching and good luck with your machine!
That's the only way you'll get rid of a Singer machine -- give it away or sell it. Singer machines last forever. In fact, my mom still has my grandmother's treadle which still sews beautifully. I like the Touch & Sew bobbins because they unscrew in the middle. It's not necessary to wind a new bobbin for the next sewing project. All you have to do is unscrew the bobbin, remove the leftover thread from the former project, and rewind the bobbin with another color thread to match your new project.
Hi Benjamin, My recommendation for sewing thick canvas and other materials for making bags is the Sailrite Ultrafeed LS-1 (straight stitch) or LSZ-1 (zig-zag capable). I have a review video on my channel you might want to check out. FULL DISCLOSURE: Sailrite provided me with a machine. That said, before I got the Sailrite, I already had (and still own and use) a Thompson Mini Walking Foot machine, the machine the Sailrite is based on (they're nearly identical machines). Thompsons aren't super easy to find, but they do show up on Craigslist from time to time. If you want a new machine, with tech support, warranty etc., though, I'd go for the Sailrite. There are a number of knock-offs of the Sailrite machines on the market. While I have no personal experience with any of them, I personally don't support the idea of buying an illegitimate copy of something at the expense of the people who actually designed the real thing. Your wallet and conscience will have to be your guide. All that said, I have sewn a LOT of stuff using 1000 denier Cordura and other heavy fabrics for backpacks, duffels, etc., on vintage domestic sewing machines. The machine in this video cost me $12 at a thrift store, and did a couple of small auto upholstery repairs, and more. If you're just getting started, I strongly recommend getting a cheap machine to learn on - you can make useful things with it while you're learning, and when you step up to something like a Sailrite, it will just make things easier. I hope that helps, let me know if you have other questions, and thanks for watching!
So funny. I have a Touch and Sew 603 since I was 10 years old. Mom and I have used it all these years. Can hem blue jeans ect. Never broke a bobbin. Wonder what changed between the 2 models? BTW: I am 66.
Hi Julia, I no longer have this machine. To be honest, when I made this video, I had forgotten that it even used pattern discs. Usually, you flip open the top to access the disc, remove the disc that is in place (there may be a nut securing it that you have to unscrew), put in the disc you wish to use and go from there. Often, the disc you are using will require a specific stitch length or zig-zag setting to function correctly. Singer has manuals for all of their machines available for free on their website. My best advice is to get the manual for your machine, it should answer all of your questions. I hope that helps, thanks for watching, and good luck!
Hi! You are correct! At the time I filmed this, I totally forgot about that (it's not a feature I use even today). Back when this video was released, RU-vid had a feature where text boxes could be added after the video was published, but at some subsequent point they stopped supporting them, so the correction I added to this video no longer shows on screen. But anyway, you are correct, this machine uses cams to make a bunch of decorative stitches.Thanks for watching and commenting!
hello,you are a life saver ,I just got this zigzag model 758 but the bobbing push botton is so tight n it won't move tithe left like yours in the video.pls help
Hi, The only thing I can suggest is you might try using some sewing machine oil to lubricate the push button and see if that frees it up. If that doesn't work, you might need to find a sewing machine repair person. Good luck, and thanks for watching!
Hi, I'm not sure what might cause that problem. Something is pushing against the plate; is the bobbin the correct bobbin, fully inserted, and the button (if it has one) for the bobbin winding mode pushed back to the sewing setting?
Hi Linda, I'm sorry, I don't. This machine was the only Touch and Sew model I had. Yo might check out AndyTube here on RU-vid, he does lots of repairs of vintage sewing machines. Good luck!
Hi I have the same machine & the needle bar it won't stay in the straight position?? It goes to the left even though the needle position lever says its in the middle?? I did some adjusting on the timing which I fixed don't know why its doing this?
Hi Moe. Sorry, to hear you're having troubles with your machine. I wish I could offer some help, but I'm not that knowledgeable about sewing machine repair. I would guess it's something that can be adjusted, but my advice would be to try to find a qualified sewing machine repair person in your area (fabric stores often have someone they recommend if you have trouble finding someone in your area). Hopefully it's a simple adjustment. Good luck!
I have the chance to buy a T-N-S 458 in very good condition (allegedly), and was wondering what I should look for when I test it out before I buy it? I want a used machine for sewing denim & canvas tote bags. Is this machine appropriate for that purpose? Thanks!
Hi! I think that machine should be able to sew a couple of layers of denim or canvas. However, the real struggle when sewing those heavier materials with ANY non-walking-foot machine is when you get to thick seam transitions or other areas where the layer count gets thick. If you keep your expectations realistic and you aren't trying to make canvas bags as a business, you should be good. If you find yourself doing that sort of thing a lot, I think a walking-foot machine will be in your future. Regarding testing it, I suggest you bring some fabric and thread samples and try to sew with the machine. Check stitch tension, make sure the stitch-length and zig-zag width controls, etc., work as they should. My general experience with most vintage domestic sewing machines is if they work, they just work. Good luck, let us know what happens!
There is a plastic pin on this machine to hold a spool thread. It is horizontal, and has a cap that is friction-fit. Pull off the cap, slide the spool on, push the cap back on. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!
Hi! If I'm understanding you correctly, the machine isn't forming a stitch. The most likely and simple cause is that the needle is installed incorrectly. On this machine, the needle is installed so that the "slot" that runs the length of the needle is facing the front, and the "scarf" near the eye of the needle is facing the rear of the machine. If re-installing the needle doesn't change anything, the machine might need to be re-timed. If the hook isn't arriving at the loop formed in the top thread at the right time, it won't catch the loop and make the stitch. If you have a timing issue and aren't familiar with the process of timing the machine, I would suggest finding a qualified repair shop to time it for you. If I misunderstood the issue let me know, and good luck!
What would you recommend if on a 648 the bobbin winder button does not move to activate the bobbin winder. Does the bobbin winder mechanism gunk up so as to make it not move? Or could it need replacing?
Hi Tom, My knowledge of repair and maintenance of these machines is very limited. I would imagine the mechanism could easily be clogged with debris, wax, glue, rust etc., but I'm only guessing, sorry! You might want to check out AndyTube here on RU-vid, he does a lot of repair videos on machines of this vintage and might be able to help you more. Good luck!
When i think about condition oif bobbin wind mnechanism not working in the past if it is moving freely yet does not wind the is a broken part but when it only stuck it is probably junked up. Didn';t have the right tool to get at it at the time. Will relook. Luckily if it need replacing have a carcus machine to scavange.
If the needle goes up and down and the feed dogs go back nd forth but the hook does not turn to latch is the problem with a belt or is there a gear someplace that needs to be replaced?
Hi Tom, same as my answer to your other question - I'm only guessing here. If everything else is moving, I would guess that there is a gear out of position, damaged or missing, or a set screw used for timing the machine is loose or missing. Without being there to look at the machine, I can't be any more specific. You could try turning the hand wheel while looking at the bottom of the machine from underneath, you might see a point where a shaft is turning on one side of a gear, but not on the other side, for instance. I wish I could offer more help, sorry! Good luck!
@@thejasonofalltrades Looked at the guts 2 see what was going on and the feeder gears move when you move them by hand but they do not work when you power it so i guess there is a gear problem.
But wait, how in the heck do you set it for zigzagging?!!?!? Is it through a cam, I can't find the setting on my machine (given it's a778 but it looks exactly like yours).
Hi! First, go to Singer.com, at the top menu select "Help/Manuals," then in the drop-down menu click "Find A Manual" and type "778" in the search box. Save the manual on your device for future reference, or print it out and keep it next to your machine. All (I think) Singer sewing machine manuals are available for free download on their site. It appears that the 778 requires the zig-zag cam to be in the machine to do zig-zag stitching. If you are setting the stitch width control for zig-zag and it isn't happening, then check to see if either there is NO cam, or the incorrect cam is installed. (From a glance at the manual, it appears there were two cams that came with the machine when new.) If the cam you need is missing, they might be available. Sewingmachineparts.com is one site I have had good luck with (no affiliation), but eBay might also be an option. If you aren't sure how to set the machine to zig-zag, the stitch width dial is on the front of the machine, and the display should be numbered 0-5, 5 being the widest zig-zag setting, and 0 being straight stitch. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!
Hi, The only things I can suggest are the basics: check that the needle is in the correct orientation, not bent, and fully inserted in the needle bar. Re-thread the machine, and re-insert the bobbin, making sure those are all correct. Singer has digital versions of the manuals for all of their machines on their website, so if you don't have the manual, take a look there to make sure you are threading it correctly. Not picking up the bobbin thread usually means the thread isn't forming a loop, or not forming it at the correct time. If none of the above suggestions help, the machine could be out of time. It's not that hard to fix, but more than I can try to explain here (and I'm not familiar with that particular model). I hope that helps, good luck!
I dismantled the singer 750 according to: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cYLzGwpoWeE.html in order to replace the applicable gear(s). I replaced then reversed the dismantling but fir some reason the hook remains uncontected to the control of the gears. What happened?I dismantled the singer 750 according to: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cYLzGwpoWeE.html in order to replace the applicable gear(s). I replaced then reversed the dismantling but fir some reason the hook remains uncontected to the control of the gears. What happened?
Hi Tom, Unfortunately I'm not trained as a sewing machine mechanic. My guess is that a screw got missed somewhere (like a set screw securing the hook to its shaft, maybe), but without seeing the machine I'm totally guessing. If you can't find a sewing machine repair person in your area, you might check with any large fabric stores (like Joann Fabrics), they often have a contract repair person who services machines, you might be able to find someone to help you that way. Good luck!
I’m laughing...and crying...in starting a leather goods business I bought 3 machines. 1 fur machine, 1 flatbed and a TIPPMANN Boss with EVERYTHING.. So I’m watching how to use this machine here in the house Christmas sewing station... with $28,000+ in sewing machines out in the leather shop/warehouse. (Real tears flow here)
