Singer 20U Industrial Sewing Machine Tutorial 

I inherited a Singer 20U from my mother, who was a professional seamstress all her life, when she passed away 15 years ago. I learned to sew as a young girl on this machine, and when I got older and had to get my own basic home sewing machine, it felt so slow and flimsy compared to using this, lol. When she passed away, she was living in Florida; I was living across the continent in Las Vegas, but thought I might be moving back to Florida soon, so I put it, along with countless bins and boxes of threads, notions, fabrics, and other accessories in a storage unit. Things didn't end up as I had predicted, and I ended up staying in Vegas for 15 years, before moving back east to North Carolina, and finally making it down to Florida to clean out the storage unit. I had to rent a truck to haul this bad boy and all the other bits up to NC, but I am glad I did. I now have a lot of cleaning and restoring to do, as I'm sure 15 years collecting dust in the humidity and humidity of Florida have probably not been good for this machine. Despite this, it actually looks like it has held up ok. I ran across this video as I was researching the use and care of this very particular machine before starting to clean it up. I'm assuming I will probably need to have it serviced before I can start using it again. My model does not have the bobbin threader on the top, however. It's on the right side of the machine, but otherwise looks identical to this one. I believe she got hers in the early or mid 1970s. My mother kept a roof over our heads and put food on the table with this machine. I'm just a sometime hobbyist sewer who likes to be able to mend clothes or craft some curtains now and again, but I count myself lucky to have it. Thank you for posting this video!

Just wanted to leave a quick thank you for this. Exactly what I needed, really appreciate someone who knows that machine literally inside and out taking the time to explain it for those of us who are likely to get in front of one for the first time.

I don't know if someone has mentioned this earlier but that big felt pad under the top cover (29:50 into the video) is the reservoir for the automatic oiling system. This felt pad should be liberally oiled and it will constantly feed oil to the main wear points that need to be lubricated all the time you are actually sewing. It's important.

I bought A 20U in 1974, new, and it has served me brilliantly. Sews anything, from leather to lace. Returning to textiles after a lengthy break, I'd forgotten the buttonhole sequence so this was very helpful, that you.

A Master showing her Art and abilities using a vintage machine- She is simply AWESOME!!!!!! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and tricks to us beginners!!!!!!

I was given my nans 20u over the summer and its amazing! This video was super helpful!

Thankyou for Sharing this Tutorial, I have a 1970/71 20u and your video has helped me understand my machine and to operate it properly.

At last, someone made a close-up and clear video. God bless you, it is excellent !

Very nice video I have the Singer 20U-109 for about a year now.I love it my wife does not sew but I love to make frame bags for bicycles and stuff for the house.It took me a while to learn how to use this machine one thing I did was I went to a smaller pulley on the motor that alone let me use the 20U-109.With out getting my fingers hurt lol.Once again thanks for this video.

Thank you. I bought a 20U machine recently. I appreciate for the tutorial and I will be contacting you for more as we proceed.

thanks so much for taking the time to make and share this video. it helped me so much and was really clear.

I am a very new seemstress.. my teacher sold me this 20u machine.. to wish i feel bless and highly favour.. its my first time around it, seeing thatbi was using a home heavy duty machine for throughout my class.. I have been sitting around it for 2 days now.. trying to thread it correctly and placing the babin correct to start sewing.. I am stucked

I always lifted my head toward the back to change my bobbin. so easy.

Awesome!! Your video was way more helpful than the manual!!!

Thank you very much for the video- really appreciated by someone who is looking for one of these machines.

If it can help, we made precises threading videos. Superior threading : - first part ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-k3r4hGGlY_k.html - second part ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZdSQFeL-9sU.html Bobbin threading : - first part ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iFuLtFxwEqY.html - second part ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-yMh6-8j7yWA.html Enjoy your Sewing with the legendary 20u ;-)

The button mode for stitches is not used correctly in the video, you should not have to release the presser foot after you started, the point of the 3 options on the button mode knob is to provide consistency of stitch width and repeatability... the centre mode is to stitch the wide top and bottom zig-zag stitch going to the end of the two smaller zig-zag stitches going down, the left is to stitch the narrow stitch left of the buttonhole, the right is to stitch the right side...so you need the 3 button modes to do button stitch correctly!! Hope it's clear!!

The bobbin case for the 20U is deeper than the bobbin cases for regular Singer machines

Thank you so much for this tutorial, I just got the bargain of the century and you just show me how to use my brand new/old machine :D, have a good day! Merci. Chrisitne

This was incredibly helpful! Thank you so much for posting this!

I've been having my singer 20u for about 12 years and never knew i can do zigzag and buttonholes. Thank you for this tutorial!! Maybe you can make a tutorial on how to use all of the different foots that are available for this machine and what they are for. thanks!

I love this machine

Just got one of these and hadn’t a clue so thank you very much!!

Video was good....and can we do both zigzag and embroidery in a single machine?? If yes pls suggest the machines with name and price...

I just bought mine ❤

Thank you for sharing this information...

Hi , thank you for the video☺Could you help me?...I have one machine, is the same machine Singer 20 U- 13. And my problem is that the bar of the neel can't go up and either go down...could you please explain me what to do?

Does anyone else know about how the 20U was designed to be lubricated...THAT BIG PAD AT THE TOP OF THE REAR, MAIN SHAFT NEEDS TO BE KEPT WET WITH OIL!!! CAN I MAKE THESE LETTERS ANY B I G G E R !!!

Thank you for the video and I wanted to find out what I can do if the machine is skipping stitches

This video is super helpful, thanks a lot.

I'm picking one up tomorrow and can't wait! THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO!!!!!!

How do I drop the feed dogs on my 20u73 singer? I can't seem to loosen the tension on my machine and I want to do free motion sewing. Please Help 😮

Just want let you know how appreciative I am of this awesome 👌🏽 service I shall save this to ho back to for learning more, God bless and keep you 🙏🏽 until , I shall subscribe to your channel ❤❤❤❤❤❤🫶🏾🫶🏾🫶🏾🫶🏾✅️🇯🇲🇯🇲🇯🇲🙋🏽

Very nice machine

Does the Singer 20U73 industrial use a flat back needle or a round shank?

Hola muy bueno excelente pero no entiendo el ingles xf en español tengo una. Igual y me está presentando dificulta para cocer abajo no hace sixsa revienta hilo parte aguja y tiene un ruido muy fuerte Es la que me da ingresos doy de la 3ra edad xf gracias desde vzla

Can the zigzag plate be used for straight stitches as well.

Fiddler...Thanks for backing me up ... there are too many semi-experts out there who haven't got a CLUE!

Way cool my ex just gave me the one I bought her 25 years ago. It has very few hours on it and took it down for a complete clean and oiling. Any source for downloading owner's Manuals for my machine. It's a 20U and was made in Japan not China. Thanks

Found one these locally for $700. It’s in amazing shape. Curious if that’s a good price. Comes with table, lamp, knee control. Thanks

Nice older machine

***Help with thread problem*** Thread is gathering at the bottom while I stitch. Maybe I need to adjust the tension on the bobbin?

SINGER INDUSTRIAL 20u, I had a crash, needle broke in the process, ended up with needle bar being off center, can only use zigzag plate now for straight stitch & zig zag. VERY FRUSTRATING. What to do?

I find it to be a great machine, but I want to be sure how large a needle and how big a thread she can take.

The Singer 20u can do a perfect large zigzag : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-4R30zqlGzMg.html But it is also often used for free motion embroidery : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-S36urqhLIX8.html Sorry for the poor practicing level, we are not used to do free motion ;-)

Thank you very much for this video, I have a machine like this. It belonged to my mom before she passed away, could you tell me what kind of oil to use. I know she paid alot for it when it was new, what does a good used one sell for?

Can you cover tension on the Singer 20-33

Mi maquina me la movieron y la dejaron en modo recta. Como le muevo para volverla de nuvo a zig zag me urge 🤷

How can I repair stuck needle bar

We have this singer 20u machine. My parents bought 2nd hand in the 90s i think. but the thing is, it was already converted to embroidery and the parts for sewing were gone. My parents were already retired embroiderers and I am a sewing enthusiast. Is there any way I can convert this back to sewing function? I've asked some repairmen around but they can't do it. Thanks.

Can you tell me what the black knob is in the front of the machine. I dont have no clue what it does.

Hello. Thanks for the video. Can i zig zag soft fabric with this machine? It doesn't seem to work for me 😕

Good morning to all. I have a 23u22, Do my machine is a walking foot machine? Can I do canvas works and leather upholstery jobs? Thank you for the information and lots of blessing to all of you.

Please this 20u will cost how much now

my grandson just found one of these and gave it to me. it says 20-33. is that the same? I has the motor etc and the table but the table does not have legs so it's not assembled. I'm not sure how to approach this machine but would very much like to use it. can you offer any advice?

I have a 20 U singer machine and I am needing to chain my belt, any suggestions? Thank you.

Hello... Nice sewing machine, i have the exact one...question : can i sew leather if the foot is changed to a rolled one (wheeled one)? Thanks a lot

Does anyone have tips on how to troubleshoot skipped stitches? I bought this machine from my old employer. It was recently serviced but the servicer changed it to the zig zag setting. I just changed it back to normal straight stitch and now it’s skipped and I can’t seem to fix it. :(

she needs a servo motor, thats why she struggles to go slow, she also forgot to move fly wheel you need to release clutch by slightly pressing the foot control

how do you control the stitch speed with the foot pedal? if yo press it in certain places does it do different things...i.e toes forward on pedal makes machine fast straight stitch or heel on pedal slower stitch speed. i hope i am being clear

This singer machine is not for sewing,I use it to design cloth in my country. ❤

I have this machine, the knob on the side is so tight, can you tell me how to loosen it, I can't turn it very good to help bring up the needed.

Can I sew thick fabric with this? Can a sew a canvas awning with this?

El tornillo de abajo de la tencion no lo consigo

Where can I buy this kind of sewing machine????????? Please help, I want one, but, I would like to find the best price, could you please help me?

For some months now, i have this problem with my 20u . Bought it on fairly used but couldn't make a complete dress without the threads(normal) getting cut off, so decided to use hard threads and now the problem is that the sewing under skips..so confused ..how do i go about it. Please can someone help me out?

Fantastic and helpful. Thank You

Would this machine do thick leather 10-12 oz?

Please use more light and show the details so that they actually show. One of the main reasons I watched this is to see how to thread it, how to put bobbin in case, which way the bobbin turns-- but that part was obscured. How does the needle go in? How is it threaded? So frustrating! The machine looks awesomely zippy though.

can you do free motion embroidery with this machine? do I need to change anything else besides the feed dogs and obviously remove the presser foot? Please somebody help. Thank you

esta máquina es zigzag?

How do you use an elastic thread on this machine....I tried mine and the thread keeps breaking from the bobbin.

Can you slow down sewing. I'm new at this

does anyone know if this machine is similar to the cones CN2053r which is also zigzag and straight stitch... bought it used and looking for bobbin case and bobbins.... manual no good unless you can read chinese..

How can i slow down the speed of this machine?

Tak apa insyaalah terbaik sekali okey sekali ameeen ya rabbal alamin terbaik sekali okey 😢😮😮😅😅😊😊

What is the right niddle number?

I am having problems turning the fly wheel can someone tell me how to loosen> Sometimes I can't pull threads out even needle highest position or with foot up

I need to buy some singer machine and need help

I have one of these machines but have no idea where to purchase the needles for it. I would really like a listing of the needles including what they are for and where to purchase them.

Available in India

How were you able to lower the teeth for the quilt? I am using a singer similar to you with the model 20U.

Watched on my tablet while oiling and cleaning my 20u. What exact model 20U is in the video?

Hi: So my understanding is that to get a zigzag stitch, you change the feed dogs, the presser foot and change the stitch width. To do a straight stitch just leave the stitch length to 0...is this correct?

Does anyone know how to make this machine adapt to sew a twin needle stitch, Ive read in places that it can but I just don't know how. Im pretty sure the regular home swing twin needles won't work with it.

Mi máquina me soltó el pedal

I can't wait till you get a servo motor for that singer, that'll be a vast improvement in speed your speed control.

I need a 20U machine

Machine ini jahitan sulaman cantik okey 😢😮😮😅😅😅😊😊😅😅😊😊😊😊😊😊

quiero comprar 2 maquinasm una filetadora d 5 hilos y plana o lo 20u

Can I use this for a stretch material?

I like it

cost of machine?

cuál es el precio y donde la encuentro

Hi am having trouble getting a zipper foot for that machine can you give me suggestion on where i could get or what kind i could use thanks again

Change motor belt

I have one for sell very good condition in Anaheim ca

Does she ever show how to thread the machine??? That's why I'm watching this video and I don't think she ever explains the direction of threading the machine!!

What size needle is used in the 20 U 13

Where can I get parts for this machine?