About the Sew-Classic, Vintage Sewing Machine Blog
What is Sew-Classic?? This is a sewing macine blog devoted to sharing information about "Classic" sewing machines. Sew.....
what's a classic sewing machine? The best, all metal, vintage sewing machines and a few machines that are "newer" (less than 20 or 30 years old) make up what I consider to be classic sewing machines.
My name is Jenny, 
and I have been sewing for over 35 years. I'm a true gear-head by nature. In fact, I was practically born with tools in hand! I work in an engineering related field by day. My love of sewing, appreciation of well designed and quality built machines along with my proverbial desire to tinker have lead me to own, refurbish, use, ENJOY and share vintage sewing machines.
Sewing for many decades, and spending time working on the machines, coupled with my natural mechanical and analytical abilities have given me just enough knowledge to be dangerous. 
<big silly grin>
Truth be told, if I had to rely on income from sewing machines to actually pay the bills, my residence would be a large cardboard box under a bridge somewhere. But as a hobby, it does help pay for fabric and such, and it's fun.
Where do I get the machines? Well, many of them are discovered by my retired mother. She loves estate sales, auctions, garage sales, tag sales, resale shops and thrift stores. She picks up the machines on my behalf, and also gets a nice share of the selling price of every machine that I re-home. Since her pension and retirement income is very modest, every little bit helps, and she is glad to have a few extra dollars.
I will try to add information to the blog on a regular basis. If there is something in particular you would like to see, just drop me a note.
Sew-long for now!
Jenny
Good info here, there aren't enough blogs covering vintage machines. Do you mind if I link to your blog on my own?
http://sewing-machines.blogspot.com/
You are certainly welcome to link to my blog if you like.
Ed
Thanks for the words of support Ed. As soon as I figure out how to add a links pages, I'll put your blog url/link on it.- Jenny at Sew-Classic
Jenny, I've been using the 404 you sold me for piecing my quilt top. The 1/4" piecing foot finally arrived from Cindy. The machine has been performing admirably. My 27 year old son was checking it out yesterday while I was sewing. He was impressed when I told him it was probably over 50 years old and still sews better than a lot of new ones.
Jenny, I am so glad to see your blog and it is fabulous! I am adding a link to your blog, is that OK with you? Thanks for sharing your knowledge this way.
Thank You and link away! I really need to figure out how to add a links pages t this blog. Once I do, I will add a link to your blog too! - http://alittlesewing.blogspot.com/
I have built a small collection of old singers while teaching small groups of girls to sew and quilt. I am growing interested in collecting a few more quality machines, but I am currently using a 201, 221s, and 301s. Wonder if I should look into one of the 400 or 500 series for more stitch variation. Am also interested in the best approach for cleaning and polishing the finish, if spotted and discolored. I also have an engineering backgnd but electrical. I don't want to fix machines for a living but am very interested in best preserving and maintaining my own machines, as there are some unscrupulous practices in sewing machine servicing through retailers in our area. (Telling gullible women that their machine is junk for a trade in sale or even worse, inflicting the damage during the service work)Please comment. thank you for your great site, Mary
Hi Mary,
Welcome to my blog and thank you for taking the time to comment.
Yes, the Singer slant-o-matic machines (401, 403, 404, 500 & 503) are very nice indeed. There is a blog article about these machines on the Sew-classic blog that you will find full of information about them including some wonderful photos with decorative stitch sample.
The finish on many vintage machines can be easily ruined by many cleaning products. I suggest that you test in a hidden area before trying anything. I really try not to use too many products on my machines for this very reason. I do like to put a coat of carnauba wax on the finish to shine and protect.
Jenny at
Sew-Classic
Hi Jenny, I LOVE your website & blog! I always enjoyed reading your comments on PatternReview, & am glad to have found you on your own website. I would LOVE it if you were to add more vintage manuals to the free instruction manuals you have on pdf (especially the Singer 500!). Thanks & keep up the good work!
Hi Marlene!
There is a free Singer 503 manual link Here. It is identical to the 500 except for the built-in stitches verses the use of cams. On that page, you will also find a photo of a chart that shows all the settings on the machine for the various built-in stitches. They are the same on the 500 as they are on the 401.
-Jenny
Hi everybody,
I just found this blog and the Sew-Classic website, and am delighted. I just bought a Singer 15-91 Centennial model and am waiting for it to come. I know there were 15 models of the Centennial. Does anyone know if the machine with green and orange painted leaves along with the gold decorations was a Centennial 15-91? I have a sewing box with a tiny model of such a machine on it.
Elizabeth, California
I think that you are describing a Singer 66 with the 'red eye' or 'lotus' declas. Although the Singer model 66 was produced as a centennial model, those decal designs were no longer in production at that time.
Thank you so much! I have been wanting to know this for such a long time! These strong black Siners are really beautiful in my eyes and also remind me of my aunt, who loved her black cabinet Singer. Elizabeth
Does anyone know how to get that odor out of the case of an old 301 ??? I tried painting with Kilz, 2) Setting in the sun, open, on my deck for a week,3) closed with 2 boxes of arm and hammer baking soda dumped in it, and still it has a musty, attic smell. HELP!!
I have a sensitive sense of smell, and to me, all of the vintage cases smell..well...vintage. A product called ZorbX (available at Lowes) seems to work about the best for me in minimizing the vintage aroma. In all honesty, newer case are lighter and smell better, so if it were me, I'd probably just buy a new case of some sort.