Parts Machines

It's always a judgement call when deciding if you should invest more into something or surrender it to just parts. I'm in such a conundrum now over a Singer 401A, an excellent sewing machine but with too many missing parts to make it profitable. A new foot control and power cord will come to about $35-40, a new bobbin slide plate another $10, a presser foot tension screw:

Singer 401A waiting for a decision

There are a few pluses, though, such as the base plate and decent rubber feet:

Underneath with a nice cover plate

And, of course, it's a Singer 401, one of the really good models Singer made with all metal gear drive so there is very little that can go wrong if it is cleaned and used regularly. Yet, here's my issue: I already have a Singer 401A that needs a set of cords and bobbin slide plate. It also could use the base plate that is on the one pictured above. How to decide? Condition: the one above has a compromised finish right behind the needle plate with the finish chipped.

Bad bubble of paint

 This doesn't look good and fabric might even catch in this uneven finish. So here's the breakdown:

• Original Singer 401A: needs new bobbin cover slide plate, power cord and foot control, spool pins.
• New Singer 401A: needs pressure screw for foot, bobbin cover slide plate, power cord and foot control.

I'm afraid that bubble in the paint, because it's nearly unfixable, is the deciding factor. I spent almost three hours stripping down this model but I ended up with a motor and light with switches, hook and bobbin case, feed dogs, one gear, front plates and dials, tension mechanism, hand wheel with gear, and a whole lot of screws. Taking a look at the machine I'm going to save, I noticed it did not need that bottom plate but it could use those rubber feet. The left nose (swinging door that covers the needle bar) was scratched so I switched those parts, and I put new spool pins in and a bobbin slide plate.

Singer 401A on left is a keeper but on right is a carcass of a 401

It still needs that foot control and power cord and I might have to break down and buy them but a decent Singer 401A is an excellent sewing machine. I should have a box of accessories that includes the basic cams but I do not have a carrying case, a minor flaw as not everyone even wants a case. Maybe I should make a dust cover out of Singer fabric? That would be a nice and an unusual touch! Now I remember I even have a buttonhole attachment for this model, another plus.

At the end of the day I think I'm still ahead of the game except for the three hours it took to strip the machine down. Maybe I'm a bit slow but I was looking to see how it all fit together and that's part of the education I'm getting when I do things like this. Oh no, does this mean I'm a life-long learner?