Kenmore Crazies

My longest lasting sewing machine was a Kenmore 158-17812 so I still have a soft spot in my heart for those machines and this week I have been dealing with three different Kenmore's, all 158's. It started with a Kenmore 158-161 that I got as part of the Judy haul back in November:

Kenmore 158-161 before cleaning

I asked if I could keep this one, especially since it came with no cams and needed a Kenmore cabinet or case with the squared edges. I've been looking for a table since then as well as the flat style E cams that are needed for this model. The cams were found but when they arrived the center section with the buttonhole attachment set was badly cracked. Not a big deal since I found I had one already in my sea of boxes and attachments:

Kenmore flat cams with buttonhole kit

Half way there, I now found a table advertised as free: just my price! It came with another Kenmore 158 but when I was putting it into my car the neighbor yelled across the street that the machine wasn't working right. No problem, I yelled back, I really wanted the table. When home and checking it all out, I see the table needs refinishing:

Kenmore cabinet

Kenmore cabinet open, note sharp edges of the cutout for a Kenmore

but it does have the correct cutout. The Kenmore 158-161 technically fits but there is an anchoring screw that doesn't line up, not a big deal, but not quite right either. Of course, I can't leave the machine that came in this table by the side of the road so I take it, too, and check it out at home. It sure doesn't work too well: it was all gummed up. My guess is the wrong type of oil was used and now it has sat and solidified into a sticky mess. There is much cleaning with good sewing machine oil, Triflow, and over several weeks I get it to sew.

Kenmore 158-13250

No, I get it to move, then it finally will sew. And sew it did:

Kenmore 158-13250 stitch sample

That is a nice stitch, a good set of basic stitches including a four step buttonhole:

Kenmore 158-13250 stitch selection

I go back out to the garage and check out the table again, knowing I'm going to refinish it for at least one of the machines but now I have to decide which one. I can get the Kenmore 158-13250 back in it and since it is running perfectly now maybe it should just go back in there. But what about the Kenmore 158-161? I'm on the hunt again but have a friend who is looking to downsize and hope she has a Kenmore cabinet for me.

Then there is one more Kenmore this week. With half price sales at my favorite resale stores on Memorial Day, I stopped over and spy a Kenmore 158-13571 that was looking good. Electronics were not on sale so I waited until the next day and snatched it up on senior discount day:

Kenmore 158-13571

It cleaned up nice, came with a good set of attachments that included the buttonhole attachment, all in the classic green portable carrying case. Talk about win-win! Here's the stitch sample:

Kenmore 158-13571 stitch sample

A few more stretch stitches than the 158-13250 but all of the basics and a good, solid sewing machines for beginners and occasional sewers, too. You can hardly go wrong with any of these Kenmore's, just keep them clean and use the right sewing machine oil, not WD-40 or 3 in 1, but a sewing machine oil like Triflow. As I head into the weekend and have to work on Saturday, I'm satisfied with my progress on these Kenmore's and know they will find a good home down the road and will have many more years of sewing ahead of them, too. And why not? They are Kenmore 158's.