fave "DD" sewing machine

[cfz2882]

what is your favorite sewing machine you use the most? mine is a 1984 jc penny 7057 made in poland,i think it is a clone of english or european singer-has internal located motor driving via a cogbelt.Bought this about 1998 and have gotten used to running it-it's quite loud,possibly a little crude,but does have a speedy and powerful motor and it has been reliable and tough.

 

[danemodsandy]

Singer Athena:

This was the first electronic machine for home sewers, introduced in 1975.

I presently have the machine that came right after the Athena, called the Touch-Tronic 2001. I am looking for another Athena as hard as I can, because the Touch-Tronic, excellent as it is, just ain't my dream machine. I left the sweetest Athena you ever saw in Atlanta when I moved from there three years ago, and oy, how I miss it.

Here is a photo of my Atlanta machine in its cabinet, the top-of-the-line No. 266-1 Swing-Away cabinet. The Swing-Away allowed you to use the machine as a flatbed machine when that was more convenient, but one section of the work-top swung down and out of the way to expose the free arm horn for free-arm sewing.

My current Touch-Tronic has this same cabinet. As soon as I find an Athena, that machine will go into this terrific piece of all-wood furniture. Here's the cabinet closed, serving as a credenza:

 

[danemodsandy]

And Here's.....

....The cabinet set up for flatbed sewing:

 

[danemodsandy]

The Magic in Action:

Here's the cabinet set up for free-arm sewing, with the Swing-Away portion of the work-top swung away:

 

[danemodsandy]

Last, But Not Least:

A shot showing the phenomenal storage capacity of the Swing-Away cabinet. That's my cat, Tony, scoping out its potential as kitty housing. He does the same thing with the identical Swing-Away cabinet I now have here in Iowa:

 

[danemodsandy]

Miss Athena Herself:

This photo (last one, I swear!) shows the Athena close-up. Notice the lack of dials, levers and other assorted hardware. You touched the button for the stitch you wanted, and the Athena did it. The only adjustments you were ever called upon to make were stitch length, width and density; those adjustments were made via three simple dials located behind the Athena nameplate.

In '75, this was science fiction, like something Lieutenant Uhura would use to run up a new Starfleet uniform on Star Trek. My present Touch-Tronic took electronic touch controls a step further, with the length, width and density controls also being touch-sensitive.

 

[cfz2882]

cool-even looks '70s futuristic! do you know when the last U.S. slant needles were made?-i have 3 slant needle singers,all around 1965-70 vintage-i have seen some that looked newer than mine,possibly around '80-82 vintage.I tried one of my slant needles and though it worked great,it didn't have much motor power-i think it may have wrong or faulty foot control.

 

[danemodsandy]

I Couldn't Tell You.....

....When the slant-needle feature was discontinued, only when it was introduced, which was 1953 (on, I believe, the 301; correct me if I'm wrong). I am partial to slant-needle machines, because the feature works as intended; it increases visibility in the presser foot area.

I don't know which machines you have, but if you're not getting a lot of piercing power, something may indeed be wrong with the control or the machines. Singers were almost all fairly strong sewers, and the Athena-class machines were very strong.

 

[danemodsandy]

Here's a Touch-Tronic:

As you can see, the Athena's buttons were replaced by a touch-sensitive membrane panel, which controlled everything, not just stitch selection.

I personally don't like the Touch-Tronic setup as well as the Athena's; accessing the controls for stitch length, width and density require you to press a certain area on the panel, which makes the control settings visible. You then have to press repeatedly to get the numerical value you want, such as stitch length 5.

It's more cumbersome than the Athena's more intuitive setup, so I prefer the Athena's dials. But then, I prefer a vintage Radarange's dials to anything that came later.

What's funny here is that Touch-Tronics are sought-after machines, and Athenas often go begging. There are more electronic problems possible with a Touch-Tronic, and Athenas had a fair amount to begin with. Also, membrane panels are prone to wear-out if pressed repeatedly with a sharp object, like Milady's acrylic nails.

 

[norgeway]

Athena...

I see these at the Goodwill every once in a while anywhere from 5.00 to 25.00, I never buy them because they are hard to work on, and about the only machine I would buy would be something from the 50s or 60s.

 

[danemodsandy]

Hans.....

....You're makin' me crazy, LOL!

Even at such low prices, I'd want to check out the machine (which I know how to do), but they don't turn up where I am.

 

[athanasius80]

I've got a Singer 301 and a 1930s Eldredge long shuttle. Love 'em both!

 

[tolivac]

I have three machines-all from yard sales-two are still packed from a move.A Husquvarna(mechanical has the cams to do various stitches)A Baby Lock,and the Necci-when I find the other two-will take them to Mike for a going over.I am not aserois sewer-just diddle around trying to make curtains and such.clothes are to complicated right now.the Baby Lock is like trying to thread a two reel 3D projector!

 

[chestermikeuk]

Sewing Machine

Have had many including my Nans old Pfaff with an after motor fitted, my Grans Jones treadle machine, current fave is a Janome but just love using the Singer Futura, it was the only machine I ever saw in an add then the sewing centre that I knew "I wanted"...great machines - here it is running up the Maytag cloth for the wash-in tablecloths!!

 

[chestermikeuk]

Singer Futura Add

 

[chestermikeuk]

The Brain

Control board...

 

[danemodsandy]

Mike:

That Futura of yours is very different to an American Athena. Its styling is similar, and it looks as if it does the same things, but it appears to have been engineered in the U.K. or Europe for different voltage. The motherboard you've shown is very different - American Athenas have two different control boards inside. Your Futura appears to be an altogether more elegant piece of engineering.

The "Futura" name was used here by Singer, but it was on a mechanical machine.

I wish it was possible to use one of your Futuras and an American Athena side-by-side as a comparison. Next time you're on this side of the pond, bring yours along, why don't you?

Just don't forget to bring your power grid with you! ;-)

Seriously, thanks for showing us.

 

[chestermikeuk]

Futura

Hi Sandy, Ah, now I understand the differences between the US and UK / Euro machines of which our where made in Germany, its a great machine to use and even better sewing in the dark when its all lit up!! Is the Singer Futura in the States the one that you insert Cams into the top for pattern stitches??

I never saw many with full furniture cabinets, usually used on a dining table, my aunts always had singers, my grans Jones and Pfaff, my cousin made a sewing table for my aunts machine back in the 70`s as part of his carpentery exams, that was a large square table 30 inches square with two drop down leaves either side, great for her making wedding dresses and curtains, my gran always used it to iron on, its still in the family, must get a photo of it!!

 

[danemodsandy]

Mike:

I haven't used an American Futura, but my understanding is that they were cam-stack machines, meaning that a cam mechanism containing many different cams was built into the machine. To change stitches, you operated controls on the machine that moved the cam stack into the correct position for the stitch you wanted. If you needed more stitches, a selection of drop-in cams was also available. This is a system Singer began using in the 1950s; the fabled 401s used it.

Your German-built Futura is a combination of several Singer technologies. Its electronic controls were the same idea - executed somewhat differently - as the American Athena. But it used the bobbin system that American Touch & Sew Singers did, unlike the American Futura, which used the same bobbin as American Athenas. To complicate matters further, American Athenas and Futuras use the same outer shell and internal mountings.

Have you any idea what the suggested price for a European Futura was? [this post was last edited: 11/5/2012-14:39]