Singer Improved Family — User manual

DIRECTIONS FOR USING




                FIG. 3.





OILING PLACES SHOWN BY ARROWS .





AILING PLACES SHOWN BY ARROWS.

DIRECTIONS
                    FOR USENG THE

11112er Yrr+peoved Parr,Iiy                          t4achile .
             To Oil the Machine .
    Be sure that every part is clean before you commence to sew.  If the
machine runs hard at any time, IT IS CERTAIN that someplace has not been oiled.
Oil holes will be found for all bearings which cannot be reached without
them .  Each place requiring oil  is indicated by an arrow head  in the
cuts on the opposite page .  The shuttle should be oiled sparingly, but
often,  if the machine  is in constant  use ; always be careful  to use no
more oil than is needed, a single drop being sufficient at any point.    If
the machine runs hard after standing idle for some time, use a little kero-
sene oil or benzine on  the wearing points, run rapidly,  zvi~e  clean, and
then oil with the BEST  slerni  oil, which should always be used .  To make
sure of getting good oil, buy it at at any of the Company's offices or from
its authorized representatives .  The genuine oil  is put up in bottles which
have The Singer Manufacturing Company's " trade-mark " blown in their
panel, and bear the Company's label .
              The Stop Motion .
    The object of the stop motion is to enable the operator to wind a
bobbin by running the balance-wheel without running the machine, which
not only saves labor but permits the re-winding of a bobbin when a seam
is partially sewed,  without removing; the goods from the machine or
interfering with the upper or needle thread .
   To operate  the stop-motion turn the friction-screw outside of the
balance-wheel over towards you to release the balance-wheel, and in the
opposite direction to clamp it .
      To Operate the Treadle and Machine .
     Release the balance-wheel as  explained, (see " stop motion ") place
your feet upon the treadle with the instep directly over its center, turn the
balance-wheel over towards you with the right hand and continue with
the feet (giving an  alternate pressure with the heel and toe) the motion
thus commenced  until a regular motion  is obtained .   Next clamp the
balance-wheel to the machine, (see " stop motion ") see that the presser-
 foot does not rest on the feeding surface, and operate the treadle as before.

DIRECTIONS FOR USING

     Finally place some goods in the machine,  loosen the presser-foot
upon them and again operate the treadle.
           Do not attempt to sew until you are  sufficiently  familiar
                With the treadle motion to be  able to  start the machineCAUTION    I .                without turning  it backwards, to run it with a regular
              and steady motion, and to guide the goods.
            Never run the machine with the  presser-foot resting on theCAUTION   2.                 feed and no cloth between.
               Practice upon strips of cloth, and do not attempt  pratical
CAUTION   3.     sewing until you can guide the material and produc a
                 regular motion of the machine.
          Do not try to help the machine by pulling the  fabric, lest
CAUTION  4.    you bend  the needle ;  the machine feeds without any
                  assistance .
             Never  run  the machine  with both  shuttle and  needle
CAUTION  5.     threaded, except while you are sewing.
              To Set the Needle.
    Hold the needle in the  left hand with  the  flat  side  of the shank
 to ,yards the arm of the machine  ; raise the needle-bar to its highest point,
 put the needle up  in the clamp  as  far as  it  will go, and tighten the
 thumb-screw.
         Relative Sizes of Needles and Thread .

                               WEDGE AND TWIST POINTS FOR
  ROUND POINT NEEDLES FOR CLOTH.             LEATTER WORK .

             .   . .  .   .   .   .  .   .   .   100, 15o Cotton . 0.                       0  . . .  .   . .  .   .   .   . . .000, O Silk                        .          000 Silk .
 B  .  .   .       . . °       .   ,    80,  100 Cotton.   B .   . . .  .   . . .  .   .   . .A, B Silk .         '           00, 0  Silk.
                     6o,  8o Cotton .       z2 . .  .   .   . .  .   .   . .  . C, D  Silk.
         A Silk .
                   4o, 6o Cotton.                     40 to 6o Cotton.
                    B, C Silk.                             D, E  Silk
                  24, 40 Cotton. Z    .  .   . . .  .   .   .   `                                                                                                              .   .   D, E Silk .                             4o, 6o Linen.
                                             2           EE  Silk.                     20,  24 Cotton.
 3'°°""'°°'  ~ 6o, 8o Linen.
                   4o,  6o  Linen,  or  3 .  .   . . .  .  .  .   . . .  . 35, 4o Linen.
              ~ very coarse Cotton .
                    . .  .   . . .24, 4o Linen.      4  . . .  .   . . . .  .   . . . 24, 35 Linen,

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .

                                       FIG.  5.





           T® Thread the Needle.
    Place *he spool of thread on the spool pin, and draw the thread from
the spool through the eyelet 1, cn the side of the arm, downward between
the tension discs a from the back toward  you, up behind and over the
staple 3, through the hook of the take up  spring 4, up and through the
eyelet in th =_ end of the take-up lever 5 from the back toward you, down
through the  eyelet 6 in the face  plate, under the hook  7 on the needle
bar, and from  left  to right through the eye 8 of the needle.  Enough
thread should be drawn through the needle to leave an end two inches
long when the take up  is at  its highest point, which should be caught
up behind the thread cutter  g.

8                DIRECTIONS FOR USING

                    FIG. 6.



                                                                 FIG.





      THE SHUTTLE CONTAINING BOBBIN.            THE BOBBIN.
                                       FIG. 8.





             THE BOBBIN WINDER (WITH LATCH DOWN).
                                     Patented.
             The Bobbin Winder .
   To prepare for Winding, release the balance-wheel (see " Stop
Motion") press  the bobbin on  the spindle of the bobbin-winder until it
reaches the  shoulder, then press the aria of the latch down between the

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .

flanges of the bobbin  until  it catches, to bring the pulley in contact with
the driving-belt.
   To wind the bobbin, place the spool of thread on the spool-pin at
the base of the arm, draw to the right between the retainer discs, pass the
elid about an inch through the slot in the outer end of the bobbin from the
inside (this must be done before the bobbin  is placed on the spindle) and
" Operate  the Treadle " the same as in sewing until the bobbin is  filled,
when  it will stop automatically .
    The free end of the  thread must be held with the hand  until a few
coils are wound, and should then be broken off.

            To Remove the Bobbin.


                                        Open the slide on the
                                               bed of the machine, and
                                                bring the  shuttle  into
                                                     position by turning the
                                                balance-wheel   t o w ar d
                                            you until the needle-bar
                                                   reaches its lowest point   ;
                                                   then with your left hand
                                            under the table, remove
                                                   the bobbin, by placing
                                             your thumb  against the
                                                      cap, on outside of the
                                                       shuttle (as shown in Fig.
                                                          9) and press it outward
                                                   as far as  it will go  ; the
                                               cap   will  then  remain
                                           open and allow the bob-
                                               bin  to  drop  out  into
                                             your hand .

12               DIRECTIONS FOR USING

           To Commence Sewing.
    With the left hand, take hold of the needle  thread  (leaving it slack
between the hand and the  needle),  turn the balance-wheel over toward
you until the needle moves down and up again to its highest point, thus
catching the shuttle thread ; draw up the needle thread, and the shuttle
thread will  appear ; then draw the shuttle thread up through the hole in
the throat-plate,  lay both threads back  across the feed  points, and catch
them  behind the thread-cutter,  place  the material beneath the needle,
lower the presser-foot upon  it, and commence to sew, turning, the wheel
over toward you.
               TO TURN A CORNER,
 stop the machine without  raising the needle more than half way out of
the goods.  Raise the presser-foot and  tarn the work in the manner
 desired, using the needle as a pvot.
       FOR SEWING FLANNEL OR BIAS SEAMS,
use a fine stitch and as light a tension as possible  so  as to leave the
thread loose enough to stand the strain of stretching the goods.
          A STITCH TO RAVEL EASILY
can be had,  if desired, by leaving the upper tension so  light  that the
under thread will not draw into the goods, but lie straight.
             To Remove the Work .
     Let the take up rest at its highest point  ; take hold of the upper thread
between the take up lever and the Eyelet on the face-plate and draw down
about two inches of slack   ;  then  raise the presser-foot, and draw the
fabric to the left, about two inches, and cut the threads by drawing them
behind and then down  across the knife-edge of the thread-cutter, leaving
the ends caught behind the same.
        This  ingenious  but  simple  device  saves  " hunting-up  the
scissors " every few minutes, and is a highly-valued addition to the special
attachments of the Singer machine.
          To Regulate the Tensions.
    The  tension on the shuttle-thread  is regulated by the small screw
near the delivery eye-turn toward you to increase, and from you to
diminish  ; when once properly  adjusted,  it  will seldom  require  to be
changed  for any kind of thread commonly used, as a perfect stitch can
usually be  obtained by  regulating the tensions on the upper or needle

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .            13

thread .  To regulate  the upper tension, turn the :mall thumb-screw in
front of the tension  discs,  over toward you to increase the tension, and
from you to diminish  it.  A loose tension  is  best for sewing cotton or
linen fabrics, to prevent fullness after the goods have been washed .

      If there are loops or a straight thread on the under side of the fabric,
as in Fig.  14,



it shows that the upper or needle tension is too loose.

      If loops or a straight thread appear on the upper side of the goods, as
in Fig.  15,
                              FIG. 15 .


it shows that the upper tension  is too  tight, and it should be diminishedsufficiently to bring the lock in the contre of the fabric, as in Fig. 16 .

                               FIG. 16 .


          To Alter the Length of Stitch .
    On the right side of the operator, and  at the front of the arm, there
is a thumb-screw working in  a slot.  Loosen this, and move it downwards
 to lengthen, or upwards to shorten the stitch .  When you get the length
 of stitch you require, tighten the thumb-screw.
       To Change the Pressure on Material .
    Turn the large thumb-screw on the top of the head of the machine,
 to the right to increase, and to the left to diminish the foot-bar pressure.
When properly set, this need never be changed for any ordinary work

14               DIRECTIONS FOR USING

                 The Belt.
    The leather belt, which gives motion  to  the machine, should always
be tight enough not to slip, and no tighter-not so tight as to prevent the
easy motion of the machine.   If the belt  is too long, uncouple and  cut
to the desired length.

    Twist, Linen and Cotton Thread and Needles.
   Do not use poor thread or needles.  Any good thread `rill work well,
but you must not expect to make a smooth even  stitch with poor rough
thread, nor can you expect a machine to work well with a cheap grade of
needles made in  imitation of ours .  As our  interest  is  to maintain  the
reputation of the machz'ne,  it is evident that we will always supply the best .
Persons living at a distance from an agency, can send by mail, enclosing
us the money, and we will  fill orders promptly by mail or express.

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .              15





                                 FIG . 17.





                       DROP CABINET (CLOSED    .
   To open the cabinet turn  over the leaf which covers  the machine,
release the platform upon which the machine is  fastened by pressing the
button at the right of the operator near the bottom of the centre  doors,
first taking hold of the arm of the machine with the left hand to  steady it
as  it rises, and when  entirely up push back the centre doors which then
become a firm support for the platform.   See page i6 .

16               DIRECTIONS FOR USING





                        DROP  CABIIN ET (OPEN) .
   To close the cabinet, bring the small  doors to the front,  as shown
on page 15 . A slight pressure upon the machine will then force it down
beneath the top of the cabinet, and after the platform is latched the leaf
is folded over the aperture, completely enclosing the machine.
   The cabinet, when closed, forms a handsome piece of furniture.

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .              17

                                      FiG.  t9-





               SINGER DROP CABINET  READY FOR OILING).
     FIG. Ig represents  the Drop Cabinet  with  the machine turned back
and the driving mechanism exposed, ready for oiling.   In order to turn
the machine back, pull open the door at the right of the  operator, and
(with the machine in motion) turn  the belt-shifter handle to the left, to
throw the belt  off  the band-wheel .  To reach the oiling points in  the
driving mechanism, open  the  door at the end  of  she  cabinet .   After
oiling, turn the machine up again, and operate the treadle as in sewing,
which will automatically replace the belt on the baud-wheel .

18               DIRECTIONS FOR USING

                    FIG . 20 .



                                                     FIG. 2o shows our Stand
                                                Brace,  carrying the entire
                                               driving mechanism.
                                           Both the band-wheel and
                                                 treadle work upon adjust-
                                                able centres, which admit
                                                of   accurate   adjustment
                                             with a minimum amount
                                           of friction .
                                                This  distinctive  feature
                                              renders  ours  the  lightest
                                         running  of  any  sewing
                                        machine  stand  yet  con-
                                                  structed, and  is a  matter
                                           of great importance to the
                                                  health and comfort of the
                                               operator .



  THE NEW SINGER STAND BRACE (WITH BFLT
        THROWN OFF) .-Patented.                         FIG. 21 .



   This invention simplifies and makes
easy the often-irritating  task of throwing
off and replacing  the  belt.  To  throw
off the belt, press the small  lever ai the
top of the dress guard to  the  left  with
the  forefinger, keeping up  the motion
of the treadle meanwhile.  To  put on
the belt, allow the  lever to  spring back
in  its  place, and operate the treadle  as
in sewing (with the wheel turning toward
you), when a single  revolution  of the
wheel will bring the belt back in place.



                                  THE NEW SINGER BELT SHIFTER           .
                                                             Patented.

THE IMPROVED FAMILY SINGER .              19



         FiG. 22.





                       FIG .  22 shows our new adjustable pitman .  The
                    block which forms one-half of the journal is adjust-
                   ed  to  the  crank or pin by means  of  the  screw,
                 shown at the                    . top of the cut.
                 When taking up lost motion, be careful not to
                make  the journal  so  close  as to  prevent the  free
                  motion of the band wheel .





  THE NEW SINGER
      PITMAN.

   We send with each machine  a  full  set of Attachments in  a neat
case,  and  an  Attachment  Instruction Book .


The Singer Manufacturing- Co . use and recommend exclusively the
     "Willimantic 6 Cord Spool Cotton- 55