I previously wrote about unboxing my Grandma’s Singer 315 Sewing Machine. Now it’s time to give it a clean and oil before taking it for a test run.
Cleaning and Oiling
The manual clearly explains what needs to be cleaned and oiled. Namely, the bobbin case, the face plate (where the needle goes up and down), the top plate (where the gears are) and the bottom plate.
There wasn’t any dust or lint, so it must have been cleaned properly before storage. I did give it a brush with a makeup brush and wiped all surfaces with some baby wipes.
I used Singer Oil in all the locations indicated in the manual.
The manual mentioned Singer lubricant. I vaguely remember my Grandad wiping thick goop on the gears, but I didn’t have anything like it. And my husband didn’t have any ideas either. So on to Google.
I found a great video by The Featherweight Shop about all the different lubricants to use on sewing machines. Some of which can do damage, ie don’t use vaseline. They have created their own lubricant – Sew Retro Grease – so I will see if I can find it anywhere in Australia. But before I do that…
Testing out the Sewing Machine
Before spending any money on lubricant and other spare parts I wanted to get the sewing machine threaded and put to work.
Changing the Needle
There was already a needle in the machine. It looked just like my Schmetz needles with a flat back and rounded on the other side. This was confirmed by the manual.
I removed the needle in the machine and put in a new Schmetz Jeans needle, as my first test was going to be with denim. Even though the screw for the needle felt a bit different it worked just like my Janome.
Threading the Needle
The spool pin on the top of the machine was terribly bent. I tried using it but the thread wobbled and just wasn’t going to work so I used a thread stand instead.
Then I went down the Google rabbit hole of why the spool pin was vertical but on my Janome it’s horizontal. This video by Superior Threads explains how the way the thread is wound on the spool determines how your spool pin should be positioned. For criss-cross wound threads use the horizontal spool pin. For straight wound threads use the vertical one. A thread stand can be used for either.
I use Gutermann and Rasant thread and they are both criss-cross wound, so a vertical spool pin wouldn’t work anyway, as it creates extra drag. So for the Singer 315 I will continue to use the thread stand.
I followed the instructions in the manual on how to thread the machine, and again it was very similar to my Janome.
I did feel that the tension discs felt quite loose. I found a video on how to calibrate it and then it felt a lot better.
The straight stitch foot on the machine was being held by a bobby pin, as I mentioned in my unboxing post. For a laugh, I tried using my Janome Foot, and low and behold it worked! What a coincidence. It meant I could give the machine a good work out as the bobby pin kept on getting in the way.
Inserting the Bobbin
The sewing machine came with a little box of accessories including several bobbins. All of them were slightly different sizes – which one to use?
The manual made no mention of what bobbins to use and a google search didn’t enlighten me. It would have to be trial and error.
The bobbin is top loading, and is actually threaded in the same manner as my Janome machine with the thread going anti-clockwise and pushing into the bobbin case with the use of springs and notches.
I tried all of the bobbins and the metal one with the 7 holes on top was the only one that worked. I took this bobbin into Spotlight to find a similar-sized bobbin and thought the Birch 4 holes looked pretty close. I bought a 3 pack to try, and success, it worked perfectly.
Sewing Attempt
The sewing machine was all threaded up so time to give it a test run with some denim fabric.
The stitching looked great on top but there was a nest of threads on the underside. I tried adjusting the tension but to no effect.
I looked again at the threading instructions in the manual and the thread didn’t quite look the same in the tension disks. Time to call a friend – my husband. He took a look at the manual and gave the thread a little tug after going through the tension disk to get it to look like the picture. Tried sewing again and it looked perfect on the top and bottom.
To properly understand what my husband did differently I went on a search for a video of someone threading a similar machine. I found one by Sewing Parts Online threading a Singer 221 which had a very similar-looking tension disk. The video showed that after moving the thread under the tension disk you hold the thread spool and then pull the thread through the check spring. Now I know exactly what I need to do.
Try again.
To take it a step further I tried sewing multiple layers of denim fabric, this is a 12oz denim so it’s quite thick. It didn’t have any problems going through 6 layers of denim, but struggled with 8 layers. I’m impressed with that though, there’s no way my Janome can get through 8 layers either.
Ordering Spare Parts
Now that I have proven that I can get my Grandma’s sewing machine working it was time to order some spare parts.
The only place I could find in Australia that sold the Sew Retro Grease was S and P Supplies. With my list of other spare parts I needed I was able to find everything I needed. So I ordered:
- Sew Retro Grease
- Black Wool Felt – The current felt underneath the screw holding bottom plate was discoloured
- Red Spool Felt – Should have been with the machine, but couldn’t find any and I didn’t have any spares
- Spool Pins – Most likely won’t use for Rasant and Gutermann but just in case
- Low Shank Presser Foot Adapter – So I wouldn’t have to use my Janome presser foot
- Thread-O-State Thread Grabber – Not for the sewing machine, this was something I’ve been wanting to try for a while.
Next update will be installing these spare parts when they arrive.
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