Singer 401a stitch selector
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Singer 401a stitch selector qrious 06-13-2008
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Posted by qrious on June 13, 2008, 12:29 pm
I just did a seldom-used stitch on my Singer 401a and now all of a sudden
the right (inner) selector knob is jammed. I can't get back to straight
or zigzag & I'm stumped. I can see a metal part through the selector
track where the selector seems to jam, but no amount of jostling seems to
move it out of the way, & to be honest, I'm not sure that's where the jam
is... just looks that way.

Any thoughts? I'm ready to put the waistband on a new skirt... so near &
yet so far!




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Posted by Ron Anderson on June 13, 2008, 2:48 pm

>I just did a seldom-used stitch on my Singer 401a and now all of a sudden
> the right (inner) selector knob is jammed. I can't get back to straight
> or zigzag & I'm stumped. I can see a metal part through the selector
> track where the selector seems to jam, but no amount of jostling seems to
> move it out of the way, & to be honest, I'm not sure that's where the jam
> is... just looks that way.
>
> Any thoughts? I'm ready to put the waistband on a new skirt... so near &
> yet so far!
>

Is quite common problem from lack of, or improper service the slide that
runs up and down the post to put the cam followers on the correct cams get
gummed up. Sometimes just a couple drops of sewing machine oil and manual
manipulation to get it moving is all that is needed. Other times a good
chemical clean.

--
Ron Anderson A1 Sewing Machine
18 Dingman Rd Sand Lake, NY 12153
http://www.a1sewingmachine.com




Posted by qrious on June 13, 2008, 3:09 pm
qrious had written this in response to
http://www.sewgirls.com/sewing/Re-Singer-401a-stitch-selector-33014-.htm :
Thanks so much for the quick reply, Ron-- but I tried oiling it & brushing
the innards with a pipe cleaner early on & it didn't help-- it doesn't
feel "gummed up"-- there actually seems to be a physical obstruction of
some kind. When you say "manual manipulation" which part exactly would I
be manipulating? Again, thanks for your help!
Ron Anderson wrote:

> wrote in message
>>I just did a seldom-used stitch on my Singer 401a and now all of a
>> sudden
>> the right (inner) selector knob is jammed. I can't get back to
>> straight
>> or zigzag & I'm stumped. I can see a metal part through the
>> selector
>> track where the selector seems to jam, but no amount of jostling
>> seems to
>> move it out of the way, & to be honest, I'm not sure that's
>> where the jam
>> is... just looks that way.
>>
>> Any thoughts? I'm ready to put the waistband on a new skirt... so
>> near &
>> yet so far!
>>

> Is quite common problem from lack of, or improper service the slide
> that
> runs up and down the post to put the cam followers on the correct cams
> get
> gummed up. Sometimes just a couple drops of sewing machine oil and
> manual
> manipulation to get it moving is all that is needed. Other times a good

> chemical clean.



-------------------------------------





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Delivered via http://www.sewgirls.com/
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Posted by Wayne Hines on June 14, 2008, 5:28 am
On Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:09:13 UTC,
curiouser_at_mindspring_dot_com@foo.com (qrious) wrote:

> Ron Anderson wrote:
>
> > Is quite common problem from lack of, or improper service the slide
> > that
> > runs up and down the post to put the cam followers on the correct cams
> > get
> > gummed up. Sometimes just a couple drops of sewing machine oil and
> > manual
> > manipulation to get it moving is all that is needed. Other times a good
>
> > chemical clean.
>
> Thanks so much for the quick reply, Ron-- but I tried oiling it & brushing
> the innards with a pipe cleaner early on & it didn't help-- it doesn't
> feel "gummed up"-- there actually seems to be a physical obstruction of
> some kind. When you say "manual manipulation" which part exactly would I
> be manipulating? Again, thanks for your help!

The part that slides up and down the post.

It's been a while since I've been inside one of those critters, but I
believe the post has notches in it to hold the slider in the proper
place for each stitch. There is a little piece on the slider that fits
into the notches. If the machine has not been properly maintained, that
little piece might not be moving out of the notch, becoming a physical
obstruction. As Ron wrote, sometimes you have to clean and lubricate all
the moving parts associated with the stitch selector before it will
resume working properly.

gwh



Posted by Ron Anderson on June 14, 2008, 8:57 am



> On Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:09:13 UTC,
> curiouser_at_mindspring_dot_com@foo.com (qrious) wrote:
>
>> Ron Anderson wrote:
>>
>> > Is quite common problem from lack of, or improper service the slide
>> > that
>> > runs up and down the post to put the cam followers on the correct cams
>> > get
>> > gummed up. Sometimes just a couple drops of sewing machine oil and
>> > manual
>> > manipulation to get it moving is all that is needed. Other times a good
>>
>> > chemical clean.
>>
>> Thanks so much for the quick reply, Ron-- but I tried oiling it &
>> brushing
>> the innards with a pipe cleaner early on & it didn't help-- it doesn't
>> feel "gummed up"-- there actually seems to be a physical obstruction of
>> some kind. When you say "manual manipulation" which part exactly would I
>> be manipulating? Again, thanks for your help!
>
> The part that slides up and down the post.
>
> It's been a while since I've been inside one of those critters, but I
> believe the post has notches in it to hold the slider in the proper
> place for each stitch. There is a little piece on the slider that fits
> into the notches. If the machine has not been properly maintained, that
> little piece might not be moving out of the notch, becoming a physical
> obstruction. As Ron wrote, sometimes you have to clean and lubricate all
> the moving parts associated with the stitch selector before it will
> resume working properly.
>
> gwh
>
>

That is it exactly

--
Ron Anderson A1 Sewing Machine
18 Dingman Rd Sand Lake, NY 12153
http://www.a1sewingmachine.com




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