The Pfaff 260 is a machine I've wanted for a while. I've not been able to find one in this area until yesterday when I contacted a CL seller who happened to have one in a large, very heavy table.
I always find it odd when someone lists a table or cabinet for sale and adds as an aside, "Btw, the cabinet is heavy because there is a sewing machine in it. Just so you know in advance..." or something like that, as if the sewing machine is an inconsequential item. Has it occurred to these good folks that the cabinet wouldn't exist were it not for the machine for which it was designed and constructed? When asked if the machine works, she replied that she didn't know and didn't want to know. OK, my bad. Sorry if my question was inappropriate.
I also find it odd when I allow the seller to choose the day and time we meet. As the fateful hour approaches (and a rational person would assume that the buyer has now changed his schedule so that he can meet this seller at the seller's chosen day/time), the seller changes the meeting three times via texting.
All right, enough complaining for one evening. Here is the other machine I bought today (the first being this one ):
It's in a cabinet that must weigh 200 lbs. w/out the machine. I have no idea how but I managed to pull it inside the basement door and give the inconsequential contents an oiling and an external wipe down, first with oil, then with TR-3. The bad news is that it's pretty beat up. The good news is that it runs like a top, meaning it isn't frozen solid like these extremely tight tolerance Pfaffs can be. All the knobs operate as they should and the machine has a hum that is very satisfying.
It's getting late tonight so I think I'll wait to try sewing with it tomorrow afternoon when I get home after some meetings. I'll let you know how it goes.
I feel exactly the same way you do about that border. For some reason, $50 is also my cut-off mark unless it's a Necchi. And we all know how I feel about CL sellers. :-/
ReplyDeleteWhat made this particular model one you were searching out?
I think it's a mixture of a long-incubated attachment, first conceived by a vid posted by Brian Remlinger of Brian Sews! (He's one of the few guys online who is not only interested in machinery but actually knows how to sew -- and very well. I tend to seek out guys who sew not because they're guys but because they sew menswear and aren't focused on A-line skirts, baby clothes, and home dec. There aren't many resources for men.) He gave a very positive review, pointing out the many fine features of the machine and how the integrated embroidery unit works. I was really impressed with the machine and that seed having been planted, has germinated into a purchase not because of any particular feature or quality other than 'Pfaff-ness' but because it had lain in my subconscious for so long.
ReplyDeleteAlso, early on in my addiction I bought a Morse 15 clone from a local CL seller and she threw in a Pfaff 230 for an extra $25 (I think that's what it was). The machine is pristine and the reason is that it didn't and doesn't work: frozen rock-solid. I mean this thing won't turn. I've tried oil, kerosene, Tri-Flow, prayer, swear words, physical force, cursing the heirs of the Pfaff family fortune, promises that I'll sew only underwear, etc. Nothing. I know I can eventually get it moving but I've only got so much Cajole and other machines have come into my life. Pfaffs are frustrating because the biases are so, so tight and the machining is so robust, so Teutonic.
Necchis strike a much better balance between speed and lightness with solidity, in my opinion. Still, Pfaffs win me over and the 260 is so smooth and strong, so over-engineered, so darn heavy.
I love the Male Pattern Boldness blog--he sews things I would never have the nerve to try and he does it with such grace and humor and it's so informative. I always take pity on men I see in Jo-Ann Fabrics and ask them if they need help, because they have the same deer in the headlights look that I have when I go into a hardware store.
ReplyDeleteI think that German engineering is precisely why I cannot find love in my heart for the Pfaffs. I am married to someone of German descent (his last name is Schuster). I am VERY familiar with German over-engineering. It's why I have we have a concrete bunker where I can soak sewing machines in kerosene. :) Nevertheless, I would not mind having a Pfaff 30 in my collection. I just haven't seen one yet.
And just to add, how (despite that fine vehicle's association with the Grateful Dead and other weirdos) can I resist a machine that looks like an early 1960s VW bus?
ReplyDeleteI also enjoy MPB for those very reasons. I think Peter Lappin is at his best when he blogs about sewing. I believe he'd be a good teacher, as his posts re. the finer points are very informative and he produces very good examples of the kinds of clothing I'd like to sew (except my taste is a little more conservative). He has the ability to take a humble piece of fabric and turn it into something really interesting and wearable.
ReplyDeleteAnother blog I enjoy is Mainely Dad. His sewing is also excellent and he hasn't been at it very long, so he's inspiring. Plus, his taste is a little closer to my own.
I really admire the German approach, though it's occasionally mystifying. It seems that they approach design from a reverse-engineering philosophy of deciding on the end goal, then taking a kind of Socratic method during the journey to the point of raw materials sourcing. As a result, German products aren't about perfection but about the soul. It's certainly true of their cars, i.e. compare to, say, their Japanese rivals. However, there are odd decisions made along the way such as the two crucial nylon gears and the cleated belt in the Pfaff 130: Why? It's not about cost reduction but about performance, yet not for the long term in the real world. These are odd amalgams of fantastic performance and inherent unreliability over what would be, ideally, an indestructible machine.
The Pfaff 30 is one model that does NOT have plastic/nylon parts and it is just so sweet, so powerful, so strong, so fast. The vertical hook and race rather than the transverse found in the Singer 201 makes the most of the (usually) 1.3 amp motor and the hinged collar design is brilliant. It's one of the best straight stitch machines ever made, imho. I hope you find one; I think you'll be mightily impressed.
Hunting for a Pfaff 30 is the best part! I might be able to find one on the east coast in a few weeks, although I keep having to remind myself that there will be SHIPPING to factor in to the cost of anything I find there.
ReplyDeleteI will check out the Mainley Dad blog. I am hardly an expert seamstress, which is why I like making quilts so much. I can do straight seams, hahaha.
I don't want to spoil your thrill of the hunt but there's a Pfaff 30 (and looks to be a very nice one) on CL in the Tri-Cities right now for $100 OBO. Not a screaming deal but perhaps one can be struck if you wait a bit and pounce with, say, a $50 offer and an explanation of the long drive, rabbit trouble, and show up in a VW.
ReplyDeleteOMG, you are too funny. :)
ReplyDelete:)
ReplyDeleteI also want to put in a good word for Thin Man Sewing. He seems like a cool guy and his projects are basic enough that I understand what he's doing. He also likes to collect machines -- always a plus; he's got a Singer 6268 that is now on my radar.