Pfaff 30

I just purchased a 30 from a local guy who had no idea about/interest in it.  It was $40, a good price.

(By the way, what is it with me and $40, i.e. all the machines I've purchased for that amount?  What is up with that?  Is there a virtual sign above my head that says '$40'?  Do people look at me and say to themselves "Him?  Yeah, I'd pay him $40"?  WTF?)

The 30 is not common in my area.  (Now watch -- they'll start popping up all over.)  I've never seen one in person until yesterday, the only one I've ever seen for sale here.  It's straight-stitch only with reverse, feed dog drop on the deck.  It takes Class 15 bobbins, so it's high-capacity.  The motor, oddly enough, is not the 1.3 amp Pfaff that is common on this machine (and the 130) but a 1.4 amp.  1/10 won't make a huge difference but it is a notable departure from what I've so far read is standard for these Pfaffs in the US.  Needless to say, it has power and speed to burn.  I'll do a LOT more sewing on it but I've had this machine less than 24 hours and it has vaulted to the top of my straight-stitch heap.

(I should also note that the seller, very pleased, told me that he sprayed WD-40 throughout the machine in order to help me get it running really smoothly.  I smiled and thanked him profusely and began to sweat.  I may have even shed a tear of both joy and sadness due to his good will and the problem he created.) 

The design of the bobbin area is unusual (to me) in that a hinged collar holds the housing in place rather than the more typical bracket/screw design.  The castings of the shafts and pins are very impressive.  I'm no expert but it appears this machine borders on semi-industrial.  Not a whiff of plastic anywhere except the tension and the wheel.

The cabinet is sturdy but the finish is obviously shot.  I like it though and will refurbish it; I particularly like the hardware and the spider webs on the base in the picture add to the vintage feel.  In it, I found 11 pairs of scissors and shears, a boat load of notions, a pair of lace panties, and a box of contraception.  Thus, I assume it was used as a night stand.  (OK, what was that about $40?)  The original manual is here, too.

From its condition, this is a machine that appears not to have seen much use.  That's hopefully going to change.

Kenmore 158.18150

 

Walking through a thrift store near my home, I spied two Kenmore sewing machine cases sitting snugly next to one another on the lowest shelf gathering dust.  It was 50% Off Day at the local St. Vincent de Paul and I began to open the hard plastic cases (one in golden yellow, the other a mint green) with the odd mixture of hope, intrigue, amusement, trepidation, and excitement common to my other thrift store jaunts.  

At this point in my collecting, I wasn't a fan of Kenmores.  I grew up in a Singer household and we looked down on those who bought Kenmore machines.  These two machines I purchased that fateful day convinced me that while Singer began to cut corners and produce inferior machines in the late '60s and 1970s, Sears' contracts with Jaguar/Maruzen and Soryu in Japan ensured they would be selling wonderful, all-metal, powerful machines into the early '80s.

I tested both machines at the store's testing station.  The 1815 hummed as if it were brand new and despite a series of small scratches on the front rim of the bed, is in great shape.  The other machine, a near-mint 158.19461, stalled and moaned.  I tried moving the stitch selector, moving the needle bar by hand, checked under the top -- nothing changed.  I took both to the register, explained the problem, and the employee very generously lowered the price of the 1946 from $20 to $2.  And since this was 50% Off Day, I paid $10 for the 1815 pictured here and a whopping $0.99 for the 1946.

After figuring out the 1946, I soon found that I had purchased two very, very nice sewing machines.  Smooth, powerful, quiet, beautiful stitches, consistent tensions -- these are keepers.  The 1815 is a higher end model, as it has a substantial cam stack with utility stitches as well as a cam assembly for decorative options.  That it's in a portable carrying case makes the machine even more valuable to me as I'm 6'2" and the tables in which one often finds these machines are too small for my long legs, often of questionable quality after decades of Big Wheel dents and science projects, and take up space in my increasingly small sewing space.  

Have you ever engaged in Kenmore discrimination?