living in the woods and making stuff

My brother found this little beauty for me a few days ago. It is a Singer 306W, and works for sewing denim, canvas and leather. Seriously exciting.

This particular machine was made in the 50s, and comes with a motor and light, and a nice little cabinet in good condition. Plus, it seems to be built like a tank.

I have been testing it out on one of my denim scraps (I have a collection now, and am planning some sort of project with them all..)

The motor is in good shape, and once I am able to tune it up (with help from my friend Pat) should run easily. The stitch length/backstitch lever was frozen and we had to do a little tinkering with oil and wd40, but we got it working.

The underside is pretty cool. The belt (far right) is in good shape, and all the parts are built to last! No plastic down here.

The cabinet is in good shape. There are three drawers on the right hand side, and the machine folds down into the cabinet.

The top has burn marks, and the machine and cabinet smell like cigarettes. I can imagine the former owner sewing late, getting tired, and letting the cigarette fall from his/her hands onto the cabinet top…