A Look at Spoked Handwheels

Until the solid handwheel became standard sometime in the 1930s (I believe), Singer made spoked handwheels or "balance wheels," as they were then known.

I'm guessing they phased them out for both practical and safety reasons. Spoked handwheels were heftier than their solid successors, and the extra mass provided momentum that probably came in handy when machines were hand-cranked and treadle-powered; the advent of electric motors obviated that need. As far as safety, if a child or careless operator stuck their fingers between the spokes while the machine was running at high speed, the results would probably have been unpleasant.

Here are three different types of spoked handwheel you're liable to come across:

Left, replica. Center, Singer original 5.5". Right, Singer original 6".

First let's look at the one in the center. I don't have hard dates on this, but I believe this is the one you were liable to find on a Singer of the 1920s.