Screwdriver Check for Readers in Australia, Canada, China, UK Etc.

In the bobbin case removal tutorial, I asked you to use a US dollar bill to see if your screwdriver blade was the appropriate width, because I figured everyone would have a dollar bill. But now I see in the blog stats there are readers overseas as well, and you guys probably don't have as much of our precious currency on hand as you'd like.

Instead of mailing you all dollar bills, I've been casting about my apartment for measuring devices indigenous to your countries, like a kangaroo, a flapjack, a chopstick, a press scandal, et cetera when I realized I should just use the machine itself. So here it is: If you have a Singer 201, don't have the little silver Singer screwdriver, and want to see if a different small screwdriver is one you can use to pop the bobbin case clip open, check it this way:

Screwdrivers, Part 5: Bits That Fit a 201-2

Above and below are photos of screws you might need to get to on a Singer 201-2, and the corresponding Brownells screwdriver bit number that will fit that screw. You can then order the bits you need at this link to Brownell's website (at $2.99 a pop).

I'm not sure if this is helpful to anyone, but if it is and there's a high enough demand, I can do a similar "Bits That Fit" for a 221 Featherweight, a 206 or a 99.

I've made these photos pretty big, because on other instructional websites I've seen I always find the photos too small. If these are difficult for you to load, too big, or not big enough, please let me know in the comments.

Screwdrivers, Part 3: Which Set Do I (or Don't I) Need?

As I mentioned earlier, a good set of hollow-ground screwdriver bits is a must if you're going to work on your machine. You can choose to buy an entire set or buy the bits individually, which may work out cheaper depending on your needs. If you are a gun-owning household, you may already have a set lying around the house, as gunsmithing screwdrivers are hollow-ground. (By the way, the hexagonal shafts of screwdriver bits are standardized, so you can use any bit with any other manufacturer's handle.)

Here I'll review the three sets I have experience with, and point out some purchasing errors I made, in hopes you won't do the same. If you already have some screwdriver bits that fit some Singer parts, do not buy an entirely new set, that's a waste of money. Just wait until the next entry, where I'll cover some individual bits you can add to the ones you have. That will be a lot cheaper.

Screwdrivers, Part 2: Removing Your Needle Plate and Feed Dogs

Up top is a Singer 201-2, a 206, a 15-91 and a 221 Featherweight. They all use the same feed dog screws and needleplate screws. You'll want to remove your needleplate and feed dogs pretty regularly to clean out all the lint that gathers underneath them. Now let's talk about how to easily get them off.

In the last post, I wrote about how the arm of the machine makes it impossible to get a screwdriver straight into the needle plate or feed dog screws. Even the stubbiest screwdriver just won't fit. That doesn't stop other people from trying (and failing), so inevitably you'll see these machines with partially stripped screws.

If there's any purchase left in the screw at all, here's two tools you can use to get those screws out. (If they're already too stripped, you'll have to take it to a pro.)

Getting Comfortable Wrenching on Your Machines: Screwdrivers, Part 1

Worth fixing.

I'd happily spend the weekend tearing a machine down, but that's not everyone's cup of tea. An experienced sewist friend told me "Most sewers don't care or want know anything about the mechanics [of the machine]. They just want to sew." I get that. But I still want to use this blog to illustrate some simple things you can do to keep your machine in top condition.

Experienced wrenchers may find my tutorials too dumbed-down. There's a reason for that. A lot of people tried their best to help me in the beginning, but because they were already experienced, they'd say things like "take your screwdriver," or "get a soldering gun and some solder;" they already knew in their head exactly what kind of screwdriver or tool, and they'd assume I did too. So I'd go to the store to buy a soldering gun and find out there's four different kinds, each of them different wattages. And five types of solder, "lead-free," "rosin core," "60/40," "63/37" and I wouldn't know what to buy. I'd guess anyway and usually buy the wrong thing.

When I'm learning something new I need everything spelled out for me, because I'm a little thick that way. So I'm going to write the exact kind of tutorials I wish I had read when I started out. I also hope to reach the greatest amount of people, including the tool-challenged and the clumsy, so I'll err on the side of overexplaining.

Before we can get to making some common adjustments and fixes for your machines, I'll need to talk tools a bit. I'll start with screwdrivers.