Singer Toy Lockstitch Sewing Machine

So back in the day, Singer even made a half-way decent toy sewing machine, a real LOCKSTITCH sewing machine:

This one has an actual bobbin

That is a shuttle type bobbin

And even a bobbin winder

It has a foot pedal and comes in a carrying case

Of course this a 100% toy, and not meant to actually sew much more than two pieces of cloth together.  But I would have LOVED to have had this when I was ten years old.  I used to sew clothes for my Barbies back then - by hand - and I was so proud of them.  I would have been beside myself to have a little machine that could do very basic stitching.

And here is how it works

It makes a perfectly nice, even stitch which is a full lockstitch and will actually hold the fabric together.


You can buy pretty cute toy sewing machines nowadays like this:

Super cute, yes, but it makes a chain stitch which is less than worthless.  Most toy sewing machines you can buy now, no matter how fancy they seem with all the gadgets and accessories, make a chain stitch.  It makes me mad whenever I see those chainstitch machines advertised as being something you can "make" things with.  The only thing you will ever make with one of those is a mess!

A Word You'll Never Hear Me Say (About Sewing Machines)

Very short and quick post here.

From 1960:

I like to read sewing machine reviews - of all kinds of machines, not just vintage - and it has become a game where I am waiting for the inevitable description of any given machine as a "workhorse."  I'm getting tired of this same old/same old description.  Every machine is described a "workhorse," so it doesn't even mean anything.

THIS is a workhorse

THIS is a sewing machine

I'm ready to hear some lively new words to describe sewing machines because this one's been done to death.

I assure anyone who reads this blog that I will never refer to a machine by that term.  I'll come up with other descriptive words for sturdy, heavy-duty sewing machines but that is one you will never hear me say.

Singer 328k Style-o-Matic

Here's something a little different from the usual parade of Slant-o-Matics I've reviewed lately, and it goes to show that looks can be deceiving.  At first glance, this doesn't look a whole lot different than one of the 400 machines, but this is a different machine entirely. (Although they riffed off the name, calling this a "Style-o-Matic.")

This is from the early 1960s, and was the budget model compared to the TOL Slant-O-Matics.  That is not to say this isn't a good machine - it is - but for different purposes.  This was an affordable machine without a lot of pizzaz compared to it's higher-end cousins in the SOM line, but in all ways a very serviceable machine.  

Singer 328k takes flat cams 

 Rather than built in stitches, zigzag and other decorative stitches are made with cams.  These are flat discs instead of the top hat cams that go in the 403 and 503.

A low-budget feature is the power cord that is hard-wired into the machine rather than plugged into a terminal.  There is also no on/off switch for the light.  So there is no way around it, you must crawl down on the floor to plug/unplug this machine every time you use it.

feed dog disengagement system

The feed dogs can be disengaged with the flat black plate shown above, which means removing the throat plate and inserting this underneath.  This raises up the throat plate just enough to bypass the feed dogs.  It is a similar concept to the "elevated throat plate" system on TOL Singers - except you have to do this manually.

The typical accessories

This machine has an oscillating hook, and also has a belt (running off an enclosed motor) rather than a direct gear drive.  However, it runs surprisingly smoothly for all that.  It is a solid beast of a machine, and there are no complaints on stitch quality

 This isn't going to be your "fun" machine - it won't make your vintage loving heart sing. It's not a collector's item.  But it is utilitarian, it is solid, and it works perfectly.