New White Peerless Sewing Machine.
Hello Dear Friends and Readers,
One never knows what can be found in second hand / junk shops, especially on Easter Monday. On a whim, I popped into a local second hand / junk shop on my way home.
I just popped in for a quick perusal and as I was wandering around the old pots and pans, I did a circuit and was about to leave when I spied on the bottom shelf, in the dirt, an old sewing machine. It was covered in dirt. It had a ticket on it saying “prop” $15-
Even though it looked to be in pretty bad condition, I thought I would give it a chance.
So I took it home and cleaned off all the dirt. Just with a damp cloth and mild detergent. I never use anything harsh. Next I polished the timber with some linseed oil. Then I used a lint free cloth drenched in Singer sewing machine oil. I wiped over all of the machine with the cloth, paying particular attention to all the tight corners.
Once that was done I oiled in all the oil holes. Once a machine is worked over like that any damage becomes more apparent.
The chromed work is peeling on the needle plate and at this stage I can not open it. I have encountered this problem with old machines before. I’ve drenched it in sewing machine oil and now I’ll just wait. Years of neglect can’t be undone in five minutes, but with some patience it probably will open eventually.
The handle is missing, but it has a bobbin and I can view the shuttle from underneath. It still has the spool holder too, which is lucky.
This is an antique New White Peerless “B” hand crank sewing machine. Circa approx 1890. It’s a 3/4 sized machine, making it a portable model. It’s small and elegant with Lily of the Vally Decals, which despite their wear are still pretty. They are known for their quiet operation.
While we are on the subject of Lily of The Valley, you might just be interested in this post.
Free Motion Lily of the Valley Treadle Quilting Tutorial
Chance is a funny thing, some months later, a friend of mine was going to throw this out, and although it looked irretrievable…. I took it home and this is what happened.
Antique White USA Treadle Base
Have a good day!
Susie
I have a similar machine. I thought it was a treadle machine but I believe it is the portable hand crank model. It is in a beautiful wooden case. I really don’t know much about antique sewing machines. Can this machine *only* be operated by hand?
Dear Allison. If you had a base, that is a treadle table, you could convert this machine from a hand crank to a treadle. Sometimes people get a motor added to the back of the machine if you wanted to electrify it. However it would be quite costly.
Thanks for the response! I actually have a Singer treadle table (although the treadle is missing, which is why it was such a great price). Not sure if the White will fit into it but for now I’ve got plans to clean it up and put my grandmother’s Singer Stylist 457 into it. The White was my great grandmother’s (and possibly *her* mother’s) and spent a lot of time in my own grandmother’s damp basement, so it’s in rough shape. The handle for the hand crank is actually broken, but it does have a needle and shuttle intact.
Dear Allison. That sounds like a plan. Check out my post Antique White USA Treadle Base. This base was in bad shape before I fixed it up. Your Grandmothers base is probably very salvageable. 😀
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I would love to see a pic.