Singer 242 Problems

>>1122529
Have you found a manual for it? They had pretty good maintenance and troubleshooting sections. Also, have you oiled it?

>>1122529
It came with a manual and I have used 3in1 oil on the moving parts. Nothing seems to help.

>>1122529
I shit you not. An old bearded man named Merlin once told me "its black magic under a sewing machine. I you figure it out you are now a wizard."

Ya know what? I beleive him to this day.

>>1122579
Pull the bobbin and the needle out, stick catches? Pull all the panels off (it's a 'newer' so I don't know if you can, all the old ones you could) and operate it by hand and try to see where it is catching. Post pictures of what you find.

Just a thought: it is possible the parts got out of alignment when the belt under the machine died on you. I'd start looking there first. All of my Singers are the old school rod and gear driven types. No belts at all to worry about. Their quality really started to decline in the 1960's :(

>>1122616
I already pulled the needle and bobbin and it is catching either in the bobbin assembly or on the drive that works the belt for it. I'm just not sure where and I can't open the case any further.

This is the newest sewing machine I own. I'm also working on cleaning, oiling and bringing back to life a 1949 Kenmore.

Out in the shed waiting it's day is a 1901 Singer treadle.

>>1122579
Never
Ever
use 3-in-1 on a sewing machine. It damn near guarantees in ten years the thing will be frozen fucking solid.

>>1122717
That is what I've always been told to use. My grandmother used it on hers for decades.

>>1122717
Bullshit. Ignore this guy, he's spouting some old wives tales. Probably had a sewing machine dealer in the family. Kind of like how car salespeople will tell you getting your car serviced anywhere but the dealer will void its factory warranty. It is bullshit.

>>1122766
No, I'm a collector of vintage machines. Quite a few arrive seized up with oxidized oil. It oxidizes/polymerizes hard as a rock if you stop adding more. "The first hit is free"

The exception is 3-in-1 in the blue bottle, it's a pure paraffin oil.

3-in-1 will also permanently stain most fabrics. Sewing machine oil won't.

>>1122766
>>1122729
Im not a "collector" or machines, but I have a handful and look at every single one at the thrift stores.

You can clearly tell who was using 3 in 1 or motor oil on it vs who uses light sewing machine oil.

There is a yellow-brownish gunk you can scrape off, and they are gummed up.

When hand cranking you can tell there is a very clear difference from a dry machine and a gunked up machine. Light sewing machine oil doesnt gunk the machine up

>>1122529
Nobody is answering OPs question just talking about fucking oil...

OP what the sewing machine claimed expert is failing to tell you here is your machine is out of time... Yup like valve timing on a gas engine your machine has timing too. And its pretty easy to fix most of the time. Just google your machine model and timing fix after.

>>1122850
>OP what the sewing machine claimed expert is failing to tell you here is your machine is out of time...
I said I collected vintage machines. A Singer 242 is from the era of plastic wonders and not worth even sneezing on. Don't bother trying to fix it, it was made in an injection moulding machine.

>>1122529
>>1122529
If the bobbin belt was disconnected, its damn sure the neede to bobbin alignment is messed up. If you move the needle from the handwheel, does the needle hit something, eversoslightly?

>>1122850
This guy is right. You need to check timing.

And don't listen to >>1122874. Everything is a treasure or pos to someone.

>>1123244
>Everything is a treasure or pos to someone.

Sure
Some people could like plastic machines for any number of reasons, like sentimental value.

Doesnt mean that objective people without rose tinted glasses like them. Especially when you can get an actual reliable machine at the thrift store for 10-20$

As it's been mentioned I'm sure the alignment is out of sync.
There should be some screws in the drive shaft near the lower thread bobbin which you can loosen to advance the needle without advancing the lower mechanism.

Start with aligning for center needle position, then control if left and right work too. Control fine adjustment by increasingly zigzagging.
if you post pictures we can help you.

>>1122729
>>1122766
He's actually right. 3-in-1 creates a varnish on sewing machines. If you use the machine regularly it's not a problem. If it's going to sit for periods of time without use, just buy a better oil. I use Tri-flow with ptfe. I use a ptfe grease for the parts that need greasing.

As for your problem, timing is off. There are guides online for a lot of machines on how to adjust timing. On a lot you just disconnect the lower mechanism and adjust the upper mechanism so the needle is at the lowest point and the hook on the lower is just about to grab the thread.

>>1123255
>>1122874
As someone who's spent a lot of time repairing these things, I cannot recommend strongly enough that you do not try to pay to keep this thing running. The parts are too aged to be any good if they are made of plastic and the quality of the machine is not worth any investment.

>>1122529
Spending 15 seconds on Google:
> 242 are ok until the plastic gear breaks or the belt on the bottom breaks, dries hard and won't turn properly. As far as value - the price was exactly right (free).

http://www.quiltingboard.com/vintage-antique-machine-enthusiasts-f22/1973-singer-242-any-good-t219654.html

>>1124591
>>1124732
I was in need a sewing machine and it was free

I'll tear it down further and see if the gear is broken. At least the motor is good.