Issac Singer started the Singer Corporation in 1851, in 1856 it was renamed Singer Manufacturing Company, and Singer Company in 1963. In 1853 they made 810 sewing machines 20 years later in 1873 they made 232,444 machines. Singer sewing machines were on their way to being the best-known brand of sewing machines ever.
Singer Sewing Machines
There are some myths surrounding Singer sewing machines that need to be put to rest. They were not the first sewing machine. Elias Howe patented the first lock-stitch sewing machine and he and Issac Singer went to court over it. According to Joan Perk, a patent sharing agreement was finally reached among the major sewing machine companies. This leads to another myth that is common, all sewing machines were not made by Singer. There have always been multiple manufacturers of sewing machines. Singer has never been the only one. Also, while no one can deny the popularity of the Singer sewing machine it was also never the best on the market. Issac Singer was focused on marketing and affordability, not innovation. I like to think of Singer sewing machines like the Ford truck of the sewing world. Ford trucks are fairly dependable, they'll get the job done, but they don't have the style of GMC or the towing capacity of Dodge.
Singer Sewing Machine Specific Model Posts
These are the dedicated posts to specific models of Singer sewing machines.
Singer 24 - We call this our ticky-ticky machine because that's the sound it makes. This is a chain stitch machine and was marketed for both domestic and industrial use.
Singer 27 - The Singer 27 class of machines includes both the 27 and the 127.
Singer 28 - This was Singer's first attempt at a portable machine. It's slightly smaller than the Singer 27 and was available in a carrying case. I wouldn't want to carry it far though.
Singer 101 - This was Singer's first machine that was designed for electricity.
Singer 301 - We have two posts, a general overview of the Singer 301, and a post about the Singer 301 bobbin cases and bobbins.
Repairing Singer Sewing Machines
Some of the posts are general sewing machine repair posts and some of them are specific to Singer sewing machines. Most vintage sewing machines all work in a similar fashion so there is little need to get brand specific.
Oiling Sewing Machines - We have two posts, what you need to lubricate your sewing machine and a general overview of sewing machine oils.
Rewiring the machine - We have several posts covering rewiring sewing machines. First, we have a general overview of rewiring machines, some machine cabinets have duplex plugs to run the machine so we have a tutorial on rewiring duplex plugs, and we have how to rewire Singer sewing machine three connection terminal blocks.
Replacing Sewing Machine Belts - First up we have how to measure your sewing machine belt, then we have a post on how to replace electric sewing machine belts and one on replacing treadle sewing machine belts.
Cleaning the Outside of Singer Sewing Machines
Once we have the inside of the sewing machine back to tip-top shape we want to make the outside of the machine look just as good.
FAQs About Singer Sewing Machines
When was my Singer sewing machine made?
You will need your serial number to figure this out. We have a complete guide on how to find your Singer sewing machine serial number. Once you have your serial number you can use the ISMACs serial number database to find the day that your serial number was allocated. It doesn't mean it was made that day but it would have been made pretty close to that.
Where was my Singer sewing machine made?
Each Singer factory used a letter designation. I have all of those listed under the factories section of our Singer Sewing Machine Models by Year post.
Do old Singer sewing machines have value?
They do have value. They aren't going to make you rich though. Most machines are going to be worth about $100. A 221 Featherweight is going to go for a little more because of the demand on the market for them. A 222 Free Arm Featherweight will bring $1000 or more because they are truly a unicorn in the Singer sewing machine world.
What is the most sought-after Singer sewing machine?
The 221 Featherweight is the most sought-after machine for the general public. Die-hard collectors though want the 222 Free Arm Featherweight because so few were made. There were 2,089,917 regular Featherweights made while only 103,900 of the free-arm featherweights were made.
How Many Singer sewing machines were made?
Currently, there are 429 documented Singer sewing machine models. There is a good chunk of time missing in the list when Singer was changing hands in the 80s. All efforts have been made to document all of the machines made.
