Thursday, November 12, 2009

Being old, retired, handy if not handsome, and curious, I go to my apartment building’s garbage area the day before pickup. Pickup is conveniently every Monday.The end of the month produces a better selection of discarded objects.

Last month I spotted an electric portable sewing machine. Thinking of the cornucopia of gears, levers, springs and an electric motor, I snagged it and brought it in outta the rain.
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Probably not zinc or aluminum sez me to me as I listed to port slightly while carrying it. More like cast iron, but therefore a higher quality machine probably.

Believing that sewing machines normally last about forty thousand dresses or about one lifetime past the original purchaser’s, I had high hopes for salvage.

When cleaned it up and I hooked it up to some power all it would do was hum.

“Hmmmm,” sez me right back.

I whipped off the top and sprayed some WD40 on the gears.

It commenced to run like a top, and smell purdy too.

I tried giving it away but it came back practically the very next day. It seems the recipient's hubby did not think he could do the repairs.

It is quite modern looking, has a flip out carry handle, does a selection of fancy stitches, and is configured to sew sleeves easily because the sewing head is on a sort of narrow overhanging platform the dimension of a sleeve.

Fine Italian machinery, thought I, reading the maker’s mark - Vigorelli; like Ferrari or Lamborghini - but slower and quieter. A nice name implying a certain vigor to the activity of sewing haute couture - Milan comes to mind.

But it was missing the controller foot pedal. Yes I looked but - was not gonna open a buncha garbage bags in the bins. Ugh.

Generic controller replacements are listed on the web at about 25 bucks and up.

No needle, no thread, no bobbin, no big deal.

So I looked them up on the web, thinking - refurb, and use it.

Better karma for me.

Watch this space for the completed project. I am still gathering parts.