My planned project - and some questions

**Barb T** · 13th June 20, 04:29 PM

To be honest, I have to agree with her. It's not a military kilt, and the meaning would be lost on virtually anyone looking at the quilt. Most people would have their eyes drawn to what they would see as a garish green border and wonder why you chose a color that didn't go with the beautiful dark and muted shades of the tartan squares. And I'm sure that you would want people to look at the kilt itself, not obsess about the border.

**Tobus** · 13th June 20, 04:55 PM

Well, you've done it now, Barb! You gave my wife all the "I told you so" she needed! I guess I'm on the hunt now for khaki wool twill tape.

**Barb T** · 14th June 20, 11:45 AM

Emmm, I probably shouldn't have waded into this...

**Tobus** · 15th June 20, 05:45 AM

Originally Posted by Barb T

Emmm, I probably shouldn't have waded into this...

It's OK, I appreciate your input. It's been helpful.

At this point, I'm not finding any khaki twill tape. But there's a lovely dark blue/indigo 7/8" twill tape that should make nice binding and match the dark blues in these government sett-based tartans. That should work decently.

**Barb T** · 15th June 20, 05:49 AM

Sounds like the perfect solution!

**Tobus** · 17th June 20, 06:19 AM

I finally received the treadle belt (the first one got lost in the mail) and installed it.

She lives, she breathes!

The first video below is me just running the machine with no thread to check the function of all moving parts. Despite being 122 years old and having been stored in a shed for the last couple of decades, she runs nicely! I'll need to let the belt stretch in a bit and then tighten it some more. I just love that mechanical sound.

(Sorry if my videos are a bit wobbly; I was pumping the treadle with my foot and trying to hold my phone steady at the same time.)

The second video is winding a bobbin. I was supposed to disengage the drive clutch so it's not running the needle mechaninsm, but oh well. It does wind the bobbin as I thought, with the bobbin winder assembly swung away from the main arm so the little pulley temporarily engages the drive belt. The little arm that guides the bobbin thread onto the bobbin seems to have a bit of overtravel at each end whilst winding, so it ramps the thread at the ends. When the ramp reaches the outside diameter of the end flanges of the bobbin, the thread spills over the end. Not sure if I can correct that, but I'll look into it.

I strung it up and tried some test stitching. It does stitch, but I'll need to adjust the thread tension to get it right. I discovered that the previous owner had put together the thread tension assembly in the wrong order, so I'll need to disassemble and correct that. I may end up replacing some of those parts to make sure the thread runs smoothly through the disks and the check spring is operating optimally. Plus, I'll need to do some fine adjustment on the bobbin thread tension on the shuttle, presser foot pressure, stitch length, etc. I'll get her dialed in just right.

Before jumping into my quilted blanket project, I'm going to practise a bit on smaller scraps and then put together two pillow shams that will match my blanket.

*edit: for some reason, the forum's embedded video thingy isn't working. So here are the links to the videos.

https://vimeo.com/429985642

https://vimeo.com/429976799

**Stoff** · 17th June 20, 07:11 AM

I can't help much on the quilting front, but on the singer Model 27 treadle sewing machine that is an entirely different matter. I personally use a 1911 Model 27 treadle when doing ALL my sewing. As to how much, well, on top of my drafting business i also have a tailoring business and I put my self through college making historic clothing. There is an online group that you might want to check out that is devoted to acquiring, repairing, and using vintage Singer sewing machines; it is <https://groups.io/g/vintagesingers>. They have access to everything from owner's manual to spare parts. Check them out.

Stoff