1926 Singer 99 - Part 4 - Putting it Back Together - OR, Better Late than Never

With all of the disassembly and cleaning now finished, it's time for my favorite part of restoring this old sewing machines - putting it back together and making it sew like it should. If all goes well, this 1926 Singer 99 should sew as well, or better than the day it was made.

I begin my reassembly in the opposite order that I take things apart. And I often refer back to my 'before' photos, to double check myself as I go along. I also refer back to any notes I took during the tear down - the position of concentric screws or nuts; position of the hook in relation to the needle, etc. These things give me a good starting point when it comes to properly timing the machine.

In the case of this Singer 99, I begin the reassembly by replacing the Feed Forked Connection and Stitch Regulator assembly in the pillar of the machine. As I mentioned in Part 2, the working space inside the pillar is very small on a 3/4-sized machine. Patience here is a must; it is very easy to become frustrated when parts don't stay in place while you are trying to secure them down. Magnetic tools help in this aspect, thought they can also be a hindrance if the magnet is too strong, such as sticking to the machine head instead of the part you are working on.

Feed Forked Connection, Stitch Regulator Screw and assembly.
The Connection Roller is already back in place here on the
Connection arm.

Before re-inserting the parts, I like to make certain everything is well oiled. I use TriFlow Oil to do this, and I especially saturate the Feed Forked Connection Roller. This roller or 'wheel' glides back and forth along the guide that controls the stitch length while sewing. Once it begins to gum up, it makes adjusting the regulator knob a beast in the future. Make note that this is one of those spots that should be oiled regularly. Once the assembly is back in place on the machine head, I like to oil the Regulator Screw threads with TriFlow as well, and I will turn the Regulator in its full range of motion multiple times to make certain it operates freely and smoothly.

Next comes the bottom-end of the machine. It is straight forward if you follow your 'before' photographs. Having so few parts, and being simplistic in their operation are the just a few of the reasons that I like these vintage machines. Less moving parts equal less parts to wear out and break. When replacing the Rocker Cones on the Feed Rock Shaft, I like to tighten them snugly, and then back off about 1/8th a turn so the mechanism moves freely. I snug fit the lock nuts, and make final adjustments once all the pieces to the machine are back in place.

Replace with "After" photo; show adjusting screw for feed dog forward/back.

With the Feed Rock Shaft and the Oscillating Hook Pitman (hook drive arm) back in place, it's time to concentrate on reassebling the Hook Assembly. Before putting the hook and feed assembly back together, be certain to oil the rollers on both the Feed Bar and Feed Raising Bar that I pointed out here and here. Coating them in TriFlow until they turn smoothly and freely will keep them operation smoothly. Once the moving parts are back in place, it should look like this:

I put the hook back into position, and try to place it as close to the proper position as possible. At this point, it is merely guesswork, as I have not yet re-installed the needle-bar which is needed to gauge proper placement of the hook. For a much more detailed look and instructions as to how the lower hook area goes back together, I would recommend you visit the Tools for Self Reliance website (TFSR). They are an incredible resource for refurbishing vintage machines.

With the lower bobbin area parts back in the proper place (but not yet properly timed), I begin the reassembly of the needle-bar area. Just like the other parts, I backtrack and replace in the reverse order that I removed the parts.

The bare needle-bar area. Here, I've already
replaced the Tension Disc Lever and its
retaining pin.

When all the parts are back in place, it should look like this:

Everything is clean, back in its proper place,
and ready to set the timing.

Now, we're ready to time the machine. Most Singer 99 machines have either one of two timing gauges built into the needle-bar area; the first was seen here on the 99k. The second gauge involves a bushing with a finger pointing upward, and two marks on the needle-bar connecting stud. This particular Singer 99 had neither, so I had to 'play it by sight'. And again, for a much better description, I will refer you to the TFSR website on complete timing instructions. Once I set the timing (following the TFSR instructions), I thread up the machine and turn it over by hand, to visually see that the hook does indeed catch the upper thread loop as it should. If it looks correct, I'll continue on with the re-build. (Quick tip - a larger spoked handwheel from another 99, 66, 127 or 128 works great to easily operate the machine while it is still under construction.)

The bobbin area cleaned, in place, and almost ready to sew.

Re-attach the feed dogs with the needle plate in place. You'll need to use the plate to see how far to adjust that concentric crew on the Feed Rocker Arm I mentioned earlier.You want the feed dogs to rise just behind their opening in the plate, and lower at about the same distance from the rear opening, without touching the needle plate fore or aft. If it does touch, you'll need to adjust it so that it does not, otherwise it will cause a feed binding and can cause unnecessary damage to the feed dogs and needle plate as well.

The leading edge of the feed dogs should rise just inside
their needle plate opening.

With the feed dogs set front to back, it's now time to set their height. The top most point of the feed dog teeth should be about 3/64ths of an inch (or about 0.005") above the needle place when at their highest extension. I find that having a feeler gauge is very helpful here.

Now that the feed dogs are in their proper position, and the machine is properly timed, all that is left to do is reattach the faceplate, bobbin winder mechanism and the handwheel. Sit the machine either in its stand or case and make a few test stitches. You may need to adjust either the top, bobbin, or both tensions. I like to test the bobbin tension by gently tugging on the thread, so that if flows freely with just minor resistance. This allows me to have a greater flexibility in tension adjustment should I need it down the road. On this Singer 99, there is no numbered dial for the upper tension, so I start out very loose, and adjust until the stitch looks correct to me. After some adjustments to both tensions, time to stitch away!

Once the tensions are set, the rebuild or refurbishment of the mechanics is complete! All we have left to do now is tackle the electrics. The electrics include the motor, the motor controller and the light. On this particular machine, the motor controller is actually operated by a knee bar, and not a foot controller, but their operation is very much the same (provided you are using an original Singer controller for your machine). I'll cover the electrics in the final post on this Singer 99.

*Edit - this machine has since been sold while this post was sitting in my 'draft' folder. BUT, I have acquired another Singer 99 which is in need of rewiring. It's kneebar controller is missing, so I will convert it to a traditional foot controller and I will cover the wiring aspect with the refurbishment of that machine.

1926 Singer 99 - Part 2

Before I start in on the second part of the 1926 Singer 99 restoration, I want to apologize for not getting it posted sooner. Sometimes life throws you a curve ball from out in left-field, and if you aren't looking for it, it smacks you in the side of the head. It's been one of those months, and life and family take priority over any leisure time I have. Things still haven't settled down, but I have found a moment or two to hide myself away in my projects.

Now, on to the fun stuff!

In Part 1, I spent most of the post disassembling the electronics and removing the machine from its Bentwood case. It never ceases to amaze me at just how much gunk accumulates on these vintage machines. Granted, this one is 86 years old, but a little dust rag here and there wouldn't have hurt it over the years.

The accumulated dirt underneath where the motor sits.

After removing the electrics, I began assessing the condition of the machine's mechanics. Digging into the hook area and needle bar area, this machine showed evidence of having been neglected as far as basic maintenance goes. The bobbin was still half full with some very old (and smelly) vintage thread. Removing the bobbin case on this 99 machine is identical to the other 99 that I have. Just lift the bobbin case retention bracket, and slide it to the right. This loosens the resistance on the bobbin case, and with a little wiggling, it should come right out. With the bobbin case removed, there must have been a pound of lint impacted into the hook area. Lint attracts moisture, mix moisture with metal, and you have a breeding ground for rust.

With the bobbin case bracket turned to the right, the bobbin case has been removed.
That's a lot of lint! 

The rust was evident on the bobbin case bracket. You can also see that someone had tried adjusting the retention spring in the past, as the screw head is nearly stripped. I wonder if the previous owner had thought adjusting the spring would solve whatever issue he/she was having with all of the impacted lint and thread trapped in the hook area.

Rust on the ejection spring; nearly stripped adjustment screw. BUT, the oil wick is in tact.

Normally, I would disassemble and clean a machine in sections. But since I've become familiar with the workings of the 99, and I have quite an assortment of pre-disassembly photos, I decided to keep removing parts and clean all at one time. It is easier that way for me.

I worked on the needle-bar assembly next. This was another area who's maintenance had been neglected. The pressure adjusting rod was heavily coated in rust, and its internal spring was very brittle.

Behind the face plate, the ol' girl shows her age.
Simple maintenance would keep this area fully functional.

The bottom spring is the original.
It fractured and broke three separate times because it was so brittle.
The top spring is the replace I bought off eBay.

Removing the needle-bar is still a bit scary for me. I worry about not being able to reset the timing when I put everything back together again. The truth is, these old machines are so simplistic in their nature (by today's standards), that putting it back together, and adjusting the timing is less difficult than I once imagined. One thing to note on this 1926 99 versus my 1950 99 - the 1950 actually has a timing gauge attached to the needle thread guide (seen on the left); the 1926 version does not. The 1926 should have had an older style timing mark system, but it was not there. In order to set the 1926's timing, you'll have to become familiar with the needle-bar's lowest and highest positions, and the position of the hook in relation to the needle. I'll cover that in re-assembly later.

The thread guide, with and without the Timing Gauge.

Removing the tension engaging arm was more difficult. On the 3/4-sized 99s, the arm is held in place by a pin, which must be tapped out. On larger sewing heads, that is usually held in by a screw. Once I figured out how to maneuver my tools and hands into position, the pin came out rather easily. Yes, it took a good whack or two with the rubber mallet and the drill punch, but it didn't offer much resistance.

The red arrow shows where the pin will come out.
Working from the underarm side of the head, drive the pin out
with a nail punch and a mallet.

Though it's out of focus, you can see the gunk coated on the pin as well.

Next up was the feed dog and hook drive mechanism. One screw holds the feed dogs in, and that same screw can adjust height clearance as well. A series of tap rollers controls the motion of the feed dogs and the hook. Over time, these rollers become clogged with lint and debris, and if not properly maintained, they will seize up and no longer roll freely. When this happens, flat spots will develop. I was fortunate with this machine - although the rollers had seized, they had not yet developed flat spots. Once I cleaned and thoroughly oiled them, they roll freely and smoothly.

Feed Regulator - the feed dogs attach here. This roller should turn freely.

The Feed Raising Bar and its roller. It too should spin freely.

Once the bottom end parts have been removed and begun their soaking process, I move back to the top and rear of the sewing head. On top of the model 99, there is an combination screw/bushing (Arm Rock Shaft Screw) whose oiling access point is right next to the spool pin. Often times, you'll see a spool pin wedged into this access hole. I like to remove this bushing and clean it out thoroughly. It is more than likely fully clogged with lint and debris, and little to no oil can pass through the small opening in the bottom. When I removed the bushing from this machine, it was jam-packed with gunk. You should be able to see the opening in the photo. Oil flows from here to the Arm Rock Shaft in the pillar of the machine head. Since the 99 does not have an access panel from the backside, proper maintenance of this bushing is critical to a smooth running machine.

This oiling hole is often plugged with lint and debris. It must be kept
clear in order for oil to penetrate to the Rocker Shaft below.

The last parts I remove are the stitch regulator screw, and the Feed Forked Connection and assembly. The screw just below the hand-wheel holds this mechanism in place. But be warned - on these 3/4-sized machines, it can be a beast putting it back together again. Sometimes I find I need six hands and a contortionist's degree. But with a little patience, it can be done. Having a magnetic screwdriver doesn't hurt either. Stupidly, I did not photograph the removal process for this. I have done it before with a Singer 128 and it is near identical to the 99 in this aspect and I'll look for a photo from that rebuild to add here later.

Part 3 will cover the re-assembly and timing of the machine. And Part 4 will cover the motor and electrics re-wire. {Edit - this changed a bit, as now there will be 5 parts. Part 3 - Cleaning; Part 4 - Reassembly & Timing; Part 5 - Electrical.} As I go along, if there are any parts or sections that you would like more information on, please let me know and I'll try to cover or explain them as I understand them to work.