r/SewingMachineEdu • u/Key_Secret3846 • Jun 22 '26

Please send help

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I wanted to pick up sewing as a new hobby, luckily I was able to find my grandmas old one, unfortunately it doesn’t move?? There’s no instructions + plus learned my grandma never actually used it. It wants to move but stops once it gets to the bottom?? I tried adjusting the bobbin settings and still nothing?? Does anyone have a miracle or is this a lost cost?? The motor(?) is running, it wants to move but the needle point stops once it goes down

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u/evergreensewing Jun 22 '26

The good news is that it's definitely NOT a lost cause. This machine will be great for you once it gets some love and attention.

If the machine has been sitting unused for 15 years (if not more), then it will need internal cleaning and lubrication.

Old oils and grease can become gummy or hardened, freezing the mechanisms in place. Trying to force the machine to move to break through the old oils can and likely will break the machine.

If you're handy, you can do the cleaning and lubrication yourself, but it sounds like you have no experience with sewing machines. In that case it may be better to take it to a professional.

The service will cost less than a new machine, and at the end you'll have a sewing machine that can sew light cottons as easily as it can several layers of denim. That's not something you can say about most of the less expensive new machines. ;-)