The Smithsonian website has quite a few Willcox & Gibbs manuals and catalogs that you can view and print online for FREE. Right now.
Catalogs & Brochures to help identify your Willcox & Gibbs Sewing machine
Some of the cabinets for treadles:
Revised 4/22/2011
This blog is a forum for me to share my research into antique and vintage chain stitch sewing machines. Information will include things about the companies who made them, identifying specific models, restoration, how to use them, what they can be used for, etc...Eventually, someday, I hope to have the time and energy to do a "real" website , but for now this blog combined with my webshots album will have to do.
My primary focus is collecting and researching sewing machines made by
Willcox & Gibbs (often abbreviated as W&G in this blog, and on other
websites and e-mail lists). However, I am also interested in many other brands
and models of vintage sewing machines, sewing machine attachments, vintage sewing books and manuals, and I also have a few modern machines.
My personal collection of chain stitch sewing machines currently (as of 4/22/2011) includes:
- 2 Kruse & Murphy (K&M), one is a treadle another is a orphan head.
- 1 industrial Singer 24 (missing parts, but so cute and cheap that I keep it for display purposes).
- 1 Singer 20, another one bought for it's cuteness factor and only used for display (so far).
- Eldredge/National, I had one orphan Eldredge chain stitcher head that had too many missing/broken parts so I sold it to someone who needed the remaining parts. A year later I end up with a lovely Eldredge treadle with a ton of Eldredge sewing machine attachments, but it was missing the Eldredge sewing machine head. I am still looking for a nice condition replacement head, one worthy of the beautiful treadle irons and fancy wood cabinet.
My Willcox & Gibbs collection currently includes (as of 4/22/2011):
- 3 coffin top treadles with the W&G logo treadle irons, and automatic tension sewing machines.
- 1 coffin top treadle with the older more ornate style of treadle irons (no W&G logo on the side of the treadle irons). This one has
a adjustable (glass tension) model.
- 1 glass tension with a UK style hand crank.
- 1 automatic tension with a UK style hand crank.
- 2 automatic tension "American" style hand cranks.
- 1 industrial straw hat sewing
machine, missing a few parts but still looks cool as a display piece.
- 1 industrial registering measuring tension model, also needing a few parts.
- A few electric W&G machines including one in a console table.
- Many different manuals and attachments.
- Quite a few automatic tension orphan "parts" machines.
In addition I currently have the following machines that are not chain stitchers (as of 4/22/2011):
- 3 Singer 221 featherweights (2 black, one white/very light green).
- Singer 31-15 with Slotkin & Praglin kick drive "treadle" irons.
- 2 Singer 15-91 one in a Queen Anne cabinet, the other is an orphan with bad wiring kept as a spare in case I ever need parts.
- 2 Singer tiffany decaled 15-30 treadles.
- Singer 128 hand crank.
- Western electric, with a friction drive motor.
- Viking 6460 (red version, portable electric).
- A babylock Imagine serger.
- A babylock Ellure plus computerized embroidery/sewing machine.
- A lovely set of "fancy leg" Florence treadle irons, missing the sewing machine and coffin top but the irons are so lovely that I had to have them anyhow, and I use them as a base for my computer desk.
- A large collection of vintage/antique Singer sewing machine attachments, and many original Singer books and manuals.
Most of the machines listed above are pictured on webshots. Unless otherwise noted all photographs posted are of my own machines in my own collection. Please do not re-post these pictures anywhere without my explicit written permission. You can contact me via e-mail me for permission: chain_stitching@yahoo. com.
Revised 4/22/2011
© Rebecca R.
