Cleaning The Bobbin Winder Clutch on a Bernina 830 Record

On this machine, you'll need to remove a couple screws from the bottom before you can get to the clutch.  Lay the machine face down on a thick towel.  If it has the plastic shield across the bottom, remove the screw and take the plastic shield off. 
 

Directly below the handwheel, on the bottom of the machine is another long screw.  Remove that screw, and the end panel will come off.  

Next, you need an Allen wrench, size 5/32 or 4mm.  There’s a black screw that the Allen wrench will fit into, just above the pulley.  Turn it to the left, just enough to release the tension on the pulley.  

Now you can take the handwheel off.  Loosen the little screw on the center knob. 

 Unwind the knob and take it off. 

Remove the metal ring.   

Lift up on the pulley as you remove the handwheel.  




Spray a little WD-40 on a rag and clean inside the handwheel center hole.  Spray some on the shaft that the handwheel goes onto, and clean it off with a rag.  It may take 2 applications if it’s really frozen up.  Make sure all the WD-40 is removed, then put about 3 drops of sewing machine oil on the shaft. 

Put the belt onto the handwheel and make sure the belt is also seated in the inside groove of the pulley, then push the handwheel back on.  

Replace the metal ring with the nubs facing outward.  You have 3 positions that the ring can go on.  You’ll know you’ve got the right one, when the clutch will release, but it will also hold it locked for sewing.  You have to have the center knob all the way on before you can check.

Pfaff Bobbin Winder Clutch

I got a question this morning about how to put a Pfaff bobbin winder clutch back together.  I happen to have a Pfaff 1197 at home, so I've taken it apart, and here's how to put it back together.

I've taken the top of the machine and the side panel off.  Then unscrew the plastic screw in the center of the knob.  Work the outside belt off so you can remove the knob.

Here's what the knob looks like inside.  There are 2 black plastic knob parts, one black part with an oval hole, one white part and a small spring.

 

Edited to add:  Remove any white waxy grease that has hardened and replace it with Tri-flow grease.

The first thing to do is to put the spring in place.  It just sits in the little trough that is molded to just the right size.

Next, put the white plastic part in.  The white part has a post on the underside that fits into a small round hole.

 Then put the black part with the oval hole onto the center shaft.  The protrusion will go into the square hole in the handwheel.
 

Now position the white part so it rides on the outside of the black part.

Then put the center knob on top, with the black post going into the curved trough on the knob.

 

Edited to add:  Make sure the shaft is clean and well oiled (with sewing machine oil) before you put the handwheel back on.

Hold the parts together as you put it back on the shaft.  Then put the belt back on.

Put the washer on the plastic screw, and carefully screw it into the shaft.  Don't tighten it too tight, or you'll break the screw off.  Dang!  It's a good thing I can get a replacement part #0401655-BSCREW  Pfaff Hand Wheel Black Plastic.  Retail on those is about $6.

Singer Bobbin Winder Clutch (model 30920)

I've had a request to show how to repair a Singer (model 57825C) Bobbin Winder Clutch.  There were a few Singers with this rocker-type bobbin winder clutch.  There's not much to them, and they're a lot different than the typical handwheel-type clutch.


Let's take a look at the outside first.

When you're sewing, the clutch would look like this.

When you're winding a bobbin, push the clutch in on the indentation.

Here's the top shaft of the bobbin winder.

Here's what the bobbin winder looks like underneath.

Before you do anything else, check to make sure that the rubber O-ring (or tire) on the big round hub is in place, and is in good condition.  It should be supple, and have no cracks.  This can easily be replaced, and usually costs less than a dollar.

Also (as Ryan pointed out below), you'll want to make sure the spindle will turn easily.  If it's frozen, you can try two things.  First, I usually put some WD-40 in the cracks and work it until it's loose.  Always blow the WD-40 out with an air compressor or canned air.  Then re-oil.  If that fails, you can pop the c-clamp off, disassemble the bobbin winder, clean it, and put some oil on the shaft directly.  Then put it back together.

Next, we'll take a look at the inside of the clutch.  You can carefully pry off the rocker with a screwdriver.

Inside the handwheel, you'll see the center shaft, and the notches along the outer portion of the handwheel.

If the notches are damaged, the handwheel would need to be replaced.  If that's the case, you'd be better off putting your money into a new sewing machine.

This is what the underside of the rocker looks like.

If the metal clip or the plastic that holds the metal clip are broken, it would need to be replaced.  Once again, you may be better off putting your money into a new sewing machine.

The Wrong Oil

I'm working on an old White sewing machine.  DH got it for the foot control, but I want to try to fix it up to sell.  The problem seems to be that the previous owner used the wrong kind of oil.  

It took DH's muscles to un-screw the center knob.  And my sons helped me get the handwheel off.  After trying to pull it off, we tried to pry it off with a screw driver, which didn't work.  Then we finally positioned a screw driver on the inside metal casing, and smacked it with a hammer.  That worked!

The "Before" picture is fuzzy, but you can see the red-ish, sticky, old oil.  That is what old oil or the wrong kind of oil looks like, and it feels tacky to the touch.  It's just like glue.

To remove the old, gummy oil, I put some WD-40 on it and scrubbed it with an old toothbrush.  It didn't get all of it off, so I used a very fine sandpaper to get the rest off.  The inside of the casing on the handwheel also needed scrubbing as did the center knob and the position ring.

So, what kind of oil should you use?  Only "sewing machine oil."  That doesn't include 3-in-1 oil, engine oil, olive oil, or FAX machine oil.  And, as you can see, it doesn't include WD-40.  We only use WD-40 to REMOVE the old oil.