A Visual Guide to Identifying Singers from Crappy Craigslist Photos, Part 3: Is it a 201?

In the first two parts of this series, we learned to identify model 15s. If you've ruled out the model 15, we'll next see if it's a 201 before moving on.

The 201 can often be mistaken for a 66 in bad Craigslist photos, because the silhouettes can seem similar. If the photo's high-quality, you can see the difference, as below:

201

66

But many times the photo is too small, dark or blurry to clearly see the top line. In that case, we resort to identifying a 201 based on a few things.


The first thing we'll look for is the round stitch length indicator plate in the photo below. If we've determined it's not a model 15 but it has this round plate, then it is a 201 for sure.

In this next, terrible photo, all you can see is a the round plate and a little of the pillar. So how do we know if this is a 201, or a model 15?

Well, look at the angle of the pillar line. Is it almost vertical, like on a 201, or is it raked back at an angle like the 15?

201, nearly vertical pillar line

15, raked/angled pillar line

Sometimes the photos are taken from the wrong side of the machine, so you can't see the round plate. In that case we look for this little flat piece of metal that the spool pin sits on, AS WELL AS the round inspection plate:

If you can see that flat plate for the spool pin AND the round inspection plate, it's a 201. If it's shot from the other side: If you can see that flat plate for the spool pin AND the round stitch length indicator plate, it's a 201.

The third thing we'll look for is small, white, and will usually show up even in dark photos. It's this tiny light switch:

Please note the light switch in that location only appears in the 201-2, not the 201-3. But the good thing about it is, it's usually visible even in small, terrible photos. For example, look at this one:

That little white dot is the only way I can tell this machine is a 201-2.

Okay, Quiz Time: Which of the following machines is a 201?

Also, is it a 201-2 (potted motor), or a 201-3 (belted motor)? You already know how to look for these things from reading Part 2, so once you figure out if it's a 201, looking at the motors will help you figure out if it's a 201-2 or 201-3.

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Now let's check to see if you got 'em right:

1. Not a 201. There's no round plate visible. If there was, you'd see the little silver knob and lever.

2. It's a 201-2, see the tiny light switch?

3. Also a 201-2, that tiny white dot is the light switch.

4. Not a 201, there's no flat plate for the spool pin.

5. A 201-2, it's got the round plate and the white light switch.

6. It's a 201-2. Tough to see, but you can barely make out the round plate. You also cannot see a belted motor, so you know the potted motor is hiding back there.

7. Not a 201, there's no round plate.

8. Also not a 201, there's no round plate.

9. Here's a 201-3, it's got the flat spool plate and the round inspection plate. Belted motor makes it a 201-3.

10. Flat spool plate and round stitch length plate make it a 201. You can also see tiny bump of belted motor under the leftmost arrow, making it a 201-3.

11. It's got the round plate, but the "ski jump" angle makes this a model 15.

12. No flat spool plate. Not a 201.

13. It's got the round plate and the tiny white light switch. 201-2.

I told you it would get trickier, but hopefully you're making out okay.

Go on to:

Part 4: Is it a 66?

Part 5: Is it a 99?

Or go back to:

Part 1: Is it a model 15?

Part 2: If it’s a model 15, what kind of 15?

Craigslist Adventures in Vintage Sewing Machine Buying, Part 1

I'll interrupt the "Identifying Singers" guide here to briefly mention why buying sewing machines on Craigslist can be a real pain. Here's an actual photo someone sent me when I asked to see the sewing machine they were selling:

The worst part is, that's happened to me (and some of you) more than once. It just blows me away. It makes me want to e-mail them back saying "Do you want to buy my car? Here's a photo:"

Or maybe I should invite some friends over for dinner. I can e-mail them saying "Are you hungry? I was thinking about making this:"

Lastly, I'm thinking I should carry this photo around in my wallet. During small talk with strangers I could say "Check out my girlfriend, ain't she a looker?"

Craigslist can be pretty amazing.

A Visual Guide to Identifying Singers from Crappy Craigslist Photos, Part 2: Narrowing Down the Model 15

In the last entry we learned to deduce if we were looking at a model 15--or something else--based on the giveaway "runway" and "ski jump" of the machine's profile.

If it is a model 15, we'll next figure out if it's a 15-91 with the potted (direct-drive) motor, a 15-90 with the side-mounted (belt-drive) motor, or an earlier model 15 that might have been treadled, hand-cranked or converted to electric.

If it's a 15-91 or 15-90, it will have minimal decals on the arm, just saying SINGER with some slight flourishes (see top photo). Earlier model 15s will have more extreme, ornate decals on the arm and pillar, like these:

Photo too small to see detail, but you can see a lot of gold on the arm, too much to be a modern 15.

So if you've determined it's a model 15 and see those large splotches of gold on the arm and pillar, you'll know it was an earlier 15. The earlier 15s don't have reverse and I don't collect them, so that's the extent of my coverage on the early 15s.

Now on to the more modern (and common, around me) later model 15s: The 15-90s and 15-91s made from the 1930s through 1950s. These all have reverse and this circular stitch length indicator plate:

(The 201 is the only other machine you'll see with this circular plate. We'll get into that later.)

The 15-91 is what I most commonly see here in the NYC area. The potted motor is easy to spot if you're lucky enough to see non-operator-side photos of the machine:

Sometimes the photo is taken from the operator side, from slightly above. In that case, look for the little "sunset" of a potted motor peeking over the machine's horizon. Sometimes it's just a little black bump that cannot otherwise be explained.

Or from a rear 3/4 angle, in which case the potted motor cannot hide completely behind the handwheel:

And sometimes, yes, people will photograph it from that one angle that makes it completely impossible to see if a potted motor is there:

The good news in that latter case is, that very angle that hides the potted motor is also perfect for revealing whether it's a 15-90 with the side-mounted motor. See the side-mounted motor peeking out here?

So to back up a second, if you see this photo...

...the absence of a side-mounted motor peeking out here (and the simple decals on the arm meaning it's a modern 15) pretty much guarantees it's a 15-91, with the potted motor just hiding from the photographer.

Okay, Quiz Time. Look at the following crap-tastic photos: Which is a 15-90, and which is a 15-91?

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I threw some very tricky ones in there, using some of the worst photos I could dig up. Check below to see if you got them right.

1. Side motor, 15-90

2. No side motor, tiny bump of potted motor, 15-91

3. Side motor, 15-90

4. Side motor, 15-90

5. Tiny bump showing side motor, 15-90

6. Cannot see side motor. Potted motor is visible but with white tape on it, tricky. 15-91

7. Terribly dark photo, but the slightest irregularity in the handwheel shape shows you a potted motor is hiding back there. 15-91

8. No bump showing side motor, 15-91

If you were able to pick some of these up, hopefully you've amazed yourself. These are some terrible, terrible photos that you probably never imagined you could glean useful information from; yet we can figure out the models in them if we know what to look for. When you look through as many ads as I do, this can save you a lot of time, phone calls, e-mails, driving, and the seller and buyer wasting each other's time.

The photos are too small and crappy to tell the actual condition of the machines, of course, but knowing what models they are can at least help you quickly narrow your search.

Go on to:

Part 3: Is it a 201?

Part 4: Is it a 66?

Part 5: Is it a 99?

Or go back to:

Part 1: Is it a model 15?