Singer VS-1, VS-2, VS-3, 27, 28, 127, 128typehomemanufacturerSinger Manufacturing Companymaterialfabricstitchlockstitchpowertreadle, handcrank, add-on electricfeeddropneedle(s)one 15x1 (except VS1, which uses 20x1)
The Singer Model 27 and later model 127 were a series of lockstitch sewing machines produced by the Singer Manufacturing Company from the 1880s to the 1960s. (The 27 and the 127 were full-size versions of the Singer 28 and later model 128 which were three-quarters size). They were Singer's first sewing machines to make use of "vibrating shuttle" technology. Millions were produced. They are all steel and cast iron, and were built before the advent of planned obsolescence, and so they were designed to be repaired rather than replaced. Consequently many remain today, some in collections and others still in service. In company literature they were called "the woman's faithful friend the world over".
Identifying characteristics
The many Vintage Singer sewing machine models look very similar. All machines in the 27 series (VS-1, VS-2, VS-3, 27, 28, 127, and 128) have the following distinguishing characteristics that can be used to differentiate them from other Singer machines:
Split slide plates running the entire depth of bed Flat face plate, most are ornamented with grapevines but very early examples have a plain shiny finish.
Within the 27 series are seen the following differences between versions:
CharacteristicVS-1VS-227VS-328127128Trapezoidal access door on headnoyesyesyesyesyesyesLocation of stitch length controlbedpillarpillarpillarpillarpillarpillarBed shapefiddlefiddlerectanglerectanglerectanglerectanglerectangleBed width (inches)14-5/814-5/814-5/812-5/3212-5/3214-5/812-5/32Bed depth (inches)7776-9/166-9/1676-9/16Space between needle and pillar8886-1/26-1/286-1/2Bobbin winder locationlowlowlow*lowlow*highhighShuttle ejector buttonnononononoyesyes* A few older machines have moved their bobbin winders to the high position, but they will still have a mounting lug for it in the original lower position.
Vibrating shuttle
The 27 series was Singer's first use of a vibrating shuttle as a bobbin driver, instead of the transverse shuttle design used in the older 'New Family' machine.
History
The design of the model 27 series began with Allen B. Wilson, who invented the vibrating shuttle in 1850 and sold machines built around it. Two decades later, when the patents had expired and the Sewing Machine Combination patent pool had dispersed, White Sewing Machine Company employees D'Arcy Porter and George W. Baker built a new machine that made successful use of it. The "White Sewing Machine", as it was first named, entered production in 1876. It was popular in its time, and some of them remain.
In the decade that followed, another gentleman applied his mind to advancing the state of the art. Scottish immigrant Robert Whitehill (1 June 1845 – 24 November 1903Obituary published in the New York Times, viewable at https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1903/11/24/290345852.pdf), founder of the Whitehill Manufacturing Company, became interested in sewing machines and subsequently patented an improvement to the take-up arm.Improvement in Sewing-Machines, Robert Whitehill, (from http://patimg1.uspto.gov/.piw?docid=00166172&PageNum=1&IDKey=72D3AA82FECF&HomeUrl=http://pimg-piw.uspto.gov/) US patent 166172, filed 10 July 1873, granted 27 July 1875 He proceeded to manufacture his own machines from about 1875Grace Rogers Cooper, The Invention of the Sewing Machine (1968), appendix II, retrieved 2010-08-05 from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32677/32677.txt until 1883. He then designed the sewing machine which would shortly become Singer's answer to the White machine. He applied for patent on 1 July 1884 and received US patent 326821 on 22 September 1885.
In his design Whitehill retained the White machine's dimensions and most aspects of its exterior; his contribution mainly consists of the new interior. That is, he rethought the entire powertrain—the mechanism that carries energy from the handwheel to the needlebar, to the bobbin driver, and to the feed dogs. He also conceived the bullet-shaped shuttle, which the White machine promptly adopted over its more traditional boat shuttle.Whitehill filed for patent in 1884 and his bullet-shaped shuttle was in production by late 1885, whereas the White Sewing Machine used a boat shuttle until 1886
He took his prototype to the Singer head office and showed it to the office manager James Bolton (1832–1916). Bolton was thrilled with the machine and suggested a sewing competition against the best Singer models on-hand at the factory. Whitehill's prototype prevailed, and he sold the rights to it for USD 8,000 (USD 212,000 adjusted), with USD 1,000 held in reserve until he had perfected it for them.From the diary of James Bolton, reprinted in the International Sewing Machine Collectors Society newsletter of 25 October 1989
At the time, Singer was already selling two "high arm" models (one a chain stitcher, the other an oscillating shuttle) which represented a new break from the company's established history of "low arm" machines. The Whitehill design became the third Singer machine with a high arm, and quickly eclipsed the other two—neither of which Bolton liked anyway."[T]he two high-arm machines the company had gotten up had been failures . . ." -- ibidem The Whitehill machine took the name "Vibrating Shuttle 1" when, two years later, it evolved into the improved "Vibrating Shuttle 2".
Within a couple of years Scientific American took notice, and printed the following praise for Whitehill's design, especially for its powertrain:
Production
The 27 series had a long production run, including improved versions and many variants tailored to customer needs.
Versions
The model series evolved over time through these versions:
YearOriginal nameCurrently AKANotes1885-1887High Arm (VS version), Vibrating Shuttle 1, V.S. No. 1 experimental, very low production1887-1891Vibrating Shuttle 2, V.S. No. 2Model 27-2*, Model 27 Fiddlebedshuttle overhauled1891-1913Model 27 bed changed to rectangular~1910-1940s**Model 127 a 'modernized' 27—see 'Modernization' below* Not to be confused with the 27-2 variant; see Variations table below. ** Many records from this era were lost during World War II.
Portable versions A model 27/127 coincidentally weighs , plus the weight of its motor; treadle or hand crank; light; and case or cabinet. Such a weight strains the meaning of the term "portable", even when fitted with only a hand crank and minimal wood case. By comparison, today's laptop computers typically weigh .) The weight of the 27/127 led Singer to produce a 3/4 size version intended for portability, just as the White Sewing Machine Company was doing with its new 3/4 size "Peerless" machine.
Singer's portable version evolved thus:
YearOriginal nameCurrently AKANotes~1886-~1890Vibrating Shuttle 3, V.S. No. 3Model 28-1evolved from the VS-2; bed changed to rectangular~1890-1918Model 28Model 28-2 ~1910-1962Model 128 a 'modernized' 28—see 'Modernization' below
Modernization
Models 127 and 128 are the "modernized" versions of the 27 and 28, and carry the following improvements:
A new shuttle ejector button, invented in 1910,The shuttle ejector button was invented by Singer employee Hermann Eichhorn, who filed for patent on 16 July 1910 and received US patent 1005177 for it on 10 October 1911. eases removal of the shuttle for rethreading. The button is located on the improved shuttle frame, Singer part number 54507, which can be retrofitted onto older model 27 and 28 machines. The bobbin winder is mounted high on the pedestal, where a small rubber tire occupying its pulley makes contact with the motor belt. The new mounting position solves the bobbin winder belt problem discussed later. Dedicated motor mounting lugs, cast into the rear of the pillar, standardize the position of the motor bracket. A decade later, motor designs will settle down into a side-mounted motor that attaches to these lugs using an L-shaped bracket. Automatic tension release when the presser bar is lifted, replacing the manual tension release achieved by pressing a spoon shaped device just below the tension regulator in the earlier machines. This device is no longer present in the 127 and 128. The shuttle was modified again—see below.
Shuttle changes
With each major new version came changes in the shuttle:Part numbers are found in "Price List of Parts, Machines Nos. 28-1 to 28-4, 28-8, 28-9, 128-3 and 128-4", October 1924 version, pages 14 and 24
ModelsShuttle assembly part numberShuttle body part numberNotesPictureVS-1??originally like the White Sewing Machine's shuttle, but there were many changes as the VS-1 evolvedVS-2, VS-38227unknown*hemicircular pit added to shuttle nose27, 2883278301*wasp waist added127, 1285450554504oval pit added to shuttle face, hemicircular pit removed from shuttle nose, shuttle face larger* Singer parts lists give contradictory information about the 8301 shuttle body. The parts lists stateIbidem that both the 8227 and the 8327 shuttle assemblies use it, but the pictures given of those assemblies show completely different shuttle bodies. The correct answer is probably 8327 because shuttles found in the wild stamped "8301" or sometimes "301" are the later wasp-waisted sort.
None of the four shuttle models can be substituted for each other; if they even fit at all, they will cause skipped stitches. However, there was once an aftermarket of replacement shuttles, and the replacements were sometimes contrived to be compatible with both the 27/28 and 127/128 models. Consequently there are extant shuttles which have no stamped part number and which bear the features of both the 8301 and 54504.
Variations
Once production settled down into the model 27 and 28 versions, Singer produced many variants that were intended for different cabinets and power sources. The variant number was listed after the version number and (except for the K designation) a dash; for example, the model 27 standard treadle variant is "27-3".
VariantDifference"Adjuster's Manual for Singer Sewing Machines of Classes 127 and 128", 1951 version, pages 1-2, retrieved 2010-08-03 from http://parts.singerco.com/IPinstManuals/127_128.pdf27-1, 28-1, 127-1, 128-1standard treadle variant, designation later changed to 3 to avoid confusion with V. S. No. 1 version*27-2, 28-2, 127-2, 128-2standard hand-crank variant, designation later changed to 4 to avoid confusion with V. S. No. 2 version*27-3, 28-3, 127-3, 128-3standard treadle variant, designation usually omitted**27-4, 28-4, 127-4, 128-4standard hand-crank variant28-8Price List of Parts, Machines Nos. 28-1 to 28-4, 28-8, 28-9, 128-3 and 128-4", October 1924 version, pages 17 and 20treadle, export only28-9hand-crank, export only127-12treadle, no take-up lever cover127-13pre-fitted with 'BT' or 'BR' add-on motor and Singerlight127-14hand-crank, no take-up lever cover127-23pre-fitted with 'BY17' or 'BZ17' add-on motor and spotlight, intended for mounting in a cabinet127-24pre-fitted with 'BY18' or 'BZ18' add-on motor and spotlight, intended for mounting in a portable case128-8pre-fitted with 'BS' add-on motor and spotlight, solid handwheel128-12treadle, no thread cutter, no shuttle ejector, no take-up lever cover128-13pre-fitted with 'BT' add-on motor and Singerlight128-14hand-crank, no thread cutter, no shuttle ejector, no take-up lever cover128-18pre-fitted with 'BY17' or 'BZ17' add-on motor and spotlight, no thread cutter, no shuttle ejector, no take-up lever cover, solid handwheel128-23pre-fitted with 'BY8', 'BY9', 'BZ8', or 'BZ9' add-on motor and spotlight, solid handwheel, intended for mounting in a portable caseKbuilt at Singer's 'Kilbowie' factory in Clydebank, Scotland* Today the ambiguous designations "27-1", "27-2", and "28-1" almost always refer to the early versions rather than to the later variants.