Willcox and Gibbs Chainstitch Machines
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The Willcox and Gibbs "Silent Running" Chain Stitch machine must be one of the most sucessful, longest-produced, and widely-used machines from the early years of sewing machine history.. These were used in domestic and industrial settings of all kinds; are beautifully made, and apart from one minor modification, had almost no changes in the mechanism during the manufacturing life of the machine, which spanned more than 80 years. Needles are still made for these.
The first machines were made around 1857, right at the start of sewing machine history, and these little workhorses were still being produced, sold, and widely-used in the 1950s. I suspect that some of the "straw hat" machines are still working hard for a living
The early machines had a "glass" tension unit, which is adjusted in the usual way with a nut..
Later machines had a most ingenious and easy-to-use Automatic Tension, and the serial numbers on these may be prefaced with the letter "A" or "B"
The machine above is my own Automatic, and still works beautifully, as you will see below
Link HERE to a pdf file to find out when your machine was made
For a good article and links on the history of these machines, try HERE for more information
And Google...
Willcox and Gibbs Machines for sale HERE (When I have any)
Scroll down for Stuff For Sale...
Badge
Decals on the arm and bed
Automatic tension and spool pin
Needle plate with patent dates
Foot
The stitch on the top looks like the regular lockstitch. It's important to match the stitch length to the weight of the thread and needle for the most even results. A heavy thread needs a thicker needle, and will prefer a longer stitch.
Underneath, the stitch is chained, as there is only one thread. This has the disadvantage that the whole seam can be unravelled by pulling one end unless it is finished off properly.. then again, if you want to tack or adjust a seam, that works rather well.. Some later 60s Singers had additional widgets to make a chainstitch for this purpose. None work terribly efficiently. The chained seam is also slightly more elastic, so that a curved seam is stronger in use. And no bobbins to wind.. These do use slightly more thread per inch of sewing...
To finish the seam, pull the end loop through to the back with a pin. Note that I have unravelled a few stitches to show what can happen
Then slip the free end through the loop and pull tight..
Older Style Machine
The first machines had a "glass" tension - some of the later machines made for industrial use had these until the last dates of production (I suspect that many machines are still working, as they are very solid, easy to keep working and nice to use)This machine belongs to my friend Valerie, and came in to my workshop for repair - all it needed was a new needle and a bit of a talking-to
Older machine - the differences are really quite small at first glance
Detail of the needle end
The wheel
The Glass Tension unit
Parts For Sale
All of these are from Automatic Tension models - please note that these have no bolts or screws unless listed or shown - I bought these in a couple of lots as you see them; I think I would have made an attempt to repair one of these; they are so nice; had there been a bit more...I'm actively looking for incomplete machines to buy for parts (or odd parts) - never had a page empty out so quickly..
Nothing is to scale...
Having sorted out the boxes (oh, the needle boxes!!) I find I have a few needles for these; £5 each, one per customer, in 14s, and possibly other sizes..
NOTE - I get asked frequently for spool pins for the Automatic machines, and I almost never get them. My own machine does not have one at present.. So, don't buy one without, (or you could use a thread stand), please...
