~sigh... well I bought yet another Elna sewing machine. To date I have owned an Elna Stella, g
reen supermatic,
Air Electronic TSP,
Special and this is my second
Elna SU 62C. All vintage Elnas were manufactured in Switzerland, the SU 62C in the early 1970s. Four of these machines were sold and the Air Electronic TSP was given away to my niece. I'm plan to keep this Elna and really hope to bond with it. I enjoy sewing with an Elna machine but have never liked the bobbin loading behind the presser foot. I find threading the bobbin awkward. Once threaded correctly all of these machines have sewn flawlessly.
I'm her third owner, the first owner used it quite a bit. The second one hardly at all.
Cosmetically, the machine is in very good condition.
I sewed some outdoor fabric to
repair two deck chairs. Ella purrs like a kitten when she sews and had no trouble at all sewing with outdoor thread.
The mechanics of the cabinet are pretty cool.
The lever is pushed to the right and the machine rests on the bar below it.
It appears to be made entirely of wood, pre-particle board days.
This is the view under the cabinet. Yes, I got on the floor to take this photo! Not an easy feat.
This lever drops the platform and is spring loaded.
There she sits in sleep mode!
Three good size drawers, that hold everything except the accessory case, which is too wide and tall to fit.
I just love all the goodies that come with buying a used vintage machine.
Accessory case.
A good selection of feet, including a darning foot.
Genuine Elna bobbins, little screw driver and cleaning brush.
Three manuals and a pair of pinking shears.
Needles and a small bottle with a wee bit of oil.
About two dozen cams.
I haven't played with the cams yet, but there is one that makes little ducks, should be lots of fun.
Dear Readers,
What is your favourite sewing machine/s? Are you loyal to a specific brand eg. Singer?
What do you like the best about your machine/s? What do you like the least?
Happy stitching!
Favourite machine is the Viking/Husqvarna 500 series. Currently, my machine is a Lily 555.
ReplyDeleteNo I am not loyal to a specific brand.
I love the top walking foot on the Pfaff machines, the ease of use on the Bernina 930, the dependability of the Husqvarna 555, the peaceful quiet of Singer 15-89 treadle machines and the perfect straight stitch of the Singer 15-91.
What do I like least about my sewing machines? Running out of bobbin thread and I don't like using a knee bar rather than a foot pedal.
I love the old singers the best, especially the 401 and 404. And then there is the 99 and the 66, and oh, heck, I love them all!
ReplyDeleteA couple of months ago, someone wanted to give me "a sewing machine" in a cabinet. It turned out to be his grandmother's ElnaSuper 62C with everything, some 30 cams, but one manual missing, and the cabinet drawers were full of sewing notions, notebooks filled with fabric swatches, notes, designs, etc., etc. How precious, and how lucky I was. Turns out, there is something not quite right about the machine. As soon as I plug it in, the machine starts to sew. I have yet to figure out what I could do about it yet. Maybe it's just a bad foot pedal. Meanwhile, ElnaSU comes into my life - uh, the foot pedal isn't interchangeable with ElnaSuper! The SU sews backwards when it's supposed to just sew normally, not in reverse stitch. They both currently sit on top of a cabinet, patiently waiting for me to get to them. I love the colors and the looks of these machines. So pretty. I can't wait to sew with them. Envious yours is working fine!
ReplyDeleteWhat did you find out on the SU running constantly? I've got my aunts home now trying to fix it for her. It's doing the same thing.
DeleteI've owned an Elna SP for nearly 30 years, and before that, I sewed on my mother's supermatic. I've made everything with these machines -- parkas, diapers, clothing, curtains, and now quilts. For years, my mother sewed curtains for RVs on her machine. I've sort of retired mine lately since the one thing the Elnas aren't good at is free motion quilting, or even walking foot quilting, so I bought a new Juki which excels at both. I found an Elna Supermatic for $50 with cabinet and accessories, but it does the same thing the commenter above complains about -- it just starts sewing in high speed even without touching the foot pedal. Any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteContact Michelle her blog is ~life with lou~ they refurbish vintage sewing machines and have worked most brands. Michelle's blog is listed on my blog list. I had Japanese 15 clone that would start sewing as soon as the it was plugged in. The problem was fixed by replacing the foot pedal.
DeleteTammy, I hunted down an Elna 62C a few years after my Nana passed away. She used the same machine and it was whisper quiet and always reliable. Its a lovely smooth sewing machine, built like a tank. You are lucky yours came with cams, I had to hunt mine down, but that was fun too. Mine is in the blue case, not a cabinet.
ReplyDeleteOh wow...I know the feature of your post was the machine, but for me the feature was the cabinet...that is the very cabinet I used for my Grandmother's kenmore machine...*sigh* oh how I miss that machine!!
ReplyDeleteMy mum has this machine. I have been looking for the manual high and low does anybody know where I could find it please? Also what the exact model number is? Thanks very much!
ReplyDeleteI too have the Elna SU 62C and still love it. I bought it new in the late '70s and it's seen a lot of use since. I clean & oil it regularly, but I've never had it serviced (don't know if that's a good thing or really bad). I have the two manuals and could probably scan them into PDF files. The model number should be on a tag on the right side of the machine under the flywheel.
DeleteYes please do publish your manuals.
DeleteHi Becca, I sold this machine with the manuals. I suggest you keep looking on the web, an electronic copy will show up.
ReplyDeleteI retrieved my Elna SU from my granddaughter who has left it in a cupboard gathering dust for 5 years since she replaced it with a new plastic imposter. It was well worn and shabby but it was a smooth and quiet and loved, despite it's appearance, like me, I suppose (except to smooth bit....). Anyway, the blue tin box and instructions are long gone, and so are the red painted oil points, and I have forgotten how to thoroughly clean and oil it. It was serviced and has hardly been used since. I would love to get it going again, just for basic sewing, to take to my craft group, because my Elna Quilters Dream machine is just too heavy to carry.
ReplyDeleteHi Tammy, these machines are worth their weight in gold.
ReplyDeleteI have several machines but will never part with this one.
Easy to see what you are doing precisely at needle as no clutter. Has trouble with thicker areas, but great for most things, and beautiful stitch. I will never sell. Just wish I had the case for the extension bit? Venora .
I just picked up an elna SU 62c. I haven't used it yet. I'm looking for the case to go with it, if anybody has any leads pls email me at dmydesigns@yahoo.com. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteMy mom's old Elna SU needs service and we can't figure out how to get it out of the original cabinet! There's a little wooden arm poking out from under the machine that seems to be attached to a spring. The machine seems to get a little looser when we move the lever, but something is keeping it attached to the cabinet. How do we remove it?
ReplyDeleteI sent you an email... you will have to crawl under your cabinet with a flashlight... the machine is most likely screwed into the bottom. those two bolts where my spring lever is shown in the photos here have to be unscrewed to take the machine out of the cabinet.
DeleteI just got a ELNA SU 62C; but without any bobbin to sweet; I tried to use thes one on my ELNA ZIG ZAG.... BUT IMPOSSIBLE TO PUT THE BOBBIN ON THE AXLE TO RECHARGE IT. IT4S NOT THE SAME. SO iAM LOOKING FOR BOBBINS ESPECIALY DONE FOR elna su 62 c (the axle is a little bigger than on the ELNA zigzag.... if you can help me to find some????? thank you by advance
ReplyDeletehello Kike71, I buy Elna bobbins at the Brandon Sewing Centre a local sewing machine dealer where I live in Canada. If you don't have a local dealer I suggest you try Amazon and Ebay. Hope this helps.
DeleteI've used mine forever. A gift for my 16th birthday, 1976 (do the math) and it's flawless, clean and oil her and she purrs... I've a 2nd one I purchased at an estate sale, and think it's time to sell her, I don't need two! LindaT.
ReplyDeleteHi Linda,
DeleteWell, eight months later chances are you did sell the extra Elna? Just wondering. I have a bid now in one one eBay, but I don't know what the sellers reserve price is, may be too high for me. I am interested in all the lovely Cam patterns among other things. I am not a quitter but was thinking to start somewhere down the line, but I have read in places that the Elna would not be good for a quilter, but I am not sure why...
It seems that you can cover the feed dog and set stitch length to zero to do free motion quilting, but I am not sure I am right. I read something about that when doing piecing that the Elna would tear the edges...seems there must be a way around this I still have my heart set on the SU 62
Hi Maria, I don't know if Linda will see your comment on my blog. There are many fabulous vintage machines available on the used markets. For a quilting machine Elna would not be my 1st choice. I'm not a fan of covering feed dogs instead of dropping them. The old Singers, Japanese Clones, Necchis, Berninas, Phaffs and Husqvarna/Viking machines are all excellent stitches and you can drop the feed dogs. If you do a lot of quilting you want a machine that is user friendly. I have said before I'm not an Elna fan as I do not like the bobbin located behind the presser foot instead of ahead of it. This is awkward to load. The cams are fun to play with, but I never used the cam designs on anything. I have 2013 Pfaff with hundreds of preloaded decorative stitches which I use for my quilts and garment decorations. Hope this helps you out.
DeleteI still have the 2nd machine, I've not posted it anywhere for sale, but would be happy to have it find a new home .... email me trudeaustudios@comcast.net
DeleteI still have the 2nd Elna yes.
ReplyDeleteIf you had to choose one, would you pick the 62c or su Air?
ReplyDeletethe 62C, all medal beautiful vintage machine. The problem with electronic machines is once the manufacturer discontinues making parts the machine is pooched. Not the case with machines that are all mechanical parts, you can usually find used parts on the market somewhere.
DeletePlease help me with the needle positioning dial, it is stuck fast on the lbs. I've taken the top of the machine off but I am stimied now. You help is appreciated. Margaret. I have an old Elna Sumermatic and it is cream with a lightGrey top. It is not green.
ReplyDeleteI took the top off, and used a pipe cleaner with alcohol to clean the dial front and back. cleaned it several times at the base and after a day working it and using the alcohol it freed up.
DeleteHave a cabinet that was for a 62C. The cabinet has several drawers and a thread holder that pulls up from the back of the table. I know the base of the machine slides against the wood strip for mounting, but what is used to hold it in place?
ReplyDelete