Spool Of Thought

201-2 

My Singer Model 201-2, serial number AK4166458 was made in 1951.  Singer introduced the Singer 201 series of full size sewing machines in 1935 and continued in production up until 1961. It was the Singer Manufacturing Company’s finest domestic sewing machine. Hundreds of thousands of them were produced and most of them are still sewing as finely and as strongly today as when they were first produced over 70 years ago.  Many enthusiasts and collectors believe that there is still no sewing machine made that will stitch better than a Singer Model 201.  The things that set the 201 apart from other machines were the advanced engineering behind the new design of its internal mechanical components, the higher quality metals, and the skill of the craftsman who built them.  The Model 201 used a full rotary hook and high-carbon super-hard meshing gears gave the machine an unprecedented smoothness. Even though the machine is straight stitch only, with reverse, Singer made lots of attachments to achieve different finishes. These included buttonholers, zigzag attachments, blind stitchers and many more.  With a cast iron body and an overall weight of about 30lbs these machines weighed about the same as its belt-driven cousin, the Model 66.  Accordingly, the Model 201 shares the same drop-in class 66 bobbin, making it a very easy to use machine. However one difference was the needle insertion and threading. Contrary to most other models, the needle must be inserted into a 201 with the flat side facing to the left and threaded from right to left. The bobbin is placed in the machine with the thread winding off the bobbin in a clockwise direction (in the 66K & 99k the direction is anti-clockwise). The 201 has a numbered tension dial and stitch length indicator and is able to drop its feed dogs for darning and free-motion sewing. It is also very good at decorative top stitching with different thickness threads in the top of the machine and the bobbin. An extra spool pin was positioned to allow the bobbin to be re-filled without the need to re-thread the machine. The electric versions also came with a light attached.

Early models have a chrome scroll work face plate and back access cover while later models have striations.  As the top of the line model, the 201 machines were always the most expensive to buy.  Favored by tailors and professional seamstresses because of the large ‘harp’ space, to accommodate bulky fabric, they could easily cost 6 months wages and so were frequently purchased on credit.  The Model 201 was coveted by those who insisted on having the absolute best machine money could buy.  Singer offered the 201 in four variants; the 201-1 was treadle powered, the 201-2 was powered by an electric motor with direct gear drive, the 201-3 was powered by an electric motor but driven by a belt, and the 201-4 was a hand cranked mode.  The 201-2, with its potted motor and direct gear drive, was the most expensive and considered the best of the four variants due to its power, smoothness, reliability, and convenience.  My Model 201-2 is a Centennial Edition made in 1951, and wears the special Centennial badge.  Unsurprisingly, Myrtle ‘Tilly’ Dunnage used a Centennial Edition Singer Model 201-2 in the 2015 movie The Dressmaker.

Here are some historical events which took place in 1951, the year my Singer Model 201-2 was made:

 January 17 – Korean War: Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul, slaughter tens of thousands of South Koreans, thousands more vanish.

February 27 – The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, limiting Presidents to two terms, is ratified.