Posted 13 years ago
JRD
(1 item)
Hello,
I have a very old Kenmore sewing machine which I am trying to identify, it is in great working order but I need to find the manual for it.
It was probably manufactured by the White Sewing Machine Company but that is about all I know.
Can you find a model number on your machine? If it is a White it should start with 117-. The machine is not 'very' old, it probably dates to 1960's.
This machine looks very much like one designed by my father in the 1950's. It was manufactured by the New Process Gear Co. at their Wolf Street plant in Syracuse NY and marketed by Sears Roebuck. The one I had back then was given to my niece who donated it to the Onondaga Historical Society as an example of local industry. The machine I had was operated by a knee lever and I don't see that on yours. Wish I still had mine in memory of my Dad.
If this is my Dad's design the model # on the machine should be 120-71. In 1952 the 100,000 machine was built by New Process Gear in Syracuse.
A paper manual to purchase is available for this machine from sewusa.com/Sewing_Machine_Manual/Kenmore
Hi, its a model 49, or 120-49.
Johanna, it looks like you aren't on this site anymore, and it's been a long time, but I just found the exact model of sewing machine your father designed in excellent condition, ( model 120-71, serial 53246 ). I bought it. I was looking up more about it, and I came to this site. Gosh, I have a sewing machine already, and I'm pretty terrible at it anyway! I just couldn't stand it being sold away at an estate sale like no one cared about it... it still had all these quilt pieces in the case.
I don't know what it is about this Sears Kenmore 120-71 machine but I first saw it a few days ago in an online auction. Much to my chagrin, the seller would not ship it and would allow only a local pickup - even though it was a portable, i.e., not in a table. She was a gold/champagne color and I just absolutely fell in love with her and wanted her so bad. The lines of that machine just speak to me. So I am on the hunt for one and I may not find her this year but I will eventually possess her. FWIW, there is another machine, the 1120, that has similar lines but the paint jobs on the 120-71s are prettier. I will not be denied.
There's a very similar machine posted on eBay now that you might want to see. I found this site trying to identify and find out more about that machine. Thanks to all of you!
I have one in a cabinet with a pull out chair and drawers. Dated 1952 in manual. My dad bought for my mom from Sears. Model 120-49-10120.
Johanna, regarding the Kenmore 120.71, I have one in amazing shape. If you're still interested, I would love to gift it to you in honour of your father.
Hi, Pisica. :-)
It's very nice of you to want to gift Johanna, but I'm afraid that she's long gone, as that user name no longer is linked to a user profile here at Collectors Weekly Show & Tell. :-(
FYI, I don't know if your machine looks like the machine in this post, or if it's literally a Kenmore 120.71, but as long as I'm commenting on this post, I think I'd better set the record straight.
The machine in this post appears to be a Kenmore 120.49. That's what Google Lens turns up as a match over and over, and the vintage sewing machine enthusiasts at the victoriansweatshop forum discuss the Kenmore 120.49 here:
https://www.victoriansweatshop.com/post/kenmore-model-12049-8197481
Here is a Kenmore 120.71 (SteelSewing commented on this reddit thread and he says it's a Kenmore 120.71, so that information is pretty bankable):
https://www.reddit.com/r/vintagesewing/comments/fxkfmn/repairing_a_vintage_kenmore_help/
Per the Sears archives, the Kenmore 120.71 came along a bit later than the 120.49 (1955-1958 instead of 1950-1954):
http://searsarchives.com/history/files/sewing_id.pdf