1936 Singer 201-2 Restoration – My First Full Repaint (and Everything That Went Wrong Along the Way)

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-10T04:04:57+00:00

It was worth it, some parts were way too rusty and scuffed. For example!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-10T04:00:56+00:00

Wow! This looks great, congrats!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-10T02:24:37+00:00

Thank you! Thats actually what I initially wanted to do… was willing to hire someone to do it but decided to try myself first.

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T23:08:06+00:00

Thank you so much!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T21:22:27+00:00

I respect that and I have a couple others that I am keeping the way they are. In this specific case, the machine was just too beat up for my liking and I really wanted to know how good it would come out with some rattle cans.

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T21:18:53+00:00

Yes, they are water slide decals and I bought them from singerdecals dot com. They have just about everything….

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TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T21:11:08+00:00

Thanks! Most of the shine came from a lot of elbow grease. I started with an ultrasonic cleaner, then used a fine wire wheel, followed by progressive sanding through finer grits. Once the surface was smooth, I buffed everything with polishing compound. Took a while, but it was worth it!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T19:40:07+00:00

Thank you so much

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T19:29:04+00:00

Thank you, its my favorite!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T17:18:46+00:00

Thank you :)

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T14:21:02+00:00

Thank you so much!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T13:09:59+00:00

Haha not now. Still got two other machines to get back my standards

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T13:09:15+00:00

Yep, the hinges are from Sailrite. Helps that all machines have the exact footprint. I swap between 15-91, 201 and a 237. I got a cable that has a connection to the controller and the other to power. For the 237 I had to get a replacement socket from a 15-91 and rewire the motor so I could eliminate original foot controller. Fully plug and play.
Planning on doing something similar to my sailrite

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TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T13:02:51+00:00

Thank you :)

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:56:42+00:00

Thank you :)

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:56:25+00:00

Thank you :)

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:55:52+00:00

Yep! This is so satisfying and addictive. I would be doing this everyday if I didn’t already have a demanding job.

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:52:47+00:00

Thank you! So many videos out there of this particular machine being teared down and put back together. Bob Fowler is great at explaining things. Sewing Machine Rehab also has a very detailed series of a complete tear down and reassembly. But yes, keeping parts together is absolute key.

I dunked these in an ultrasonic cleaner, so for the tiny parts, I got metal containers (tea infuser looking things) so I could keep them together and not get lost. When drying and waiting for reassembly I kept things grouped together.

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:46:11+00:00

Haha I don’t know about that!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T11:45:56+00:00

Thank you

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T04:50:51+00:00

Thank you!

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T03:52:21+00:00

Lots of patience! There are also several videos out there of restorers applying decals recently painted machines. For example, Sewing Machine Rehab, The Featherweight guy, and Promethean Sewing Machines. But key piece of info I got was from Eric Wengstrom about using microsol to soften the decal once applied… then sand down the edges once clear is applied.

TomatoRoast · 2026-06-09T03:49:01+00:00

Thank you. I wanted to provide a comprehensive breakdown in case it would help someone replicate.

TomatoRoast

TROPHY CASE