Singer 185J3

Yesterday (Friday) Louie took a vacation day, and we planned to spend the day together. Early in the morning, I found this Singer 185J3 sewing machine on Craigslist in Coralville. We were planning on spending the day in Cedar Rapids anyway, so Coralville wasn’t ‘that’ far out of the way. I contacted the seller and made arrangements to go pick it up. Afterwards, we ran around Iowa City to the thrift shops, but we really didn’t find much. What’s up with that? Anyway, here she is, complete with a buttonholer in a sleek green case, book, attachments and cover.

I took her serial number and went to My Singer Story to find out her age. She was born in 1954. She’s older than me!

I still need to learn how the Singer 185J3 is different from the Singer 185J. I’ll update this if and when I find out. 

Update! I emailed my Singer Hero and asked him about the differences in the 185’s added #3 and the single J’s. This was his reply:

Hi Michelle
In the history of Singer making machines they would make slight changes in the models and would add a number to the model number.
I have seen parts manuals that would say that it covered 66-1,2,3 or 201-1,2 or the like. It would take a serious hunt to find what the change was.
I honestly don't have a clue about the 185. I sold them new but cant answer your question.....sorry
Jim

Miss 185J3 had some problems when I test sewed with her, but I fixed them.

I’m not really sure what Singer was thinking when they put this HEAVY machine inside a plastic base. There are supports that have broken down, and the bobbin slide plate cover was off of the machine, because you couldn’t slide it open to change the bobbin. I put it back on, and stacked some big round washers in the bottom of the case to lift it back up. On the other end, I stacked up a couple short spools of thread to raise it up so the machine would sit nice and level and tight inside the case.

The end cover by the needle bar is a lighter shade of green, and also chrome. The light green needs to be repainted as it is pretty nicked up.

The hand wheel is also very chipped up, so that should be repainted as well. (You know, this green is just light enough I might be able to mask the chips a little bit by lightly dabbing some liquid ‘white out’ on them. Hmmmm…might have to try that.)

When we got back into Cedar Rapids, we stopped to see Amy and park our second car in her driveway while we went junkin’ in Cedar Rapids. We went to a couple of Goodwills, but didn’t really find anything, so we went back to Russ and Amy’s and we went to the Olive Garden for supper. YUM YUM! We enjoyed the visit. Russ and Amy just got a ‘new to them’ Goldwing motorcycle last year, so we are looking forward to doing some riding with them this year, and introducing them to my brother and sisterinlove, who we usually ride with. It will be fun!

Before we knew it, it was after 7pm. We needed to go to Home Depot to get some J blocks for our siding for when Louie mounts my wooden Barn Quilt block, and Louie needed to get going to Waterloo for his pool tournaments which start today(Saturday). We took Russ and Amy home, visited for a few more minutes, then Louie headed for Waterloo, and I headed for home. I got home about 9pm, and Louie pulled into the ramp of the hotel at exactly the same time, so we both made it home safe. Praise the Lord!

It was 85* in Iowa yesterday. That is just CRAZY! It was only March 16th, but we’re not complaining! We’ve broken temperature records for three days now, and we’re supposed to break another one today. I signed up a few months ago for a new city alert system notification deal where I get phone texts and voice messages of weather alerts and important city and county information that is going on. Yesterday I got both a text and a voicemail from the city saying that we were under a burn ban and that NOTHING was to be burned in the COUNTY until further notice. That meant leaves, garbage and fire pits. That is so odd to have dry conditions in Iowa in March. I can’t ever remember a winter like we’ve been having.

I’m going on a sewing machine rescue today from a friend of mine in Fulton, Illinois, and it will go to my sisterinlove who claims she is collecting ‘boat anchors’ now. She warned me when I talked to her, that there were no sewing machines in Cedar Rapids, because she had taken them all, and she was right! Good thing I found this one in Coralville, or there would have been no rescues for me!

I thought another thing was funny too. As she was telling me about the machines she got, she said one of them was a 3/4 size machine that was two tone green, and that the case was plastic and two toned as well. My mouth dropped open, and I asked her if it was very heavy, and if the top of it sloped down like her 500A Rocketeer? She said yes. I said, ‘That is like the machine we are going after right now!’ Then I found a picture of one on Louie’s blackberry and showed it to her and she said, ‘Yes. That’s it!’ Now, how odd/cool is that? BUT, being that she got hers at Goodwill, and I got mine from a private party, I paid over 5 times more than she did for mine! I think she’s joined me in ‘rescuing’ all the orphan sewing machines of the world! Thanks girl! Together we can save them from the landfills! Now I just need to teach her how to service them so her husband doesn’t have a second full time job!

Have a great day everyone!

Michelle