Elna ZZ 21C 1972 Star series Freearm

Found this on Ebay last week & it looked good for the money, so I took a chance.

Arrived this morning in good (undamaged in the post) condition: ) The metal case helped a lot here.

First look says all is good. Nothing stuck, controller is good & it turns over nicely under power. Just a few paint chips, mainly where it goes into its sturdy, steel case. Half the case also doubles as a flatbed, which is very cool IMO. One dealer on Ebay is selling a basic case like this for £90! I got the whole machine/case for £75 safely shipped; )

Got no accessories, attachments, manuals, but it's very nice overall. Just a few chips here & there. Will keep me interested for a while; )

28/07/23

Gave it a quick clean & look over tonight. Motor spins over OK. Put a few spots of oil in the red holes & threaded it up.

Then realised the hook is not rotating… So, it is the hook pinion drive or the cleated belt gone… I look later.

Just looked & the cleated belt looks like new. Cannot yet see what the problem is at the feed end because I can’t remove one screw that holds the bed plate down… It’s slightly rounded out & I don’t want to make it worse. Feed dogs are moving as they should though. Time for reflection here.

29/07/23 

Interesting day today. 

Managed to remove the awkward screw & bed plate & see exactly what is underneath. The feed drive is fine. One plastic gear is intact & the hook shaft is rotating, but not turning the hook! Found a Service Manual online & it is the 'rotary hook pinion' that has failed by the look of it!

Replacing it is not as simple as the Lotus pinion. (Hook assembly, etc. needs removing & timing again later: ) 

Need to locate one first. Found several quite easily on Ebay, £12-25. Removed the hook eventually & the cover plate underneath revealing the broken pinion gear. Very brittle, black, plastic & I found cotton jammed around the hook/bobbin case, which likely caused the break originally. The modern replacements are made of nylon apparently & not so brittle. But the 50 year old plastic has done quite well actually; )

 Below are the broken bits hiding among the fluff: ) It's not worn, just shattered.

Question now is: Do I get the pinion & fit it? Or, break/part the machine, sell the case, & keep the controller for the single Lotus I have that lacks one?

I think for the sake of £20 I'm going for it. I'll learn a good bit in the process & it is a very nice machine otherwise. It's had very little use & I suspect it broke down a long time ago, & was put aside. Looking under the lid is instructive. Even the cleated belt looks like new: ) They are sometimes soaked in oil/grease & are difficult to find nowadays in my experience.

Singer 306/319/320Ks (& others) use these cleated belts & it's a big deal if they need replacing.

Right now I'm thinking I'm very happy after 2 days checking it out: )

14/08/2023

Ordered the pinion on Ebay & it was posted on 1st August. Royal Mail has not delivered any post in our area from 3rd August until today! What a shambles...

So, it is now fitted, inside an hour.

It'll be a pleasure to re-assemble the Hook, etc. & see how it stitches: )

16/08/23

Finally got the hook reassembled. Was a bit of a fiddle, but it is the first time I attempt this one & I wasn't quite sure... Threaded it up & here's the result!

It hasn't been serviced yet & likely hasn't stitched for many years, so I'm quite happy with the results: ) Doing good on a straight stitch but missing a couple on the Zig Zag. So likely needs the timing adjusting more precisely & thread tensions top & bottom, a new needle & oil in the right places. It feels dry, with the odd little squeaks, but its got the speed so the foot controller is fine. 

I need some lunch before I do it though. Maybe a glass of wine too, as a little reward: ) I'm quietly confident about it now.

18/8/23

"Quietly confident"... Famous last words! 

I adjusted the hook timing. Was a little advanced after fitting the new pinion. Hence the odd missed stitches as per the above pic. When I went to do a test run newly adjusted, it picked up the bottom thread as you'd expect. But it tangled up underneath when I went to sew!

So, pause for thought. 

Rechecked the hook timing just in case, looked perfect, except that the size 14 needle was being touched by the hook as it crossed the needle!! It wasn't previously, yet how could that be a result of a small adustment of the hook timing? It's puzzling me: )

So I removed the hook/bobbin holder/base plate again, found no obvious problems with anything & put it all back together again. The hook was still brushing the size 14 needle so I fitted a skinnier size 9 needle & there was no contact. But it still tangled up again, even though it picked up the bottom thread OK as before!!

Another pause for thought. This is where I'm at as I write.

The hook cannot have moved its position in relation to the needle, (& the hook point is not damaged) so has the needle bar moved slightly forward? Or bent? How to adjust the needle bar forward & back? I haven't looked yet!

Problems are there to be solved, but it's all about diagnosis, ain't it? 

Got a copy of the Service Manual, but no mention of needle bar forward/aft adjustment.

27/10/23

Have been distracted by certain Berninas recently but this Elna ZZ is now behaving properly: )

Was all my fault for not fixing a particular screw in the hook assembly when I re-assembled it!!! It is now stitching straight & zig zag stitches perfectly; )