This is the story of my Necchi Automatic Supernova Julia 534, a new arrival last weekend which looks very promising four days later. (Dec 19 2024)
Here it is pictured as I first saw it when I lifted the case lid!
Not the most flattering view, but looks can be deceiving? The door hanging off was not a good sign… It was shipped inexpertly packed & was rattling before I opened the box, never a good sign. Entrusting a vintage sewing machine to the shipping process is always chancy & I was well aware of that. Luckily the high quality, sturdy Necchi case did its job very well here & a closer look soon laid aside my initial doubts: ) The hanging door did not have a damaged hinge, as I suspected initially, it had simply come off the upper hinge somehow during shipping!?
The machine came with its Accessory Box, complete with its cams, feet, tools, manual etc. Necchi paint of the period is excellent & this one only shows a few chips on the handwheel & a couple of rubs on the base where the case lid has rubbed it over the years when removed or replaced. (I suspect the previous lady owner wore rings on her fingers: ) The main question is: Does it work?
Within 24 hours it was stitching a very nice satin stitch! First stitches here, starting tentatively with 9″ of straight stitching, a slight adjustment to the top tension, then ZZ, reducing the stitch length & increasing speed as I proceeded. The gap in the satin stitch is where the bobbin ran out! If that isn’t the perfect, encouraging start I don’t know what is. All I had done previously was to check the electrics for safety, & give it a good oiling in the appropriate places. Turned it over by hand to make sure nothing was amiss rotating. Didn’t even change the needle.
Faults discovered? Had to be some & I discovered a solid drop feed & handwheel/clutch. The integrated needle threader needed a new blade also, but there was a little pouch in the Accessories Box with a spare: ) In the pouch was a spare blade for the buttonholer foot too! Necchi was so good at the small details.
The drop feed & handwheel/clutch are now free & working as they should. Fitting the new blade to the needle threader took me as long to do as freeing the frozen items! If you have poor eyesight & big fingers, as I do, it is not an easy job: )
Next job is to test the cam drive system. The main reason I bought this Julia is because I have a good lot of prebuilt cams for my 535, which is waiting for a new rotary hook gear & is not currently working. An alternative was the Lycia 524 which uses the same cam system, but I happened on this Julia first & took the chance. My Supernova Ultra uses a different cam system & they are not interchangable! More info/pics on the cams page here.
Vintage Italian built Necchis are few & far between on UK Ebay in my experience, & some that are look chancy! There appears to be a bigger choice in USA, but shipping costs are astronomical & not for me. I did buy some cams from there however & I found a boxed set of 27 that came originally with a Necchi 555 & they do fit the Julia & Lycia automatic machines, happily: )
Most appear unused & would be hard, if not impossible, to find in UK I believe.
The Julia was made from 1961-1971 I understand (Manual is dated 1-63) & is one of the later versions of the Supernova with the ‘Knob for minute adjustments of designs’ & the ‘Micro-Electro Control’, which I am not familiar with yet! My first Necchi was a Lycia 522, no cams, in late July this year so I’m a relative new boy: ) The machines I have were intended as a Winter Project for me & I’m liking it all so far! I have some experience with Singer 400 series Slants & certain Elna & Bernina machines of the period. Late 50s/60s non ‘electronic’ machines, but the Necchis do impress with their build quality & innovative features back in the day.
Latest pics are here:
Looking tidier now, just the remnants of the well stuck on labels to remove carefully. I have swapped the chipped handwheel with a better item from my 535, which is currently waiting for a hard to find part.
Backside is neat & clean. Not keen on the permanent wiring. My Supernova Ultra has a plug so that the wiring & plug/controller does not have to be kept inside the machine when it is cased for transport or simply protection. ‘Portability’ is relative. (Necchi calls this type of machine Transportable) This one weighs around 33lb/15kg on my bathroom scales, without its case lid! Definitely no lightweight, but its very mass makes for a steady, reassuring machine at its highest speeds. No wonder many people prefer the cabinet versions!
A small, but typical, example of Necchi attention to detail is the Base Rubber design. These are large, flexible still after 60 years, & the machine will not slide on any table top!
All very reassuring & I’ve never seen the like on any domestic machine before. The fittings for the case locking system are sturdy & secure. No problems carrying this heavy machine by its case handle! (I would never carry a 400 series Slant by its case handle!!)
The controls are neat & the switches still intact. They are quite delicate & often damaged, being in such a vulnerable position.
Inspecting underneath is always revealing? This one is clean & tidy, no old oil stains or leaks & it looks like it has been well maintained in use. I know nothing about this machines history so it is all very reassuring. I was aware that I was taking a chance with this one! The seller was not a VSM specialist by any means…
All the wiring looks good, insulation is OK, checked all the connections for tightness but not checked the motor brushes/commutator yet. I’ll check them when I fit a new belt. It could do with a new one. If it has been properly serviced the brushes will likely be good. The motor sounds fine, no lack of speed! No oil spills on the Transformer/Switch unit. All 3 others had excess oil on the motor & transformer. Presumably from overfilling the reservoir on the underside of the lid. These machines do need regular oiling to be at their best, but excess around the motor etc. is not good!
Now I try a cam to see how it goes…
Well, the cam system works! Good news & quite reassuring: ) This is my first try with any Necchi cams & all the settings are correct. But tensions need adjusting. Brushed denim isn’t the ideal material either…
This is better & it’s stitching now comfortably at full speed.
I thought to check the machines plastic parts after finding a crack in the Lycias thread adjusting knob assembly… This one turned out to be fine happily!
The only other plastic part is a gear that drives the Automatic Unit & that looks fine, what you can see of it. To see it properly you have to remove the Automatic unit but I’m not reading any problems with it from other owners. The stitch length spiral/worm gear is frequently mentioned as problematic though!
I’m thinking that this Julia is the best of my four Necchis currently. (24th January 2025) It’s looking good & stitching very well right now: )