Possible solution?
Slant spool-pin breakage problem?
My solution might help. Using bicycle Chain Ring bolts & washers…
I found some replacement original, plastic pins online for circa $12 each, + shipping!!
Not for me at that price, so I sought my own solution.
I looked through my stock of small bicycle parts to see what was possible/available, & came across these chain-ring bolts…
If you have a Slant with the spool pin problems & don’t mind using non-original parts then this is an elegant solution. I’d be amazed if I’m the first to think of it, but you can buy these Chain-ring bolts cheaply & easily online. Look for ‘double’ chain-ring bolts.
Like this:
They usually come in sets of 4 or 5.
Photos explain it best.
These “Double Chain ring bolts” can better be described as a nut & bolt, with flanged ends, & a hole through the middle for a standard plastic spool pin to fit snugly into: )
Many of these have a 10mm diameter behind the flanges & happily this suits the 10mm hole in the Slant lid. The flange is slightly larger than this & effectively locks it to the lid when screwed together. Just needs a spacing washer 5mm thick on the upper side to lock it up slightly above the lid surface.
The top washer needs to be the correct height to place the top of the pin (where the spool will sit level, or slightly above) but height can be adjusted with a thin 10mm washer on the lower side. Thus you can adjust the top end height to suit your needs.
So, a 4mm washer on the top & a 1mm washer on the bottom, moves the whole unit 1mm down.
The spool felts conceal the unit in use, but if a thin, tubular spacing washer is used (As I did) there is space for a decorative filler maybe?
Needs no alteration to the machine lid, it simply bolts on or off, with only a 2mm thick nut showing underneath. Takes a 5mm Allen/Hex key to remove the unit. Easily obtainable plastic pins are a push fit into the Hex hole.
So the original pins can always be fitted later if required.
This is the complete unit before fitting. No more push nuts, this is a quality, engineered fixing. The pin fits both ends, as does the unit, but I think the Hex key hole looks neater on the top.
The original Slant pins are 6mm diameter & my replacements are 5mm, so mine will look a little skinny.
Any of my Slants with damaged, weak or sloppy Singer units will have this upgrade in future. (Unless I find a better one: )
The delicate & complicated original plastic unit was a design fault for me. I’m more interested in utility than originality on my machines.
‘Standard’(?) Singer plastic spool pins fit nicely into the 5mm Allan/Hexagonal key hole.
The pins I used are 5mm diameter with a 4 mm insertion stub. 45mm overall, with 6mm stub. (Came new as spares with my Singer 6061 in 1980ish & never used.) Others will probably fit, or adapt easily.
I made my thin spacer washer from an old bicycle pump inner cylinder. See the long tube pictured below. Just cut it off at the length you require. (There are other solutions for the top spacer washer, for example 2 or 3 10mm spring washers, which could give some flexibility to the spool pin)
The bike pump tube I used is not welded along its length so it can be opened up slightly to make a snug, tight fit under the top flange.
In the close-up above:
Centre left is the nut & bolt, below it the spacer washer. The others are extras to show their details. Very simple & neat.
Always interested in comments/suggestions/queries about this mod.
Next job is to find a solution to the 431 throat pin problem: )
I’ll cover it anon on this site.
Finished item here. Looks neat to me: )
Look here to see my method explained perfectly by Archaic Arcane on Youtube video.
Do check Tammi for some very useful videos on the 400 series Slants.