Saturday, September 14, 2013

Elna TOP 300 for more machine fun...

Machines. They are so siren song loaded. I have just been gifted with two more of the type of machine I love - the bottom line of a good brand. The first one is an Elna TOP 300, which proves elusive to find info and pictures of here in the US, as all the pics I can find are in Europe or Australia and New Zealand. I think the Elnas were not sold here nearly as much in the early 90s, or late 80s. This machine does date back to the early 90s, and looked like a wreck in the thrift shop. I saw it is the Seattle area in May, but passed on it due to the looks and felt it wouldn't be worth taking home. But my hubby returned from his trip out West with this in tow. Apparently all the parts that they could remove they had removed and had at the counter, including the bobbin area cover and the feet. It was missing the regular sewing foot - Zigzag foot. And the original owner had never removed the protective film from the from as you should upon opening the box and removing the machine! SO it had a ratty look from bits of the film coming loose and so on. After some work with Goo-Gone and warm moist dishcloth the looks were improved radically, and then I saw that someone had somehow crimped the shank oddly and I needed a ZZ foot anyway. Having a family of machines of the same general manufacturer comes in handy, as I had an extra shank or two I wasn't using from Janomes, and a foot as well. Luckily one of the shanks and feet fit and I don't need them for other machines, so now she has a new foot and a new shank. As to sewing. The stitch selection dial is a bit wonky, as the detents are no longer lining up perfectly with the numbers, but that isn't relaly too much of a problem. You can, and I always do anyway, do a test stitching first, so if you didn't put it on the correct stitch you will soon realize that. It sews nicely and with the correct shank uses Janome feet of course, as it is a Janome made Elna. Janome shanks do differ among models now too. This one use the red button shank as does my Janome 11510 (Kenmore 19110). I tried all the stitches and made a buttonhole. I do like 4 step buttonholes and this baby does a nice one. I may rehome this machine in months to come, as I have plenty of machines, but it is really an appealing machine with useful stitches. If you should come across one in the St. Vincent De Paul store near you, don't be afraid. This one sat on the shelf there for almost a full 5 months unwanted and unloved. Now she is clean and working and much happier. I may not have mentioned that the little wick under the bobbin case needed a drop of oil. That's it, although there are two places inside the cover in the workings as well, and those are now oiled too. This is an all mechanical machine.

15 comments:

glorm said...

Ah, good for your hubby. You made her look new. Good point about having multi machines in the same family.

catspec said...

It was good to see the old girl come back into her own!

becki-c said...

What a find! Is it one of the last Swiss made machine? I have an elna 67 from 1977 that I still rely on.

It looks so clean and shiny, I would never guess that you did so much to restore it to glory.

catspec said...

Becki, no. It is a solid machine for sure but made in Taiwan by Janome. I don't know the year Janome started owning Elna, but this is very well made!

"Chelle said...

I just purchased an Elnita Top 300 and need to get the foot pedal could you possibly give me the model number off your foot pedal so I order the right one?

catspec said...

I will look. I am pretty sure it has a pedal that is pretty common on this era of Janome-Elnas. :) It will be several hours before I can look but this evening I shall post that!

catspec said...

I finally sent info on that foot controller to you Chelle! I sent it to the email you use here on Blogger...

"Chelle said...

Thank you so much for the information. Happy Holidays

Unknown said...

Hello,
My mother just found her old sewing machine and it is precisely the same as yours. And I want to use it but I don't know how and she lost foot control and the cable power...
So can you help me please ?
Thank you in advance.

catspec said...

Hello Lau, the foot pedal is a pretty generic one. Any Elna, Janome or Necchi dealer should be able to help you get a foot pedal that works on it. These machines were all made by the Janome Company. It is the older kind with the power cord and pedal on one plugin. Good luck!

Lau, I should have added - here is a website if you don't know about it - it is full of sewing and sewing machine information! It's a fun site. http://sewing.patternreview.com/

catspec said...

The model number on my foot control is: YDK YC-50T 110/125V 1.0A MAX.50/60Hz Made in Taiwan. Putting it here as it seems to be asked for with some regularity!

Unknown said...

Hello... thanks for posting about the Top 300...information is so elusive! I traded a bottle of whisky for my little Elna but it's missing the clear plastic bobbin cover... Do you know of another plastic plate that would fit? Thanks.

catspec said...

Well, a Janome dealer could probably help you with that! It was not just like the one on my Janome 8050 as I recall. I haven't got the Elna TOP 300 any more...hoping it has a good home! It was one I donated recently. :)

Kathleen said...

I just pick up the Elan Topp 300 at an estate sale but I didn’t see the manual, is there a place a can down load for free? Thanks

catspec said...

Kathleen...here is a link to a manual. It's not free but would be a good investment in your sewing journey!

https://www.sewingpartsonline.com/instruction-book-elna-300.aspx?gclid=CjwKCAjw9J2iBhBPEiwAErwpeemEcVYluY5ovviUKLJewNhkJsyPOeGRnxkj1sk1yC99KPzB4fRZ5xoCNeUQAvD_BwE

Just copy and paste the link into your browser. Good luck.