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Sewing Machine Mods

Tim Skell at Minarik confirms that a D cell will provide control voltage but advises that if it is not connected and power is applied to the drive a runaway could occur, so a small battery eliminator would be appropriate for this job.

Biasing that rheostat and splicing the boxes will not be easy. Fabricating the right spring may just take trial and error with a few pieces of music wire. I was thinking of notching the boxes out so they'd fit together, then soldering or brazing them. I have a small nibbler but I don't think it'll take this gage. It'd probably have to be milled.

I am going to work tomorrow. We are trying to author a small DVD documenting the progress of the Rosa Parks Children's Annex bus ride exhibit.

Doug

Reply to
DGoncz
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To oppose the rheostats, and fabricate a crappy potentiometer with the original ergonomonics, I could thread the stud of the opposing rheostat into the little black Bakelite pressure block I discovered today that accepts the fork from the knee lever. It's threaded right through and when the standard rheostat is adjusted normally, has threads available to accept the stud from the other one.

The boxes would have to be shortened just the right amount so the opposing rheostat would mount right. There's room there for the two boxes and the controller. The other knee control study would have to go. The opposing rheostat's return spring could be left off, I think. A nylon thumb screw would retain the setting where the pressure of the return spring used to provide friction to retain the setting.

The whole thing would be backward compatible with the original wiring.

I have to disassemble the rheostat again and see if a screwdriver will go into the rheostat from the far side to turn that stud into the pressure block. It may be welded to a brace. It doesn't turn when you turn the adjustment nut. So I guess I could turn the whole rheostat to get it in there.

Work didn't turn out well today. Nobody home. Six hours out of the house. Nice day, long train and bus rides. I'll meet with my DRS counsellor soon.

Doug

Reply to
DGoncz

I've ordered two "Foot Controls" which Belinda at Sears assures me will turn out to be upgraded knee controls, not a substituted foot control, a minor ECO, not a failure in the supply chain leading to the substitution of something completely different.

We'll have to see if my ideas for opposing the rheostat studs work out.

Doug

Reply to
DGoncz

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