How to Repair My Riccar Sewing Machine

Inspect the sewing machine’s hand wheel to ensure it is tight. Grasp the wheel with your left hand and rotate the smaller wheel, or the stop-motion wheel located in the center of the larger wheel, away from you using your right hand. Rotating the hand wheel away from you raises the needle bar to its highest setting.

Lift the slide plate, or the metal plate covering the bobbin, and set it aside. Grasp the latch on the case of the bobbin, and pull it toward you to loosen and release it, along with the bobbin. Wipe away the broken tread and lint from this section with a clean cotton swab. Also remove broken thread pieces from the bobbin. Replace the bobbin back in its case and slide the tread through the hole in the case. Replace the bobbin case and bobbin with the latch. Replace the slide plate back on the Riccar sewing machine.

Tighten the hand wheel on the Riccar sewing machine if it slips during use. Remove the screws on the knob in the center of the hand wheel with a screwdriver and set these aside, along with the hand wheel. Remove stuck pieces of thread or lint from the assembly with tweezers. Using tweezers, rotate the washer inside the hand wheel to 90 degrees. Slide the wheel back on the machine and tighten the screws to secure it in place.

Turn the thumbscrew anticlockwise to loosen and release the needle. Inspect the needle to ensure it is not bent, since misshaped needles impede proper functioning.

Set a spool of thread on the pin holder at the back extend it to the top of the machine, through the thread guide. Pull the thread through the guard around the tension and back up again. Thread it through the lever at the top of the machine and down again through the guides at the left and right.

Turn the Riccar sewing machine on its side to access the bottom. Add a drop of oil on each metal moveable point across the exposed underside. Prop the machine back up and oil the moveable parts across the top of the machine. Wipe away excess oil to prevent stains.