Borletti 1102

The gentleman who brought this machine in said that it had worked for a bit, but now thread was getting caught in the bobbin and it wasn't making stitches.  After posing for a few quick photos on the kitchen counter, this machine was ready to introduce himself.  I had never seen a Borletti in person before. This one needed to be cleaned up a bit, but it did have distinctive features already visible. The Borletti is Italian made and the overall shape and the white top on a different color body reminds me of a Necchi.  I think the gray color on this guy makes him look more reserved than my pink and green Necchis.  This model is the 1102.  The knobs, buttons, and levers are interesting and, to me, look a bit like gumballs stuck to the front of the machine. The bobbin winder is tucked under that gray panel above the hand wheel. The panel on the front center has a matching one on the back, they're both for cams for fancy stitching.  On the back there's also a max/min speed switch for the motor.

Here we are meeting for the first time

When I started cleaning I found a couple things that could have been causing problems for this guy. The first issue was with the brown threads hanging out of the bobbin case. I think this may have been a result of the bobbin not being secured in the notch. It was left to turn freely and thus created a mess within a couple rotations.

Bobbin arm should be reaching upwards not to the left

The second issue I found that was probably causing problems was under the needle plate. There was a significant amount of lint behind and below the feed dogs.

Packed in there pretty good

The third issue was similar to the second and didn't take long to clean out.  Not surprisingly, there was lint buildup behind the needle and in the tension discs.

After I got everything cleaned up and the machine lubricated, I rethreaded the machine and tried out the stitches. The machine was slow to start and then only sewed for a few inches before stopping again. It sounded like the belt was sliding.  When I took the belt out I found it to be very worn.  

Time for a new one

I looked online for a replacement belt, but turned up nothing. I couldn't find a part number or anywhere that someone specifically mentioned a replacement belt for the 1102. This belt is very narrow, here it is next to a 1/4 in. belt I tried.

New belt on left, original on right

The 1/4 in. belt length was a good length (20 inches), but it was not tapered and did not fit snuggly into the channel on the hand wheel, so I couldn't put the hand wheel back on the machine. I also tried a 1/4 in. lug belt that was 19 3/4 in. long. That fit into the channel on the hand wheel, but was not long enough to reach the motor. Finally, I ended up with a rubber belt that fit in the channel and stretched to the full 20 1/8 inches needed. I know that rubber belts have a shorter life-expectancy than others though, so if anyone has a source for a v-belt or lug belt that would work on the 1102, I'd love to hear it. With the machine reassembled, I tried out both the min and max speeds for the motor. It might just be my preference, but I think this machine prefers a faster speed. He seems to sing at the faster speed and it feels like he would sew through anything at this point.

All cleaned up and looking for a cabinet

Front, cam closure door open

Back, cam closure door open

Bobbin winder hidden near hand wheel

Bobbin case is free of loose threads and arm is secure in notch

The needle plate is small, but this one is in very good shape.

Top to bottom: Buttonhole settings, reverse lever (gray), stitch length regulator (black),  zig-zag limit buttons, zig-zag width control (red), left-center-right needle position (white), automatic reverse stitch length (black knob) and feed dog raise/lower button on bottom.

This machine is working well and will be going home soon.  I'm glad we had the chance to meet and hopefully, some day down the road, he'll update me on the wonderful projects he has tackled in the interim.