Bernina Industrial Sewing Machine
Information
Bernina 950 and Bernina 217
The 950 and the 217 are the well known Bernina
industrial machines. The 950 and the 217 are no longer offered by Bernina.
The 217 is still in common use in sail lofts and for
other zig-zag applications.
The 950 is useful when a variety of stitch functions
are required. In use in small scale and cottage industries. More stitch functions are
available compared to other industrials.
The 950 is for normal clothing weight operations only.
It is designed for moderate speed and fair production life. It is not for heavy goods.
I've serviced machines where the needle bar driving link was snapped in use while sewing
bags. The last few years of Bernina 950 production included a tension release mechanism
where the tension would release any time that the foot raised itself approximately
1/4" or higher. One did not need to raise the hand lifter or use the knee lifter to
raise the foot as the only means to release the thread tension. Just the act of the foot
sewing upon approximately 1/4" of material would release the tension. This includes
the crossing of any seam, hem, piping, binding, etc. that exceeded this figure. This
helped to protect the machine and effectively prevented the successful use on heavy goods
such as many types of canvas, webbing, bag sewing, jeans hemming, etc. I'm guessing that
this change was not by accident and likely was in response to an increasing number of
customers attempting to use the 950 well outside of its intentional design range. The
release tang that accomplished this is easily accessed below the top cover. A quick push
down and 90 degree counterclockwise turn of two spring loaded latches on top of the cover
allows access in just a couple of seconds. Some owners have easily disabled the tension
release by observing the action of the mechanism and bending the tang to alter it. This
still allows the tension release to operate when the hand lifter or the knee lifter is
used to raise the foot, and effectively configures the machine to its earlier production
state. Strongly not reccommended as the machine is not designed for heavy goods. Still,
many machines were and are being used for heavy goods. Check all used machines carefully
before buying for signs of hook wear, especially worn hook points. Use a magnifier to
check the hook point. Check for excess play in the side to side motion of the needle bar
rock frame and check for play of the needle bar itself as it slides in the needle bar rock
frame.
Bernina 950
Typical Bernina 950 setup
The Bernina 950 offers:
- 20 built-in stitches
- built-in buttonholer
- feed dog submerges for darning, embroidery, or free-hand quilting
- handwheel release
- rotary hook of a special design known as a "Wheeler and
Wilson" style hook
- allowable top speed of up to 2000 stitches per minute, 33 stitches
per second
- up to 6mm stitch length
- up to 4.5mm stitch width
When sold new the "machine head" included in the molded
foam box:
- The Bernina sewing machine head
- A selection of Feet as determined by Bernina
- A Built in oil drip pan
- Oil, Manual, Bobbins, Screwdrivers, Needles
- Knee lifter
- Bobbin winder built into machine
When the term "Machine Head with power stand" is used,
this typically indicates:
- The Bernina sewing machine head with Equipment listed above
- A Free standing thread stand
- Stand legs, table top, motor, switch box and motor wiring
- Modern stands are typically Adjustable height
- Table tops are typically high-density core or plywood core and with
laminated top
- Common motors include the 1/2 h.p. 110 volt clutch- motor with
wiring, plug, treadle, switch, and usually a choice of pulley size
- Note that Bernina did not make, manufacture, label, or supply
industrial clutch motors during Bernina 950 production
- Choice of clutch motor was by dealer or by customer
- Drawer
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