Treadle belts are quick and easy to install, yourself. I will include photos from many Singer belt installations, using a variety of tools.
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1. Thread belt through belt pathway, under the large treadle pulley, through the treadle pulley wheel belt throw off eyelet, and the metal belt guides, up through the skirt guard, and tabletop belt holes, around the handwheel.
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| 2. Pull the belt snugly, so belt ends cross each other, and use a marker, pen, or pencil, to mark where they cross, so you know where to cut. |
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| 3. Use a wire cutter, to cut excess belt off. Needle nose pliers work, too, they have a wire cutter built in. |
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| Cutting extra belt off using wire cutting blade on needle nose pliers. |
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| 4. Using belt hole punch tool on smallest die cutter, center of belt, approximately 3/8 inch from cut belt edge. |
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| Belt hole punch tool has punched hole through belt. |
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| Thread belt staple through the hole, butting belt ends together. |
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| Use pliers, or needle nose pliers, to bend staple end closed, so belt is flat, and can feed smoothly. |
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| Treadle belt properly installed |
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| The huge spring is the lift assist, and golds the belt guide plate which fills the gap between the machine and the table cut out edge. This prevents tools falling down, but also gives belt eyelet holes, for treadle setup |
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| Treadle belt will hand loosely, when you have released the belt, to put the machine down, for storage. |
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Singer 127VS with Tiffany decals
Measuring belt by crossing ends
to determine correct belt length to cut off. |
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| Use belt hole tool, or stiletto, to punch hole for the staple, |
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| Using pliers to bend staple flat. |
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| Notice I put staple closure side out, so it does not clunk, when treadling. |
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| Completed belt installation |
If you do not have a belt hole punch tool, use a stiletto, or similar sharp, pointy tool to punch the hole for the belt staple to go through. Place the belt end on a wood cutting board, or wood chunk, on flat, sturdy surface, then use a hammer, or rubber mallet to force the stiletto point through the belt. Be sure to center the hole, so it does not cut through the side of the belt.
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| Belt throw off lever, or belt release, by pulling this, and turning the handwheel, or treadling, should cause the belt to slip off the large treadle pulley wheel, to the right. This is so you can lower your machine down into the table, for storage. |
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Belt throw out section of treadle pulley wheel, and the belt throw off lever. (Unthread needle before doing this, to prevent sewing your bobbin to the machine.)
Throwing the belt off to the right, makes it easy to reinstall the belt, when you next sew, just raise machine, and spin the wheel, this little portion which sticks out, should grab the belt, reinstalling it, as it spins. |
TOOLS-
Needlenose pliers
Belt hole punch tool. OR
Stiletto (also use a cutting board, or piece of scrap wood, to avoid poking stiletto through your counter top, or table.)
Rubber mallet or hammer (to force stiletto through leather treadle belt)
