Bargain Find

I had some time to kill while running errands yesterday, so I dropped by my local Goodwill store for a quick browse. I found a really ugly plastic sewing machine case, but when I opened it up, this is what was inside. A shiny vintage sewing machine. No, it's not a Featherweight or other coveted machine, but it has a gorgeous shine and smoothness to it, so I couldn't pass up the $3 price tag. The color is hard to describe -- it depends on how the light hits it, but it has a light army green tint to it. Nice shiny chrome wheel. It looks like it was barely used. I plugged it in, stepped on the foot pedal, and the needle went up and down. So at least I know the parts move (I didn't have it threaded -- that may take me a while to figure out -- no manual).

It's a (Montgomery) Ward Signature machine, model UHT J285E and from what I can figure out from a little online research, it was probably made in Japan sometime after WWII (I understand that a lot of sewing machines were manufactured in Japan after the war and sold under brand names, usually with a J in the model number. There's no "Made in ____" label anywhere.

This machine weighs an incredible 40 pounds! The only plastic parts are the base and case. I'll give the case a good cleaning, but the machine itself looks brand new -- no scratches, no worn areas, nothing. I may try to see if I can get it to sew, but believe me, I won't be using it as a travel machine, that's for sure. I'll probably just find a place to display it in my house (without the ugly case, of course).