The Sears Kenmore 158.1303 Sewing Machine

I wanted to take just a minute and tell you about another of my machines, its a 1969 Sears Kenmore 158.13033 sewing machine with zigzag capability.. This machine was my husband's before we were married and it belonged to his grandmother. It gave her years of diligent service and was well cared for.

To be sure, this is not a machine I would use for heirloom sewing as the needle plate has an oval shaped opening to accommodate the zigzag function. This means that sheer lightweight fabrics can be forced down below the sewing surface and this can cause problems including bird nesting of the thread on the bobbin side. For heirloom sewing or sheer fabrics, I recommend using a straight stitch machine whenever possible, or, if your modern machine has a straight stitch plate, use that. This is why my heirloom sewing machines are my Bernina 735, Singer Featherweight, Singer 401 and my Singer 301.

What, then, is this machine good for? Well, quilting is an obvious answer but I am not a quilter, at least not very often. This machine excels at clothing construction using medium and heavy weight fabrics, like this dress I am currently working on.

I have yet to join the front and back of this dress and am looking at how it drapes presently. The dress is lined, making for two layers of medium weight cotton. Where seams come together, I'm sewing four or more layers of fabric. This Kenmore is a workhorse and has no problem with these multiple layers. Yes, my Featherweight could do the job, and do it well, but that is a lightweight machine and is really not built for that kind of task on a repeated basis. To be honest, my Singer 401 and 301 would also be good choices for this.

My machine was made in 1968 or 1969. I know this because it was purchased new in December 1969. At that time, Kenmore was made by Free Westinghouse and their quality workmanship helped increase the brand's reputation. These machines were built to last and many of the Free Westinghouse machines are highly sought after by sewing enthusiasts due to their durability and innovative features. My model, the 158.13033 is, for some reason, not one that is available in great numbers as a used machine, I do not know if this is because owners do not want to part with them or because they were not made in great numbers. I do know that it is not because of quality issues. Mine runs flawlessly and can produce a satin stitch that makes my Bernina envious..

Kenmore produced a few machines in this model line, they are the 158.1303, 158.13030, 158.13031, 158.13032, and 158.13033. There are differences between the models, but those are largely the look of the machine not the mechanics. Therefore, the manual I have provided here will suffice for any machine in this model line. This manual is a scanned copy of the original which i still have with my machine.

Kenmore 1303.pdf

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