Machines - Blog Posts

Sewing Machines & Planned Obsolescence

I've got these two sewing machines, made about 100 years apart. An old treadle machine from around 1920-1930, that I pulled out of the trash on a rainy day, and a new Brother sewing machine from around 2020.

I've always known planned obsolescence was a thing, but I never knew just how insidious it was till I started looking at these two side by side.

I wasn't feeling hopeful at first that I'd actually be able to fix the old one, I found it in the trash at 2 am in a thunderstorm. It was rusty, dusty, soggy, squeaky, missing parts, and 100 years old.

How do you even find specialized parts 100 years later? Well, easily, it turns out. The manufacturers at the time didn't just make parts backwards compatible to be consistent across the years, but also interchangeable across brands! Imagine that today, being able to grab a part from an old iPhone to fix your Android.

Anyway, 6 months into having them both, I can confidently say that my busted up trash machine is far better than my new one, or any consumer-grade sewing machine on the market.

Old Machine Guts

The old machine? Can sew through a pile of leather thicker than my fingers like it's nothing. (it's actually terrifying and I treat it like a power tool - I'll never sew drunk on that thing because I'm genuinely afraid it'd sew through a finger!) At high speeds, it's well balanced and doesn't shake. The parts are all metal, attached by standard flathead screws, designed to be simple and strong, and easily reachable behind large access doors. The tools I need to work on it? A screwdriver and oil. Lost my screwdriver? That's OK, a knife works too.

New Machine Guts

The new machine's skipping stitches now that the plastic parts are starting to wear out. It's always throwing software errors, and it damn near shakes itself apart at top speed. Look at it's innards - I could barely fit a boriscope camera that's about as thick as spaghetti in there let alone my fingers. Very little is attached with standard screws.

And it's infuriating. I'm an engineer - there's no damn reason to make high-wear parts out of plastic. Or put them in places they can't be reached to replace. There's no reason to make your mechanism so unbalanced it's reaching the point of failure before reaching it's own design speed. (Oh yeah there is, it's corporate greed)

100 years, and your standard home sewing machine has gone from a beast of a machine that can be pulled out of the literal waterlogged trash and repaired - to a machine that eats itself if you sew anything but delicate fast-fashion fabrics that are also designed to fall apart in a few years.

Looking for something modern built to the standard that was set 100 years ago? I'd be looking at industrial machines that are going for thousands of dollars... Used on craigslist. I don't even want to know what they'd cost new.

We have the technology and knowledge to manufacture "old" sewing machines still. Hell, even better, sewing machines with the mechanical design quality of the old ones, but with more modern features. It would be so easy - at a technical level to start building things well again. Hell, it's easier to fabricate something sturdy than engineer something to fail at just the right time. (I have half a mind to see if any of my meche friends with machine shops want to help me fabricate an actually good modern machine lol)

We need to push for right-to-repair laws, and legislation against planned obsolescence. Because it's honestly shocking how corporate greed has downright sabotaged good design. They're selling us utter shit, and expecting us to come back for more every financial quarter? I'm over it.

So I started playing Crossout, a post-apocaliptyc MMO game that consists on the construction of cars to battle other players.

The game looks good, is easy to control and very intuitive, the battles are fast paced and quick. Enjoying it very much.

And naturally no conexion is wrong (please)

Machines

i love machines. because they are simply awsm.

machines can do clever things, if you can manage to look past the unclever things.

maybe we could make each other smile too, if we looked past our tears.

Ginni Rometty, C.E.O. International Business Machines Corporation {IBM}, CC: Michael Bloomberg, Ownership New York Stock Exchange {NYSE}

Ginni, Is it true that you showed up with a 308 handcannon to shoot me when I was partying for the first time in upstate New York?  My second time partying, ever, all time, this generation I was in upstate New York celebrating my Sister Samantha’s College Graduation.  It snowed Memorial Day Weekend that year.  I was driving a blue Geo Metro with a window that would not wind up.  I partied through the night in the bouncy house.  Yes, This is a Hostile Takeover.  I desire to keep you, as I do not believe you are the problem at this time, you are the conduit of confusion to protect people like _________ from bionengineering hazards sites that have fraudulent site permits for operation.  

While away on assignment I requested corporate training from WalMart; I have reached out to them before to assist with career advancement for some of my people.  I am a long way from holding the position and title you now possess.  And I believe, and hope, and pray that you are emotionally and metaphysically prepared for this transition at IBM.  I cannot capture what we have done.  I can map what is happening with TabletOne, and that means I am about twenty years from coming into the office with my intellectual property mapping device ready to work as CEO, IBM.

What Planet Earth Needs Right Now is #IBMLEADERSHIP.  This product will takeover most of the leases Apple Corporation has with Best Buy Consumer Retail Electronics.  This expands IBM Employment into the retail sector.  And yes, I always have my eye on boutique airport consumer retail electronics storefronts.  The product is called Platform Transition.  BLOOMBERG innovated in this business sector with the BLOOMBERG Terminal.  We are going to provide any consumer that agrees to pay for one year of digital cloud and digital footprint tracking by IBM a massive User Interface Overhaul on their one year anniversary working with #IBMRESEARCH on location inside of Best Buy Retail Locations.  Upfront we will offer a few cute tricks like a slick memes generator for selfies.  This does not violate the Windows Microsoft End User License Agreement.  And now you are in charge.  right?  Signed, ALways ALexander

Born to live.Live to ride #triumphmotorcycles #triumphindia #harbourcitymotors #cruiser #triumph #thunderbird #triumphnation #1700 #cc #bikers #bikerslifestyle #machines #speed #triumphthunderbirdstorm #nightride (at Chennai, India)