Singer 401A ?

Go for it; 400-500 singers are about as good as it gets for home machines imo.

It's a gem and will do everything you need it to do. I prefer the 401's to the 500's because the top lid and front door isn't as fragile. I also prefer the squareness of the 401's to the 500's. Bombproof vintage machines that run almost forever. Clean and oil it and go to work.

$80 for a well functioning 401A is a steal. Even if you have to pay to get it serviced, you got a good deal.

Only if it was made in Great Britain. you can tell because there will be a metal tag in the back of the machine. if it does not say made in great britain dont buy, it means they were made in china and use plastic gears. I went through a few singers before i learned that.

Hi Peter,
Sounds like you got one of the later generations of Singer Touch and Sew or Stylist Models. All the 401's have metal gears no matter where they were built. The "A" in the 401A denotes that it was built in Anderson, SC. The 401 models date to the Mid 1950's and plastic gears were still 10 years away from seeing the production lines at Singer.

Just make sure it sews. $80 is a great price if the machine 'looks' good, but if it can actually sew a straight, balanced stitch, then it's a steal.