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Member since 3/26/10
Posts: 55
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Posted on: 8/19/10 10:27 AM ET
I thought some of you might have information to answer my questions, which are prompted by curiosity rather than
a problem. I tried posting this and a question about needle position shifting on the Vintage Kenmore site, but no one had answers there.

I know that there are at least 5 classes of Kenmore cams, and all machines that take a given class come with fewer than the complete set of cams of that class. In some cases, I think, a machine has some built-in stitches for which other
machines require cams.

Other than the way they fit into the machine and are made (flat, top-hat, etc.), are there basic differences in the functionality of differnt types of cams? Obviously, some classes have more cams than others.

As a general matter, can any machine use all the cams of the class, even if they did not come with it? Can cams allow a machine to do stretch stitches even if that was not done by the cams that came with it, just as some machines require
cams to do basic zigzag stitches?

What is meant by "reverse stitch" cams - do they make the machine go back and forth during the design, and does that require a special capability (other than the ability to stitch in reverse) built into a machine? If a machine has a
reverse lever for beginning and ending seams and doing buttonholes, would it be able to do a "reverse" design if a cam set up that pattern?

Do the "single-design" magnet cams in the Kenmore C category require any special functionality in the machine, or is it something built into the cam that apparently stops the
design? (I've never seen one of these types of cams.)

Aside from the cams marketed by Sears, are there cams with other labels that are interchangeable and can be used on some Kenmores?

Can a cam make a machine able to do stretch stitches just as it can make a machine do zig-zag, or does that require some special built-in functionality?

Thanks for your help.
  
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