Necchi Lydia 3 – Type 544 Sewing Machine Review and Demo
Today I’m sharing the machine that started the herd, a Necchi Lydia 3 Type 544. It was found while we were out second-hand shopping. Paul asked, “Is Knee-chee a good sewing machine?” It took a whole second for my brain to process what he said and I was running to grab it. I knew he meant neck-ee but he didn’t know that’s how you pronounced Necchi. It was only $6.95 and Necchi is the brand of sewing machine my mom used. I’ve wasted 7 bucks on worse things. You should hear us fight over who brought the machine home. It doesn’t matter who brought it home only that it now lives with us.
The Necchi Lydia 3 really is one of my favorite machines we have but I don’t use it as often as the Necchi BUs. As odd as it sounds I’m afraid of hurting it. I normally don’t care about scratches on any of that but this machine is just so pretty I don’t want anything to happen to it. Paul has knocked it out of timing before. This was the first machine that he worked on. It wasn’t easy, there was an error in the manual he was using but he got it. The Necchi Lydia 3 really gave him the confidence to tackle other machines and share his tips with you.
Necchi Lydia 3 Type 544 Video Demonstration
I skipped showing you how to use the decorative stitches on this machine since it’s straightforward. You just need to turn the knob of the Necchi Lydia 3 to get the other stitches. The other thing I didn’t show in the video, and it’s because we don’t have it set up, is the automatic needle threader. We have all the parts just haven’t put it together. From what I can tell it works exactly like my modern machine, which suddenly isn’t such a modern feature huh?
Pros and Cons of Necchi Lydia 3 Type 544
It wouldn’t be an honest review if I didn’t let you know that there are a few things that aren’t so great about the Necchi Lydia 3 Type 544. The first is that the cam stack is made of plastic and does crack. This usually means that the machine will only do straight stitching. The cam stack in our Necchi Lydia had its cam stack replaced before we got it. I’ve always thought the best way to replace the cam stack would be to 3D print them. Well, I’m not the only one, someone has done as has the file available. I haven’t used the file but it’s nice to know that it is available.
This machine is a little picky. She’ll sew lightweight fabrics and heavy fabrics but you better have the needle that the manual calls for or she’ll go all wonky. The Necchi Lydia 3 has done a wonderful job sewing masks. We both have used her a few times now and she’s handled it like a champ.
If you are a fan of Necchi sewing machines check out our full history of the machines, our resurrecting sewing machine series, or our quilt patterns.
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