Antique 1887 Moldacot Pocket Sewing Machine Made In Germany For Sale

Antique 1887 Moldacot Pocket Sewing Machine Made In Germany.

History and Production Timeline

The production history of the Moldacot pocket sewing machine is brief but historically fascinating, moving rapidly from global hype to a sudden commercial halt:

• Origins (1885–1886): The machine was developed to utilize a unique patent by S.A. Rosenthal. In December 1885, investors Albert Moll and John Cottam established The Moldacot Pocket Sewing Machine Company in London.

• The Launch (July 1886): When introduced to the British market, the company launched a highly publicized public stock offering of £75,000 to fund distribution and marketing. This initial public offering was oversubscribed within weeks due to intense hype over its incredibly compact 8-inch size.

• The Collapse (1887): Despite massive projections, production lasted less than two years. By 1887, the company ceased operations entirely.

Manufacturing and Logistical Splitting

The Moldacot Company acted solely as a marketing entity and did not own any factories. Instead, they outsourced production to multiple engineering firms across Europe to keep up with initial massive orders:

• United Kingdom: Production was split between William Bown in Birmingham and John Holroyd in Manchester. Each firm originally received initial orders for 100,000 units. UK-assembled variations are famously marked with a stamped anchor icon.

Germany: The version seen in my images was outsourced to a separate German factory. The German-produced variations are distinguished by the explicit \"MADE IN GERMANY\" text across the lower plate, some variants exported with crown stamp or crescent moon stamp.

Total Output and Market Failure

While the company initially projected sales reaching up to a million units, actual production numbers tell a very different story:

• Production Volume: Historical estimates regarding total surviving production fluctuate. Some museum groups estimate that up to 60,000 units may have been built during the brief production run. However, specialty sewing historians note that due to immediate marketplace pushback, fewer than 10,000 machines were actually sold to the public before the company failed.

Why Production Stopped: The Moldacot is widely considered an engineering marvel but a functional failure. Despite being beautifully nickel-plated and crafted out of solid brass, the mechanisms were too temperamental and simply did not sew well. Inherent tension issues and an extremely tiny bobbin mechanism meant it constantly dropped stitches. A last-ditch effort to introduce a rotary hand-crank attachment in May 1887 failed to fix the core issues, resulting in poor sales that permanently shuttered the company.

This Moldacot sewing machine has 129527 serial number which dates her production date to 1887. It is in good used condition with expected wear. Please enlarge the pictures from your desktop computer to see better every little detail.

Overall dimensions:

8\" x 2 3/4\" x 3 3/4\"

Thank you for looking, and feel free to contact me with any questions.