Hi! I'm new and I own Red Hen Fabrics in Marietta, GA, a quilt store. About Featherweights: they never go bad but can be expensive to repair, the bobbin case is about $40. Note that Ebay protects its buyers against misleading info with the feedback process. I use it all the time and have great luck there.
Featherweights are collectors items and run $250 -500. Janome now makes a new version of the Featherweight which is good. I know a guy here who restores Featherweights until they hum, but hunting for a specific model is so limiting that you should just take it when you can get it. By the way, I've found 2 in thrift shops. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]