Patcher Vs Sewing Machine

[tboyce]

can someone explain to me the pros and cons of a patcher vs what we think of as a conventional sewing machine?

[electrathon]

A patcher sews sideways, great for almost unreachable areas.

The stitches are utilitarian though, not as perfect and pretty as we usually want.

[tboyce]

So, they are not even or achieving an even stitch is more difficult?

[electrathon]

They use small thread and the top foot tends to leave tracks on the leather. Top feed, due to the way they move all directions. You can't smooth out the foot or it will not be able to move forward.

If you were closer I would sell you mine, I have a 29K4 for sale.

[tboyce]

Thanks for the input

[Wizcrafts]

Patchers are meant for repairs to shoe and boot uppers and for sewing patches onto vests and over pockets. They have very narrow throats, either 12 or 18 inches in length. There are two bobbin sizes: small and tiny. The small bobbin holds about half as much thread as a standard class 15 bobbin. The tiny bobbin holds half as much as that.

The mechanisms are designed for thin shoe thread, typically size 69 bonded nylon. They will handle #92 if you can get the tensions right.

Even with thin #69 thread, the stitch length of a patcher with zero wear is only 5 per inch, at 1/8 inch thickness. The stitch length deteriorates as the thickness increases. The maximum thickness that can be sewn is about 1/4 inch. As patchers are used and abused, the stitch length driving mechanism wears out. A typical patcher that was used in a shoe shop will only sew 7 or 8 stitches per inch after 50 years of use. Some won't even sew that length.

[Constabulary]

I use mine rarely. it is more or less a dust catcher (I maybe use it once or twice a month) as it really has it´s limitations. The only reason I have it is the 360° head and long thin arm. You can sew (repair) spots inside bags and pouches you cannot sew with other machines. I use 138 (20 metric) thread with my 29K71 w/o problems (it may take thicker thread but have not tried yet) but due to the tiny bobbin there is not much thread on it. Anyway - a nice to have machine but I would not pay big $ to get one.

I would not buy a used one w/o knowing how long the stitches are (Wiz explained it). But it depends on how much a seller asks for the machine. I bought mine for just 40€ (unrestored) but I had to spent ~150€ + to replace parts and to restore. I did not know how long the stitches are until I had restored it but is makes 4.5mm stitches which is very good for a used patcher. It now is a really nice and functional machine for the money.

But I think these patchers are far away from being a comfortable sewing machine for producing a commercial grade products.

Juts my 2 cents.

[Hockeymender]

Mine sits most of the time. However, that said there are certain projects that come thru the door that I would have to refuse if I didn't have a patcher. I think I a lot of cases it's a niche machine, you need it when you need it. I agree that I would not drop a large sum of cash on one, unless the work your doing falls into one of those niches that only a patcher can fill.