Wizcrafts

If you have questions about the Able line of patchers, ask our member Darren Brosowski. He is the importer and distributor. Note, he lives down under.

Ferdinand used Juki TSC-441 bodies and made his own innards. The early Bull presser feet were change to a single jumping foot, with needle feed. This resulted in a bottom stitch close to a jump-foot needle and awl machine (e.g. Union Lockstitch, Campbell-Randall).

A Landis 12-K is a curved hook-needle and awl machine that has little depth of field bast the needle. It is basically built to sew along the outer seam of leather shoes and boots. It may allow an inch or two of penetration inside the needle and awl.

A lot of long bag manufacturers use Puritan "Alligator" chainstitch machines to sew up the arm. Nobody sees the inside stitches in a rifle or golf bag. Plus, the top stitches are usually all perfect in a chain stitch. The thread is waxed linen that is waxed as you sew. The wax is Super Ceroxylon, made by Puritan.

You can replace all of the parts that are responsible for moving the material for about $100 to $200. The shuttle drive parts would cost about the same for everything under the throat plate, inside the gearbox (racks and gears). However, as I have learned, aftermarket parts don't usually fit like the originals did. You will have to file this, polish that, and fine-fit the parts. In the end you should have 5 stitches per inch and no skipped stitches. If the seller is firm on the price, buy the one with the longer stitches, and/or least slop in the shuttle. If they both have slack in the presser bar and the shuttle driver, expect to pay out close to $200 or more and invest many hours learning to disassemble and rebuild the head. If you do leather shoe and boot uppers and purse repairs, and/or want to sew embroidered patches onto vests and jackets, a patcher is a must have machine. Try to get a machine that has the least slack in both the foot driving and lower shuttle systems. If the prospect of investing this much more money and many hours of dis-assembly and custom fitting new parts isn't for you, pass on these machines and look for something in better condition. PS: The 29k71 is best limited to #69 or maybe #92 bonded thread.

Can you verify that oil flows all the way to the ends of the wicks? Are the crankshafts inside the head getting oil from the pump system? What speed range do you usually sew at (stitches per second or per minute)?

It would be a good idea for you to find that bolt and get a machine shop to make replacement parts. Ferdco is long out of business.

Buy a gallon of silicon lube from an industrial sewing machine dealer and pour it into a jar large enough to hold 1 pound spools of thread. Place the spools into the solution for several hours each. Let them drip dry on a baking rack in a cookie pan. If this doesn't solve the fraying problem, cut your losses and buy fresh thread. Buy lubricated thread. The best ones I've bought are Cowboy and Weaver brands of bonded thread. Campbell-Randall bonded polyester is right up there as well. Others may be as good, but I can't say for certain. Note: some bonded black thread may be double dyed and can come off the spool like a coil spring (twisty). This type of thread will give you fits as you sew.

My Cowboy CB4500 has an optional lube pot on the top of the machine. It is easy to fill it with liquid silicon lube and pass the thread through it. There are accessory magnetic mount lube jars that might have enough grip to stay on top of your machine. Just fill it with liquid silicon, or another solution of your choice and run the thread through it. Loaded bobbins of dried out thread can be submerged in lube, then removed and left to hang dry. Silicon lube is not the same as the coating that has dried off the spools. That was not just lube, but also contained a bonding agent/glue that held the twisted strands together. Weaver Leather sells a bonded thread that is actually wet to the touch and drips lube as it moves through guides and tensioners. I get the same effect by running well-bonded Cowboy thread through my lube pot with silicon in it. I only do this on rare occasions when I am sewing very dry, thick leather..

They are driven by gears inside the machine. no pulley change can override the oil pump gears. They pump most efficiently within their specified speed ranges. The machine in this topic says 2800 spm in the specs. It was made to sew rather fast. The target buyers are auto upholstery and heavy garment makers. They are often sewed flat out, pedal to the metal, on clutch motor driven machines, geared high. Torque doesn't even enter into it when all you have to penetrate is garment or upholstery leather or denim.

Yes, I use sewing machines from Narnia. I just finished refurbishing a 1926 Singer 42-5 (with a gold tag and Singer decals and chipping 1/16" thick J-pan paint). It joins a slew of other machines in my shop.

You can buy 1 pound spools of unwaxed linen thread from Campbell-Randall Co, in Yoakum, Texas. They sell two brands. One is European and the other is Barbour's Irish linen thread, now made by Coats-Clark, in the USA. I tried the less expensive brand and found it to be fuzzy, until/unless it was waxed. Barbour's was always smoother in my past experiences. Natural linen can be dyed before or after sewing. If you plan to run it through a wax pot (on top of the machine), dye it first. Either use Lax Wax from Campbell-Randall, or Ceroxylon, from Puritan. Buy only left or Z twist linen thread for leather sewing machines. Right twist is for certain shoe sole stitchers or hand sewing only.

If, and only if, your machine uses feet that resembles these type 111w smooth bottom walking feet, any industrial sewing machine dealer has them.

The motor has the brake, if one exists at all. The machine is always freewheeling.

Everything depends on whether or not the oil pump can get the oil to the extremities of the wicks. If for some reason the wicks get dried up, the bearings and cranks at the end of the wicks may run dry. Also, even if the oil system is still fully functional, the moving parts will certainly have a lot of slack after running in a factory setting. I would ask to see the machine in operation before buying it. According to the spec sheet, to fully distribute the oil, the machine must be routinely run at 2800 stitches per minute. Some home sewers with self-oilers will do this before sewing and while winding bobbins. Once the oil flows through the wicks, you can slow down to about 10 to 15 stitches per second (600 - 800 rpm) and the oil will persist until you let the machine sit idle for the night.

It is usually based on the total diameter of the covered cord. The foot or feet are radiused to the exact size indicated on them. A 1/4" piping foot fits over a quarter inch diameter of material and cord.

I did a quick lookup of this model and sub-class. It looks like a light duty, straight stitch machine. It should be usable for upholstery and garment leather. The feed is entirely from the feed dog on the bottom. I suppose that the presser foot could be changed to a roller foot, if someone offers a compatible foot for sale.

The Cowboy CB3200, 3500, 4500 and 5500 are clones of the Juki TSC-441. The same goes for the comparable Cobra and Techsew machines. These machines have huge oscillating shuttles and cylindrical bobbins. The Juki TSC-441 was built to compete against the Adler 205-370. So, if you can find either of these machines cheaper than a Cowboy with the same arm length, buy it. Note that the aforementioned Juki sells for about $6,000 and the Adler for about $7,000. There used to be a machine called the Ferdinand Bull, which was based on the Juki 441, but modified into a needle feed, jump foot machine. They show up for sale in our MarketPlace every now and then. Beware though, the company is out of business.

I once sewed through a ruler on a Singer 15-91, after rebuilding it. It was sewn with #69 thread using a #18 needle. As long as the plywood is soft and the full package fits under the presser foot/feet, and the foot/feet have a strong enough pressure spring to keep the wood from lifting with the needle, and the motor has enough punching power, it will sew. A walking foot machine may be limited to #138 thread, with a #22 or 23 needle. Straight stitch machines to #69 thread with a #18 needle. I should mention that I preferred sewing wood on a Union Lockstitch machine!

You're welcome. If you save up and buy the right machine the first time, you'll have fewer regrets. BTW: If you do buy a Cowboy machine from Darren Brosowski or Singermania Steve, they warranty and service them in Australia. They will assist you with the learning curve and hiccups that happens to first time leather sewers.

They both also sell Singer and other brands that cost less. When it comes to sewing leather, you get what you pay for. Singermania sells the Cowboy CB3200, which is a mid-priced stitcher capable of sewing 1/2 inch of real leather, with #415 thread. You have little to lose by asking him, or Darren, what they can do for you that will fit your budget. Darren Brosowski also does business as Anne Bonnys Locker.

That didn't take me very long. Your official Cowboy Sewing Machines dealer/distributor in Australia, is a member here, named Singermania. He is one of the few people to ask about real industrial leather sewing machines down under. Darren Brosowski is another and is also a member here.

That Singer machine is just a plastic body household garment machine for sewing light material with thin thread. It may survive a dozen wallets, then break down. You have a Cowboy dealer, who also sells all manner of industrial leather capable sewing machines, in Australia. I'll search the posts in this forum and post who it is when I find him.

Possibly and possibly not. The looper timing should be related to the position of the eye of the needle. If you move the needle bar to accommodate a longer or shorter needle and place the eye in the same horizontal position when the looper arrives, the timing should still work.

There has to be a simple means of loosening the needle bar and repositioning it for the needles you are able to obtain.