Wizcrafts

Can't you feather the clutch? I was able to feather mine down to about 1 or 2 stitches per second.

I agree with Geneva. I owned an LU-536 in 1989 and could not exceed #138 thread.

Concentrate your search on manually oiled compound feed walking foot machines (feed dog, needle and inside foot move together as outside foot goes up and down). The others are high speed cloth sewing machines not at all meant for leather or slow sewing.

The prices are typical for reconditioned walking foot machines. Are these machines worn out, or have they been serviced? If they are as is, offer about 1/3rd less, knowing in advance that you may have to replace the motor and belt to control the machine for leather use. Why? Because upholstery machines are normally geared 1:1 or faster and the motors are usually 1725 rpm clutch motors. Commercial upholstery sewing is typically done on long straight edges, often many feet long. Time is money in upholstery. So, they sew their machines pedal to the metal. If you are going to sew intricate leather goods, slow does it better. A servo motor will be easier to control than a clutch motor. Whatever the machine costs, if it has a clutch motor, you'll be paying another $130 or more for a new servo motor and shorter vbelt. Try to get a motor equipped with a 2" pulley.

Check out the Consew 206RB-5 and the Juki LU-563. Those will be the best for medium duty leather sewing.

I had one on the 56 Olds my cousin and I shared. It had the Rocket engine and fur dice. The knob was cool and we never got hurt by it.

I meant Barney Knob. Sorry for the mistake. It is a free-spinning add-on steering wheel knob that originated in the mid-1950s. They clamped around the wheel to let the driver spin the steering wheel one-handed, while his right arm was around his girlfriend. Barney Rubble may have had one on his steering wheel.

The over-the-edge stitches are done in one of two ways. 1: Using a machine with reverse, sew backwards from the middle, over the edge and stop with the needle down. Move the direction lever to forward and sew across the strap and over the other side, then reverse a couple of stitches to lock the thread. Twist the thread to the left to tighten it and cut it close to the leather with thread snips (curved Wiss snips work best). 2: Using a non reversing machine, sew across from the middle and over the edge. Stop with the needle down and the take-up lever on the upstroke. Raise the presser foot so it clears the leather. Carefully rotate the work 180º and sew back over the edge stitch, across, then over the other edge. Flip the work 180º again and sew in a stitch or two. I use method #2 on my non-reversing Singer walking foot machine, which is just the right machine for watch bands and the like.

Ed; If you live in Australia (the machine is in AU) this machine is a good option for a starter in the business. It has single feed, from an aggressive feed dog on the bottom. This is well suited to sewing horse blankets and saddle components, where the bottom being marked is not too important. Hand cranked machines take away one hand that would normally guide the material. You may tire your arm out quickly if you have to sew long straps, or doubled rows of stitching, or decorative stitching. Note, that the same type of machine is sold in the US and Canada by several of our member-dealers. A Barney wheel can be added to the hand wheel for unpowered sewing. In fact, Bob Kovar, of Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines, recently posted a photo of a similar machine (CB3200) with a Barney wheel he added to hand spin it.

I suppose you can try backing off the top pressure to reduce the footprint depth. This might also require a reduction in both the top and bottom thread tensions.

Troy; If you are sewing bridle leather it is trivial to rub out the foot marks.

I have one inside presser foot for my Cowboy CB4500 that has the ridge on the bottom. It works great on straight stitch lines, but creates nasty impressions on certain turns. Sometimes the off-track impressions can be spooned out, other times, not so well.

As I pointed in before, make sure you are rotating the wheel towards you from the top, which is in a counterclockwise direction on the shaft, from the read of the machine. Modern sewing machines almost always rotate CCW. They will not pick up the bobbin thread or form stitches if you turn the wheel the wrong way. It is an easy mistake for a first time sewer to make.

There is a movable stopped under the check spring, secured by a flathead screw. Loosen the screw and adjust the metal stopped so the check spring stops a little higher up. Try again. The standard position is the arm of the spring faces more or less horizontal. Approximately how much upward travel is your needle making before the hook arrives over the eye?

Set the hook so it intersects inside the scarf of the needle, a bit over the top of the eye, after it has raised about 3/16" from BDC, with the stitch lever at zero. Next, pull out the thread and rethread the machine. Do not skip any part along the path. As experienced as I am, I have forgotten to go through the take-up lever once or twice! No take-up, no sew. Make sure the thread path is unobstructed from the spool onward. It must flow freely until it gets to the top tension disks. It must sit all the way down between those disks to maintain top tension. The little steel loop on the lower right of the disks can be repositioned slightly to get the thread well into the disks. From there, go down and once fully around the lower disks, the through the guide over then, then through the loop in the "check" spring* attached to that assembly. From there, up through the take-up lever, down through the clip guide, the wire guide, and the hole above the needle mount, then through the eye of the needle, from left to right. Before testing, lift the presser feet with the foot lever, they should go up high, at least 7/8" or higher (mine lift a bit over 1"). Pull on the top thread at the take-up lever and ensure that it flows freely. Lower the foot lifter and try pulling again. It should be hard to pull the thread, meaning you have (adjustable) top tension. Load bobbin thread counterclockwise, through the slit in the bobbin case. Adjust the spring tensioner for a modest pull on the bobbin thread. It should neither be jammed or totally loose. A smooth steady pull is best, generally speaking. Rotate the hand wheel toward you from the top, in a counterclockwise direction, manually (depress the speed pedal slightly to free the internal brake, if your motor has one). If you rotate the wheel the wrong way the machine will not sew! Watch as the needle goes down and starts back up. The hook should intersect the needle above the eye and you should see a loop form to the right. The hook should then pick off the loop as you continue rotating. the wheel. * The check spring's job is to maintain tension on the top thread as the take-up lever moves down. It should hold that tension until the needle contacts the top of the material. This is to keep the needle from piercing the top thread due to too much slack. OTOH, it must give up and stop before the needle starts back up, after BDC. Otherwise, no loop will be formed. The check spring is set by the dealer before the machine is shipped and is usually spot on. Report back. Over.

Yeah, shuttles are expensive to replace. I know. The bolt is where it is! That's why I loosen, then finger tighten it, so I can turn it with my fingers (in theory!). The eraser protects the shuttle when you need to hit it to move it.

Thanks for the correction Bob. It's my day off and the machine is 4 miles away from home. The whole deal is to have enough rotation between BDC and the arrival of the pointed hook to have it pick off the loop that forms on the right side of the needle. There is a best position for this to happen.

Okay, you seem to know about the hidden bolt. Here is what I do when I have to adjust machines like yours. Rotate the hand wheel until you have direct access to the bolt. Loosen the bolt, than lightly go clockwise to give it a little grip, but not a locked down tightness. Rotate the wheel until the needle has gone all the way down and comes up about 3/16". Stop rotating. Grab the shuttle and try to move it in the direction that places the point of the hook about 1/8" above the eye of the needle (with stitch lever at zero). If it won't move, place something soft, like a pencil eraser, against the appropriate edge and tap lightly to reposition the hook. Once you get the hook positioned, rotate the wheel until the face of the bolt is accessible and tighten it down all the way. Be careful not to damage the hook! Test the timing in forward and backward. If all is good, call it a day and start sewing.

Did you buy the machine brand new, from Leather Machine Company? Or, was it a used machine from a private seller? If new, you can call the company tomorrow, during normal business hours on the West Coast. There are two basic places where the timing can be adjusted. One is the height of the needle bar, which is secured by two Allen screws, inside the faceplate. The other is the positioner for the hook, which is accessible through a round covered hole in the base of the machine, on the right-front side. It is safer to try raising the needle bar than to dink with the inside the body mechanism, without expert guidance. All timing adjustments should be made with the stitch length/direction lever set to the zero movement position. This balances the range between forward and backward feeding. Also, since Bob is responding on his day off, you are under expert guidance already.

Jimbob; Here is a link to our Marketplace for Sewing equipment

I recently had to return some spring presser feet for my straight stitch machine because they were bent and misaligned. The dealer cheerfully replaced them and sent a prepaid return envelope.

The bigger the bobbin, the more thread it can hold and the more stuff you can sew between bobbin changes. It's that simple. The typical large bobbin used in modern machines (e.g. Consew 206RB-5) is called an "M" style bobbin. It holds about 50% more thread than a typical Class 15, or Singer G type bobbin and even more than a Class 66 bobbin. Where this really comes into play is if you are sewing with #138 thread in the bobbin. With an M bobbin, you may be able to sew 10 to 12 belts along the edge, depending on the thickness and overall length (this is from memory and may be overzealous). Then, there is the Juki LU bobbin, which holds double the amount of thread as a standard industrial bobbin. It is about 1/8" larger in diameter than an M bobbin and a little taller. Some Juki machines have the double capacity hooks needed to use these bobbins. These hooks are more expensive than M size hooks. The size of the hook and bobbin determine the dimensions of the business end of a cylinder arm machine. Obviously, the large bobbins take up more space than those half their diameter. So, you end up with a fatter left side of the arm. If the diameter of the arm must be as small as possible, to sew inside your important items, then a smaller bobbin machine will be required, with its lower thread holding capacity. In these instances, using a smaller bobbin thread (e.g. #69 or #92) lets you sew farther before a bobbin change.

All your work can be sewn on most any upholstery grade walking foot machine. The variables you will encounter are where it was made, what quality assurance and seller's assistance you will get, the condition of the moving parts on a used machine, the position and size of the bobbin, type of presser feet, whether it is compound or dual feed, the type of motor and size of the motor pulley. For instance, people sewing cloth and banners may prefer a machine that has teeth on the presser feet to add clawing power to bulky projects. Folks sewing veg-tan leather with a smooth grain side won't want that kind of machine because it ruins the top appearance with tooth marks. They will want a compound feed walking foot machine with smooth presser feet. They can always buy a set of feet with teeth for slippery vinyl jobs. But, it is more expensive and sometimes impossible to find smooth feet for the dual feed machines built for claw feet. Upholstery shops tend to set up their machines to sew at the machine's speed limit. For them, time is money. They use clutch motors with very large pulleys to drive the machine at the same speed or even faster than the motor! These motors spin at either 1725 or 3450 rpm (if memory serves me well at my age). Geared 1:1 (same size pulley on motor and machine), a 1725 rpm motor will drive a machine at 28 stitches per second. That is fine for sewing tarps and long couch covers, including upholstery grade leather. All the sewing is along a defined seam on the edges and an edge guide helps ensure a straight stitch line. People sewing smaller projects with sharp turns and intricate patterns, or sewing leather that is denser or harder than garment or light chap will want to sew much slower and need more precise control than one typically gets by "feathering" a clutch motor. Thus, motor manufactures began building electronically controlled motors we call servo motors. Our dealers who advertise here have chosen motors that work best with the machines they sell and warranty. These servo motors have a means of setting the upper speed limit to whatever you are comfortable sewing with. Most are still powerful enough at the slowest speed setting to power a walking foot machine at 1 stitch per second, or close to it. Some dealers will install a 3:1 speed reducer between the motor and machine to give the sewer more torque and very slow speeds, well under 1 per second. This comes in handy for pattern sewing, or penetrating hard leather. It also causes the machine to lose top end and may only allow 5 or 6 stitches per second at full bore. As for brands to recommend, I say the made in Japan Juki and Seiko, followed by new Chinese clone machines set up and vouched for by our member dealers, followed by a used machine made by Singer, National, Consew, Juki, Adler, or Pfaff. Most old machines lack reverse and may have complicated methods for changing the stitch length. Beware of the condition of old walking foot machines being sold by upholsterers (or from garage sales). They usually sew at full speed and the machine's clearances may be very sloppy. Replacing worn out parts is time consuming and can be costly. Also, new aftermarket replacement parts may not fit properly in an old machine. Since you mentioned Singer as one of the brands you are interested in, you need to know that they are no longer in production by the Singer Sewing Machine company (for a long time). You will either get a used or rebuilt machine or a knockoff relabeled with Singer decals.

I agree that is looks like a CB3500. I don't know whose machine it is or how high it lifts and sews. If it will sew 3/4 inch, it is similar to a 3500. But, if it only sews 1/2 inch, it is closer to a 3200. It should take the same feet as a Cowboy. You can buy separate left and right toe feet, accessory throat plates, edge guides, needles, bobbins, oil and thread from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines.

10-4 on that