Wizcrafts

Upholstery class machines are limited to sewing no higher than about 3/8 of an inch (10mm). You will need one that is equipped with a 3:1 speed reducer to multiply the punching power and slow it down. I recommend a Family Sew FS-550 servo motor, which is what I use now. You will probably need to use #23 or 24 leather point needles to pierce horse tack. The pressure spring may need to be replaced with one that has stronger coils. This is to hold down the thick and hard leather as the needle ascends. A better machine for breast collars, halters and bridles would be a Cowboy CB3200. It sews an honest 1/2 inch, with very thick thread (#346) and already has a servo and speed reducer. This machine is a step up from the upholstery class and is related to the big 441 types, but with less material thickness capacity. A lot of people are buying them rather than the larger machines, like the Cowboy CB4500 that I use. But, I sometimes sew 7/8" thick holsters. The machine is about 60% more than you wanted to spend, but may well be worth looking into. If all this is cornfusing, know that when I began sewing leather it took me two years of buying wrong machines before I found a real leather sewing machine that could sew thick holsters, bridles, reins and the like. Also, good leather sewing machines back then cost at least twice as much as they do now.

I buy from Cobra Steve also. He is a great guy and a knowledgeable sewing machine dealer. People new to this section of the forum sometimes don't realize the quality of the dealers who support us and lurk here. Shout out to Gregg at Keystone Sewing, who, altho not an advertiser, is a regular contributor also. Ronny at Techsew is a big time supporter of Leatherworker.net. Nick at Nick-O-Sew is our newest supporting dealer.

Look for an "upholstery" class walking foot machine (triple feed), with a large hook. Typical brands are Consew, Chandler, Singer (discontinued), Juki, Seiko and others. Less expensive machines are made in China. Better quality machines are Japanese and a few were made in the USA (old Singers). You can buy a brand new Chandler 406RB walking foot machine for about $1000. It, along with the others in this class, can use up to #138 bonded thread, which has 22 pounds breaking strength. That is good enough for horse blankets and chaps.

I regard Cowboy Bob as a personal, as well as professional friend! He is my "go to guy" when I need parts and accessories for sewing machines, or another odd machine. Now, if he could find me a transverse feed machine...

I have owned two Union Lockstitch machines, both of which could sew through 1/2 inch of plywood. They are sometimes used to sew briefcases and other luggage that has wood inside (usually 1/4 inch).

Here's a pointer: if you want a real leather sewing machine that can sew hard or thick leather with thick thread, not just an upholstery machine that can sew soft-medium temper leather, stay away from eBay or Craigslist. Every now and then a real leather sewing machine does come up for sale on those sites. But, more often than not, the machines they call leather sewing machines are either upholstery machines, sail repair machines, or glorified domestic machines with bloated claims made about their ability to sew leather. As for sewing leather, please define what kind of leather (hardness/softness), the total thickness you want to sew together (inches, ounces, millimeters) and the size/strength of thread you want to use (#69, #80 (jeans thread), #92, #138, #207, #346, #415?). Then we can help you pick a machine that meets those targets. On the top of every page on Leatherworker.net you will see up to 6 ad banners, most of which are from industrial sewing machine dealers who support this forum and sell or specialize in real leather sewing machines. Affordable means many things to different people. To me it means anything under $3000. Others may have more money in the bank and a $6,000 machine is not out of their budget. Some can only afford $1000 or less and mostly have to buy old used or off brand upholstery grade machines.

I sure could use an Adler 30-70 right now.

The puckers on the bottom can be rolled or hammered flat. An overstitch wheel will help the bottom appearance.

I guess you first need to define what you meant by "leave little or no marks on the bottom." The Cobra has a totally smooth feed dog when it arrives. There won't be any tooth marks if that's what you meant. Feed dogs help move the leather and maintain a constant stitch length. The dogs on the big Cobra, Cowboy and all other 441 class machines are almost 3/8 inch across and have a hole large enough to clear a #280 needle; just about 1/8 inch. The combination of this elongated hole and the inside presser foot is part of what causes the puckering on the bottom of the needle holes. Please define what you expect, or don't want for the bottom appearance.

You can sew 8 ounces together on a 29-4 patcher. But, you are limited to using #69 bonded thread, top and bottom. It will actually sew a solid 12 ounces, or 3/16 inch and possibly as much as 16 ounces. But, the stitch length gets shorter as you move beyond 8 ounces. A pristine Singer patcher can only sew 5 to the inch at 1/8 inch and about 7 to the inch at 1/4 inch. A machine with a hundred years of wear in the feeding mechanism will be lucky to sew 8 to the inch at 1/8 inch thickness. Test the machine before you decide. Make an offer if you feel you can use the machine. They are invaluable for sewing patches onto Biker's vests.

Test the machine with some scrap sole leather and #277 thread, using a #25 (200) chisel or diamond point needle. If it can hold your leather down while forming the lockstitches and places the knots well up into the leather, you are probably good to go. But, if the pressure spring can't hold the leather down, you'll get skipped stitches and bent needles. Also, if there are presser foot options, use the widest outside foot you can get. This spreads out the force over a wider swath and tends to hold down tough leather much better than narrow feet can do.

At 3/4 inch your Cobra will need all the pressure you can apply to the presser feet. This is to hold the leather down as the loaded needle comes up with the knot from the bobbin thread. The pressure is divided equally between the inside and outside feet. The inside foot directly surrounds the needle and pushes the leather down hard into the big slot in the feed dog on the bottom. You are going to have deep puckers on the bottom, surrounding the needle holes. If you use the supplied S point needles, the top stitches will look much better than the bottom, which will appear shorter from being drawn in to the oval holes. You can get around this by ordering diamond point needles in the proper sizes for the thread combinations you plan to use. Diamond points produce a better matched top and bottom stitch. But, the puckers will be visible on the bottom. The only way to reduce the puckering is to greatly reduce the foot pressure. Unfortunately, unless you are sewing harness or bridle leather, the low pressure usually allows the leather to lift with the needle, causing skipped stitches. One solution to this, for 3/4 inch sewing, is to use a Campbell-Randall Lockstitch machine, or equivalent needle and awl harness stitcher. Even a Union Lockstitch produces a nicer bottom stitch than any closed eye needle machine I have ever used. They have a jumping foot that is either single or double toe. The immediate radius around the stabbing awl has nothing but air. The hold-down pressure is off to the sides of the slot in the throat plate and bottom puckering is almost non-existent. Top and bottom stitches closely resemble those of a hand stitching awl with a chisel point needle. These are my observations from using both types of machines.

I own a Singer 31-15. It is a tailoring machine and not much more. I am able to run up to #69 (Tex 70) bonded thread through it, although it prefers cotton or polyester garment or jeans thread. My 31-15 uses system 16x257 (aka, 1738, DBx1, DBx257) needles, in sizes 10 through 18, which are available in a variety of points. For canvas, denim, cotton and webbing, use ball point needles. For suede or thin garment leather, use a leather point needle with an oval chisel point. If you find that your machine lacks pulling power, know that there are at least three different feed dog/throat plate combinations for your machine: fine teeth, medium teeth and heavy teeth. You will probably have to get a set of heavy teeth feeder and the matching plate for moving suede along. They stand taller and are wider than the standard or fine set. Leathers and some suede can be sticky under the presser foot. You can either swap out the foot to a Teflon foot, or a roller equipped foot. There are literally dozens of presser feet and folder attachments that fit these machines. I find that about the thickest my machine can actually sew is just about 1/4 inch, with a flat foot. But, with the taller roller equipped foot, 3/16" is the maximum

The 211w151 is bottom and needle feed only. The presser foot is static. Clearance under the foot is either set to 1/4" or 3/8", depending on the needle system it was set up to use. Those become the maximum thicknesses that can be sewn. The job of the presser foot is to hold down the material as the stitches are formed. If the material is tough it can lift with the needle and this causes skipped stitches. To keep hard leather from lifting, you'll need to increase the pressure on the foot. The higher the foot pressure, the more drag it exerts on the leather. This can reduce the length of your stitches, or bend the needle.

The O.P. asked about type 7x3, which are round point needles. The equivalent in leather point is either 7x4 or 794.

Cobra Steve has all types of needles. Certainly, the dealer who sold you your CB3200 has needles for it. Type 7x3 are round point and are mostly available in sizes 19 through 22. However, they are also to be had in larger sizes for sewing heavy webbing. I have some in #27 that I use to poke round holes along the side of belts for little Bling rivets.

Before doing anything I mention below, try rotating the outer foot pressure adjuster on top of the machine. Sometimes they get drilled off center and the presser bar can hang, until you lift and release to feet. It happened on my machine and I drilled out the bore slightly to clean it up. Check the forward alignment of the inner and outer feet, to ensure they don't make contact and bind against each other. You may have to remove the (4) C-clamps from the crank arms controlling the feet, including the one on the back, and pull off the entire crank assembly. It will be hell to get it all back on, but it is doable. I just went through that process, for other reasons. Remove the needle first. At this point the inside foot will be rotatable slightly. Make sure is doesn't bind going all the way up and down (disconnected. With the cranks off you can plainly see what is going on with the lifter block. You also have unfettered access to the screws that lock the presser bar in position. It may need to be lifted, lowered, or rotated slightly (if the inner and outer feet hit each other). Unscrew the adjuster and see if you can fully raise the outside presser bar, then have it drop on its own when you let go. The block with the big roller rides against a flat steel bar with oversize holes. They allow you to move the top and bottom as needed for the smoothest up and down flow and lease forward/backward free motion needed. You can actually remove the presser bar from the top, with the outer foot and screw off. Then you can plainly see what is deflecting the big coil spring and shifting the lift block. Oil everything left in the head, which will be so much easier with half the parts out. Oil the four shafts before trying to reinstall the crank assembly. A magnetic pickup tool is your friend. Make sure that parts that fall down cannot fall through to China! I save clips and screws on magnets, or in magnetic bowls. If you find that the casing has been gouged by the binding lifter, try to smooth out the sharp edges. It's hard to troubleshoot these machines over forum posts. But, once you figure out what caused all this, you will have lots more experience in case something similar ever occurs.

Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines is in Toledo, Ohio, possibly a less than 5 hour drive. Dealers who cater to leather crafters are the exception, not the rule. Show some lurve and click the ad banners at the top, then call or email them with your request for help finding the right machine.

See the hole in the frame near the timing belt, on the bottom? A rod needs to feed through that hole, connected to some arm on the upper back side of the machine. You need to hook up the knee lever so it makes firm contact with that rod. When your knee forces the rod up, the feet will lft and at some point the top tension will be released..

Your machine is a newer version of a Singer 132k6, which I once owned. The foot could "lift" 1/2 inch, but hard leather like sole bends will probably grab the needle and lift with it. You will have bent or broken needles and marked up leather The needle clamp may not even be able to hold the needle in and it may have to be fished out with pliers. When I owned a Union Lockstitch machine the manual referred to fair stitching on shoes (soles). It was recommended to oil or wet the leather before sewing. I believe it said to not even try stitching them dry. Also, I ran my (linen) thread through liquid wax/lube (Ceroxylon) that helped it go through tough multiple layers of leather. And that was a needle and awl machine.

I get both 7x3 ans 794 needles from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines.

With the exception of the Singer 111, all the others are strictly cloth garment sewing machines. You need to find out the suffix after the "W"; e.g. w103, w155. No doubt, some of those garment machines will spin so fast you caould control them. Factories use high speed Juki machines to sew at 80 or 90 stitches per second. They need to spin fast to distribute the oil from the oil pan to the wicks feeding the extremities. You need to be sewing at well under 10 stitches per second and either learn to feather the clutch to slow down, or replace the entire motor with a servo motor. Servo motors let you sew at a slow steady speed, often at 1 stitch per second.

Pawpa, I am sorry. I turned off my person messenger a couple of weeks ago when I went out of town and forgot to turn it back on. It's back on now. I also listed a good email address in one of the fields in my profile.

When Cowboy Bob told me that the 205 clones run smoother I took that to mean less vibration. You'll have to call Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines, at 866-362-7397 and ask him yourself. Your previous question about pneumatics would be custom fabrications done by the factory for particular large industrial customers, or the dealers who set up the machines. The new Adler 969 comes with pneumatic foot lift. Contact Weaver Leather, at 800-weaver1 for more details. You must have a business license and tax number to order from Weaver.

I dunno bout that. Most of the servo motors I've had don't freewheel as well as clutch motors. My Family Sew barely has 3/8 inch of toe movement on the pedal before it engages forcefully. The only way to get more usable free motion is to remove the brake pad entirely. Most clutch motors can be set for well over 3/4 inch of free motion before engaging. I mention this because I always hand wheeled my Union Lockstitch machines around corners, belt tips and fishtail patterns. Without the ability to freewheel, I would have had to depend on the ability of the motor to sew slowly enough to place the awl exactly where I wanted it, no questions asked. Also, without free motion, these motors fight your efforts to hand wheel a machine.