Wizcrafts

I don't have photos handy right now, but I can put leather thread sizes into perspective compared to home sewing thread. Most home sewing machines are built to use the cotton or polycore threads sold at Walmart, Kmart, Target, Joann Fabrics, etc. The typical number equivalent that makes sense to us would be that those common domestic sewing threads for shirts would be about 1/2 to 2/3 the thickness of the smallest thread commonly used in leather sewing: #b69, or Tex70. The domestic thread would require a #11 or 12 needle. The smallest thread we use (69) requires a #16 or 18 needle. Strength-wise, domestic cotton thread might break with a good tug of your hands, pulling the ends of the thread in opposite directions. #69 bonded nylon requires 11 pounds pull before it thinks of breaking. Jeans are usually sewn with what's sold as Jeans thread. It can be had in three sizes, from super thin to quite thick, with #80 being the most common. This is a topstitch thread that is hard to sew on a domestic machine. It requires a #19 needle, at minimum. Domestic needles normally stop at #18. The next size to it in bonded thread is #92 (T90). It has 50% more strength than #69 and requires a #19 or 20 needle. This is a good size for wallets, purses, backpacks and lined belts not exceeding 6 - 8 ounces thickness. Serious leather sewing begins with #138 bonded thread, using a #23 leather point needle. The breaking strength is 22 pounds pull. I use it to construct rifle slings, guitar straps, pocket holsters, heavier wallets and money belts. Domestic machines cannot sew with this thread under any circumstances. This is also the largest typical thread used in upholstery and in upholstery class walking foot machines. Holsters, double leather belts, knife sheathes, handcuff pouches and the like are usually sewn with combinations of #207 and #277 bonded thread. Items that are subject to abuse, or which must not give up the thread if the item gets caught in something, or holsters that could be in life and death struggles for a gun, should be sewn with a minimum of #277 thread, top and bottom. This thread has 44 pounds strength per stitch. It requires a #25 leather point needle and a very large and super heavy duty sewing machine. These machines are sometimes called harness stitchers. Many here use what we call 441 clones, based on the original Juki TSC-441, but half the cost. Saddlers and harness makers from the old school often prefer a different stitching machine than the 441 types, which are triple feed walking foot machines, using a large, closed eye needle. They often own needle and awl stitchers, which use a barbed eye needle and stabbing awl. The machines are HUGE and heavy; sometimes being over 100 years old and still going. I've owned two of these: Union Lockstitch machines. They didn't blink when sewing with #346 and larger thread, which has a 66 pound strength per stitch. I even used #554 at times, which is almost 1 mm thick. I used #346 thread on double leather weight lifters' belts, sewn on a Union Lockstitch machine. With the pedal all the way down, they sew 15 stitches per second and sound like 50 caliber machine guns. I hope this helps put threads into the perspective you were seeking.

My partner forgot to pull the top thread all the way into the upper tension disks today. The result was a solid bobbin thread under the work with loops of top thread surrounding the bobbin thread. Pull the top thread all the way down before stitching.

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The LU-562 is a decent walking foot machine. They only have a standard bobbin, whereas the 563 has a double capacity bobbin. The price is a bit high for a machine that the seller admits needs work. If you need to send it to a dealer for repairs, the cost will go up a lot. Have you checked with any dealers for good, working walking foot machines? You might pay a few hundred more, but get one that sews properly and probably has a servo motor. Or, you might get real lucky and learn that the only reason it needs timing is because the safety clutch disengaged the shuttle to protect it after a thread jam. But, don't count on it.

Dual feed usually relies upon teeth on the presser foot to claw the material forward or backward for each stitch. The feed dog on the bottom assists the feeding. The needle and inside foot are horizontally static and only move vertically. Layers can separate if not stapled, taped, or glued. The teeth will mark smooth top grain leather. These machines are okay for pebbled grain, or purse, shoe, upholstery, vest, or motorcycle leathers. Then there is the ancient Singer spring foot system that has a spring loaded outer foot that follows the material backward, with the feed dog raised and moving, then snaps forward when the feed dog drops. The outside foot slips and slides on very smooth top grain leather and this results in stitches varying in length. Given any choice, try to buy a triple (compound) feed walking foot machine. Ask about Consew, Chandler, Juki, Seiko, Adler, or a clone of these machines.

To the O.P.; A "serger" is a machine that is built to sew a tight stitch over the edge of garments to prevent the cloth from unraveling. They are also known as overlock machines. The needles are typically very thin and cannot stand penetrating leather. Look inside a pair of jeans and you will see this overlock stitching on one side.

Tejas made a very important statement. He pointed out that just because a sewing machine has a "walking foot" system, it is not necessarily the best walking foot system for sewing leather. We prefer to use what are known as compound, or triple feed walking feet. A triple feed system has three items moving in sync: the feed dog, the needle and the inside foot. The outside foot moves up and down to either hold down the leather between stitches, or to allow the above mentioned group to move it as the stitch is formed. Portable walking foot machines are all dual feed, with the outside foot moving in sync with the feed dog. The needle and inside foot simply go up and down. Additionally, these machines rely upon teeth on the bottom of the feet to assist it with feeding slippery material. These teeth will noticeably mark the top of the leather.

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If it sews and has needles and bobbins, it is worth something. It won't sew holsters, but will probably do wallets and thin pouches and cases. It looks like an interesting project for somebody willing to restore it. The size of the needles determines how thick the thread can be. See what size needle and thread it is setup with. Maybe the previous owner modified it to sew thicker and heavier than Davis intended.

I have several Singer thumb screws that secure attachments onto the bed or a cover plate. Most that are unaltered are 5-40 pitch. Your machine may use 5-40, or 6-40, or something else.

The Davis VF2 went out of production around 1924. Yours may be older than that. It probably uses the same system 15x1 needles most home machines use today. But, the shuttle is another story. Hopefully, the seller has bobbins and other spare parts, cause you probably aren't going to find very many online. he VF2 has a dual feed walking foot, but no bottom feed at all. The bullet shaped shuttle oscillates in an arc under the machine. If the point is damaged, it won't pick up the needle thread. From what I've read, most of these sell at auctions or antique shops and sell in the range of $100 to $200, depending on their physical condition. It is possible that a perfectly functional and clean Davis VF2 could fetch $300, but it would have to be in very good condition.

The GA5 machines are entirely bottom feeders. Doing just about anything to the feed dog will reduce the quality of feed. To partially compensate you might have to convert it into a roller foot machine.

Single phase 110 volt clutch motors go for about $100, or so, shipped. They are heavy. Servo motors are lighter and very easy to control over a wide range of speeds. They cost about $115 plus shipping. If the machine will be kept and used for any leather sewing, a modern servo motor is recommended. Clutch motors are usually off to the races, unless you learn to feather the clutch. Keep in mind that your machine is self oiling and must spin fast, often, to distribute the oil to the ends of the wicks. The oil pan must be filled to the etched level inside the pan and the pickup filter kept free of debris. By spin fast I mean well over 2500 rpm, or pedal down. Some folks do this to wind bobbins and before a day's work with the machine.

You can replace the motor with a new servo motor. That will give you a wide range of speeds. But, it has a sump pump and is built to be run at about 4,000 rpm, or stitches per minute. This works out to maybe 60 stitches per second, plus or minus 6. At its maximum stitch length it will move along at just under one foot per second. The thread handling capacity is perhaps #92 bonded, but more likely, #69. These machines normally sew with cotton or polycore thread, not bonded nylon. The presser foot lifts to about 5/16 inch and sews about 1/4 inch of material, or so. The needle system is made for garment sewing, using cotton, polyester and denim cloth. It will have trouble going over seams because of its basically flat foot.

Folks, the poster is in Great Britain and pays for things in Pounds Sterling, not dollars.

The DNU-1541s is a scaled down, pro-sumer version of the flagship LU-1508NH. The specs can be found at http://www.juki.co.jp

I forgot to mention that both the 29-4 and 29k70 use the tiny Singer #8604 bobbins. They are about the diameter of a US dime and as tall as three dimes stacked together. These bobbins don't last very long before running out of thread. Most cobblers and vest patch installers use #69 thread in them and only sew very short distances.

If you scribe or gouge a stitch line along the edge you can lock the presser foot and sew pretty straight. This depends on how many beers you had before sewing.

The LU-1508 is a professional grade, walking foot, triple feed sewing machine. It has a double capacity hook/bobbin and a special bottom feed architecture that minimizes stretch. It can handle up to #207 thread, which many walking foot machines struggle with. Conversely, due to the square drive feed dog, it can also sew thin material with very thin thread. Many walking foot machines do poorly on thin, flimsy materials. Finally, at $1300, you are paying half the list price. This should be a no-brainer, unless there is something wrong with it. Definitely go check it out and bring some of your work to test it. The only other good option at that price point is a used cylinder arm, walking foot machine. We call these 227 clones. Or, maybe you can find a Consew 227 itself. There are some brand new, Chinese built leather sewing machines in the range of $1200 to $1600, fully equipped. You should look into the machines sold under the Cowboy, Cobra and Techsew brand names, as well as Nick-O-Sew. Their machines are built to dealer specs and the dealers stand firmly behind their machines. As it happens, Techsew are a Canadian company, based in Montreal. However, all will ship to Canada at very reasonable prices. All of the above brands are advertisers on the LeatherWorker.Net forums, with rotating banners on top of every page. Most industrial sewing machine dealers sell both new and used/rebuilt machines. If you buy one from a reputable dealer, you can expect help from the seller if you run into problems. If you buy used privately, you may be on your own to diagose the cause of problems and to buy/install replacement parts.

Well, the 29-4 is probably over 100 years old and is likely worn out. The 29k series have replaceable "gear boxes" where the shuttle driving components live. They also have much better tensioning parts on top. No matter the condition of the machines, they both do the same kind of work. That is: shoe, boot and purse patching, sewing biker patches onto vests and jackets, especially over pockets, or onto sleeves, You can also sew zippers onto some garments and not too thick leather jackets, but it is often a struggle on a patcher. What to expect in capacities: Older patchers are mostly limited to #69 (T70) bonded nylon thread, top and bottom. If the machine is very tight and in very good repair, it will handle #92 (T90) thread. The lift of the foot, which has teeth on the bottom, determines the thickness that can be sewn and advanced. In practical terms, most Singer patchers won't sew over 1/4 inch and still be able to advance the work for the next stitch. The teeth are required to pull the material and will seriously mark veg-tan leather on the top facing side. The stitch length of a brand new unit is 5 to the inch, at no more than 1/8th inch thickness. The stitches get shorter as the thickness increases. Machines that have seen a lot of hard use often only produce very short stitches, like 7 or 8 to the inch.

The "needle thread" is the top thread that is feeding off of the spool of thread on top somewhere. If that thread is too strong, or tight, try backing off the knurled adjuster nut for the top tension disks. Also, check the path of the thread to see if it has twisted around something, or itself. If the spool is sitting on the little thread platform bolted onto the right-front of the machine, put something slippery under it, like a washer cut from felt. Eliminate as much drag as you can, along the thread path. I went to the extent of installing regular industrial thread stands on my patchers. They feed up, off the top of the spools, and have no appreciable thread drag. Make sure the bobbin thread feeds under the tiny spring in the outside cutout of the bobbin case, then goes up through the tiny hole over the spring, and that the tension screw has enough tension to apply a little resistance, but with a smooth pull. If your machine uses the larger bobbins, you also have to feed the bobbin thread through the top hole in the center post on the bobbin case.

Carrie; The CB3200, 2500, 4500 and 5500, as well as the Cobra Class 3 and 4 and Techsew 4100 and 5100, are known as "441" clones. This is deceptive, in that these machines are improvements on the Juki TSC-441 design and configuration. But, one thing they all have in common is the needle system they use. It is called either system 7x3, 7x4, or 794. This defines that particular needle architecture, which in this case has an overall length of about 2.75 inches. The "size" of the needle we often refer to is not the "system," but the diameter of the business end. Next, as leather sewers we prefer to use "leather point" needles, rather than standard sharp round points. Leather points slice neatly and can penetrate hard and thick leather with much greater ease than a same diameter round point. Round point needles often have some problems coming back up through tough leather. They often make an uncomfortable loud squeak on the way up. The 2.75 inch length is easily deflected if there are any misaligned edges between the layers. Pop goes a $1.00 needle. I'm telling you this because the needles used in 441 clones are not commonly available in leather point under size 23, which is well balanced for #138 bonded nylon thread, top and bottom. Thus, if you have to sew a leather strap of about 1/8" thickness, but which is really dense stuff, you may be using a regular round point needle (size 22 or smaller) and thinner thread (size 138 and smaller). #138 thread is a tight fit in a #22 needle, but it's sometimes easier to balance the position of the knots in thinner leather than a #23 needle. Your needle may squeak and generate a lot of heat from friction and may even smoke the thread. If your sacks and backpacks need a smaller thread, like #92 (T90), a #19 or 20 needle is best. But, they are not available in leather point is those small sizes. This information is for the 441 clones. The 227 type machines are a step or two down in capacity. They use the same needles and presser feet as most of the commonly sold upholstery class walking foot machines. A 227 clone is built with #138 thread in mind. It can sew with a half size larger on top, if needed. But, if you have a thin project, or a pair of pants that need hemming, the 227 will be perfectly happy to sew with #69 (T70) bonded thread, or #80 jeans thread and even #40 button hole thread. All of the needle sizes I have seen can be had in leather point or round. We're talking small needles like size 14. Back off the thread tensions and you can even sew with standard home size 50 polycore or long grain Egyptian cotton thread. The needles are also much shorter that those used in the 441 and less likely to deflect and bend or break than a longer counterpart the same diameter. Bottom line: If 99% of your sewing will be under 3/8 inches of various materials, including leather and canvas and webbing, and the seams aren't normally subjected to a lot of tearing forces, #138 thread will probably hold it just fine. This is doubly true if you sew parallel stitch lines along critical seams. You can easily change to a #18 needle and #69 thread to sew the thin canvas parts, with just a twist of the top tension and just maybe a little tweaking of the bobbin "case" spring (for drop-in bobbin machines). I have always maintained separate machines for thick and thin work.

You should be searching for a true industrial, triple (compound) feed, walking foot machine. It should sit on top of an industrial table with a steel "k-legs" frame and have either a 1/2 HP clutch, or a decent, modern servo motor. Most machines in this "upholstery" class will sew up to 3/8 inches, with #138 bonded nylon thread, top and bottom. At 22 pounds breaking strength, #138 thread may take two rows of stitches to really secure a dog collar (depending on the strength of the animal).

A lot of standard size industrial sewing machine beds measure 7" x 19". If your machine has that size bed and you buy a table with a 7" x 19" cutout, other similar size machines will fit into the cutout. However, that is not the end of the story. The knee lever may not line up or engage the machine at all if the make and lift system are different. The height and diameter of the machine pulleys will vary, requiring different drive belts and motor height adjustments. I have two machines now that could share the same cutout. But the knee lever and motor position would need to be changed. It is simpler to have each one on its own table.

Yes. according to the specs for the CB3200 it comes with a high torque servo motor, with front panel speed control knob. It also sports a 3:1 speed reducer/torque converter.