Wizcrafts

Another difference is that the ancient patchers had a torsion bar pressure spring running along the back side of the body, whereas the 29k models switched over some time ago to an internal coil spring, with a screw in adjuster for foot pressure. The old torsion bar had a sliding puck to adjust the amount of lift the foot got, while the newer style has a butterfly screw in a slot, directly on the back side of the head. Furthermore, the newer style has a screw adjuster inside the trapeze on top. That adjuster allows you to control the position of the knots, or to add/subtract slack in the top thread. It can add lift to the take-up lever as the needle ascends The old model 4 only has a thin spring to keep the thread under control as the needle bar moves down. It does not add lift as it ascends. The newer models have a removable gear box, where the -4 does not.

I can see one of those in my future!

As I suggested, contact Bob Kovar. He owns all kinds of sewing machine manuals and parts lists. He probably has one of the largest collection of parts for all model 29 machines in this hemisphere.

I used to have one of those spring foot machines. It was my second industrial sewing machine and I kept it for just two stressful weeks. If I recall correctly, it used the same needle system as the 96k40 I bought first: system DBx1, 16x257, 1738. That machine did very poorly on slick leather, with a limit of #138 thread top and bottom, using a #23 leather point needle. The stitches were all over the place, changing from long to short, as the foot slipped on the slick top grain. I think these machines would be best limited to #92 thread, which doesn't need as much thread tension as 138. The higher the thread tension, the harder it is to advance the work without compound feed.

Contact Bob Kovar, at Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines: 866-362-7397.

Find an upholstery or drapery shop and ask what they use and what they might let go of. Look for a compound (triple) feed walking foot machine made for upholstery work. Bring material and test anything you find. Upholsterers tend to stick to major brands that can be serviced by any industrial sewing machine shop. They avoid cheap Chinese knockoffs, favoring American, German and Japanese built machines.

I have a 31-15 straight stitch machine. They use system DBx1 or 1738 needles, which are tailoring and garment making needles. My 31-15 cannot handle anything stronger than #69 bonded thread, using a #18 needle. Its sewing capacity is about 3/16 inch of soft wallet leather, or hems on jeans, or seams on vests or chaps.

You probably need a triple feed walking foot machine, using system 135x16 or 135x17 needles and standard "type 111" presser feet that allow it to sew 3/8 inches of material. The maximum foot lift with the knee lever is usually about 1/2 inch, even though it can only sew 3/8. Most will top out at #138 bonded thread (22 pounds breaking strength), top and bottom, using a #23 needle. You can find these (used) machines at upholstery and drapery shops or your local/nearby Craigslist. Most are sold for between $500 and $800, depending on how worn out they are. You may even find an old Singer 111w155 that still works, for about $400. You will not get a new one for anywhere near $500. A new Chandler 406RB sells for about $1000. A Consew 206RB is around $1250 and a Juki DNU-1541 will set you back about $1600.

15-91, with a gutless pod motor. I have one and eventually gave up trying to use it for anything tougher than a few layers of denim.

The timing looks good.

Can't see the hook in relation to the eye of the needle. Remove the feed dog and upload it.

The worse part of this is waiting on my partner's relative to do the metal work, for cheap. We still don't have the top and bottom plates made for the press. Being a shoestring operation slows you down a lot, compared to those who can afford to have things made professionally.

Don't know from experience, but I have been looking at the boot stretcher they sell. It appears to be a family run business. Why don't you send them a message and see how they answer you. OTOH, you could search out a hand operated sole stitcher.

Do you realize that the timing is different in reverse than in forward? If your machine is marginally timed in forward, it may be on the brink in reverse. The simplest way to find out is to remove the throat plate and feeder, then rotate the hand wheel until the needle ascends and the pickup hook intersects it. At that point, press or throw the reverse lever and watch the needle move backwards. Is the hook still arriving above the eye, or is it almost inline with it? You can adjust the timing by either advancing the hook, or lowering the needle bar. Try one or the other and see if that improves the situation.

Those images are JavaScript driven overlays. The forum software may or may not limit the size of the displayed large images. If it doesn't, as I suspect, the person uploading it is solely responsible for the dimensions that open in the overlays. That said, what device are you using to view the forum? If it's a PC or Mac, what size is your desktop or laptop monitor screen? It is possible that your screen resolution is insufficient for some of our overlayed images. If you cannot change to a larger display resolution, try holding down the Control key and tapping the - key. This reduces the size of the contents of anything inside Firefox, other than the browser itself. To return to the original, default size, hold Control and press the 0 (zero) key. Ctrl and + makes everything larger in Firefox.

I just placed an order for two pieces of foam, 12" x 24", from knifekits.com.Thanks for the recommendation. I now have two different types of rubber to use. We are still waiting for the metal work to come back, so the rubber can be tested.

This is a very old machine. Oil it when you get it set up in every available oil hole, including tilting the head back and oiling the connecting rods on the bottom. Then, oil it routinely, weekly for light use, or daily after heavy use. Use industrial sewing machine Lily oil only. Hold the threads back before you start sewing. To lock the stitches, sew backwards about three stitches, then do the Poor Man's Reverse and sew forward to the end. Do another Poor Man's reverse to lock in the last three stitches. Clean all the tension disks and guides, plus the bobbin basket and bobbin spring. Oil the revolving shuttle in which the bobbin sits. Do not over stress the machine. It is for light sewing. Do not pull back too hard on the leather as you sew, or you will override the walking foot and needle feed. This will cause short and long stitches. Use bonded nylon thread if possible. Do not run it too fast or it may overheat and seize the bearings. 10 to 12 stitches per second should be the limit after all these years. Get leather point needles for leather. Use round points for cloth, webbing and vinyl.

All of the brands you listed, plus, Chandler, Consew, Cowboy and Technew, just to name a few good brands. All of these companies make excellent triple feed walking foot machines, with large bobbins and reverse, to modern standards.

I don't recall speaking highly of the 96k40, just mentioning that it was my first mistake when I got into sewing leather. They are tailors' machines and nothing more. The only way I got it to sew a leather vest was by converting it into a roller foot machine, which involved replacing the foot, throat plate and feed dog. After all that, it would only properly tension #69 bonded thread, into not much more than about 3/16 inch of garment leather seams. It definitely sewed better on cloth than leather. The Singer 78-1 is a double feed machine, without feed dogs. You may or may not have trouble maintaining a consistent stitch length, depending on the nature of the material and thickness changes. You should be setting your sights on a true, compound feed, walking foot machine for leather work. Modern w.f. machines can sew with #138 thread, top and bottom, up to 3/8 inches of compressed material. They usually have reverse levers and long maximum stitch lengths. Some can even handle #207 thread, especially those with large bobbins. Read my sticky post at the top of the Leather Sewing Machines forum for details about the type of machines you really need to sew various types and thicknesses of leather.

Hopefully, we'll know soon. My partner is having the metal plates made and welded to the frame strut and jack push rod. The bottle jack is a simple Harbor Freight model without any gauge. It has a two piece round steel handle. I am not so concerned about damaging our blue guns. But, I am worried about a customer's real pistol under such tough material. I'm searching for 30 D rubber to place on the holster side, but have only found neoprene thus-far. The whole shebang will be doubling as a clicker die press.

O. What letter or class of bobbin does it use?

I wonder if two 1" rubber sheets will accomplish a similar result to a solid 2" sheet (which doesn't appear to be available)? Maybe combinations of 30 D and 40 D, with 30 facing the project.

Try backing off the pressure spring, bobbin and top disk tensions. Thin material has a harder time feeding evenly if the thread is pulling it back, or the feet hold it too tightly.

No, that's not right. You shouldn't notice any change in stitch length for such thin leather. Are you using the feed dog, or just the slotted plate?

Tell me more about the vacuum bag, Dwight.