Wizcrafts

You can bypass the reducer with a longer belt from the motor to the machine, for higher speeds.

These needle designations are more or less specific to one manufacturer. They completely leave out an entire class of chisel or wedge shaped leather point needles, often designated as LL and LR. They closely resemble hand sewing awls that are oval in shape. Some have the left side down (LL) and others have the right side down (LR). Also missing are the S point needles made by Schmetz for the big Adler and Juki 441 type machines. These needles are oval chisels, with the edges perfectly inline, front to back.

Yes Yes

No, it's just a standard upholstery grade machine. Examples of 441 clones sold by our member-dealers include: Cowboy CB3200, CB3500 and 4500 Cobra Class 3 and Class 4 Techsew 4100 and 5100 The actual 441 is the Juki TSC-441

CCPhotog; What size needle and thread are you using? What type of leather is that? IS there any chance it has rawhide inside it? I ask because it has happened to me in the past. You sew along fine, then unknowingly hit rawhide, and katish, the needle breaks.

Sorry, but I couldn't resist! ;-) My advice works for most leather capable sewing machines. The smallest needle/thread combination in my list is usually the maximum size for a home sewing machine. Old iron body machines can probably handle up to #92 thread, if you can find #19 or 20 needles to fit them. Most upholstery grade walking foot machines can sew up to 3/8 inches, with a #23 needle and #138 thread. Sewing thicker, material, or using bigger thread usually means stepping up to the largest machines.

The left or right hand twist (or wrap) we refer to is the direction in which the cords of thread are twisted together. If you hold a section of thread between both thumbs and index fingers, then twist down, away from you with the left fingers, counterclockwise, the thread will tighten. This is the standard sewing thread direction of twist or wrap.for most lockstitch sewing machines. It is also known a Z twist. The way the hooks work on modern machines, left twist stays together or gets tighter in operation. Reverse, or right twist thread is wound the other direction and tends to unravel in most lockstitch machines. Shoe sole stitchers use right twist thread. Some hand sewing waxed thread is wound with a right twist. Double needle machines have vertical axis hooks. If one hook rotates in the opposite direction to normal, right twist thread will not tend to unwind like left twist might. No, only on sewing machines.

Until you can speak with Bob Kovar, try tightening the two spring loaded screws that secure the shuttle and bobbin case to the end of the arm. Then back off between 1/4 and 1/2 turn each. Next, remove the leather and unthread and replace the needle with a brand new one. Make sure the needle is all the way up in the needle bar and well secured, with the rib on the left and scarf on the right. Set the stitch length lever to the middle - zero length position. Slowly rotate the flywheel towards you from the top (always rotate it counterclockwise) and stop when the hook point is just about to meet the plane of the needle. Shine a flashlight or the machine's LED light so you can see the alignment of the two pieces. Is the hook still about to contact the unthreaded needle, with no material under the feet? The hook should intersect the center of the needle about 1/8 to 3/16 inches above the eye, on the needle's upstroke, and miss the cutout scarf of the needle by about the thickness of a business card. If the hook actually makes contact with an unthreaded needle, with no material under the feet, the shuttle and hook need to be moved to the right a little, until the hook clears the needle. At this point you should speak with your dealer.

The chart that Tree Reaper linked to is an excellent guide for matching thread to needles. In your case, since the machine came with #138 bonded thread, it should also have #23 (Metric 160) needles with it. You should wind some #138 onto a bobbin and try again. #138 thread, top and bottom, is best sewn with a #23 needle. If you are sewing leather, a leather point needle works best.

By any remote chance, are you using right twist thread?

Upholstery grade compound feed walking foot machines are found everywhere industrial sewing machines are sold. Look up industrial sewing machine dealers in your general area. I buy most of mine from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. Brand names you should look for include, but are not limited to: Adler, Brother, Chandler, Cobra, Consew, Cowboy, Econosew, Highlead, Juki, Mitsubishi, National (out of manufacture, but I own a very good one), Pfaff, Sailrite, Singer (old and out of manufacture, but popular), Techsew, to name a few. What to look for You should look for a machine with a reverse lever, large bobbin, easily set stitch length adjuster, clutch to protect the hook in the event of a thread jam (on vertical hook machines only), and a powerful servo motor for smooth speed control.

Size 138 (T135) bonded thread is best used in 1/8 inch of leather. Under that, I recommend #92 into 4-7 ounces, or #69 into 2 - 4 ounces. It is foolhardy to mix 138 on top and 69 in the bobbin. It makes no sense at all and is pert near impossible to balance the knots. If you only need 10 or 11 pounds breaking strength, just use #69, top and bottom, with a #16 or #18 needle. If you need more strength in thin leather, try #92 thread using a #19 or 20 needle.

No. Get a separate flat bed compound feed, walking foot machine for upholstery and thin leather. They take smaller needles than don't flex as much, have narrower feed dogs with smaller holes and are more easily balanced with lighter threads. Most upholstery machines are able to sew with bonded thread sizes 46 through 138, or cotton/polyester sizes T50 through T105+, into 3/8 inches of compressed material. FWIIW; I now use system 135x16, Titanium coated needles in both my walking foot and patcher machines.

I get needles in just about all available systems and sizes from Bob. That includes #24 needles. As for the thread getting caught in the shuttle race, the same thing was happening to me. I called Bob about it and he told me to back off the two spring loaded screws a half turn from tight. That seems to have cured that issue.

Try a #24 needle.

The CB 3200 is in a class of its own. It is a new design. There are other sewing machines that can sew 1/2 inch with heavy thread, but not in that price range, or simplicity of operation, with triple feed. I could have told you about the ~$6,000 Campbell Randall needle and awl machines, or the Adler 205-370 (~$6,000). I didn't even mention the longer arm Cowboy CB4500 or Cobra Class 4, or Techsew 5100, all of which can sew 7/8" with heavy thread and sell for the lower to mid 2k range, depending on the accessories ordered. The bottom line is think about your near future plans and buy the most machine, with the best dealer support you can possibly afford.

I'm just a tinker, tailor, soldier and spy, nothing more.

Loops from the top thread under the bottom layer are caused by either little or no top tension, failing to feed the thread through the take up lever, or too much tension on the bobbin thread, or wrong hook timing. Verify that the top thread is threaded correctly. Something that is not always apparent is the rotational timing of the hook when it meets the ascending needle and grabs the loop. The hook can be made grab the loop when it is retarded or advanced, by raising or lowering the needle bar. But, if it is out of sync with the direction of motion of the take-up lever (and check spring), bad things will happen. I had to advance my hook last year to resolve an ongoing problem of the top thread making a snap noise as it was pulled around the bobbin. The retarded timing of the hook allowed the take-up lever to begin its upstroke a little too soon, pulling hard on the thread before it was past the halfway point around the bobbin. Advancing the hook and raising the needle bar allowed an extra few degrees of rotation needed to get the top thread over the hump without extra stress. This made for better bottom stitches and no more loops under the work. We are talking about very old iron here. My 31-15 is from 1921. It was never meant to use nylon thread, because such thread was non-existent back then. It was a tailoring machine, meant for use with cotton thread, sewing cotton, gaberdine and other light garments. My Dad had a 31-15 in his tailor shop, for 50 years.

3200! It has triple feed with a smooth feed dog, as opposed to single bottom feed with aggressive teeth. The 2500 has a sewing capacity of 7/16 inches. The 3200 can cover 1/2 inch. But, the triple feed is where the big difference lies. Also, the 3200 takes the same harness feet as the bigger 441 clones. The 2500 only has two feet available, to my knowledge: split toe and roller. Both machines can sew as thin as 6 ounces, using #92 bonded thread. Unfortunately, neither machines needles are available in leather point in size 20, which is the proper needle for #92 thread.

Somebody ucked him fup.

The post to which you replied with a question to the original poster is almost two years old: Posted 29 July 2012

You guys and gals can see the 1541 in action on YouTube. Various people post videos of their sewing machines in action. For those of you who are newbies to sewing leather and heavy canvas and vinyl, I have a video showing how a walking foot machine works, and another showing me sewing a rifle sling on my National 300N walking foot machine.

1: Yes, with system 135x16 leather point needles. 2: Yes, especially if you use Titanium coated series 135x16 needles

The trick to using home (domestic) sewing machines on leather is to use thin thread, like #69 bonded nylon, with a #16 or #18 leather point needle, a Teflon or roller foot, and sew no more than about 1/8 inch of soft to medium temper leather. This would be 2 to 4 layers of soft upholstery or garment leather, or one 8 ounce belt that isn't too hard. Once you start sewing belts with linings, you'll need to go through 3/16" of leather and suede. This is the outer limits for home machines. Anything thicker will have uneven stitch lengths, and trouble bring the knots up inside the bottom layer. It also tends to break needles as they get deflected by the hard internals that veg-tan leather contains. Not least is the motors on home machines. They are built and geared to penetrate cloth, not leather. You'll have to hand wheel to start sewing and to resume after slowing down.

That (RE-607) is a portable dual feed walking foot machine, with a driven outer presser foot and bottom feed dog, both with teeth. It's identical to the Rex RX-607 and Alphasew, Thompson, etc. It is fine for use on small upholstery and sail repair jobs, using outdoor canvas, Sunbrella and Naugahyde or similar vinyls.Not so good on leather, unless it is very thin and soft. Capacity is around 1/4 inch of compressed soft material. It will handle thread sizes up to #92, using a #20 needle, but it will last longer using #69 thread and a #18 needle. The motor is rated at 1/10th horsepower, which is about 1/5 to 1/8 the average power used in real walking foot machines (1/2 to 3/4 HP). That said, if you have any plans to sew medium or hard leather, or any stack exceeding 1/4 inch, or with thread sizes 138 or larger, this is not the machine you want. It will bend the presser foot drive lever and seize shafts in their cheap bearings. These are Chinese clones of other clones of earlier clones of the Thompson portable. The best of the bunch is the current models from Sailrite, as they have beefed up moving parts and connecting rods and better bearings. I made the mistake of buying a machine like this off eBay. It arrived with the main shaft seized from handling by the carriers, although the box had no external damage. The drive levers could be bent with your hands. I was lucky enough to get a partial refund after paying to ship it back.