Wizcrafts

They are both good machines for your startup in sewing. Contact both dealers and see what it will cost to get their machine to you, on a pallet, threaded and ready to sew. I almost bought a CB227R, but went for the bigger CB4500 instead. If I had more room in my shop I might go for one of them. As is, I have squeezed in three sewing machines and one skiving machine and don't know where another unit could possibly fit!

The 3200 is a 441 clone, using system 794 (leather) and 7x3 (cloth/webbing/vinyl) needles. In my experience, these needles don't come in leather point under size 23, which is best suited for use with #138 bonded thread. The knots formed when the tensions are perfectly balanced would be well centered in approximately 7 to 8 ounces of leather (1/8 inch). In anything thinner, the knots would be visible either on top or on the bottom. If you need to use that type of machine with thinner work, you'll need thinner thread and thinner regular point needles. It will take a lot of dinking around to re-balance the top and bottom tensions for say #69 bonded nylon, sewn with a #18 non-leather point needle. The needle is 2 3/4 inches long, very thin, and subject to easy deflection by the layers. Deflection means bent or broken needles and/or many skipped stitches. This is before I tell you about the very large, 3/8" wide feed dog, with a really big oblong hole in it (for up to #27 needles), which moves in a very long and wide slot. This machine is best suited for sewing very firm leather or webbing projects, at least 6 to 8 ounces thick, with thread sizes 138 and UP. In contrast, the 227 type machines have a 1/4 inch wide feed dog that has a fairly small hole, allowing for no more than a #25 needle, if even that. If you need to sew very thin parts, like 3 to 4 ounces, you're better off with a lesser machine, like the "227R" type. It takes the ultra-common system 135x16 leather point and 135x17 round point needles and can sew up to, but not exceeding 3/8 inch, with up to #138 thread. Some folks have tweaked these machines to sew with #207, but usually, only on top, with #138 in the bobbin. They can sew as easily with #69 thread, using a #16 or #18 needle, with even less pressure needed to hold down the work (the thicker and harder the leather or webbing, the more pressure it takes to hold it down between stitches. If the leather lifts with the ascending needle, it skips those stitches.). So you see, there are machines that are best for sewing with thinner needles and thread into thinner projects, and others that are best used with heavier needles and thread and thicker jobs only. There are very few machines that reliably sew from a couple ounces up to 1/2 inch, or more, with thread sizes 69 through 346. If you have to choose just one machine to start with, and most of your work will be under 3/8 inches, go for a 227 type (medium duty, cylinder arm) machine, with a reverse lever. When the time comes to sew holsters and sheathes, weight belts and harnesses, buy a bigger stitcher that goes over 3/4 inches, with the heaviest thread sizes.

Eventually, the tinkers among us will start using their sewing machines to earn their living. I sew almost every work day, on one or more of the 3 industrial sewing machines in my shop. I have no time anymore to dink with a finicky machine while a customer is waiting for a job to be finished. Downtime on machines for me and others sewing for a living equals money lost and nerves stretched to the breaking point.

As you have discovered, once the tip of that type of hook and shuttle assembly is worn down, like yours is, it can never get close enough to the needle to be 100% effective. You can dink with it until you're blue in the face, or try brazing on some steel, but why bother? Get a brand new complete shuttle assembly and be done with it. Then you can use the machine to sew, rather than it being a boat anchor. If you're anything me, once you get past fixing that old worn out machine, you'll only buy newer or rebuilt ones in the future.

Replace the hook!

A Family Sew FS-550, equipped with a 2 inch pulley, needs no help from a speed reducer on a simple walking foot or straight stitch flat bed machine. I have one powering my 20 inch bed Singer 139 walking foot machine and it has all the power it can possibly use, even at the slowest speed setting. The same setup can speed up 10 x faster with the twist of the speed limited knob.

It sounds like your shuttle driver gear is out of sync with the needle bar. There are only two places that can adjust this relationship on a patcher. One is the eccentric screw connecting a rod inside the body to the rack gears. It is accessed through a big hole on the lower front of the main body. Turning the large flat slotted screw moves the shuttle. The second place is underneath, where the rack gears turn the shuttle gear. You may need to change the position of the shuttle gear, or maybe even the passive rack gear.

You'll also need the screw that secures the outer foot to the presser foot bar and evidently, the left cover plate (where the big oil hole is).

Compound feed walking foot machine, with a cylinder arm at least 10.5" long, with reverse, capable of sewing 3/8 inch seams. Most machines in this category can handle thread up to #138 bonded nylon, or as thin as #46 bonded or #50 cotton. A good thread for your application might be Tex 80 jeans thread. I would recommend using a size 19 needle with this thread.

Once you sew on a powered 441 clone, you won't even think about using a manual stitcher (except for on-location shows lacking power). Also, you only need to encounter one project that requires you to turn 90 or more degrees, where the side you turn into exceeds 5 inches, to appreciate a longer arm machine. I can't even imagine having less than 12 inches of arm for the work I do.

If you simply change the motor pulley, you save money, but lose your top speed. If you swap out the motor for a servo motor with good slow speed control, you lose nothing on the top end, but gain the slow speeds you are missing with the clutch. Or, learn to feather your clutch for slow speeds.

You're using the wrong needle for sewing leather. Type 135x17 is for cloth, webbing and vinyl. You need type 135x16, preferably with an "S" oblong chisel point to sew leather properly. As for needle sizes, I recommend a #18 needle with #69 thread and a #20 with #92 thread. You can move both down one size (16 and 19) for a tighter stitch, but may need to increase the top tension to keep the knots buried.

The guard is adjustable with a screwdriver. It is set as you described yours, to just barely brush the inside of the needle, in the cutout scarf area. It protects the point of the hook. The hook should arrive as the needle starts ascending above BDC, and should be about 1/8 inch above the top of the eye. This is roughly in the center of the scarf area. You don't have to have the guard touching the needle if you have a good size loop on the right of the eye, but it should be real close. The stitches tend to pull the needle to the left as you sew, depending on the top thread tension. If you operate with very relaxed tensions, the deflection may be minimal. Tighten it up and the needle will move to the left more.

There is a very small set screw that tightens the shuttle driver to the rack/pinion gear driven shaft that turns it. The shuttle pinion gear is underneath and is driven by alternating rack gears. If the set screw in the shuttle is loose, and/or if the hole in which is sits has worn oval, the timing will be lost, or flakey at best. Move the patcher so that you can see the back side of the arm, near the left end. You should find a small hole in the arm, big enough for a thin blade screwdriver. Rotate the hand wheel very slowly, while shining a light into that hole, until you see the slotted head of the set screw appear. Open the throat plate and see if the shuttle and bobbin case are in the timed position. If not, rotate them by hand until they are just behind the needle. Then use a thin blade screw driver to tighten the screw as much as possible. Observe the geometry of the hole around the screw to see if it has worn oblong. If a loose set screw was the problem, your machine should now be close to being timed. If the hole in the shuttle driver is also worn oblong, nothing will keep in in time. If the screw head is stripped and you cannot tighten it up, order a replacement. If the shuttle is worn, replace it.

Go for it. You know the mechanic if anything goes wrong.

Why aren't you using your Cobra edge guide to place the stitches where you want them? It can be set any distance to the right of the needle.

The answer depends on the make and model of your sewing machine! Whatcha got?

My machine came to an abrupt halt yesterday, while I was sewing a holster. It turned out that the top thread got double wrapped around the shuttle for whatever reason. I had to cut the thread under the leather and clear the thread jam to continue sewing. It happens! On other machines I use, if I go over a very thick seam and the presser feet are set to maximum alternating lift, the outer foot can hit the presser bar inside the head and halt the machine on the spot. I had to modify the opening on the back of the head on my National walking foot machine to allow the cranks to move freely over thick seams, with a high lift ratio. The OP's problem may be a loose set screw, a thread jam, or even a high lift issue. It might even be from the needle mount hitting the presser foot on the downstroke. This is caused by sewing too much thickness for the height of the needle.

A popular 441 clone

I happen to know a dealer who has a Gritzner hand operated sole stitcher that he just might sell, in the USA.

A Frobana sole stitcher will do what you want to do. It only sews along the outer edge of a shoe, with a minimum 1/4 inch thickness, using curved needles. The machines and needles are available from Power Shoe in Holland. They are available in manual or power stand configurations. Alternately, you can buy a Landis sole stitcher in the USA.

Sometimes it is easier to flip the table on its back to change motors and wiring. Take the machine head off completely, as well as the thread stand and remove the accessory drawer. Clean the oli pan with a paper towel, then flip it on its back side. You may need to use a vise grip to hold the carriage bolt heads as you loosen the nuts under the motor mounting brackets.

Ask your dealer what it is cloned after. With that information you can discover what parts are available for it.

Add back tension to the top thread by wrapping around the holes in the guide before the upper tension disks. This may cause too much top tension, so back off the beehive spring nut to compensate. OR If still no happy happy, feed the thread under the little stud on the right side of the tension disks, then up and over/inside the disks. The sharp turn up and down should keep the thread in the center of the disks. OR Some thread, especially black bonded nylon, is very springy. Try a different spool or brand of thread.

Joey; Bob is too modest to let you know that he sells the Family Sew FS-550S servo motor. It is all you will need. No need for a reducer.