Wizcrafts

Email response time on AOL depends on who you send your email through. I have had delays up to one week in delivery of email sent to Bob, or other AOLers. At other times the email was never delivered at all, not even to a junk folder. They apply their own blocklists and have their own definition of what constitutes spam. Rather than let members decide, AOL's mail servers make a decision first. If they get it wrong, and they do, the email in question is held up, or rejected, with no notice to the intended recipient, or the sender. In fact, the only notices I have ever seen from AOL, are for an unknown account (misspelled), or a full account not able to receive any more messages.

I have had to repair very old rifle cases and golf bags for collectors, or people restoring items from the parents or Grand Parents. These items were sewn on Puritan chainstitch machines, using 6 cord waxed linen thread. Some of these items were over 60 years old. The stitches were fine; the leather need patching! My Union Lockstitch machine likes 4 through 6 cord left twist linen thread. But, after buying a bargain brand once, I recommend only buying Barbour's Irish Linen Thread. It costs more, but it's well worth the money.

It could be that the top thread is binding on the way to the needle. Bob Kovar made a video showing , but it is the same for most of the other 441 clone machines. If you thread your new machine the same way, your knots should be in a better location, everything else being equal.

The Cobra is brown; the Cowboy is beige. The Cowboy presser feet and throat plates are cut from stainless steel. Both machines have the same specs and are well made and serviced by the most competent mechanics in the business. The official Cobra and Cowboy dealers stand behind the machines they sell. Price-wise, if similarly equipped, they cost about the same. The Cowboy machines are offered a la carte, at a lower price, for those who don't want or need all the accessories, and are usually in stock all the time.

135x15 has a standard round sharp point that is used to sew everything made from cloth. 135x16 has a narrow twisted chisel point and is used to sew leather. The only ways you will get a smooth cover plate is if a dealer happens to have one in a drawer of new-old parts, or if you get one machined. Ditto for the feed dog.

The needles in system 135x15 and 135x16 go up to #25, which will sew #207, top and bottom. The maximum thickness with these needles, on a stock setup, is 3/8 of an inch. You may be able to bump that up by reducing the lift of the alternating feet and possibly grinding down the top of the outside foot. This may allow you to sew 7/16 inch. Sewing at full capacity or above will wear out the machine in a short time. To be safe, use a #22 or #23 needle with #138 thread, top and bottom, and limit the thickness to just under 3/8 inch. The machine will last longer this way, if you keep it well oiled.

All industrial sewing machine dealers have these needles. They are the most commonly used system in garment sewing machines and post machines. They are also known as system DBx1, 16x257, 16X257LR, DBXF2, 1738LR Lower the needle all the way down. Use a flashlight or movable lamp to observe the needlebar and look just above the removable puece that secures the needle. Better yet, unscrew the needle holder completely from the bar. You should see a paddle shaped spring along the thread path, ending just above where the needle holder mounts. The paddle piece provides tension to the thread as the loops are being formed and in between stitches. If this spring has broken off at the paddle, you will have skipped stitches and other problems with sewing. I had a bent paddle spring on my patcher when I first got it and bought a replacement with two tiny screws, for very little cost, from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. I can't imagine it would be very expensive to have a spring, a pair of screws, a pair of tension disks and a few packs of 1738LR needles mailed to you. You can find their contact details on their website.

This fact tells me that the machine is meant to sew thin, soft leather, with thin thread. It is the perfect machine for doing decorative stitching on boots. It is a great machine for sewing shoe uppers, moccasins, caps and hats. As for belts, maybe dress belts, no thicker than 3 mm, using T-70/B69 bonded nylon thread. The #18/110 needles are perfect for #69 bonded thread. The 134R needles are for sewing cloth, not leather. You should stock up on leather point 134-LR needles for sewing leather projects. Schmetz are about the best needles you can buy.

The Cowboy CB2500 uses a needle system that begins with number 22/140, which is suitable for #138 bonded thread. The Boss uses system 794 needle which begin with a #19/120, suitable for #92 thread. Both use a similar shuttle and bobbin. As for punching power, the Boss relies on your right arm to punch through the material, stitch after stitch. The Cowboy gives that task to a powerful motor. The CB2500 has feed dog drive a static presser foot, but has an optional big roller foot if needed. The Boss has needle feed, with a jump foot. The CB2500 has a 10.5" area between the body and needlebar. The Boss has a bit over 6 inches inside clearance. The Boss has an aluminum casing and some gears are aluminum. The CB2500 uses steel gears and has an iron case. Magnets stick to it. The Boss is portable, if there is a bench to bolt it to. The CB2500 is not portable. Both machines can handle #346 thread. Needles are available in both systems.

Loops under the leather tell that either the bobbin pressure spring is too tight, or the top tension is too loose, or the needle is in wrong, or the wrong length, or the foot lift mechanism is disengaging the top tension disks prematurely. Follow the top thread from the spool to the head. Make sure it actually feeds around the little stud behind the top tension disks, then around and through the disks from right to left, then through the little twisted metal eye, then up to the take-up lever, down the hole, past the little spring above the needle and into the needle's eye, from left to right. Examine the action of the foot lifter mechanism and see if it is moving the tension disks apart, with the hand lift lever down. If so, move the adjuster (puck or sliding cam) to lower the foot lift a tish. You want to make sure you have enough lift to clear your leather, to feed new stitches, not so much that the disks get separated as you sew. I had an old patcher that didn't like 29x needles. The thread kept getting dragged under the shuttle. So, I tried using type 1738 industrial needles and they sewed just fine. You want the bobbin pressure just tight enough to provide a little resistance. The top gets more tension. If the needle is way too big you might get loops on the bottom. Finally, make sure that the spring on the take-up lever is properly tightened.

How much thickness of leather do you intend to sew? What size thread will you be using the most? What are your primary sewing projects going to be? Things to keep in mind are one of the two machines you mentioned is a production quality machine and the other is more of a prototyping machine.

Linen thread predates both nylon and polyester thread. It was used to sew parachutes, awnings, sails, shoes, saddles, holsters, golf bags, briefcases, rifle cases, luggage, etc. The most famous brand of linen thread is Barbour's Irish Linen Thread. Formerly made in Ireland, the company was dismembered and its assets sold to Coats and Clark. Barbour's linen thread is glazed with a light weight coating that holds the twisted strands together. It is produced in standard left and custom right twist and is sold in one pound spools. While it is possible to use linen thread on a modern sewing machine, it is not really that strong unless you run it through a wax pot on the way to the needle. The wax solidifies inside the leather after a while. This permanently locks each stitch in place. Waxed linen thread is rot resistant and is able to remain functional even if one or more bottom stitches are worn down, as in the soles of shoes. Almost every hand sewn leather project is done using waxed linen thread. 6 cord waxed linen thread is incredibly strong and long lasting. It is difficult to sew waxed linen with a regular industrial sewing machine. Not impossible, just difficult. The wax clogs the guides and tensioners and the eye of the needle. It must be sewn at very slow speeds, with a larger needle than otherwise would be used.Six cord waxed linen thread would probably need a #28 or #30 needle to feed it and form a loop. Needles that big are not available for normal industrial machines. Only the biggest harness or shoe stitchers have needles that big. If you want to sew regularly with waxed linen thread, you should get a Union Lockstitch or Campbell stitcher, both of which use barbed needles and stabbing awls. If chain stitching is acceptable for your work (bottom stitches not visible), a Puritan machine will do nicely, at a lower cost than the ULS or Campbells. They have wax pots for liquid wax and accept huge, barbed needles, and use awls.

Those machines are a shoe repairman's dream. There's even a McKay in there. Man, a lot of soles could be sewn on those machines. Someone could even go into the shoe building business if they bought the lot out. For the Poster: These machines can only sew along the perimeter of leather. They stitch outer soles onto the insoles of boots and shoes. Using 6 or 7 cord, right twist, linen thread, run through liquid wax in a pot, they are awesome machines to watch in action. At about 500 pounds each, they need a cement floor to support them. I have even seen shoe repair shops that have their sole stitcher bolted into the cement floor.

I want to point out that I didn't buy the SewPro because I couldn't control the clutch. On the contrary, I have sewn on nothing but clutch motors until 2 years ago. I can feather a clutch motor to 1 stitch per second. But, keeping it at that speed, stitch after stitch, all the way around the oval holes in dozens of guitar strap tails, or all the way around the thick end of 40 rifle slings, is a lot easier with a servo motor. The SewPro 500GR has made sewing fun again, rather than stressful on my right foot. I really like the analog pot on the back of this motor. I can easily reach in a dial it down between items, knowing that 12 o'clock will cut the speed in half. I have even dialed it down to just a couple stitches per second with the pedal down. It's like watching grass grow - how slowly the machine can be made to turn over with a touch of the toe, at that setting.It's not practical, but interesting. I could never feather a clutch down to one stitch every five seconds, repeatedly, for minutes at a time.

Sorry Joe, I don't know anybody who sells retail smooth feed dogs for upholstery grade walking foot machines. However, you could buy another feed dog and have a welder braze bronze in between the teeth, to just over the top of the peaks, then sand the top flat and buff it to a high polish.

I can't believe you posted this on the public forum Bob. Would it be so difficult for these same people to build a similar motor, with stronger steel gears and a 3/4 inch shaft, able to put out and withstand higher torque? Probably not, if the demand was perceived to exist. I would be first in line to test such a motor.

What needs to be developed by SewPro is the next step up in power, but everything else the same. It would be awesome if they could produce a model that draws 500 watts under full load, with a speed knob on the back and 3:1 gear reduction. Just dreaming.

A friend of mine recently sold his Rex 26-188. It had teeth on the bottom of both presser feet and teeth on the feed dogs. The marks were very pronounced on both sides, on leather that remembers marking. If you are going to sew suede or roughout leathers, or leathers embossed with a lot of texture, the tooth marks won't be so obvious. Reducing the pressure on the feet would also help with the marking. These machines are double feed machines. The outer presser foot is crank driven, in sync with the feed dog. Like love and marriage, ya can't have one without the other!

The SewPro 500GR is not a direct drive 300 watt motor. It has built in 3:1 gear reduction, which it outputs this to a 2" pulley. So, when it is drawing its full 300 watts, it is producing triple the torque of the native motor. It will without a doubt out-twist a 1/2 HP clutch motor, which runs at 550 watts. My guess is that it produces about 3/4 HP, but there is nothing on the motor to indicate this. I wouldn't want to be holding on to the pulley end of either motor as they start up! The 441 type machines are equipped with 3/4 HP servo motors because most of them lack low speed torque.A 1/2 HP clutch motor, with a 2" pulley will power them, especially if they feed a speed reducer pulley. The reducer pulleys multiply the torque by three, but divide the top speed equally.

I have mentioned this before, but will do so again. It is possible to create a bigger loop for the point to pic up. There is a combination of thigs that can improve the loop size. Most notably, is to try using Schmetz needles, which are made to push more of the loop to the right side of the needle. Next, try reducing the travel of the check spring, which holds the top thread under tension as the take up lever descends. Finally, try using one needle size smaller than usual. So, instead of using a #18, try a #16 needle, if you can find any. It will pass #69 thread quite nicely, but with less slack. Lastly, alter the timing of the needle bar to ascend a bit more before the point passes the cutout above the eye. Make sure that the point is well above the actual eye. Applying these changes may improve the small thread sew-ability, without sacrificing large thread stitch sizes. The increased travel in the needle may allow you to lengthen the stitches with thin tread, should you ever want to. The bigger loops would allow you to reduce or lengthen the stitches for bigger thread. This will also make the machine sew more reliably in reverse. The above are my opinions. But, they have worked for me.

Kevin; You know that if you actually had a Campbell High Lift, you wouldn't part with it. I'll just have to slug it out and make do with my itsy bitsy Union Lockstitch machine, from 1910. It can't touch the Campbell machines and it only sews an honest 3/4 inch. I feel deprived ;-)

This is a case where the manufacturer should have considered building in a pop-out safety clutch for the shuttle drive.

I wish my buddy had your motor then. I have to go in to his place tomorrow and sew 45 belts.

I have a friend in Flint who bought a 441 clone that came with a servo motor with a digital readout and up/down push buttons. It too cannot be adjusted unless it is running, which is very dangerous. Furthermore, it shudders and drops out below 1 stitch per second, making it difficult to control around strap tips and sharp corners. My home walking foot machine came with a 1/2 HP clutch motor. I replaced it with a SewPro 500GR, from Toledo Industrial Sewing machines. I had to move down an additional inch in belt length, due to the motor shaft being closer to the body that the clutch motor. I also dropped an inch because this motor has a 2" pulley and the original had a 3" pulley. The SewPro motor has a dial on the back, to set the top speed. Lowing it from increases the pedal range for slow speeds. The unit has built in 3:1 gear reduction, so it doesn't lose power at 1 stitch every two or three seconds. It has more than enough power to slooooooowly penetrate 3/8 inch of belt leather, or 7/16"+ of bridle leather. The SewPro 500GR only draws 300 watts at full speed (1500 RPM) and less at lower speeds. Otherwise, in idle, it draws no current that is measurable on a home power meter. I now distrust most servo motors with a digital readout and push buttons for speed adjustment. Unless one can change the speed when it is not in motion and doesn't shudder and drop out at about 1 stitch per second, I'm not interested in having it on my machines. Bending over, to see under the table, with one foot on the speed pedal, to push buttons on the motor to control a big "Class 4" is not a fun thing to do. Plus, the thread has to be removed from the needle before adjusting it. Eventually, I had my friend push the buttons as I sewed a run of straps, making speed changes a two man job. This was necessary because the motor dropped out as I slowed down, with the top speed set at about 600 rpm. In contrast, the SewPro motor can go from well under 1 stitch per second, to 12 per second (on my walking foot machine with a 4" pulley on back), without touching the dial at all. The SewPro would probably need a reducer wheel to run a big 441 machine, or maybe not. It is a powerful motor. If the big machine had a 6 or 8 inch flywheel pulley, I think the SewPro would do fine on its own.

Excessive lateral motion in the shuttle is not good. You need to find out why it has so much noticeable lateral motion. Is it loose on the shuttle side (left), or the main machine side (right) of the body mounted bearing? Is the required spacer shim missing? Is there a shim, but too large of a size (over #200)? If the hook is loose, but the shaft itself has proper minimal lateral clearance, you will need to reposition the hook laterally, then time it to the needle's eye, then tighten it onto the shaft. Remove the throat plate to check this out and make your adjustments. If the hook is tight and the timing of the needle is good and the shim is not too large (or missing), but the loops are too far from the point AND the shaft moves noticeably sideways, a set collar is loose on the right side of the machine mounted shaft bearing. Use caution before moving that shaft, as it also affects the parts that drive it on the far right underside of the body.