Wizcrafts

That is correct. Loosen the purple circled screw, budge the arm forward a tish, then tighten the screw and test to see if that fixed the bobbin case There should be a smidgen of slack left in the bobbin case when the opener arm reaches it farthest backwards motion. It is still possible that something else has gone wrong from your running the machine flat out without a load. Flip it over and check the bottom for loose screws on the gears.

Mine is a 29k71. It is a small bobbin machine. I use #69 thread with a #18 needle in this machine.

If the sound bothers you, back slightly off the pull of the opener arm. It looks like it is pulling the bobbin case hard back to its physical limit (set by the tab that fits into the cutout in the throat plate). That makes a metal on metal sound upon impact. If you move the arm forward a smidgen the case won't hit its motion limit and should quiet down. The opener only needs to move the tab on the case slightly to clear the top thread.

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Watch ads for used industrial sewing machines for sale in China, or search eBay, or Alibaba. Or, find a Chinese company that builds clones of Singer machines and ask them if they know this ancient model. This model is about a hundred years old. Check with the CowboySew/Hightext company.

Check with any saddlery shops or long time leather makers. They may have a retired harness stitcher that will do the job. See if you might could find a Singer 42-5. Mine could be available, but I'm in mid-Michigan and won't ship it. When the dust settles on this, I would leave feedback on the Amazon page where you bought the machine so others know what not to expect from it. Does the seller even offer replacement parts, like the presser foot you ruined?

Here is a simple checklist for you to go through when you can't get the bottom thread to pull up into the holes (lays flat on flesh side). Clear any extraneous thread stubs out of the bobbin case and its tension spring. Adjust bobbin tension for a small but noticeable amount of resistance. It should never be zero tension. Ensure that the bobbin case snaps all the way into the correct position. Make absolutely certain that the top thread is going through the top tension disks and that there is good tension on them. Make sure that the disks are not being held open when you are not lifting the feet manually or with the knee lifter. A jammed tension release rod ensures zero top tension! Ensure that the thread exits the top disks and feeds around the check spring assembly and clicks into place. Make sure the needle is inserted and aligned correctly and is matched to the thread sizes on both sides (see chart). Try a needle one size larger. Make sure you use leather point needles in leather! Not so simple checklist. When the hook is adjusted by the end user a number of things can go wrong. Remove the cover plate so you can see what is happening to the top thread. Tilt back the head to see the hook and shuttle area. The timing may work most of the time, but could be too far advanced or retarded in relation the the take-up lever position. Check the timing with the stitch length at zero forward or backward motion, at the specified height above the eye, on the upstroke. Correct if out of spec. Lower the feet if they were raised. Hand wheel while holding back the threads and watch as the top thread goes around the bobbin case. Does it get caught or bind as it goes around the case and makes a stitch? A readjusted hook could be pinching the top thread or the bobbin thread on the way around or out the top. The extra bottom tension would pull the knots down to the bottom. Make sure there is a little clearance between the hook and the scarf in the needle. You don't want the hook to actually hit the needle! Is the bobbin case aligned with its top positioning finger sitting inside the cutout in the housing? I've seen an incorrectly adjusted shuttle or poorly cast bobbin case pop out of the cutout and spin around or jam in the shuttle.

Your machine, just like the small bobbin Singer and Adler patchers, was not built to sew with #207 thread. You can force it to, but it won't be a good result. I would seriously limit it to #138 on top with #92 in the bobbin.

You made the mistake of buying round point cloth needles. You need some configuration of leather point to sew leather. FYI: System 135x17 are for cloth, webbing, Velcro and vinyl. System 135x16 are leather points. They come in various shapes, like chisel, diamond, triangle, right twist, left twist and S.

Thank you.

The maximum (Metric) stitch length for these machines is 5mm, but only into about 3 mm thickness. In order to hide the knots with #135 thread you should have at least 3mm thickness. You can test your machine for wear that shortens the stitch length by raising the foot with the hand lift lever. Lower the stitch length regulator all the way down to the top of the foot and tighten the screw on it. Now push and pull on the foot to see how much it moves forward and backward. Anything more than the slightest wiggle translates into lost maximum stitch length. When this happens you will have a choice of replacing the feed motion cam that moves the foot, or welding/brazing/reshaping the worn out "puck" shaped tab that slides inside the hollowed out ring under the head. I find it simpler to replace the worn parts to regain lost stitch length.

There was a discussion about the Singer 172k glove sewing machine on Leatherworker.net in 2017.

Here is a link to a PDF of the Singer 172k1 manual.

It looks like you may be using a thread too big for the needle size. I can see knots on the bottom. Try a larger size needle. The top tension may be too loose, or the bobbin tension too tight. Also, the stitches are very close together. I would lower the stitch length regulator tab closer to the foot to get longer stitches. Buy some new needles that better match the size of thread you have. Here is a thread/needle chart to help you choose the best match. Your machine uses either System 29x4 or 135x16 leather point needles. They are basically the same needle now, but used to be different long ago. There are non-leather needles for this machine, in case you want to sew cloth or webbing. They are System 29x3 and 135x17. Do not use these on leather if you can avoid it. They will stick after a few stitches and cause a bad looking result.

I moved this topic from Help Wanted where every reply would have to wait for approval to appear.

No. There are none brand new in that price range that are good quality sewing machines. You need to up your budget to about $1200 to $1500 to get a half decent leather sewing machine that is setup, adjusted and ready to sew. Then you'll have to pay shipping unless you can pick it up from the dealer. Machines in this price range are really upholstery class machines. Two that come to mind are the Consew P1206RB and the next higher up Consew 206RB-5. These machines can sew up to 3/8 inch of compressible materials, or maybe 16 to 20 ounces of veg-tan leather. The next step up would be a heavy duty customized cylinder arm Cobra Model 26, or a holster sewing machine, like this Cowboy CB3200. These machines are specifically setup to sew up to almost 1/2 inch of leather. Machines get larger and prices get higher as you move up into the harness/saddlery quality leather sewing machines like the Cowboy CB4500, Cobra Class 4 and Techsew 5100.

Not only is it drop feed only, it is also a self oiler with a sump pump sucking up oil from the oil pan. These machine are meant to spin very fast. Leather usually needs to be sewn slowly (< 10 to 15 stitches per second) to avoid overheating the needle and burning the thread. This machine isn't made with that in mind. The oil won't get distributed to the extremities unless you sew at about 40 stitches per second.

You might find some at Weaver Leather (an advertiser here). They sold the Adler 205-370 until it was discontinued a couple of years ago. If anybody has spacers left they should. You will have to call or email them to get the correct spacer for the needle size you want to use.

YES! You can buy small 375 yard spools of bonded nylon thread, in a bunch of colors, all in size 69, from Wawak. They also sell scissors, thread snips, zippers and tailoring supplies. You can get 8 ounce spools of bonded thread from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. They may have smaller spools too.

You can learn to sew like this too! There are videos. I watched one earlier on the Makers Leather Supply website. He sells plastic templates for Gunfighter stitching, wallets, journals, etc. Your Model 26 can handle #207 bonded thread, which is what I used on these belts. You really got a nice machine. I wish you much success with it. If you haven't already done so, buy all available accessories and outside left and right toe feet.

If you buy them from one of our advertisers who sell sew leather machines, you will get the right bobbins with thread holes that are also used to secure the bobbins for winding them on the built in winder on the machine.

Lol, exactly. I have operated a Rex dual feed walking foot machine, with really aggressive teeth. Man, that thing wouldn't budge from its stitch length setting. It almost clawed the work out of my hands. In contrast, my slew of walking foot machines, including my CB4500, all let me feather the needle hole position if I want to. This can really come in handy when you are sewing Gunfighter fishtail stitches onto a gunbelt.

I have an equivalent machine, a Techsew 2700. Both are clones of the Singer 153 series walking foot cylinder arm machines. When I needed a replacement needle bar, I called Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. Bob Kovar advised me that these machines all use the same needle bar as the Singer 153. I ordered one from him and it fit perfectly. I had no issue with an off center needle hole. Yours must be the luck of the draw.

Kenneth; A smooth feed dog doesn't mark the bottom layer like the ones with teeth do. Normally this is not an issue. However, if both sides of a project must look as good as possible, the smooth feed dog is a bonus that saves time rubbing out tooth marks. I have a smooth feed dog on my Cowboy stitcher. If you're wondering about a loss of grip, you are right. Because the feed dog is smooth, as are the feet, I can cheat the stitch length at will to reach marked points or corners. Teeth would make it harder to do this.

I've never heard of that dealer before. Can you post links to the machines they are selling that you are interested in? That asked, any upholstery class sewing machine can also be a leather sewing machine. A lot of upholstery is done with 4 ounce leather. That comes to 8 ounce seams and more when doubled down and felled. One main difference is that leather is supposed to be sewn with a leather point needle. Another is that with the exception of upholstery and garment/chrome tan leathers, one should use a machine with smooth feet. Vinyl and cloth sewing machines with dual feed have teeth on the feet to pull the material through. They will permanently mark veg tan leather. This brings us to a third difference. Upholstery walking foot machines not meant for veg-tan leather can be dual, top and bottom feed, with teeth on the feet. Walking foot machines meant for veg-tan are usually triple, or compound feed, with smooth bottom feet and needle feed. The work can slip a little in compound feed, which can be used to one's advantage to force stitches to reach a certain point, other stitch hole, or corner. Dual feed machines are harder to cheat stitch length on. So, as the dealer what kind of walking foot machine is A and what is B. If you plan to sew veg-tan leather, get a compound feed walking foot machine.