Wizcrafts

Have you inspected the paddle shaped thread control spring in the needle bar? It is slightly visible from the left side when you lower the needle bar to BDC. The top thread feeds through that spring. Its job is to hold the thread in place as the needle makes its down-up-down jog. After decades of use that spring may have been gouged by thread, or just weakened, or even became twisted, thus no longer able to press firmly against the thread to hold it in place. Sometimes, the thread even gouges a channel into the needle bar, behind the spring, causing it to have little effect on the thread security. Without that spring, the loop tends to dissolve before pick-off time. Bob Kovar usually stocks the paddle springs and the tiny screws that secure it to the needle bar. He might even have a complete needle bar with the paddle spring attached. Replacing the spring calls for removing the needle bar. So, you may as well try to find a newer bar, complete with the paddle spring and a new needle clamping bracket. If Bob doesn't have the parts, @shoepatcherprobably does. I get patcher parts from him too.

@Dannyofalltrades Your video was uploaded in a file format that's not recognized by our board software and cannot be displayed. Please re-save the photo as a .jpg or a .png and re-upload it. Use a small enough resolution to keep the file size under the forum limit. I find that 1:1 and 3x4 produce suitable small size photos.

Post a photo of the foot that's on your Juki. Use the smallest size to stay within our upload limit. I either use a double toe foot with a narrower right toe, or a single left toe foot to sew in zippers.

Estoy de acuerdo. Normalmente uso una guía de borde desplegable en mi grapadora pesada Cowboy cuando necesito coser a lo largo de los bordes de un proyecto. Si está en el camino en las curvas, lo levanto hasta que esa área haya pasado, luego lo dejo caer según sea necesario.

The blanket foot set includes the original 3/8 inch wide feed dog. The canvas will probably get pushed into it by the inside foot. The job is better sewn on a standard walking foot machine. That fact aside, I did write a blog article a few years ago about dumbing down a Cobra Class 4 to sew thin work with thin thread. It might help you, especially if you end up having to use the wide feeder and feet. No matter what feed dog and throat plate you install, I recommend only using a round point 7x3 needle for canvas. A Schmetz S point will slice the fibers and weaken the seams.

I added a box style reducer to a cylinder arm machine. It has 4:1 reduction. I bought it from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. It required two new type 3L v-belts. I recommend locating it in a manner that lets you tilt the machine back to oil it. It can be tricky getting the right position while still clearing the oil pan and wiring. Also, adjusting the belt tension is a bit tricky. Once done, it is usually good for the life of the two belts.

Conversely, without the brake pad in play, when you back off the GO pedal, it doesn't stop on a dime, but can keep rolling on if you were already sewing fast. I often floor my machines when sewing long straight lines, especially when I'm using an edge guide. Even my CB4500 will run on if the brake pad is removed.

Clutch motors have a brake that is moved in or out of contact as the lever on the bottom is pulled down. The brake engages when the control lever is all the way up. You can adjust the position of the floor pedal to ensure that the brake engages when you lift your foot, or press your heel down. There is an adjustable coil spring on the lever that determines how much pressure is applied to the brake. This adjustment is separate from the clutch slack adjuster bolt.

If you load the bobbin to flow with the shuttle, it can run on. This is why some shuttles have enough vertical space for a star shaped anti-backlash spring to be dropped in. This fingers grab the holes in the bobbin and keep it from freespinning. But, some shuttles may be too limited to allow that spring in. You can buy a pack of them and see how it works out in your machine. If there's enough vertical space, you can keep loading the bobbins inline with the rotation. The spring does add some bobbin tension though.

I usually load the bobbin counterclockwise in these top loading shuttles. For one thing, this reverse angle forces the bobbin thread to lay firmly inside the tension spring and exit only at the designated place. Second, it counteracts the bobbin run on problem that happens when you stop abruptly. If the bobbin is feeding in the same direction as the shuttle is spinning, it can keep rotating a while, unloading loose thread inside the shuttle and possible getting it caught on the top locking clamp.

All of the top loading machine are temperamental about holding back both starting threads when you start sewing, plus, not pulling in the loose starting bobbin thread as you sew around an item. Failure to hold back the starting threads almost guarantees a jammed shuttle within a couple stitches. This has been my experience with Singer and Juki walking foot machines I have owned o9r operated since 1984.

I used to own Union Lockstitch machines. The first one had wax pots for the top and bobbin thread. I asked a harness maker what they used and was recommended to use Ceroxylon liquid wax. I still have some left in a quart bottle. It looks and feels like transparent thinned rubber glue. I only used it with Barbour's glaced Irish linen thread. You can buy it from Campbell-Randall Company, in Texas.

It's a piece of cake if you are a pedal steel player, like me! You have a movable foot pedal connected to the motor with either a rod or a chain. Adjust the height and angle to suit you right or left foot. I keep mine on the right. Mind you, I also like knee levers. Some of my machines have a knee lever.

Da nada! La mayoría de las guías de borde tienen rodillos que corren contra el borde del trabajo. El rodillo le permite moverse sin ser arrastrado hacia atrás por la fricción contra una simple pieza de acero.

This reminds me of something Lisa Sorrell said in her video about her curved needle machine. Lisa makes bespoke Cowboy boots for a living and showed herself sewing on the soles on a 12 series machine. She plays "Last Letter Home" by the Gibson Brothers in the background because it makes the machine happier. She also pointed out a scar/dimple on her throat where the needle broke one time and embedded its tip in her throat. She warned against pushing the boot or shoe which can throw the alignment off between the awl and the needle. The sole use of the curved needle machine is to sew soles onto boots and shoes. No pun intended!

@NolyGil; Ese dispositivo se llama "guía de borde". In English: That device is called an "edge guide."

Shipping rates have exploded in the last 3 years. The farther the box travels, the higher the cost. Also, it costs extra to have it lowered off a lift gate truck than a semi trailer (onto a dock). I would call the dealers listed in ads on top of our pages and as for the best rate to your address and gate option.

Some are and some aren't. Several years ago I invested in a spare hook assembly for my 441 class machine. It was a slightly higher end aftermarket brand name hook. It only picked up the thread reliably moving forward and dropped most stitches in reverse. Try as I may, I could never get it timed properly in forward and reverse, and it has been sitting in my spare parts drawer ever since. I don't know or care why it didn't work. I'd recommend buying any spare parts directly from the company whose name is on the machine. In your case, that's Leather Machine Company. Even then, you may have to tweak the timing to compensate for manufacturing differences.

A short Google search found an answer on the Sailrite website. They sell Coat and Clark 3 ply Upholstery thread and make it plain that it is Tex 70. This is one of the lighter bonded nylon threads used in leather work. It calls for a #18/110 needle. Tex 70 is also known as #69 bonded thread. It has a breaking strength of 10 to 11 pounds depending on the brand and its age. Older thread tends to snap sooner than fresh thread. It is generally used to sew wallet interiors together, or light weight upholstery seams that aren't under a lot of stress.

@DieselTech Your statement, which I bolded, is incorrect! The inside "alternating/vibrating" foot, which has a hole for the needle to pass through, MUST hit the feed dog! When it makes contact, it causes the outside "presser" foot to lift up. As the presser foot is lifting, the alternating inside foot, needle and feed dog all move in sync to transport your material. This is due to the manner in which those two feet are interconnected by crankshafts and transfer cranks. When one goes down, the other goes up. That said, you can change the amount of lift and when it begins to happen. However, assuming that your machine was already setup when you got it, this shouldn't be dinked with unless you changed the settings yourself. I know from personal experience that Cobra, Cowboy and Techsew 441 clones are shipped from the dealers already adjusted and ready to go to work, if you bought them directly from those dealers. If you bought your machine from a middleman, they would be responsible for making any adjustments that were needed to have the machine ready to sew. So, if you purchased your Cobra directly from Leather Machine Company, you are entitled to free assistance from them. Otherwise, you can contact whomever resold it to you to ask what changes they made to the machine's setup.

The presser foot/feet should not contact the feed dog at all. it/they must make firm contact with the throat plate whenever the inside foot is up, during the sewing cycle. The only time the outer foot should lift is when the inside foot goes all the way down and begins to move the work. It the presser foot is not touching the throat plate, and the feed dog isn't keeping it lifted, you have to loosen the (two) screw(s) that hold the presser bar in place and lower the bar until it touches the throat plate. Make sure it faces true forward (not tilted), then lock it back down.

@DieselTech I have the aftermarket set from @RockyAussieinstalled in my Cowboy CB4500. I set the feed dog so it just rises above the level of the throat plate; enough to assist the feed. I use this set with any needle size from #20 through #25. I'm not a fan of setting the feed dog so high that it pushes the leather up noticeable. That said, I have set my feed dog so it rises just level with the top of the throat plate. There is no bottom assist using this configuration. But, it has its place. It prevents the work from getting pushed down into the large cutout for the dog.

Install that guide into the top of the head. If you run into a coily/twisty spool of thread, run the thread through the top hole, then wrap it counterclockwise halfway around the post and feed it out of the bottom hole.This will counteract the coiling effect.

I wrote a blog article a few years ago that can save you tons of money. You just need to dumb down your Cobra Class 4. This doesn't require any new hardware; just some careful adjustments and the use of the narrow slotted throat plate you probably got with your Cobra Class 4, and some thin system 7x3, or 7x4 needles from @CowboyBob. There are two members of LWN who make narrow feed dog/throat plate sets and even narrow presser foot sets. Here is the narrow set that was first made by our member, @RockyAussie - in Australia. Here are some narrow throat plate/feed dog sets that are made in the USA: https://heprecision.com/ - by our member: @Patrick1. Thank me later!

You can buy a plastic lube pot that has a magnetic base, and a hole with a set screw to mount it to a top post on your machine. Load it with liquid silicon, or sewing machine oil and adjust the flow for the best results. Since you're using the minimum needle size for #138 thread, consider finding needles with a larger than standard eye, and/or titanium coating. Look into Schmetz and Groz-Beckert needles. You didn't say what you are sewing, so I can only suggest that if it isn't very dense, try Schmetz "Serv-7" needles, if they are available to fit your machine. Otherwise, try Groz-Beckert "Gebeder" needles. Update #1: What you should look for are known as "topstitch" needles, but with some shape of a leather cutting point. Topstitch needles have a larger eye that allows thicker thread to pass through it with less drag than a standard geometry needle. Update #2: Schmetz makes a needle type they call "GO" which has a much larger eye profile to clear larger topstitch threads. It is a step up from the Serv 7 system.