Wizcrafts

This is but a free hint. Loosen the top and bottom tensions somewhat, then balance the knots to land in the middle. Try your test stitching again and see if the lower tension helps to get equal forward and backward stitch lengths. If so, you've saved a major headache with under body adjustments. Mind you, those still might be necessary if the thread lies too loosely.

Might I offer a suggestion? If your motor is a toaster, instead of buying another one like it, why not cop a boo at the motor I use; the Family Sew FS-550S? It has a simple rotary switch to limit the top speed.

A pedestal stand can be lowered to about the same height as a sit down table. The pedestal has two square pieces that slide and have holes for big bolts to lock the position down. I have sent a question about the ability of the stand to drop down to sitting height to Leather Machine Company. I also asked if they will custom drill and position a pedestal to a customer's desired height. Lowering the table also requires the foot lift chain and motor control rods to be shortened.

Possibly, but it will be very expensive. This has been discussed before on Leatherworker.net. Use our search engine, or search Google like this example: convert pfaff 335 to 4 way feed motion site:leatherworker.net

Zac; FYI, unless you become a member nobody can reply to you via our private messages or email system. Furthermore, all replies to posts in the Help Wanted forum must wait to be approved before being unhidden. You have not provided any contact info either, nor a location.

Ferg, I believe you had a CW, not a CH. The CH is a 441 clone of the Juki TSC-441. Yours is a clone of a Singer 153. http://www.seiko-sewing.co.jp/en/products/cwseries/

I order Singer 29k replacement springs for both large and small shuttles. They fit! In fact, I buy Singer replacement shuttles and bobbins. The Adler 30 series was a high lift clone of the Singer patchers. The longer needles, higher lift and slightly longer stitch length are the main differences I find between my 30-7 and my previous Singer 29k172.

I have a bunch of domed cap rivets in various diameters and bought concave setting tools to match them. I haven't had any problems setting them as long as I use the correct setter. You may have received the wrong setter.

If you can take your pick of all these brands, how many are sold by dealers in your area who can offer parts and service? At least find dealers who speak the same language and will spend time with you on the phone if you have operational problems. When I started buying industrial sewing machines I quickly learned to avoid dealers who did not offer any after the sale assistance. After you gain some hands-on experience with an industrial sewing machine, you can buy online and fix any problems yourself. Just don't do this the first time around. If you have no dealers around, try to find somebody who does upholstery, even boat upholstery, and ask them if they are selling any unwanted walking foot machines. I have done this a few times and scored some really nice machines. Machine brand names I would trust, from your list, if set up first by a dealer, are: Juki, Hightex/Cowboy, Consew/Seiko and Adler. You may be able to find a used Singer walking foot machine in an upholstery shop somewhere. Check boat docks and marine supply shops that might do sail and cover repairs.

Remove the screw and bend the bobbin tension spring down a bit. Reinstall and tighten to tension the thread. Order replacement springs.

If the two photos on the right are the top side, either your top thread is jammed somewhere or the bobbin thread has come out of its position under the bobbin tension spring.

Another way to sew through gummy glue is by running the top thread through a lube pot filled with liquid silicon. It is not 100% foolproof but better than sewing dry. Or, if you don't have a lube pot, use Weaver bonded thread which is heavily lubed already.

A quick Google search revealed many hits for System 135x16 titanium needles for sale in Canada, including these: Ebay.ca

I have some of their bonded nylon thread and it is fine.

You did not say what make and model your sewing machine is. However, if it is a walking foot mahine that uses System 135x16 or 135x17 needles, you should buy tiotanium needles to avoid or reduce gumming up the needle's eye. The same advice applies when sewing through seam tape.

Please don't take this as a professional option, but, couldn't one buy a longer less obscure needle that has the same upper shank diameter as the original and grind the top down until those needles are in time with the hook? This would help fill in the gap where nobody makes a particular system for your old machines but longer ones would fit if trimmed down.

See this sub-forum and my comments where there are several posts about reducing the size of images for posting to forums.

Rockford Leather sells shoe repair supplies, one of which is Sellari's Hard Stitching Wax which is melted in heated pots on stitching machines. It is meant for use on linen thread.

The Adler 30-1 is best limited to #92 bonded thread. Most would only use #69 thread due to its tiny bobbin. Use a #18 needle with #69 thread and a #19 or #20 needle for #92 thread. If you must use #138 thread, use a #23 needle and move the throat plate to the large hole position. You will probably only sew two or three items with #138 thread. You can't use heavier thread or a larger needle on this particular model. I own the next model up; the Adler 30-7 and my good friend has a 30-70. I sew patches and repair purses with my Adler 30. It can sew up to 5 standard rifle slings or guitar straps with #138 thread in the bobbin. My model is heavier duty and can take up to a #24 needle and #207 thread, but that's pushing its limits.

Probably NOT. You cannot hide the lockstitch knots inside 4 ounces, or 1/16 inch. That requires about 6 or 7 ounces minimum. You would have to use half the thread size in only 4 ounces; #69.

No, it is not too much machine for #138 thread with a #23. That is where it shines. Using #92 thread calls for a much thinner #19 needle which is not usually available in leather point. If you need to sew thinner interiors you will be pushing the lower limits of the feed system and may have to dumb down the machine for better results. One advantage of the cb3200 over the other machines you mentioned is that it can properly tension up the #346 bonded thread, which they cannot. A lot of folks here are regularly using #207 and #277 thread in their big stitchers. Of course, you must meet the minimum thickness requirements to hide the knots between the layers. Since your stack of leather will be 9 to 14 ounces, #207 thread will definitely work. At 1/4 inch (16 oz) and above you can start using #277 thread, or a combination of #277 on top and #207 in the bobbin. If seam strength is important use the same size thread on both sides. Otherwise, a smaller bobbin thread lies flatter against the bottom layer and is easier to pull up inside the leather. You can sit down to sew with the cb3200. Ask the seller to setup the table height to your preference. All you'll have to do is mount the head and install the v-belts and foot lift chain. If you don't intend to use thread over size 138, or sew over 5/16" on a regular ongoing basis, the smaller machines will do fine. You can add a table attachment to most cylinder arm machines, but cannot convert a flatbed into a cylinder arm. It all depends on how much of your work has raised or lowered shapes and how close they are to the stitch line. With a flatbed machine you would have to sew bag gussets or circular items along the inside leaving a not so perfect stitch appearance on the outside. On a cylinder arm you just sew on the outside and let the rest hang down on the left.

If you put together a spray gun you can blend the color into the strap and darken it gradually. There is a compressed air sprayer from Preval that attaches to a 6 ounce glass dye bottle. I bought mine from Home Depot for about $5.00. They work okay with alcohol based dyes like we use in leather work. They aren't so good with thicker acrylic or latex paint. Keep it thin and it should spray controllably. Tandy also sells these sprayers.

A jump foot is a single presser foot the lifts up while the needle or awl pulls the work back, then drops down to hold it during the stitch formation cycle. A jump foot machine doesn't have an inside foot like the walking foot machines have. Originally, this mechanism was used on the old time harness stitchers of the late 1800s through early 1900s, like the Pearson, Landis, Union Lockstitch and Randall Lockstitch. 1970s through 1990s era jump foot machines included the Number 9 and Luberto Classic as well as some of the Ferdinand Bull machines. With a jump foot machine there isn't a smaller foot surrounding the needle, just a single or double toe outside foot. There is a sizeable gap between the needle hole and the inside edges of the foot, so there is much less pucker on the bottom, if any.

This could be due to the leather lifting with the needle. Watch the leather as you sew and see if this is what's happening on the upstroke. If so, you're going to have to increase the needle by one size or add more foot pressure to hold down the leather. The overlapped thread knot presents a lot of mass to get pulled up in the needle hole. A larger hole reduces the force needed to bring the knots up. If increasing the needle size and/or foot pressure doesn't solve the skipped stitches, the check spring throw might need tweaking. Try lowering the stop bracket under the spring so it travels further down. A marginally damaged needle point might also cause skipped stitches, so replace it just in case. BTW, have you tried using the low plate with the narrow slot? That reduces the height you have to deal with and may eliminate the problem completely. That's my go to throat plate for difficult jobs when the feed dog is removed. I only use the holster or stirrup plate if I have to clear a formed shape that drops down close to the left edge and would make hard contact with the standard throat plate or the nose of the machine or the end cover plate. I actually ground and sanded off a bit of steel from the left side of my flat slotted throat plate to clear drop shapes better.

Place it in a for sale ad in our Marketplace > Items For Sale > Machinery > Sewing and Stitching > under either Used or New/Refurbished, depending on its condition. You might get more replies under Used.