Wizcrafts

I have thrown away brand new v-belts that were "welded" off center and moved sideways, or bumped once around. Considering that these belts can be had for 5 bucks or so, I would buy a replacement just to see if the belt was the problem. Before buying a new belt, loosen the tension on it at the motor or reducer. An overly tight belt magnifies any manufacturing imperfections.

Absolutely! Buy a new type 3L belt of the same length.

I sew holsters, gun belts, knife sheathes, pouches and cases. I have a room full of industrial sewing machines of all descriptions. However, I don't use my upholstery grade, patching, tailoring or light duty cylinder arm machines for holsters. These are serious projects that need to be sewn with serious thread. Peoples lives may depend on the integrity of the stitching on a holster. Don't dink around with your customers' lives, or the public they interact with. If you want to machine sew holsters, get a proper heavy duty holster rated sewing machine like the Cowboy CB3200. It sews up to 1/2 inch with up to #346 bonded thread. This is a serious leather sewing machine. I personally have a longer arm Cowboy machine that sews at least 3/4 inch. In fact, I have sewn almost 1 inch thick holsters with it, but it is difficult at that thickness. When I call a machine upholstery class or grade, it means that the machine was designed to sew and transport soft to medium temper leather about 1/4 inch thick. Most can walk over 3/8 inch seams if setup correctly and the machine itself allows it. None are built to handle the heavy thread required to sew holsters carried in the public. These machines stop at #138 thread but may handle #207 on top only and #138 in the bobbin. This means that the bottom thread is smaller, weakening the stitches down to #138 level. Additionally, the moving and take-up parts are not built to withstand the forces of heavy thread, big needles and dense leather.

My thinking is negative to the virus surviving a trip across the ocean on an inanimate paper bag or envelope. But, I don't know and have not heard this type of question asked at any press conferences yet. It would be worth posting to your State reps so they can ask the CDC.

Shine a flashlight under the body and see if there is a locking nut on the back of the eccentric bolt joining the vertical and horizontal shafts. If so, it has to be loosened to change the timing.

2L, 3L, 4L, and 5L prefix – The “L” stands for light duty, and is designed for use with fractional horsepower motors. Meaning less than 1 HP. “L” style belts are often designated as light duty industrial, or lawn & garden. These are all called "V belts" because their taper resembles a V shape. You are correct that these belts vary in 1/8" increments in the USA. Type 3L = 3/8" across the top. The entire profile is different from automotive belts that are 1/2 inch across the top.Now that you know the best lengths, you can order proper belts from one of our dealers.

Earlier in this discussion I mentioned the lifting block on the back that pushes the pin inside the head. I believe that its part number on the 206RB-1 is 10544. In the 206RB-5, it is part number 18479. In both instances it is described as Presser Bar Lifting Bracket. This part is adjusted up and down by a screw accessible from the rear. There may be a very wide screw, #10548, holding it against the body that has the flat spring passing through it also. This part may need to be raised up and rotated so it lies against the body. It has a tapered ramp inside that gradually pushes against the pin #11. It the lifting bracket is shot, replace it. The part was cloned from the Singer 111w103, 153 and 155. I had to replace that part on my 111w103 when I bought it out of a guy's pickup truck last year. This manual shows the location of the presser bar lifting bracket in Plate 8, as number 9 in the exploded view (part 10544). Here is a link to a Consew part #18479 Presser Bar Lifting Bracket.

I wasn't aware that O'Reilly's carried type 3L, 3/8" sewing machine belts. Or, did you buy an automotive 4L, 1/2" belt? This would be a mistake because that size won't fit inside the pulleys properly leading to premature slippage and wear of the belt and the bearings on the motor and reducer.

A Union Lockstitch machine sews 800 stitches per minute (15/second), flat out, with thick thread, into as much as 3/4 inch of leather. It gets the job done like few others can. A Campbell-Randall Lockstitch may produce a slightly better looking bottom stitch, but is slower, sewing only 300 or 400 spm. Truth be told, none of my customers turn the work over to study the bottom stitch appearance.

This was my finding also. I've owned two ULS machines and both produced awesome stitches. If one has a "stepping foot, the top stitches get pushed down on the ends, giving them a rounded appearance. Unfortunately, there is no such attachment for the bottom (wouldn't that be awesome though?).

The best bottom appearance I ever had on a sewing machine was on Union Lockstitch machines using a special narrow slotted throat plate and a 1/2 size difference between the needle and awl. I believe this was doable up to needle size 3.5. Beyond that you have to do full size differences and the slots have to be wider. It is tricky to get the needle perfectly positioned in two planes with only a half size larger awl.

Check how much free play there is before the hand lift lever engages the lifting block. If it is more than 1/16" you are losing height under the feet. The lifting block has the end of the flat pressure spring along its back side. Loosen the screw through a hole on the back of the head, in the face area and let the block drop to the bottom. Raise it a tiny amount with a thin flat blade screwdriver, then lock the screw down. This may increase the lift so you can turn better. Some turns may be 180 degrees and are called Poor Man's Reverse.

On a compound feed walking foot machine, the inside foot is always down until the outside foot drops and causes it to lift. On my walking foot machines, I hand-wheel to raise the needle about 3/16 inch, use my knee or foot lift pedal to raise the feet and turn the work. If your machine won't let you raise the feet at all with the needle in the material, it is out of adjustment internally. Does it sew normally and climb over seams?

Kitchener/Waterloo isn't that far from Elmira, where the Aaron Martin Mennonite harness shop is located. They use Adler machines and may be able to help you out. As for patchers, check shoe repair shops and classifieds when you get settled.

The piping adds structural integrity to the seams. Without it the seams would need to be flat felled and top stitched down. Cost wise, it's 6 of one and half a dozen of the other. Whomever gets the job should use bonded polyester thread, not nylon. Chromexcel is 5 -6 ounce thick shoe upper leather and will probably not make for a comfortable seat. You'll be better off with 3-4 ounce upholstery, or chap leather, especially if it is pleated like the bottom example.

I'm glad to have helped you make this choice. I love my Singer 168 post machine. I got a box style reducer for my post machine. The box bolts to the table and the motor bolts to the bottom of the box. this keeps the long belt in about the same position as the original, allowing you to tilt the head back for servicing. Another machine of mine has a 3:1 stand-alone 3 pulley reducer bolted under the table, along side of the belt cutout. The belt from that reducer is more or less directly inline with the head and has to be loosened to tilt the head. It also changes the position of the bobbin winder. Consider the box type reducer. Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines sells them.

Not landmines, but practical limitations. This machine is not meant for heavy thread or thick work. Most people buying this machine are detailing items that are under 1/8 inch thick and soft temper, using bonded thread sizes 33 through 69. It possibly can sew thicker and use #138 thread, but the roller foot only holds down the left side. A #22 needle loaded with #138 thread will probably lift the leather up as it tries to come out with the lockstitch knot. This leads to skipped stitches and ruined projects. Practically, if sewing leather, I wouldn't recommend using thread larger than #92, with a #19 leather point needle, into about 8-9 ounces or so. If sewing cloth or man-made materials, it can handle about 1/4 inch, with #92 thread. The machine uses G size bobbins and System 134 needles. Here is the Consew product page for the 228R-11-1.

Maybe these videos of the Consew 228R-11 in action will help you decide.

If rotating the adjuster screw doesn't free the presser bar, open the faceplate cover and observe the bar as you raise and attempt to lower it. You'll probably see where it is hanging up and be able to adjust or oil that part to free it.

Here is an operator's manual for the Singer 132k6. Some of the pages were scanned sideways, so print it out to view it. 132k6.pdf

You can replace the knee lever with a foot pedal that bolts onto the pedal bar and uses a chain to connect to a clip on the end of the black lifting bar.

An out of round hole in the pressure adjuster screw will cause the foot bar to hang until you rotate it to the right position. Also, add more pressure to overcome the out of round condition.

While the Juki LU-1508 series are top of the line machines, they are overkill for wallets and similar thickness projects. You would get just as good a result with a Juki DNU-1541, or even the new Cowboy CB-1541 clone. These machines are medium duty, compound feed, walking foot machines that sew from a couple ounces up to about 20 - 24 ounces (depending on the density of the material. They use smaller thread sizes from 46 through 138, leaving off where your Cobra begins.

That is friggin brilliant!

Have you verified that your machine actually has push to release pin number 11 inside its channel in the head? You can remove the entire tension assembly and see the end of that pin protruding from the body. Lifting the hand or knee lifter will push it out a bit, which is how the disks get separated. If the pin is missing, order or make a replacement pin. If it is in there and moving with the lifter, but not separating the disks, bend the metal tab on the back of the tension assembly to move the side closest to the pin so it is almost in contact with the pin when the feet are lowered. This will give it the maximum travel when you lift the feet manually. If the pin is there, but does not protrude out of the channel in the head, it is too short and may need replacing. But, there is an activator on the back side of the head that pushes the pin from the back when the lifter is lifted. If that block is misaligned there won't be enough push on the pin to separate the tension disks.