Wizcrafts

The 241-12 is definitely not for use in leather sewing of any form fashion of kind, without huge modifications. It is a high speed, drop feed only, production sewing machine that only takes thin thread. They are not meant to be run slow.

As I said, the 2700 is a light leather sewing machine. The CB341 (cloned from Juki 341) is much beefier for similar money. It uses a larger M style bobbin and can tension up to #207 thread, which the 2700 cannot handle. If you can't afford one of the new qualified cylinder arm machines, go used! We have a marketplace section of the forum where people can sell used sewing machines, among other items. Oftentimes, these machines are in very good condition and are being sold because the owners bought newer, more expensive machines to replace them, or have just gone out of business. That's how I acquired my Techsew 2700.

Call Campbell Randal Company for their advice on needle and awl vs thread combinations. They will ask what thickness and density you are sewing and what thread you will be using. I have owned 2 Union Lockstitch machines and always used a full size larger awl than needle. I used to match the thread to the needle by pulling various needle sizes along the top thread until it got tight. If the thread was tightly bonded and lubed I would use a tight fitting needle. If the thread was loosely bonded, or linen with any kind of wax, I chose a larger needle so the thread wouldn't stick inside the barb at pick-off time. The awl has to poke a big enough hole for the lockstitch knots to pull up. Experiment!

The Singer 29k2 was probably built sometime during the late 1890s through very early 1900s. Look up the serial number on ismacs, as linked to by Jimi. The original body color is black.

If you intend to open a shop that does leather repairs, you will regret losing the patcher. If you just build things at home, not so much. It is, after all, about 100 years old. I have a Techsew 2700 and it is a good walking foot machine. It uses standard Singer G size bobbins and takes a plethora of Singer 111w155 feet. The machine can handle bonded thread sizes 46 through 138. Note that the machine pulley isn't very large and it tends to spin really fast. I had to install a 2:1 speed reducer on mine after installing a servo motor that has a 2" pulley.

I could use a couple of those!

I got some from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines and others from our member Constabulary in Germany. The system is 332 LLG, not to be confused with 332LG. Adler USA did have some sizes in Schmetz, with leather points, but you may have to order boxes of 100.

If it is a model 100 TN, it uses two inline needles to form the decorative saddle stitches.

I believe that the Consew 206RB and P1206RB have the same capacities. The differences are that the P1206 doesn't have a safety clutch and has an oil pump on the bottom and the foot lift is 5/8 inch. It's maximum stitch length is 3.6/inch The 206RB-5 has a safety clutch, is manually oiled and has 9/16 inch foot lift. It's maximum stitch is 2.5/inch. They use the same bobbins and needles. Both can sew up to 3/8 inch. Both are rated at #138 thread, but may handle #207 if properly adjusted by the dealer.

I just read in the manual that this model was designed to sew neckties. On page 4 is the following description.

Are you aware that it is a twin needle (inline), chainstitch, saddle stitch machine for decorative stitches? You can contact Union Special for more information about the machine's age. Here is a link to a detailed manual for the Union Special 100TN. The copyright date on page two is 1962 for the second edition.

Are you asking about a Union Special or an Adler 105?

I don't know about parts, but here is a link to a downloadable manual. They may or may not have the hook and other components for this aged machine. If not, try Bob Kovar.

Manually oiled sewing machines use what's known as Lily White oil. It is very thin and clear. You can find it in Joann Fabrics and Walmart in 4 ounce squeeze bottles. It is sold in quarts and gallons by all industrial sewing machine dealers. I buy a quart a couple times a year and fill up small oil bottles that have precision tube spouts (also sold by industrial sewing machine dealers). Being a Class 15 machine there are no usual gears to grease. Everything is crank driven and only requires light weight Lily oil. There are oil holes in all moving crank shafts. Some are marked on the body. Others are underneath the machine and more are inside the head (behind the faceplate). The cranks in the head need lots of drops of oil. Keep a rag under the presser foot for a while after oiling the machine. You can buy accessory presser feet and bonded thread from any industrial sewing machine dealer, anywhere. They are very common on all Singer straight stitch machines. I buy a lot of parts, thread, needles, bobbins, oil and machines here.

Didn't the seller of the machine offer these feet as options? As for the aftermarket feet, they are all cloned from the harness feet that are standard equipment on Cowboy and Cobra 441 class machines. Juki also offers these feet for their TSC-441. These are all high quality feet. There is no way to know how these aftermarket feet will fit or stand up to the pounding they will experience in normal use.

That is a cloth and garment sewing/quilting machine. It is not built to sew leather. It is a light duty domestic sewing machine with drop feed. The pseudo-pod foot is there to help pull long quilts through the machine. I think you should read my sticky article about the type of sewing machine you need to sew leather. NB: Plastic body domestic sewing machines may be able to sew a few ounces of short leather seams, but will have problems penetrating and feeding the material because it heavy, sticky and dense. Further, they do not handle thread larger than #69 bonded. That is considered entry level for leather sewing.

Yikes! If true, that's one useless motor unless the OP plans to sew flat out. He'd need a 6:1 speed reduction to sew small leather items. From the looks of it, a 50mm motor pulley would cut those speeds in half. That's okay for longs seams, but not intricate patterns or thick work.

The servo motor speeds would be switchable maximums, not minimums.

I found a user's operating manual for the Consew 206RB, printed in 1978. The machine you are bidding on is a -1, which may put it at 1980. Bid accordingly. The current model is the -5.

Glad to help a fellow Michigander!

First, tighten down the presser foot pressure spring. Most skipped stitches are caused by the leather lifting up with the ascending needle and that spring holds it down. Install a new needle, in case the old one is damaged in some way. Alternately, try using one size larger needle as a larger hole makes it easier to pull up the knots inside the leather without lifting it. If these suggestions don't fix the problem, your timing may be off and will need tweaking. The problem may be the needle bar moved from impacts, or worse, the hook has become retarded from thread jams. Try the first suggestions before dinking with the timing.

Bear in mind that most older industrial sewing machines were setup with clutch motors, and that many had larger motor pulleys to maximize the speed (time is money in upholstery and garment production). If the machine you bid on has a clutch motor, and you can't control it properly, you're looking at spending another $135 to $150 for a proper servo motor with a small pulley (example) and the required shorter v-belt, plus the disassembly/reassembly time and scratched fingers to swap them out. Factor this in when evaluating the machine.

Soft wood yields the best results when a nail or needle punctures all the way through.

That was a soft wood 12" ruler I sewed. It was 1/8 inch thick. It wasn't much denser than saddle skirting.

A Union Lockstitch machine can punch through plywood. They were often used to sew luggage and cases in their day. Also, the Campbell Randall and Landis 3 and 16 can do this task. The reason is these are all needle and awl machines with powerful continuous run motors and giant flywheel pulleys. These old machines still cost thousands of dollars. Aside from the needle and awl machines, I believe that a #26 or #27 needle would be needed in a closed eye needle machine, like the Cowboy and Cobra 441 clones. Or, maybe a #25 round point instead of leather point. Either way, the material should be glued to the wood before punching through or the wood will splinter on the bottom. If an upholstery machine was used, the hole in the feed dog would have to be large enough to clear a #25 needle. Also, the hook might need to be moved further away to clear the oversize needle. I think the OP would be better off drilling the holes on a drill press, or with a hand drill.