Singermania

Hi Elly and I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, people of other faiths or no faiths a Happy New Year.

I agree with the above repliers, machines when the foot pressure is minimized will either leave no mark or a very slight mark, it will depend on a few factors. On the occasion of a really particular purchaser it is possible to even take a coil off the foot pressure spring, a compound feed machine really doesn't need a great deal of foot pressure, the needle feed on its own will suffice. You would of course need a smooth feed dog, again not ramped up too high and smooth feet. I would not recommend a light to medium machine for you if you are going to sew up to 3/8", this places you more in line with medium to heavy. In the Cowboy range the CB3200 tops out at about 3/8", up from there would be the CB4500 which will go closer to 3/4" Regards Steve of Cowboy Leather Machines, Australia

Hi all, its now November and we are sold out of both the Cowboy CB3200 and CB4500, awaiting new stock. Thanks everyone for your support, sales have exceeded our wildest expectations. We now stock both the Cowboy 801 and 802 dual feed skivers, these come on an industrial table with a 750 watt motor. On a less happy note there is an ex dealer out there pretending to sell Cowboy machines, this person is not associated with Cowboy Leather Machines in Australia, we are Australia's only distributor and supply dealers Darren Brosowsky in Goulburn and Rinus Haanstra in Cairns. These are our authorised dealers, these dealers along with ourselves provide you with an Australian warranty. The person passing off his machines as Cowboy sells machines missing parts, belts that don't fit, motors running in reverse and so on, when people complain he stops answering his phone. If you come across this individual pls be aware he is not associated with our product and show some caution.

We get these machines in from time to time for repair or adjustment.... mostly adjustments. They seem to run ok then for reasons that aren't always clear they mess up. Our engineer thinks its to do with the fairly heavy motion of the handle that brings on some jarring. With the price of the Cowboy CB3200 at about the same level and coming with a table, motor, speed reducer, special feet and plates it seems a no brainer that that would be the best option no matter how good the Tippmann was. The Cowboy CB3200 will hold a good stitch from material to material, thread to thread, if it gets out of whack its easy to see why and adjust accordingly.

HI All, actually the Cowboy CB3200 is rated at 5/8' rather than 1/2" and is not a clone of the Juki TSC 441, it is an inhouse design and uses some Juki and Adler parts. That being the case it is not quite the same when doing the main timing or the reverse timing... there are other more obvious differences such as the bobbin winder not being on the main body of the machine and so on. When we (Australia's Cowboy Leather Machines) put this machine to the public we mate them with a range of tables.... it could be the cut away one, a pedestal or an overhang style table. You can also have a clutch or servo motor, however nearly 100% of buyers will opt for the speed reducer. They also come with the special foot and plate pack, which means you get the blanket foot set, the double toe leather foot, left and right toes, left and right dogleg toes, smooth dog and plate as well as the stirrup and holster plates. This machine is an excellent all rounder, but we are finding back here in Australia that it excels in the belt making and bag making trades. I've attached a couple of photos from Steve Kemp and Doug Johnston.

Although the falling Aussie dollar and therefore poor exchange rate for importing has effected us, we have been able to mostly hold prices steady... our aim to is make these heavy leather machines accessable to the people that really need and appreciate them. I believe we are Australia's largest heavy leather sewing machine supplier and do our best at all times to provide the best machine for the job... these machines are NOT sent out in their boxes, they are unpacked and thoroughly tested over an exhaustive range of materials, threads and needles. Which reminds me to thank again all those saddlers and leather workers that drop in their offcuts for us to test the machines on. Each week we will run a special, this week its on the massive Cowboy CB7273 walking foot flatbed machine. This machine has taken over from the Singer 132K6 as it will sew 15mm of leather rather than 8mm, has a true walking foot and reverse. Canvas workers in particular like this machine as often, especially on corners they exceed the 8mm limit of the K6. Special price this week.... $2800 We also have in a number of drop down guides to suit the Adler 370 series saddlery machines, they are on sale for $85 Australian, considerably less than the $500 you hear bandied around.

Hi All, I haven't checked in for a while, so here is the latest update, we're going from strength to strength with the Cowboy Distributorship, with machines going out pretty much everyday. Here is a photo of three CB4500 that are going out over the next couple of days down south to Melbourne and Gippsland and over west to Perth, Western Australia.

I would think there'd have to be some 441 clone suppliers in England, as far as I know though there is no Cowboy supplier there. The biggest outlets for Cowboy are the US, Germany and Australia.

HI All and Thanks for your support. Its 4 months since we took on the Cowboy Distributorship in North Eastern Australia, I'm proud to say we've taken it probably from the smallest player in the heavy leather machines section in Australia to the largest, along with ourselves as we are now believed to be Australia's biggest heavy leather sewing machine supplier. There are bigger sewing machine suppliers, however they mostly concentrate on the garment trade. We concentrate on three high level models for leather work, the Cowboy CW-8b, Cowboy CB3200 and Cowboy CB4500, these machines all have compound feed, cylinder arms and reverse. There is an entry level machine called the Cowboy GA5-1, this is bottom feed with reverse. Additionally, we have been offering with considerable success some longarm flatbed machines with walking feet and reverse, the Cowboy CB7373 and Cowboy CB7132UL-16. We've also been called on to supply some rope binding machines, hot knives, single and double feed skivers, hand pull and hand turn splitters and strap cutters. We have consistently underestimated demand and find that we have had to re order every two weeks, with each individual order greater than the previous years sales. With size and volume we have been able to source our product at better prices and been able to hold the cost to the buyer steady even though the exchange rate for importing is presently dreadful. We still offer the Cowboy CB3200 and the Cowboy CB4500 for $2800 and $3800 Austalian... respectively including the special feet and plate pack, roller guide, speed reducer and top line motor. Plus we have been able to source what we feel is the best table on the market, which is in the attached photo.

Interesting..........the way the tables come from China with the four bolts are so simple and easy to attach, and solid as a rock. Can't imagine why you would do all that work just to do it differently. As I have made these wooden tops from scratch I can tell you the hardest thing is to get the routered out layed effect under the table top that fits the arm precisely, once you have that they really just about sit there on there own.

Its a long holiday weekend here in Australia so a trip to the coast for fish n chips is in order. Being the 7th of June I'm adding a little update to our Keestar and Cowboy distributorship news, we have again sold out of the 441 and Cowboy CB 4500 top end machines, new models are arriving in about two weeks. We ordered greater numbers of the Cowboy CB3200 and so have some of those still in stock, although a couple went out this week..... I've attached a photo of some belts that Steve Kemp made here a little while back on the 3200. Although there are dozens of machines available from our manufacturers we have selected a smaller range to suit our leather customers.. namely the Cowboy CB4500, Cowboy CB3200, Cowboy CB 7273ECO (good 132K6 replacement), Cowboy 7132UL-16 (long arm 132K6), GA5-1 and CW-8b. Also in an effort to supply some goods that saddlers and leather workers have requested we are stocking the 800 splitter, 8116 splitter, 801 skiver and strap cutters, this adds a bit of complexity to our stock of back up parts but is proving successful also. Our Cowboy CB3200 and Cowboy CB4500 come with the full special set of optional feet and plates and roller guide built into the lowest price we can offer, a price on a par or better than the least equipped other branded machines.....(to my knowledge). If you are considering a machine in Oz, then give us a call on 0419 393750 and we can work out what machine is best for you. sorry forgot the photo

HI, sorry don't have much time lately to get on here. I have several complete clutch systems if anybody needs them, they are rather heavy though. British machines rarely had the clutch motor setup, they mostly were used in France. Originally the motor would have four bolts that went thru the leg of the treadle stand. The pitman arm was disconnected from the flywheel and attached the the clutch arm that used to hand down to reach the top of the pitman. You didn't need to worry about stopping the flywheel, the clutch would disconnect it from driving the machine. Yes I have motorised many Pearsons over the years, some with clutch motors and some with servos, you need to gear them down though.

HI All, I managed to get off the shelf ones that fit, the people that bought the Canadian ones found they don't....

HI Everyone, I have an old Union Lockstitch missing a heap of parts, its not economical to buy so many parts from the manufacturer so am hoping to pick up an old broken or rusty with not much commercial value. I'm looking to set this machine and a few other old ones next to my Cowboy CB 4500 and Cowboy 3200 machines. Absolutely anything considered, no matter how bad..... regards Steve

HI All, another update, I wanted to thank all our Aussie buyers for their orders and confidence in us. Our Keestar order coming onto the Brisbane docks on Sunday is sold out and the Cowboy order following 5 days after that is also sold out. These orders contained Cowboy CB4500, CB3500, long arm 132K6 style machines, Keestar GA 441, Keestar GA5, very heavy walking foot machines, splitters, strap cutters and skivers etc. So as not to be always out of stock we have another 4 orders following on after these two. With any new distributorship its hard to accurately forecast the demand, we were optimistic but still under ordered, so if anyone feels they will be ordering a machine from us in the future could they give us a call so we can better plan ahead. FYI, we back our machines with a 2 years parts and 1 year labour warranty, fully workshop test each machine and send out assembled... not in cardboard boxes from the factory. Again thanks to everyone and to Leatherworker for allowing us to post our blatantly commercial messages..... it really does help us a great deal. Steve Bonnett, Steve's Leather Machines, Cowboy Leather Machines in Australia.

Please note we are in Australia and are NOT trying to sell you a machine.... I believe all machines come with manuals. If you are technically minded you could possibly tackle the timing yourself, however bear in mind there are 3 adjustments at the back of the machine and one at the front and upsetting one can mess you up in other areas. You might also run into warranty problems if you mess around too much as well. Be wary of long complex instruction on how to rectify problems on this site, when most problems are simply tension related. I don't agree entirely on the theory that bigger is not always better, with the CB4500 ie the 441 style machine, it is bigger, it will sew thicker but it is not heavier or clumsier in the needle and foot area, they have quite a dainty foot set and will sew anything from medium harness right down to a wallet. As everyone has mentioned all the machines are similar, so its best to choose the one with best backup..... I haven't heard any bad remarks about any of the US dealers. I mention my situation in the above post so that people realise who I am, dealer or not I still try to give fair comment.

Al is right, its nothing to do with a speed reducer, that will only make it go slower, however I wouldn't like to run a 97 without one. Missing stitches can be many things, for example... top tension to tight, wrong needle to thread sizes, timing, hook worn and so on....

HI, Steve here from Cowboy Leather Machines in Australia, all good advice above, the 25 needle does cover the thread range you mention, but yes maybe you could go a little lighter too. Thread tensions are everything with sewing machines, look at looping twice around the bottom thread tension unit and as above make sure the thread guide above the thread spool is exactly positioned vertically above it so threads unravel easily and evenly. If you hadn't already changed the needle I'd also check it for burrs.

Glad you got it sorted, the photo shows the top tension to be way to light, as you say caused by the tension disks being held open. When something like this happens turn the machine over by hand and you will be able to see where things are going wrong and at what point. Its nice that people offer all sorts of complex machine adjustment advise, but always look for the simple answer first otherwise you can create problems where they didn't exist before. Bob and Ryan and myself get real busy, not just answering phone calls, but there are machines to order, to unpack, to service, accounts to pay, there are family commitments and so on, we all do our best and I think we give the best service anywhere but we cant always be available every second...... hope everyone understands that we do our very best at all times and are genuinely disappointed if we occasionally aren't on the spot when needed.

HI, I'm Steve Bonnett of Steve's Leather Machines and Cowboy Leather Machines in Australia and can recommend either machine you mentioned. Naturally we are biased towards the Cowboy because we have taken over the distributorship and the mother company is very very helpful, this makes for much easier backup to the end user. As mentioned above the longer arm of the Cb4500 is a bonus as is the increased sewing thickness at your disposal. Here is Australia pre service and after service backup are the holy grail, since taking over the distributorship 2 months ago we have doubled the turnover of the previous distributor's previous 12 months. This is all down to the service and reputation.... as the product is the same. I believe that whichever brand you choose and whichever model your choose..ie CB3200 or CB4500 you will be pleased with the result. Best Regards Steve Bonnett, Steve's Leather Machines and Cowboy Leather Machines Australia. Correction, clearly my maths isn't so good, just got corrected by my partner, the turnover has more than tripled in a sixth of the time.

Thanks to everyone for the messages of support, we will always do our best to support the Cowboy range in Australia. Having only recently taken over the Cowboy distributorship our orders for the CB3200, CB4500, strap cutter, skivers, splitters, parts etc are on the way, but not landed yet. First shipment arriving very soon with orders being taken almost every day. Sadly there has been some bad feeling towards us taking this venture on and I've heard of complaints to Cowboy that the machines we have supplied have hot been very good and more...actually a lot more... I hope everyone understands that as we have not even got a machine to deliver yet and that we could not possibly have done what is claimed. So to the person complaining about our service to Cowboy at least have the good sense to wait until we deliver the first machine.... That aside, things are going well, we have pre sold some of the CB3200 and now sold a couple of the CB4500. Splitters and strap cutters are also proving to be popular and we have had to increase the order. Thanks everyone for your support. We only supply Australia and New Zealand, so if you're here in the States then Neels is the place to go. Thanks again for everyones support.

Hi Daren and Ryan, I don't have a clue as to who sells what to who, I only follow my own business ideas, ideals and goals for the future. I am head of Steve's Leather Machines and Cowboy Leather Machines Australia and am proud to be associated with both of you. Darren and I are a little defensive at the moment as a consequence of some fairly heavy personal and business attacks here in recent weeks..... so pls accept any abrasiveness on our part as being due to that. I am in daily contact with Darren and have just had communication with Ryan O. Neel of Cowboy Sewing Machines in the States and he has been kind enough to extend us his best wishes for the future. This is important as I see them as the mother company, they enjoy a high reputation both in the States and here in Australia....we not only wish to bask in that reputation but also build on it here too. Best Regards Steve Bonnett 0419 393750

Yes the stitch length adjuster was moved to the far end on later model machines, also the French and German machines usually had them at the far end. Of our 16 machines here, I think about 6 of them have this configuration.

HI, no its not the BUSMC machine, the Pearson was made in three countries, Britian, France and Germany. Yours is the Deutchland VSG manufacturer, you don't see many about, I also have one, only one in Australia.

hmmm, normally hear the pulleys come with a small hole and you have to drill them out to the size you want. might be easier to go smaller on the motor...regards Steve, Cowboy Leather Machines