mountain mama

Hello everyone, I would consider myself a beginner although I have sewed all my life. I have worked with upholstery for many years, however I need a little guidance, input or whatever advice you have to offer. I will be redoing the seat on my Kentucky springset saddle. I will be doing a quilting style known as trapunto. This is where you quilt a pattern into the leather with a cloth backing, then poke little holes in the clothe and stuff it with small bits of wool to make raised patterns. You can see examples of this if you look up the Minihan Saddle or Kentucky stitch down saddle. This saddle is my personal saddle that I have road for the past five years. I expect the saddle to have to endure many more years of heavy riding. What type of thread would you use for the quilting? I will either hand quilt it or use my old singer pedal type machine. I know to use beeswax on the thread, I jus don't know what kind of thread would be the best. What type of material would best for the backing? Any thoughts? Please share.

Surely someone has an opinion? Help a lady out here.

Hello everyone, I would consider myself a beginner although I have sewed all my life. I have worked with upholstery for many years, however I need a little guidance, input or whatever advice you have to offer. I will be redoing the seat on my Kentucky springset saddle. I will be doing a quilting style known as trapunto. This is where you quilt a pattern into the leather with a cloth backing, then poke little holes in the clothe and stuff it with small bits of wool to make raised patterns. You can see examples of this if you look up the Minihan Saddle or Kentucky stitch down saddle. This saddle is my personal saddle that I have road for the past five years. I expect the saddle to have to endure many more years of heavy riding. What type of thread would you use for the quilting? I will either hand quilt it or use my old singer pedal type machine. What type of material would best for the backing? Any thoughts? Please share.

I know this is an old dead thread, but I am also having trouble finding information on this topic. I searched and this is the only thread discussing an inlaid padded seat. I will start a new thread when I feel comfortable enough to not feel like an idiot..lol.

I have ruled out the trouble being in the needle bar. Thanks for the video, it helped me to understand how the clutch works better. I could tell that the method of pushing the button and rotating the machine backwards was not rengaging the clutch well.Although I don't have any play in the clutch, I think I may have managed to manually reset the clutch. I will retime the hook once again and see if it performs better. I will get back to you. thanks for your help Constabulary.

Update, I cross posted hoping for some help. Hey guys, how are ya? I have been struggling with my machine for quite sometime, and by reading through the other forums I have gained alot of knowledge and it has brought me a long way with my machine, I appreciate all of your input and advice, and the work you have done to help other leather workers. When I first got my machine, I had a jam and ended doing more damage than good, resulting in the hook and stem to be replaced. I took the machine to a repairman, who sorted out the problems and got my machine sewing, however when he tested the machine, he used very thin fabric, not comparable to vinyl or leather. After sewing just bit, the hook quit rotating. After inspection, I found the hook time gear was floppy and the set screws had worked themselves loose. I retimed the hook and got it sewing again. After sewing a bit more, the hook was off again, so I retimed it again, and again and again. Even though I have retimed the hook and the set screws have not worked themselves loose, the hook still gets out of time. I have examined the machine for loose screws that would effect the hook but have found nothing. Does anyone know why my hook is getting out of time after a little use, and what I might do? any help is appreciated.

Hey guys, how are ya? I have been struggling with my machine for quite sometime, and by reading through the other forums I have gained alot of knowledge and it has brought me a long way with my machine, I appreciate all of your input and advice, and the work you have done to help other leather workers. When I first got my machine, I had a jam and ended doing more damage than good, resulting in the hook and stem to be replaced. I took the machine to a repairman, who sorted out the problems and got my machine sewing, however when he tested the machine, he used very thin fabric, not comparable to vinyl or leather. After sewing just bit, the hook quit rotating. After inspection, I found the hook time gear was floppy and the set screws had worked themselves loose. I retimed the hook and got it sewing again. After sewing a bit more, the hook was off again, so I retimed it again, and again and again. Even though I have retimed the hook and the set screws have not worked themselves loose, the hook still gets out of time. I have examined the machine for loose screws that would effect the hook but have found nothing. Does anyone know why my hook is getting out of time after a little use, and what I might do? any help is appreciated.

UPDATE, Although I don't know the technically terms, the gear that engages the hook moves freely back and forth, but doesn't engage the hook. I am sure it is a simple fix. Thanks for the help Cody, I am still at a stand still. All of these troubles are getting me down. I have had machine trouble for so long

I have a similiar problem, I just got my machine back from the shop. When I got it back it was sewing perfectly. It seems that a bit of thread jammed in between the hook and the bobbin, causing the safety clutch to engage. I called the repair man and he advised me to hold the right most button on the machine and rotate the wheel back or maybe towards me til the safety clutch was reset. After much ado, the hook is spinning again, but does not meet with the needle to make a stitch, any ideas?

Update... I took a very, very fine file and was able to correct the bluntness of my hook. The hook will grab the thread and pull it around the bobbin case. I also noticed my needle bar was slightly out of position and set it... still have to go through all of the adjustments. Will update again once I know more about the problem. Thanks all!

You may not be able to see it, but here is the picture , the hook is barely blunted. My aunt has worked on industrial equipment for +30 years, but she lives so far away, and doesn't have internet. Thanks for help.

Hi everyone I am new to this thread , and fairly new to using an industrial machine. I began using a home machine when I was 5 and it was produced in the 50's or 60's and came from sears roebuck catalog. It is a tough machine and I still use it from time to time, however it won't handle the heavy duty projects I take on. After several years of searching for an industrial I could afford, my husband acquired the 111w155 on a trade. I oiled and cleaned it up to the best of my knowledge and used it to complete several projects, including saddle blankets, ATV seats, and a motorcycle seat. I was up late working on my husbands motorcycle seat which has raised diamond design and while rolling bobbin, I unknowingly let thread build up under to bobbin case. After a very frustrating time I broke the bobbin lever and had to replace the bobbin case. ($29 ouch!) After waiting a week to get it I was excited to put my machine back to use. During my reassembly I lost one of the tiniest screws that holds the case in place, which I haven't been able to recover. I put the remaining screw in the hole where that it would hold the peice in place without the second screw. I began work on the passenger motorcycle seat. I completed over half of the lines for the diamond, the after making a turn to start another row the machine simply would not pick up stitches anymore. I have read this forum searching for the why's and how's to fix it. I believe the time on the machine is right and threading is correct. Here is the two factors I believe is affecting my machine, maybe someone here can help me sort through this. 1st theory is that because new bobbin case did not have slight indention in front of tab, bobbin thread is not sitting in correct position to be pulled around by hook. My option to remedy this would be to take a small file and sandpaper and crest the indention in front of the tab. 2nd theory is that bobbin guard was not in correct position when I put it back together and it broke/blunted the tip of my hook. Will I have to replace the hook, or might it work if I use fine sand paper to sharpen the hook? I became disabled a few years ago, and since then learned that I have a progressive nerve disease. I am on a very limited income and use my machine to fix things for our family and friends that we would otherwise not be able to afford. I even use my machine for tailoring my clothing. Using my machine is very relaxing for me and allows me to feel a sense of accomplishment, which I don't get very often since my abilities are not what they once were. I hope someone can help me get my machine working again soon. Any advice or suggestion of how to remedy the problem the cheapest way possible would be greatly appreciated. Thanks -Brittany