oxeyenyc

Hi y'all! I recently converted a Singer 31-15 to a roller foot, with success (i think?!)...now though the tension on the machine is out of wack--it will be fine, then the bobbin thread will be loose on top of the leather. The tension seemed fine before the conversion... (full disclosure: I just got this machine and when I bought it it was working fine when the seller showed it. Upon getting it home, I immediately swapped the head onto my previous table/motor and did the roller conversion...so it is a new table/motor/belt/foot from what it was set up when I saw it working fine...) So far I have tried: adjusting top/bottom tensions removing and cleaning tension discs re-threading/trying different needle sizes and styles. also trying different leathers (body/thickness) adjusting the top pressure screw removed shuttle race, cleaned and put back in I've also been watching how the thread from the spool is feeding, and it seems fine...the tension spring seems to be engaging with every stitch... I've attached photos of the inconsistent tension, as well as of the tension discs (which seem to have slightly inconsistent wear patterns, but it seems odd that this would become a problem all of a sudden. From reading previous posts with similar issues, it seems that it could be any number of issues--if anyone has some guidance I am much obliged! Dana

It has been great to see and hear about how everyone approaches their roller foot conversions on the 31-15...in the end I brought the big wheel back over to the sewing machine shop and he ground down the edge of the bracket (the wheel touched the bracket otherwise when adjusted close to the needle). So I ended up with the original flat foot bar, the big roller wheel, and the new feed dog/plate (part numbers 12836 and 12838). I sent back the new footbar/small wheel combo (the wheel didn't swivel to the side which kinda bummed me out!...part number S-194, if anyone in the future might find this of interest Thank you everyone for sharing all of your insights and photos!

oh boy...what an evening of trying to figure this out I thought I should make one final update to this post, for anyone who comes across it in the future! It turns out that the big wheel was too big to be adjusted close enough to the needle...so in the end, the kit with the small wheel seems like it is the way to go! Thanks to everyone who weighed in!

Hi Uwe! Thank you for including the link to the parts manual, that is pretty cool! I was just able to make the final adjustment to use the original bar and the big roller--I completely removed the screw on the top of the machine and this allowed the bar to move up and down freely. Now I just need to ask my neighbor to borrow his ratchet screwdriver in order to remove that back screw on the presser plate! What a poor placement for that screw

Success getting the large roller onto the existing foot bar! So hopefully this thread might be useful to anyone who is looking to switch to a roller foot--you don't need to buy an entire new foot bar, even if someone on the other end of the phone tries to sell you one! Now the only issue I am having is that I got the foot bar to move up (by loosening the screw and then loosening the screw on top of the machine...)but now it won't go back down! I think I maybe loosened too far? (sorry for such a long thread, y'all

Hi Wiz! Thanks so much for the reply! The more I am looking at this, I am thinking that the new S-194 foot bar from Pligrim is unnecessary...I look at the foot bar that is already on the machine, and it seems to match up to the mounting bracket on the big roller wheel. I've attached a few pics (of the current foot bar and big roller foot) if you don't mind to take a look--I am trying to follow your instructions (below), but am having some trouble removing the screws so I've oiled em up and am waiting to give it another go! Also, would you mind to tell me your opinion on the feed dog/plate combo that Pilgrim sent me? The length of the feed dog seems small for the plate, but maybe it is ok? I used to use a Consew 225 walking foot and just switched over to the 31-15...I'll be using it to stitch cowboy boot uppers! Thanks again! Really appreciate all of the shared wisdom

Hello Leatherworkers! From Pilgram Sewing Supply I bought the parts to convert my 31-15 to a roller foot (S-194 Foot bar, needle plate and feed dog). The roller foot on the new foot bar is small (and doesn't swing open to the side), so I went to my local sewing machine repair shop and picked up a larger roller foot, which does swing open. When I brought the larger roller foot home, I noticed that it doesn't seem to be compatible with the foot bar...is there something that I am not seeing? Or is this new awesome big swivel roller foot not the right one for a 31-15? Thank you kindly for your input! Please see photos below (the larger swivel roller foot is pictured to the left, the smaller roller foot that came with the foot bar is to the right). All the best, Dana P.

Thanks so much for all that great info!

Hi! I am new to leatherworking, learning a lot along the way! I want to learn about riveting--I see on ebay antique rivet setters for sale for around $30, described in "working condition." Are these tools appropriate for setting rivets, or are they not really useful? I also see in the forums that die sets are mentioned--do I need more than one set of dies? Do the rivet setters usually come with a die set? Thank you so much! Dana

So I have gotten two very different opinions regarding clutch vs servo motors--one person told me that in order to get a slow speed, a servo is necessary. Someone else told me that with a clutch, it is possible to get the machine to walk slowly with practice. I have come nowhere close to getting my clutch motor to walk!! (The disclaimer being that I am very new to industrial sewing, and the person who sold me the machine did demonstrate that she could get the machine to walk.) Any opinions?

Great! I did get the parts from Toledo Sewing Supply and it was very easy to install

Hello! First, thank you to all of the experienced leatherworkers for shinning such awesome insight! Based on the forums, I just purchased a Consew 225, a great machine to sew through the double layers of 1/8" leather I plan to use to make bags. Here is my question: The pressure foot that is on my machine has teeth on the bottom, which leave marks on the leather. Is it recommended to sand down these teeth? Or is there an alternate foot that I should try? Thanks again for all the wisdom, what a great community! Dana