Darren Brosowski

It is frustrating for the sewer and the tech but 98 times out of 100 the needle or threading is the issue! 1/100 is something simple and stupid The other 1/100 leaves everyone wondering WTF is going on here.

Glad you got one locally - been off line for about a week so only just saw your message. When Singer was running around trying to pretend it was a sewing machine company rather than a marketing company they did a bunch of stupid things such as creating the "New" 331 machines. All they did was take the 31 and modify the body. Shortly after that they went broke.

As we are talking about the ultimate ratio between the motor and machine shaft you also need to consider the balance wheel. Industrial machines like the 206RB usually have 2 1/2" to 3" machine pulleys but a 45k has a pulley three times or so the diameter so it runs at one third the speed for the same motor.

Basic engineering; The heavier the material and thread you want to work with - the heavier the body needs to be to give the required stiffness. The industrial sewing machine business is very conservative in terms of design. While it is possible to build a large bobbin small diameter arm machine nobody is prepared to step out from the norm.

The bid question is WHY?

Thanks Bob. We see very few Ferdco machines here and the odd one I come across is usually just a rebadged GA5. People find there way to me after they get quoted absolutely stunning prices for "genuine" spares from local dealers - $US15 per bobbin was one example. Always glad to learn something new.

I won't buy them because they are crap. If the new model is good then it will be a hit. If the machine is well built then I am going to fit a geared servo motor to the head and sell it as a lower priced option to the German machines BUT it will really need to be well built for me to take that step.

Pictures help because 80-90% of the time a new machine uses parts from something else. To make life difficult the manufacturers often give the same thing a different part number - and often charge more for the "new" part.

There are Chinese and Taiwanese patchers and while the versions from Taiwan are better they are not always that good. One of my suppliers sent me a free 29 from China and it now works ok after many modifications but would only ever suit a hobbyist, not a full time user. There is a new 29 version being developed in China and the estimated price would suggest that it is going to be better but I will not know until I get my first sample - also coming for free.

The flat bed 132k6 is better for horse rug repairs but there is no reverse. The GA5 has reverse and a flat bed can be purchased or easily made with some plywood and timber. Keep in mind that the newest 132k6 is over 50 years old and even these beautifully built machines wear out over time. New parts are available and mostly come from Seiko so they are very expensive. If buying a GA5 they normally come with a roller foot and guide which are excellent for leather work. While the roller foot is a bit course and will mark leather there is the option to upgrade to a rubber wheel or an original 45k type roller (These are options that I have but not sure about other dealers) With practice the GA5 will sew beautifully on leather but the 132k6 is always a compromise as it was only really intended to be a heavy upholstery machine. In general I suggest people invest in a new machine for leather work and find something cheaper for horse rug repairs as rugs are always full of dust that will damage a machine. Steve (Singermania) is the importer and I am his only dealer - ABLE Sewing on evilBay

For the sort of work you are talking about a CW8 of Pfaff 335 type would probably suit but it would be best to give more information here first. I can give you a direct contact at keestar or cowboy China depending on what you really need

The sewing machine fairies that infest my workshop are huge fans of 1970's English Punk and early 1980's music. A good blast of Adam Ant gets them going but for fine work they seem to respond best to Kraftwerk

95 class, serial number issued July1 1936 for a batch of 5000, next batch issued September 9, 1936. Usually they use the 88X1 needle but I adjust the needlebar to suit the longer DBX1

K is for the Kilbowie plant. SV is Special Version and this is the only documentation I have seen of one. Most of the time SV was used for a special build and it could have been a minor internal modification for a particular customer or a short run of machines. I have a 24KSV that was guilt for circular sewing and was a standard 24 with an attachment. If an SV proved to have wider uses it was sometimes formalised as a standard model and I had a 133KSV darning machine (really old serial number) that was identical to the later 133k12 Trying to track specific types is pretty much impossible

LOL Mate, I was complimenting Eric on sharing his knowledge and hope you don't think I was having a go at you. If that 467 was offered to me I would not have touched it as, to extend your metaphor, I think it rolled off a cliff, crashed and burned!!

In Australia a dealer selling a used machine must has to warrant that the machine is "fit and proper for the purpose for which it is sold" and here the customer would have the right to demand full refund or replacement. Mistakes happen and things can go wrong - that is life - but in this case reconditioned appears to mean that they put a new needle in it........

I like to think of owning a sewing machine in terms of owning a car. Learning to use it is equivalent to learning to drive. Cleaning and oiling is equivalent to washing and polishing a car Changing needles and knowing when to change a needle is the same as car tyres. Timing and minor adjustment is comparable to changing oil and oil filter in a car - very simple when clearly explained. As with cars some owners are happy to pay someone else to do everything for them. I tend to find that the people who have the least problems are the ones who want to understand how and why the machine works. I know it sounds silly but sewing machines "talk" to you - when things are not quite right they start to sound different - and the experienced user will start to sense when something is not quite right and find the problem before it becomes expensive.

Agree with Uwe about the marking!!!!! Some marking is a given but learning to set your machine up - and many others have given some good tips on this - is up to the operator. Hand sewing v machine sewing is a compromise. Different types of machine are a compromise. Different threads are a compromise. Even stitch length is a compromise between appearance and speed. There is no such thing as "perfect" so you need to find a balance between what you want/need/money and by talking to the dealers you can make an informed choice. Take a piece of your work to one of the dealers and they are going to be more than happy to show you how to use the machine doing that job. These are top end sewing machines and anyone in sales worth their salt will be more than willing to help

Looking at those pictures all I see is oil residue not rust.

Depends; If it is a walking foot then NO and why would you want to? If it is a straight sewer then a simple matter of screwing on the roller foot although changing the feed dog and needle plate to a single row type may be an idea.

LOL Eric Apart from the /32's issue you just gave away every sewing mechanics secrets.

A great example is the Singer model 15 domestic. Original production was the long beak shuttle as used in the 17/18 class but the later version with a bobbin case with a "finger" (similar to the 31 bobbin case) was stolen from the Germans!!!! I prefer to think of it all as design fusion between companies.

The movie is from after the time that they went to the arsenal system The machine production is obviously after the introduction of the arsenal system as prior to that they could not punch through those sorts of numbers!! Needles are a precision art

Interesting!!! Do you have any idea of the age of your machine? Normally the "B" was used for Japanese built machines - U was a different factory - and as far as I know they are all built by Seiko. Consew IS Seiko and for all of the machines I know of they changed the numbering system when Singer went kaput. To your question. 29 bobbins are made in China and Taiwan with a small possibility that some come out of Japan - Bob Kovar or others may know more about that - but stay away from the Chinese bobbins as they are often pretty rough. Buy from a supplier who will back the product!! Taiwanese large 29k bobbins 20.05mm dia 7.64 thick 5.75 bore They are the stock I have now but next batch might vary

I have sold a couple of versions of the GB6 class and while there is difference between the GB6-180/181/182 and the various sub classes I find the easiest way to describe them is as a modernised version of the Singer 7 class. The 1010/GB6-180-2 is like a lot of machines and is an amalgam of "off the shelf" parts - not that this is a bad thing. So, it is something like a Singer 7B top end, 441 bits in the bottom to create something very similar to the Japanese built Tailor TG-360 which was essentially a modified Singer 11 class? Does that clear things up? If so then please explain it to me as I lost the plot around about 441