Darren Brosowski

Poor tolerances? The ABLE290 is made with the finest of precision engineering - well, as good as you can get using a hammer and chisel

At long last these are on the way from Taiwan. Unfortunately they are a custom order so I have to wait until there is some downtime on the machine before they make them for me. When they arrive they will be listed on eBay at $AU7 each and the current exchange rate is $0.7 so approx $US5. For forum members I will sell them in lots of 10 for $US40 + $8 Postage One forum member mentioned that one seller was asking $US10 each for these so I hope you think that my price is reasonable. email me on darren@ablesewing.com.au

Probably refurbished in the 1960's with that logo

Are the "clones" as good as the German machine? The answer is probably a qualified "no". In outright quality terms the Chinese are not quite there yet but there are many qualifications to the answer. We all see thousands of second hand machines up to 100 years old make their way onto the craft market. Most have done a million miles of sewing in a factory them been passed along to multiple users because many factories upgrade their machines rather than spend money on maintenance. This is a lot of the reason why so many people have problems with second hand machines and have to spend money to get them "right" We will see a lot of the current crop of Chinese machines make this journey as the basic engineering is pretty sound. When buying a new machine for craft work things are different as you will not be running the machine flat stick every day with no oiling or cleaning (I hope). At low speeds and low use it is hard to wear a machine out so it comes down to having the machine set up properly by the dealer before you get it. There are lots of dealers. Visit some and ask them to show you how they set up a machine

I love the White Rotary! There are many treadle machines out there that are way better than anything from Singer.

A 1960's Japanese domestic straight sewer for $20 will sew the same thing and probably last another 30 years

Same machines really. Two dealers with a great reputation on this forum It comes down to delivered price and personal preference.

If it is the Singer "Heavy Duty" that usually comes up then ANY industrial machine will be a ray of sunshine for CloudyCreek! I have been working a lot recently with people making bags and most agree that they want, or should have bought, a cylinder bed machine. The CB227R/ Techsew 2700 or the CB341/Techsew 2750 are the machine of choice for these users

A CB3200?

This is easy to fix. Take out the shuttle and shuttle driver turn the hand wheel until the needle is at the bottom and keep going until it just starts to move up. The shuttle driver goes back in with the raised section up against the needle. Roughly two thirds in front and one third behind. That should fix it

It is unlikely but check the two bars under the machine that drive the feed dogs. Too much play or a loose connection could be the cause

A few things cause this on machines. 1/ always make sure you have the correct needle 2/ check the needle plate for any roughness on the top and bottom edges. 3/ run your finger around the edge of the shuttle to check for any burs. 4/ If it is a horizontal shuttle there is an arm in front of the shuttle that opens to let the thread through. Ensure it is open enough for your thread and check for burrs. 5/ The timing could be out by a fraction. Also try different thread as the sewing machine fairies sometimes cause problems with one specific thread type LOL If thread is old then toss it away

I do not suggest old iron to new sewers in most cases as it takes some getting used to. That is a beautiful machine. I have to say that I have never seen that type of knee lift and I am not even sure that it is Singer. Does it say "Simanco"?

Bloody useless things! Despite the fact that they are .0001% of the sewing machine market Tippman machines are 10% of the real problems that people post on this forum.

Will probably keep doing it for days, possibly even weeks

I usually use a high gloss automotive lacquer just because it looks pretty

http://www.parts.singerco.com/IPpartCharts/47W61_66.PDF Only for very light leather!

The Consew is not a clone of the Singer. When Singer started closing factories they contracted out manufacturing of many machines to Seiko. Eventually Singer went belly up and kept making the machines under their own brand name. Consew - CONsolidated SEWing - is a brand name created for Seiko machines for the US and other Western markets.

Unfortunately there are Chinese shuttle hooks and bobbin cases sporting the Towa and Hirose brand marks. They are not as well finished as the Japanese original

This is a simple handcrank adaptation of the CB105 and as the CB3200 is roughly the same size it would still be workable.

I have an Indian built version of this machine - brand new. Hopefully I will get it to work properly one day.......

Ok IM7, this is easily fixed. - Turn the handwheel until the needle is at its bottom point. - Put the shuttle driver in with the 1/3rd moon bit alongside the needle - two thirds towards the front (your side of the machine) and one third behind the needle. I sell a manual for this machine with pictures.

If the walking foot is a domestic with an attachment then it is $400 down the toilet!

You will not need to put anything in the needle clamp - it should work ok. Possible up to 15oz depending on the leather and the machine fairies. I would not try anything bigger than 22g and even then it depends on the leather as the spring for the foot cannot hold it down if you push too hard

Depending on where you are Rod I am in Goulburn and Steve is in Bundy so if the machine needs playing with.....