sproggy

Hi Wiz, Thanks for the helpful tips. I do have a 550W servo motor on it, made by a Chinese company called Jack, with a 2 inch pulley. It doesn't go down to 1 stitch a second but it goes pretty slow and I feel comfortable with it. They also make a 700W or 750W servo... I will look into the roller foot, that's a good idea. What do you mean I will regain lost stitch length? I didn't know I lost it! You mean because the leather drags and so doesn't move as far ahead as fabric would? There is a little bit of an issue of the feed dogs scuffing up the leather on the bottom. I would think taller feed dogs would worsen that situation. I didn't know about putting oil into the top of the machine! It doesn't seem to lack any power to pierce leather, that's good! Cheers, Sproggy

I bought some T90 (I think) which is labeled 30 here. I haven't yet tried it out. The 210/6 thread comes apart as 3 main strands and in turn those 3 strands are woven of how many smaller strands I don't know. But it doesn't show 6 strands which is what I also had expected. In buying this garment sewing machine, I also had to be careful of my "mentor's" ego. That is, a man that I work with here who is both knowledgable and capable in the world of leather work/sewing machines, etc...wanted me to buy this Singer 292 machine for whatever reason I'm not exactly sure. He seems to be quite fond of it though he doesn't have one. If I hadn't taken his advice, I knew that he would have felt slighted and perhaps refuse or drag his feet in helping me in the future. And since I do have some use for this garment machine it made sense in the big picture to follow his lead. I can purchase a walking foot machine once I get the hang of this one. Thank you Wiz.....Sproggy

Hi Wiz, You're the man! The 210/6 thread is about 1/2 mm in diameter so too big. At least I've got that figured out, with your help. I do have some #19 needles and they fit. It's a little confusing because the terminology here in Thailand is not that of this forum. Maybe it's just metric vs. non-metric but Thailand is a funny place because somethings, fabric for instance, they will measure in feet and yards. But the height of a person is in meters and centimeters and a persons weight in kilos. The thread and needles, well, I don't know which system they are using but for a small thread they gave me something with the number 60 on it which they called "normal" garment thread. I'm using it with a #18 needle which is probably too big but it's working, that is, sewing (though the stitch is somewhat at an angle and not straight across...not sure what accounts for this). I will look for T90 thread if I can figure out what the equivalent is here and use that for sewing my leather. The small poly thread that I'm using for the cotton does not feel nor give the "sense" that it is durable enough for leather goods but it's good for my learning and practicing. I've got the servo on it with a 2 inch pulley so it is nice and slow. Do you know of any place I can view a manual for this machine? I'm not positive I have it threaded correctly. I'm already seeing how much easier it would be to sew a bag on a cylinder machine. Do you have any experience or knowledge of Taking machines? thanks Wiz! Sproggy

Somehow, I ended up with the above mentioned thread. Honestly, I cannot recall who recommended this to me for sewing my leather bags but now I have it in my possession in two colors. The shop where I bought it told me to use a number 18 needle but it hardly fits through the hole in the needle and tears after 3 stitches. Looking on the internet I found a table somewhere indicating that I needed a 23 or 24 needle. If someone could clear up this confusion for me that would be great. Is this the correct thread for chrome tanned leather bags (here in Thailand they call it 1.8 mm in regards to the thickness of it)? And the needle size if it is indeed the correct thread? I have a Singer 292 machine which I just bought and am learning about it as I go, playing with the tension, etc... Will a 23 or 24 needle even fit my machine...? Hmmm, well, I can go out and buy some needles easily enough and try them but some good advice is priceless. Thanks and cheers, Sproggy.

Well that was a long and interesting day, yesterday. I ended up buying the Singer 292 and adding a JACK servo motor which is Chinese made. The machine cost about $270 and the motor $130... It's a 550W motor but seems so small compared to the huge clutch motor that it replaced, which worries me a bit. However, it didn't have any trouble going through the leather I put under it and that's before having the pulley changed to a 2-incher (comes with what looked like a 3 inch pulley, to my eyes). It was also the only servo motor he made available to me. For what it's worth, I didn't feel the slowest setting was slow enough. It felt comfortable stitching on an open piece of cloth and leather but I tried to think about detailed stitching around curves and corners and how slow I might want to go. I also had in the back of my mind your comment Wiz, about your National doing a stitch a second or whatever it was...and I wanted to have that option. The best I could do to slow it down more was change the pulley which he will do for me. I didn't get a chance to try it with the smaller pulley... The Panasonic servo I had been shown previously, according to the owner who wasn't there last week, is a dog and he didn't recommend it. I don't have the machine yet as it needs to be shipped to me, probably on Thursday. I spent a lot of time playing with a Pfaff 335 and really wanted to buy it. However, the price was just under $800 and then I would have added the servo motor; I was afraid to spend that money without shopping around some more though my inexperienced mind was pretty impressed with the machine. It sewed together some 3mm veggie, 1.8mm chrome, and 2 layers or padding with ease (you can actually see this packet of stuff on the left side of the Pfaff photo, in the background). The hardest part was fitting this thick wad under the walking foot. I am also worried about spare parts being expensive and the ability to have anything fixed (I'm 750 km from this shop). I asked about Seiko and Consew and Mitsubishi but he didn't have any cylinder arm machines at the time...or at least not in the shop, and was pushing me to buy the Pfaff. He actually had two 335s in there so I'm not sure they're running out the door. He did have a Seiko post bed but I didn't look at it. He also had some flatbed walking machines, including a Dorkupp Adler but I was focused on the Pfaff. Strangely, to me, though it had a big clutch motor with a two-inch pulley, much like the Singer before I changed it, it was a lot easier to control and ran much slower than the Singer... My thoughts are I will play around with the Singer and improve my skills and see what I can and cannot do with it. Also, I'll become familiar with the JACK servo. With more knowledge, I'll reconsider the Pfaff and whatever else he might have. I was also unsure of the price of this machine and the motor so I'll inform myself on that front. I asked about a JUKI 543 which I've read about on this forum but he rather brushed of my inquiry. Thailand is full of JUKIs so I thought I might get a lower price. Thanks WIZ for your help, and Ron also. I'll do an update when I have more info. Cheers, Sproggy

A new wrinkle: I'm seeing now that a cylinder bed machine is recommended for sewing bags which is what I'm planning to do. So is that what I need to be looking for, a cylinder bed?

Awesome Wiz! I'm going to show them that video tomorrow and tell them that's what I need. I'll let you know what happens with the motors. I get the feeling servo's are not so popular here... You have my gratitude, thanks so much, Sproggy

Wiz, that's sort of exactly what my brain had reasoned in the last 24 hours and your post confirms it. I'm assuming tomorrow they're going to show me a Mitsubishi w.f. machine as that's what seem to be prevalent at their shop. I have looked at your pics of your National so I've got my fingers crossed that I'll be able to tell if it's a compound triple feed or not. I haven't been able to get that translated into Thai so it might be tough to communicate what exactly I want. I would think I can get a used Juki or Chinese brand straight stitch pretty cheaply. On to the servo motor. I saw the Techsew 550 servo motor sells new for only $149 (I had assumed it would be far more expensive...but of course I'm in Thailand not in Canada or US and the voltage here is 220, anyhow). They are asking more than twice that for this used Panasonic servo (as of yet I know nothing about it other than the brand and price). But seeing that the Techsew is so cheap it's making me confused as to what to do and why the high price (though since Panasonic is Japanese it's got a higher import price to Thailand). They do mention that I could get a new Chinese made servo for about $140 but they didn't seem too keen on the quality. As I mentioned, I'm pretty inexperienced with sewing and don't want to be cursing all the time as I ruin another piece of leather due to too much speed.

That just sounds scary! I think when I mention to these people that I would like the ability to sew light fabric that I'm skewing the argument the wrong way. My main focus is making bags, leather with cotton lining (some veg, mostly chrome tanned) and from canvas or other similarly thick fabric. I will give them a call and in my best Thai ask them to prep a triple-feed walking foot for Monday (the #1 on your list of walking foot machines) so I can take a look. It seems to me I would be better off spending my money for a good walking foot machine and maybe later on getting a lesser single foot for the light material if needed. I'm not planning on making thousands of items of anything so I don't need the best machine ever made with the highest price take. I think middle of the road is adequate. Thanks so much Wiz. I'll report back on what transpires. Cheers, sproggy

Thanks, Wiz, you're amazing at helping folks. I'll do what you say and try to sew the light material with the walking foot. I'm going back on Monday; they've got to pull the machines out of storage. This shop even has some Pffafs (sp?) and Adlers kicking about. Is the Singer 292 a nice machine? I couldn't find amy info on the site here using the search function so I'm assuming it's not used much in the States...or else it's dog...?

I live in Thailand and am about to buy my first sewing machine. I've been advised to buy a used Singer 292. I have read about the benefits of a walking foot machine and am quite intrigued to use this for sewing leather bags mostly from chrome tanned leathers. However, I would like to have the ability to make some non-leather items from materials such as canvas or even light weight cotton (such as a packaging bag for the leather bags) and I am told that a walking foot machine will not be able to sew the lighter weight material which is why the Singer has been nominated. Understanding my dilemma, does anyone have a recommendation? I'm not sure what kind of walking foot machines they have available but I'm pretty sure they have some Mitsubishis in their warehouse. Is my only real option two machines? The other question with the machine is the clutch motor or a used Panasonic servo (I don't know the model). The price for the Singer with the clutch motor is about $300 and the same machine with the used Panasonic servo is about $500. Thanks in advance for any help and happy sewing all! Sproggy

I just got an answer that it is indeed chrome tanned. Thank you for your help. Cheers!

I know of a Swiss company that made a much larger production here with the same leather and shipped it to Switzerland. Of course, being cold and dry with drying heat indoors they are experiencing the same problem but to a worse degree. And their bags aren't the distressed style. Don't know how they're coping. That's an idea with the baking soda. I might try just dabbing some solution on around the hardware as a test. I might have to "distress" the hardware even more so it looks like it's intentional. This is not such a bad thing if it works. As I said, my style has sort of a rough and used/vintage look so it might work. Well, I do love turning mistake/problems into positive things. I discover many new ideas this way but it's a worrisome road to travel in regards to time and money. I'll try the hair dryer, too. Thanks. I assume the acids will slowly destroy the leather, yes?

Thanks, guys. It seems I may have two different things going on then. The tallow and then the oxidizing/corrosion of the metal from some acid left in the leather. At least I won't worry about the tallow. It does seem to wipe off though on some items it is harder to remove than from others. Is there some way to seal this "acid" into the leather so it doesn't harm the metal? Yes, tree reaper, the hardware is plated. Actually, it has also corroded the metal zippers in some cases. They are YKK bronze zippers and have been appearing with some green and whitish coating on them where they are in close contact with the leather. I was also thinking if I lightly oiled the hardware that might help protect it some. Thanks, guys. It seems I may have two different things going on then. The tallow and then the oxidizing\/corrosion of the metal from some acid left in the leather. At least I won't worry about the tallow. It does seem to wipe off though on some items it is harder to remove than from others. Is there some way to seal this \"acid\" into the leather so it doesn't harm the metal? Yes, tree reaper, the hardware is plated. Actually, it has also corroded the metal zippers in some cases. They are YKK bronze zippers and have been appearing with some green and whitish coating on them where they are in close contact with the leather. I was also thinking if I lightly oiled the hardware that might help protect it some.

Hi Tree Reaper...I'm not sure. I recall someone unreliable saying that it was but I cannot verify that. I don't know my leather that well. It's very soft and buttery feeling. Does that tell us anything?

Hi all, I did a small production with some oil chamois leather and have run into some problems. I have a white coating coming out of the leather, especially in dry conditions. All metal hardware is also being slowly eaten away or blemished. From what I understand, the white is tallow used for softening. Does this make sense? Is it also the tallow which is affecting the hardware or is that some other chemical/substance? More importantly, what can I do to remedy the situation on the already finished bags, if anything? I can clean the hardware some and luckily my bag style is sort of "diamond in the rough" so I might be able to get away with a distressed look on the hardware. But I'm afraid things will continue to degrade and perhaps even the leather will fall apart. Any advice? FYI I live in Thailand and the bags were made during the humid season. No it is dry and the effects are becoming visible. I also just got back from the east coast of the US where some of the bags were in a heated and very dry house and the tallow rose up en masse! Thank you, Sproggy.

Hi Tom, that is great and specific info, thank you. I will look into, firstly, the price of servo motors here after which I can evaluate swapping motors or just changing the pulley on the clutch motor to see what that gives me. The speed reducers seem strangely expensive when compared to the price of a new motor. Of course, since I'm in Thailand prices will probably be a lot different. No doubt many Chinese built items, and Japanese, too. Is there some advantage to clutch motors such as production cost of the motor? I'm wondering why they make machines with clutch motors and not servos. There must be some benefit. What do I do with the clutch motor if I swap it out for a servo? I wouldn't want to try and make my own reducer. I'm a bit mechanical but not THAT mechanical....!

Thanks, Tom. So even if I swap the motor to a servo type, I still have the $125 expense of changing the pulley, yes? Is it the pulley on the motor itself or the one on the the right-hand side of the machine that one turns by hand to lift the needle? Or do both of these need to be changed? Any particulars I should look for in the servo motor? As it is, I'm really afraid to sew leather where the sewing is visible since the machine is so hard to control. I don't doubt I need practice with the clutch. At the same time, I can't understand why it needs to be so difficult. What about running it through a rheostat or does that rob too much power? Cheers, Peter

This is like magic, getting answers here. Amazing, thank you thank you. I assume the reducer pulley is a much cheaper route to go than changing the motor, correct? I believe I read on this forum that clutch motors go at full speed or zero speed and the only way to control that speed is by giving bursts on the pedal. Is it me or is it an incredibly difficult movement to finesse? Perhaps it's just the set-up of this machine that makes it so difficult... The person that has this machine and is teaching me a bit of sewing is hard to get straight-forward answers from and he scoffed at any info I got from this site so it is hard to be certain about which path I should take. Thanks again, Sproggy

I have access to this used machine, a Mitsubishi LS2-130, and could buy it for about $200 (with table and motor). It has a 1/3 hp clutch motor and the pulley is 4 inches in diameter (that's the one that you can turn with your hand for slow sewing, located at the top of the machine, correct?). I am told it has been set up for leather but I'm very ignorant still on these matters. After reading a fair bit on here I thought to buy a walking foot machine but those are much more expensive and the truth is, what I'm planning to sew, for the most part, are soft leathers (up to 3mm) as well as a fair bit of fabric (some heavy canvas but also some lighter-weight material for linings, packing bags, etc...like men's cotton shirting weight). Does this machine look like a decent proposal? I have used it and for the life of me I can't control it very well. It doesn't seem to like to go slow AT ALL. Do I just need practice? I have read on here that the machines can be slowed down by changing the pulley wheel and belt. Is this an option for this machine? Should I change to a servo motor? Do I really need two machines? Perhaps this one for fabric and a walking foot for the leather? I am under the impression that a walking foot for light-weight fabric is no a good match. Thanks all, Sproggy.

Wonderful site with great people that I found just a few hours ago while googling "walking foot sewing machines". I've been doing some hand sewing and pattern making for the last year with a tiny bit of machine sewing on a friend's machine (controlling the speed of the pedal seems SO difficult...I'm hoping it's just this machine). I'm now interested in buying a machine. I have looked at all the info on here and have seen many recommendations so I don't think I need to ask which machine to buy (I live in Thailand so first I will see what's available and at what price and then compare that to the recommendations on here). What I am wondering is if and when I get this machine home, what next? I'm not even 100% sure how to thread the machine to get started, let alone adjust and swap parts, etc. Luckily, I am fairly mechanical... Other than bothering my friend all the time to explain things to me (not that fun), is there a book, course, video, etc...that could explain how the machines work and how to make friends with them? Thanks much, Sproggy