alexitbe

I have just made the order and found Mr Schmidt a very helpful and patient guy... He suggested the Osbourne, because its easier to sharpen. Cheers ALex

I worked on it tonight....And all was going well and then I decided to clean the feed-dogs. I removed it, cleaned and then replaced it... Now my forward and backwards stitches are different lengths... I currently dispair... I've got power back in the cellar, so will post some picks tmrw. I took a closer look at the thread return spring and it looks like its broken... Cost of replacement is 15 euros... EDIT: THANKS RALF... Just saw your post.... I appreciate the information and I will look at it tmrw.. .Right now, I am furious with myself for cleaning the feed-dogs and messing everything up... Cheers Alex

HI Constab, I don't think I set the needle height when I was at zero motion. I will try that tonight.. An maybe that will clear it up. I was confused about the strange little disc myself. I thought it was a spacer, initially, but only closer inspection it looks like a tiny little pulley... So i put it inbewteen the discs. The other thread tension unit does not have it. I will remove it and see. The tension discs barely move when I lift the presser foot to release the tension, so when I remove it they should separate more. Maybe that helps? The machine is threaded properly, or atleast according to the manual. I have the original... The regulation spring is there, but it does not look in very good condition... And I don't really know how I should set it. Pics are difficult right now as I have no power in the cellar, so must use a torch. Cheers Alex

HI Wizcraft, I am not sure what you mean by the "zero motion position." I rotated the wheel (connected to the motor pulley) until the tip of the hook sat directly behind the needle. The rotation position was different for both the straight stitch and the zig ziag, so I did it for the zig-zag only. At this particular position, I think the feed-dogs moved alot when I toggled between forward and reverse. I will check that tonight. Is this important? I would say, that hook is less than 2mm above the eye, so I will adjust this tonight. Thanks for your help. Alex

Ok..... I have done a few things....I I cleaned the hook area with kerosene, it did not look like it had been cleaned for a long time and there was plenty of fluff... I then cleaned the upper thread tension gizmo. There was a washer behind the two tension discs acting as a spacer, that on closer inspection was more like a minature pully. So I put it between the two disc for the thread to sit in. The discs now seperate a little when the presser foot is lifted whilst it didn't before. I think I would like a little more, its leass than a mm. I am not sure this made any difference to the stitch. Lastly, I changed the needle bar height. I set the stitch width to max 4.5 mm. Turned the wheel until the hook was just behind the needle. THe needle eye was almost level with the hook, so I droppped it a little. I know get good stitching back and forth for the straight stitch. The presure does not change depending on direction. This is really good progress for me, since I can happily start making stuff now. However, I still get a change of upper thread tension for the zizag on reverse...I think the zigzag is better though... I must look more closely tmrw. Thanks for all the help. Alex

Hello, Can you give us some idea of the contents of your magazine and the average number of pages? It will be interesting to see what you guys in the East find useful and interesting, and how you do things. Cheers Alex

Thanks Eric, I will look for that size.... I am wondering in the world of garment making, so a double needle machine might be useful... Cheers Alex

This is interesting to hear... I can do basic single needle sewing, but nothing more with a double needle sewing machine? What guage (distance between needles) would you suggest? What is industry standard in the clothing industry? Cheers Alex

Hi Gregg, Well the 38-6 is the prequel to the 138-6. It runs at a much lower speed than the 138-6, I think about 800... I think mine was made before the war Cheers Alex

Thanks Tinker Tailor.... That guy has a great sense of humour... My girlfriend wondered why I had a stupid grin on my face... well different from the normal one ... ...ALthough I have to listen hard to what he's saying as he has a strange accent... Is it Canadian? Anyway, I have subsribed to his channel.. .It looks fun. Alex

HI Uwe, Thanks for the sewing advice.... I will take a careful look tonight, when at home. I tried to change the title, but the edit function is no longer available. You are right, its not very descriptive... Cheers Alex

yes, Uwe... I really do think it works.... My main concern was keeping the sewing machine in contact with the coke for as long as posible...hence covering it in a cloth. If I could have let it stand in a bowl of the stuff, I am sure, in the morning it would have been clean... I think coke is very cheap your side of the pond, so it is realistic filling a bucket... Cheers Alex

Hi Glenn and Steve, Thanks for the help. At what point in the needle cycle should the take-up spring move down? I have no idea. I can compare if it is at a different point in the needle up-and-down cycle for forward and reverse. However, I don't know the ideal point that this should happen. I have tried steadily increasing the upper tension, whilst in reverse, and it is very strong now, yet it is still getting pulled down by the lower thread. Whilst running the sewing machine forward, it is easy to balance the thread tension and it is also a very light presure that does this. Surely there should not be so stark a difference in required tension for forward and back? Lastly, if I manage to get the upper tension correct for reverse, surely it will then be too strong for forwards direction and pull the lower thread up? Cheers Alex

So, it arrived and I did try the coke for about 20 mins.... By covering the machine with a cloth and then soaking it with Coke. It seemed to work, to be honest. However, I was in a hurry and decided to use Kerosene and my girlfriend's exfoliating glove.... oops Before: After: So thank you very much for your suggestions... I have learnt something that I know I will use often. I am really pleased with the results. Cheers Alex

I have a Pfaff 38-6, which is basically a slower runing version of a 138. It is a very old version of the 38, I think before the War. When I go forwards, the tension is fine but when I reverse the upper thread tension is too little. I have timed the feed dogs to the setting it should be for the 138, which is stationary at 4mm above minimum needle height. When I got it, the feed dogs were stationary at about 2mm above the minimum needle height. Might this be the problem? TOPSIDE- forwards (right line) and reverse (left line) UNDERSIDE - forward (left line) and reverse (right line) What do you guys think? Cheers Alex

Bugger! I spent so long making the pulley reducer... Am still waiting for the sewing machine....

Well this must be the longest thread I have ever had.... Anyway, the machine is stil not here, but when it arrives I really want to try coke... So will try that just for fun and then try Darren's suggestion of wire wool and kerosene..if not then WD40.... Thanks, I have learnt something, which hopefully I can use in the future, because I am sucker for machines I don't need... Cheers Alex

Bugger, He's on hols until next Monday... Guess he's been enjoying the festive spirit Cheers Alex

Hello Everyone, Thank you for your responses.... Constab: I still have the Recolor, but it seemed to remove alot of the paint off the Singer 29k. That is the last thing I want to do. I only wish to clean up the outside. Thor: I will try Waschbenzin, after the WD40. That's a new word for me to learn... Uwe: Thanks for advice, I will look out for it over here in Germany. I have to wokr in my cellar, so anythin that doesn't stink is a bonus. The most important thing for me is that I don't damage the paint that is already there... I only want to remove the old crud and hopefully the rust. Cheers Alex

Hello again, Thor I will give the WD40 a go first and post the results... I am not really very experienced at doing refurbishments...I have accidently removed decals on several onld machines... Much to my disappointment, Luckily, this one has nothing fancy on it and just needs a good clean. Do you think the rust stains will come out of the paint? Cheers Alex

I have clean up old sewing machines before in a very amateur way, because I never really care about how it looks... However, this time I would like to keep the pain on and do as little damage to the original finish as possible. On other machines I have used, rubbing alcohol/ turpentine, alcohol (ethonal) and acetone. All damaged the original finish. The pictures below is the machine I wish to clean. Thanks for ay advice.... Alex

Thanks Thor.... (My Son is currently sitting on the sofa dressed as Thor ) I am going to call Marc Schmidt on Monday. I will buy a few things, so it won't much difference to him which one he suggests... I just want the least worse one... Cheers Alex

If you are not joining two fur pieces together, then you don't need a bonis or any other fur machine. I thought you were joining pieces together... This might be an idea for you to do in the future with your scrap pieces... Then they won't be scrap, as you won't see the join... I believe the 206 is a good sewing machine. I think the Consew 225 is the newer version. It is a walking foot machine and is good for leather. It is a copy of the well known Singer 111-155, which has been in use since before the war... Someone may correct me here... I am not long into sewing... Cheers Alex

No, I tried with my own Singer 46k.... However, it was a very old DDR domestic sewig machine motor, so maybe a newer one could... Although I have been turning it by hand, until recently (it has a hand wheel) I have just tried my 750W motor , over Christmas.....What a revelation.... Back to the bear.... Yes, you really must use this type of fur sewig machine otherwise the join would be quite visible... I have an old Singer manual for these types of machine that lists bear with the needle and thread to use.... I will scan it and put it up on your thread if interested... PM me if I forget... CheersA lex

Happy New Year! Can anyone offer any advice on these two options? I cannot seem to find any other makers out there... It seems that some people think the Osborne quality is poor for this tool and I thought maybe the Ivan is better or atleast equal. The Ivan is about 5 Euros cheaper and since I guess I will have to sharpen either one I would rather save myself five euros. Ivan: https://www.rickert-werkzeug.de/de/Naht-Kante/Hobeln-Polieren/Regulierbarer-Hohlmeissel-V-foermig.html Osbourne: https://www.rickert-werkzeug.de/de/Naht-Kante/Hobeln-Polieren/Osborne-Regulierbarer-Hohlmeissel-V-foermig.html If anyone can recommend other makes I would happily consider them.. Second hand would also be fine... Cheers and all the best Alex