dikman

Some photos. I've played around with it a bit more, and I'm very pleased with it. I've probably been pushing my machine past what it's designed for, so any issues have been due to that. I tried a size 21 needle, with 138 thread, and got it through 1/4" of leather, although it balked a couple of times due to the hardness of the leather, the main problem being that one of the belts started slipping (the motor kept going). No problems with torque. I slowed the start speed setting even more, and it will now walk very slowly right from startup. I've also reduced the top speed, as I don't need a machine that sews at light speed!! Considering its size (it's only a fraction of the size and weight of the Singer clutch monster that it replaced) I'm very impressed. Silverback, unless the main shaft end of your machine is threaded to take a bolt, you won't be able to use the synchronizer, so I'd just buy one without it and save $50. I don't see the lack of it as being a problem, due to the much improved slow speed control.

Silverback, I did a search on AliExpress.com (the Chinese equivalent of ebay) and came up with this - http://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20150921145713&SearchText=sewing+machine+servo+motor. The first one is the one I bought. There are others slightly cheaper, but this lot (Lishui Skyrit import and export) ship from an Australian warehouse, took 6 days from Sydney to Adelaide, which is pretty good for Australia Post!

My Chinese servo motor just arrived. Yay. I didn't get it until pretty late in the day, but couldn't wait to hook it up and see what happened. I was a wee bit concerned, as even though it's rated at 500 watts it's pretty small (but then, the DC motor on my vertical mill is small, but works very well). I turned it on and nothing blew up, which is always a good start! I have a pulley reduction system on the machine, but even with that it seemed to start with a bit of a lurch - not quite what I expected, so I figured I should read what passes for a manual. Quite a few parameters to fiddle with, but it turns out that most are only effective if the needle synchronization is used. I worked out what a couple probably do and reduced the setting on one and lo and behold, it started very slowly. Much nicer. I tried putting pressure on the handwheel and it didn't have any effect, so it looks like it's got gobs of torque. I called it quits until tomorrow when I will try it on some leather. I spent the extra to get one with the needle synchronization, but unfortunately it turns out I can't use that feature on my machine. The synchronization "module" is designed to mount on the end of the main shaft, but because mine has the stitch length adjuster in the centre of the handwheel there's no way I can fit it!! It also came with a 3" pulley, but I had asked for the 2" instead. They said that the Australian warehouse only has 3" versions, so they are sending me a 2" via courier. I'll post a couple of photos tomorrow and let y'all know how it goes with some leather. I'm feeling cautiously optimistic.

I won't start a discussion on Japanese swords, but yes, they have been described as the pinnacle of sword making. As for the boxcutter, if it works for you that's all that matters. I have found that cutting leather, particularly thicker stuff, is a lot different to cutting other materials, and some of the implements that I thought would work have proven to be quite inadequate. I now have an odd assortment of blades that I use - Stanley knife, el-cheapo box cutter, cheap "hobby knife" kit off ebay that will take scalpel blades, disposable scalpels, Olfa rotary thing and basically anything else that I find that might work. Best thing I've found, though, is using the strop that I made - it makes a heck of a difference to blades that are used to cut leather. All good fun.

Thanks ferg, it's a bit of an experiment. The servo is from China, price was good, so I'm curious to see how it will perform. As for the other machines, I don't really need a walking foot machine (but another toy would be nice to have!!) so I'll just keep looking and if I miss out I won't loose any sleep over it. There are lots of industrial sewers for sale, some at very good prices, but they are all straight stitchers. Unless I can find a compound walking foot there's no point buying anything else.

Dave, while I've dabbled in knifemaking I definitely don't consider myself a knifemaker (in comparison to those I meet at knife shows). I did it more out of interest, in order to learn how to make one. In the process I've learned a lot about cutting tools and edged weapons, and a bit about sharpening them. (My real interest is Samurai swords). Art's comments about the "voodoo" bit made me smile, because that's certainly been the case in the distant past, but fortunately there is now enough information out there to dispel those myths - if you look, that is. I've also found that knifemakers here are a very generous lot when it comes to sharing knowledge. Also, he's right about the abrasive steels, they are usually diamond coated and work well (I've got one, because in our kitchen it's almost impossible to keep a sharp edge on the knives (!) and being stainless knives are a pain in the butt to sharpen). But a professional wouldn't use one in a fit. Basically, if there's enough carbon in the steel to harden it then you can make a cutting tool (knife) from it. Too much carbon and it can get brittle, too little and it won't harden. As for sharpening, some swear by water stones, some like Arkansas stones, ordinary oil stones, diamond plates - whatever works for you. For cutting leather, however, a strop is probably the best way to get that final edge that's needed. I've found that thin blades work better, and I've been using scalpel blades lately - very thin, so can flex a bit but man, do they cut!!

DavidL, I'm not sure what you mean by "low rc"? Carbon steel blades, as opposed to stainless steel blades, have long been considered by many to be superior in "sharpenability". They may not hold an edge as long as stainless, but they are easier to sharpen and steeling them, or in our case stropping, often should keep them sharp with a minimum of effort. The downside, of course, is that they will rust if not looked after. A buffing wheel can certainly be used to hone an edge - as long as you know what you're doing (a high speed buffing wheel can be an extremely dangerous device if you're not careful). It can also round off an edge, and in extreme cases destroy the temper on thin blades if you get them hot.

Well, that one went too. That's the third ad that I've responded too where the seller has taken their time to get back to me only to say that the ad has finished. Seems obvious that they were too slack to take the ads down once sold! I keep forgetting how ignorant some people can be....... Not a great loss, though, as I have a servo motor coming for my Singer 51W59 (hopefully will make it more manageable on leather).

Yeah, bit unfortunate, but I wasn't going to buy it until I'd found out a bit more about that model first. (I still don't know for sure that it was a 1245!). In the meantime the other ad has suddenly had a "make an offer" thing attached to it - so I offered the same ($900). What is interesting is that the Seiko has been on the board for nearly two weeks, and is unsold. The Pfaff was on maybe two days and sold, so if the Seiko owner was watching it may have finally occurred to them that maybe their price is too high!

All rather irrelevant now as it's been sold!

I can only link to the advert, as it won't let me copy the photos - http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/findon/miscellaneous-goods/pfaff-industrial-sewing-machine-binder/1089516209 I'll see if I can find the manual online, as that should tell me the needle/thread size it can handle. I did look at some youtube videos of one, and it looks like it can take some pretty thick thread. Just found the manual for a 1245, but doesn't give the bobbin size. Judging by the videos I don't think it's a huge one, but that's not an issue for me as I won't be doing "commercial" quantities. If it is a 1245 (I've emailed the seller asking for a model number) it looks like it might be a fairly good buy (at least for Australia!!).

More questions (sorry). I'm interested in a Seiko STH-8BL, but I'm waiting to see if the seller will drop their price. In the meantime a Pfaff has just come up for sale, there's no model number given, nor can I see one on the photos, but it appears to be a 1245. Looks to be a late model, pretty good condition, comes with a binder attachment (which I don't need) and is $300 cheaper than the Seiko. (I'm guessing that the Seiko is the older of the two). Which one is considered to be the better of the two? Are their capabilities similar - needle size/thread size /thickness of material they can handle? Both appear to be clutch motors.

I suspect you're right about the tension being the problem. There's really no reason for the timing to go out unless something dramatic has happened.

Thanks Gregg, you've just increased my knowledge on this machine significantly. I was under the impression that it was probably the first of the model range, but it looks like it was possibly the last, as the Consew 206-RB5 is the same machine. It would certainly suit my needs, but I think the seller wants too much and I said to contact me if she decides to drop her price (which she said was firm). The problem is that she said that she has to sell it because of a lack of room, but has admitted that she doesn't really want to sell it!! The solution being to put on a high price, I guess, and see if anyone is silly enough to pay it. Still looking......

I've got my eye on an STH-8BL. Trying to find info on it isn't easy, as I suspect it's the first model in the series and so is fairly old. (It has a rotary dial for setting the stitch length, whereas every other one that I've seen has a slide lever). I've seen it referred to as a "compound feed", but have no idea what this means in relation to this model. Can anyone shed any light, or thoughts, on this model?

Thanks 276, a search for the Ho Hsing in Australia didn't turn up anything, nor did ebay. Ordering from the UK isn't an option for me, as the shipping would be a killer! (The advantage of the Chinese motor is that it's free shipping, it appears that they have a warehouse somewhere in Oz so it's effectively shipped locally). The reviews from customers are good, so I guess the only way to find out is to buy one and I guess it's probably worth getting the needle position version, given that it's not much more.

I should have added that it's $50 more for the needle position version, so, is it worth it?

I've been looking at servos on Aliexpress (Chinese version of ebay?). Some of them come with "needle position and synchronizer". Assuming that it does work, is the feature of any practical use to the non-commercial user? (Meaning me).

Timing issue between the hook and the needle?

Based on what I've gleaned thus far in my sewing machine journey, my first thoughts on seeing the bottom photo are - bobbin tension too high, upper tension too low or needle not big enough (hole not big enough to pull the bottom thread through). I'm curious to hear if my reasoning is right.

For $2.50 you can't go wrong! They should be fine for thinner leather. (I had a "cheapie" pair for years, and they were working fine until I tried to punch a thick holster - they shattered!!!).

Just to add my experience with mutton tallow, I made some about 18 months ago to use with my muzzleloaders. It's stored in an open container, inside a cupboard with my other waxes, and the cupboard is inside my forge shed. This shed is a basic tin shed, which gets very hot in summer (no cooling of any sort) and so far the tallow has remained fine. The beauty of pure tallow (and mutton tallow is supposed to be the best, made from suet) is that it doesn't go rancid.

As a result of this thread, I've made two holsters and a belt without grooving. I have mixed feelings about it. Personally, I think the grooved stitching looks a little neater, but there are problems when using this method on anything but nice simple lines. Freehand grooving (when stitching a pattern) is a pain to try and get it neat, it's very easy to mess it up, grooving the back of a holster can be problematic when trying to get the awl to come out in the rear groove and although I haven't tried machine stitching when grooved I had already deduced that it would be very easy to make a mistake! I'm guessing that I may not be doing as much grooving as I first thought.

I don't know anything about the Tandy classes (don't have them here), but I learned by reading LOTS and LOTS on the 'net, the guy where I bought my leather gave me lots of free advice, I watched quite a few videos on youtube (yeah, I know, some are pretty basic, some are self-indulgent and some are downright pathetic - but they still helped me understand some of the terminology and what people were talking about) and then there's this forum. An incredibly valuable source of information and advice. I've also read a few books, some by Al Stohlman - your local library might be a good source if you don't want to buy them. And then I learned by doing, and making the inevitable mistakes. If you still want to do the course, I would advise that you start reading to learn some of the basics first as it should help you get more out of the course because you'll have some understanding of what they're talking about. Incidentally, they mention buying the "basic tool set", but I think you would be far better off buying the individual tools as you need them. (I bought the basic set - awl, groover, marking wheel thingy, needles and thread. It got me started, but I've never used the wheel thingy, the thread is too short to be of much use and I eventually managed to pull the awl blade out of the handle! I fixed it, but I've ordered an awl from Japan, as while the Tandy awl works I've realised it's not exactly the best example of an awl). You have a big advantage now, being retired - you have the time to spend learning!

Yep, you're quite right, Uwe, and it applies to many items. A little while ago I bought a plasma cutter, and virtually all the brands/models available here are from China.The gentleman who sells the brand that I bought (his brand) said that he carefully selected the factory that makes them and personally visits the factory at regular intervals to ensure that they're doing what he wants. It shows, as I opened it up and the build quality is excellent.