dikman

Assuming those Paff's were working somebody got an absolute bargain.

I did that with every machine I bought, although not having a trailer meant completely dismantling the table too! It should be pretty obvious how things fit together. Definitely let the head ride in comfort, it's the most important part. If it's got a clutch motor I'd take it off too as it's a lot of dead weight to be attached to a table that could be bouncing around in a trailer. Looks like a good buy.

sbrownn, I think the references to UV were to my comments on my GPS sunshade "melting" on the car dashboard, not your excellent creation. My apologies for sidetracking your post (I have a habit of hijacking threads ). As for showing wear, that's the beauty of leather it ages gracefully as it's used.

Any idea what the Pfaff went for, out of curiosity?

Hmm, never come across that stuff before. I thought UV generally took time to affect material (my floors certainly took months to fade!!). This happened within a couple of hours. The dashboard top in a car here in Oz gets bloody hot in the sun!

That is very generous of you, given the time you would have put in developing them. The bag looks very nice. A heat gun wouldn't be much use as it would tend to heat the whole thing and soften it. As an aside, I recently used PLA to make a shade to fit on my Garmin GPS in the car. The .stl came from thingiverse and it fitted well. My wife took the car out and left it parked in the sun, it wasn't an overly hot day, about 26*C. I went up to the car about 2 hours later and the shade was soft and sagging!! Bugger!

As a repository of knowledge for all things leatherwork this has to be THE site to come to. This is doubly so when it comes to industrial sewing machines, I seriously doubt if there is anywhere else that has such a wide experience base to call on and that is freely available to all.

Oh yes, I forgot to mention that I made a replacement arm cover plate from a piece of aluminium.

http://www.kwokhing.com/pfaff/ I bought the 206-04 plate and feed dog and the KP335W, in hindsight I should have bought the N071. You'll have to email them for prices, there's an enquiry form on their website. I figured that the cost didn't matter much as it meant I could at least use it as a normal machine.

Yes, need a new feed dog too.

Based on those measurements there shouldn't be too many issues fitting it. I have an assortment of pulleys (45 mm, 65mm, 75, 120 and 140) that I can use on the reducer shaft to the head so I can fine-tune the final drive ratio. It's amazing how many pulleys I've accumulated since getting into this sewing machine thing! I've also just fitted a steel channel underneath to reinforce the table against the extra weight. Still waiting for the shipping quote, I just hope the Chinese are quicker at actual shipping than working out a quote!!!!

I did that to my Pfaff 335. I needed a new needle plate and both feet, which I bought from Kwok Hing. I think I replaced the feed dog too, but I'll have to check on that (memory gets a bit confused these days ).

Excellent! Thanks Brian. I intend to replace my 335 with this machine, I've swapped the motor for a 750w that I used on another machine and fitted a speed reducer (3:1). These measurements will enable me to make sure that the belt will clear the slot and give me an idea if any of my existing belts will fit.

I was wondering if someone with one of these could do me a favour please? I would like to know the distance from the tabletop to the centre of the main (pulley) shaft and the diameter of the pulley itself (not the handwheel part), also, the distance centre to centre of the four mounting bolts.

Sounds to me like you'll need one of the usual suspects - an upholstery-class walking foot. You'll be struggling with any domestic machine. An industrial straight-stitcher might do it (cheaper) but you could face issues with multiple layers not feeding properly.

Now that is different! Nicely done.

Yeah, there is that! I figure buying them from the people selling the machine gives me a reasonable chance that they will actually fit.

Ok, it comes standard with the blanket feet, 3 bobbins and a couple of needles. I priced 1,3,6,8,12,13. The dearest was 3 at $24, the rest were between $14 - $18 (US$) which seems pretty reasonable to me. For a couple of hundred AU$ I can get a nice assortment of extras. Now I'm just waiting on the shipping quote and as long as it's not stupid I'll be in business.

Wiz, the motor's not a problem. This will be replacing the Pfaff 335 on its table, already fitted with a servo and I have several speed reducers that I can fit (I've had a little experience at slowing down machines ). As for the edge guide, I'll probably make one to suit, I've already made one or two different types for my other machines. I'll ask them what it comes fitted with (I'm guessing the blanket foot).

Assuming I get my 441, what type of feet, plates and feed dogs will I need to sew leather (holsters and belts)? Keestar have a selection available so buying from them makes sense as at least I know they will fit the machine. I sort of have some idea but figured it's better to rely on other's experience.

Yes, I just found out that they have assorted bits. I'll start another thread about it.

Thanks for your input, Glenn. I would love to buy the cheapest, just to see what it's like, but like most of us I have to try and get it right the first time. The little voice inside is saying Keestar, and I've ignored this voice in the past and got things wrong! I've always intended to go through whatever I get, to both check it out and to get familiar with it. I've managed to resurrect/adjust a few machines now so I don't consider it as a big deal. Now I'll need to find a source for extra feet, needles and thread (thread heavier than #138 is not that common here). More expense.

Good idea about the saw blades. I have a couple of cheap handsaws, I'll have to test the steel and see what it's like. Failing that I'll try and find a saw sharpening place.

My guess would be that the most they would do is turn over the machine by hand to make sure it at least moves before leaving the factory. If it's bought from the factory that assembles them then I guess there's a better chance that it will have at least been examined as the final stage. If it comes from a reseller, and apparently there are quite a few on alibaba, then the reseller wouldn't check it they would basically on-ship it as it came from the factory. Keestar, while a bit more expensive than some, sounds promising. They apparently manufacture a wide range of sewing machines and the woman I've swapped emails with said that if there is any problem with damaged parts they simply send them out. At least it's a name I've heard of. I've just emailed the customs broker to ask for a quote based on this machine, although the size/weight won't vary regardless of where I buy it from.

Finally got a price from Keestar, $1310. She suggested an Adler clone that they sell would be better - but at double the price I think not!! So far the cheapest price is $938.