cdthayer

Yes Glenn. Thank you. I got it into service with a set of Weaver Harness feet on it in April 2019, and then we closed the shop in May 2019 when we found out my wife had lost function in both kidneys and needed dialysis three times a week in a town 40 miles away. I never actually got to do a repair project with it, but it’s ready to go. My son will be setting up a hobby sewing shop at his home in SW Colorado, so he’ll be taking it along with one of my Singer 29K70 patchers and a couple of other machines. I’ll keep my Adler 205-64 jumpfoot machine and my other 29K70 in case my wife needs to do some heavy duty sewing. She can operate any machine we have. She got a kidney transplant in July 2022, and is doing fine so far, but we never reopened our shop. We just stayed retired. CD in Oklahoma

I preferred a flatbed machine for most work on leather coats other than sleeve patches (Singer 29K70 then). I agree that zipper work is best done on a flatbed (I used a Singer 16-41 jumpfoot treadle or a Consew 225 w/speed reducer). When using a cylinder arm machine (Singer 29K70 or Adler 205-64), I used an old “across-the-bed” adjustable-height hospital table to support the heavier items. My eyes have gotten so bad that I no longer sew. CD in Oklahoma

FWIW: Use a 9-spoke balance wheel for your conversion. In my experience, most (if not all) 6-spoke balance wheels don’t work on the 99 because the hub is longer. CD in Oklahoma

Make sure you have enough presser foot pressure to hold down all of that dense leather so that it doesn’t rise with the needle on the upward stroke. If the work even rises just a smidgen, the top thread loop that the hook needs can collapse and the hook won’t catch it. CD in Oklahoma

I really like it! I’m still on grid, but I've got a couple of foot-powered stone machines too. CD in Oklahoma

I converted an older (1960s) Singer 20U (no submodel number known) to treadle for use on Sunbrella, canvas, and vinyl. I used the machine for repairs when I needed a wide zigzag, and doubt that I ever sewed through 6 layers. I’ve never done any production work with it. There’s a photo and discussion of it here at Leatherworker: https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/86841-singer-20u-and-premier-chainstitch-machine-question/?do=findComment&comment=591646 CD in Oklahoma

You might want to take another look at it, Wiz. CD in Oklahoma

I think you’re correct on the 78-series. It looks like the 78-2 with the bobbed-off deck for sewing mattresses. Good repair machine for tight areas. I’d love to have one of them. Here’s a photo of the back side of my 78-3 if it will help any with identification. CD in Oklahoma

Thank you all for your help. I appreciate it. CD in Oklahoma

Ok, thanks. I'll give it a try when/if I get the machine back on the bench to fiddle with it. CD in Oklahoma

Nope. Never heard another word. CD in Oklahoma

Use a boot top with a butter bowl stuffed in it and lashed to the pillar. Feed the thread up around the existing spool pin. Turn the boot top inside out to keep the pull straps from catching the thread. CD in Oklahoma

Try to get into contact with someone in the Quilting Community (as in, "quilting ladies"). The Singer 78-3 makes an excellent machine for "stitch in the ditch" quilting fabric and batting sandwiches together (Tex30 thread) without ending up with puckers. CD in Oklahoma

Nice machine Lee. I think you’ll like it if you haven’t tried a 16 before. Get it onto a treadle as soon as you can. I’m still working my 16-41 on a treadle with 16x63-18 needles and Tex90 thread. It’s a workhorse. I’m not too interested in the wood part of a machine, so have no advice there. All I’ve ever done is put a light coat of sewing machine oil on the butcher block tops to help with the dryness of the wood, and then used them as they came to me. CD in Oklahoma