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cdthayer

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About cdthayer

  • Rank
    Member
  • Birthday 08/01/1952

Profile Information

  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Frederick, Oklahoma, USA
  • Interests
    Ex-Highliner, now Fabric Store Co-owner. Handtooled and hand-sewed leather wallets and purses during the 1980s, but now into sewing machines.

LW Info

  • Leatherwork Specialty
    Alteration & Repair of MC, Farm, & Ranch Gear
  • Interested in learning about
    Sewing Machines
  • How did you find leatherworker.net?
    Needlebar Forum

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  1. 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
  2. You mentioned in a post that you have a pfaff 130-6 that you converted to treadle. Other than fitting the sewing head to the cabinet, did you have to do anything to the machine to get it to sew okay?

     I’ve been toying with this idea for quite awhile and since I think I might need a new motor, I might just take the leap and convert it to treadle.

    Thanks for your answer.

    1. cdthayer

      cdthayer

      I replaced the Pfaff hand wheel with an aftermarket 9-spoke (for Singers) to get a larger wheel on it.  Otherwise, I don’t recall doing anything else to the machine.

      The treadle was a standard household Singer base that I mounted the top from a parted-out electric cabinet on. I used a plumb bob to align the hand wheel pulley and the flywheel pulley when mounting the top on the base.

      I sold that unit to a lady back in 2014 shortly after I put it together, and didn’t use it much myself.  I never heard anything back from her, and I’m sure I would have if she’d had problems with it.  We had our sewing shop open until the summer of 2019, so I was easy to contact.

      CD in Oklahoma

       

      Machine488T_21.jpg

    2. PonyEdwards

      PonyEdwards

      Thanks. Would the machine work okay with its original wheel?

  3. 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
  4. I really like it! I’m still on grid, but I've got a couple of foot-powered stone machines too. CD in Oklahoma
  5. 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
  6. You might want to take another look at it, Wiz. CD in Oklahoma
  7. 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
  8. Thank you all for your help. I appreciate it. CD in Oklahoma
  9. 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
  10. 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
  11. 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
  12. 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
  13. cdthayer

    SINGER 29-4

    Hello??? Test, one, two, three.... Is anyone out there? CD in Oklahoma
  14. cdthayer

    SINGER 29-4

    Nice looking machine Ferg. I wish you good luck with your sale. Speaking of Singer 29-4 machines, would you please move my listing of my Singer 29-4 in the “Used” forum (“FS - 1915 Singer 29-4 & Treadle Stand”) (https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/86404-fs-1915-singer-29-4-treadle-stand/ ) into the “Old/Sold” forum as I requested back on August 19th? I’ve heard that the old Singer 29-4 machines aren’t very much good anymore. It seems like I heard that here on this forum. I guess they just aren’t as good as the new machines. Thanks. CD in Oklahoma
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