Good morning. I had several questions on a couple of industrial machines. I have talked to several dealers, and I live very close to Ryan Neel, who has also been very helpful. I make horse tack including headstalls, breastcollars, chaps, etc. I currently have an industrial Necci for the light work, and us a Singer 29K for the medium stuff, and hand stitch most of the heavy items. I am wanting to upgrade machines, and have been debating between the Cowboy 2500 and the Chandler 406 or Consew 206. I have heard good and bad about both, but when it comes right down to it these machines are within my budget. I am currently working on a project that is going to be some of the heavier stuff that I do. It is a breastcollar, total thickness on the end is slightly less than 3/8", 3 pieces of 8 oz, and the middle is 2 pieces of 8oz. I know several makers that have used Ferdco 440's, and liked them, but having the bottom feed is a problem. The only problem I foresee with the flatbed machines is the thickness limitation. I currently use 138 top, 92 bottom in my 29K, and I am happy with this thread. I will probably go up to 207 top on a new machine. I was wondering if you had any suggestions on selecting one of these machines, and if you may have anything used available. I appreciate any comments.
Shawn