Dipping my toe into sewing; Advice requested

[Sam83]

Hi everyone! I'm Sam and I'm thrilled to be here.  I've been lurking and reading the threads here for the last couple of months and the time has come to officially join the community.

As a total newbie, I've been reading the stickied/older threads, trying to grapple with all the terminology that everyone here is so familiar with, but have found myself a little lost and in need of assistance. I'm hoping nobody minds if I ask some questions. 

First, a little background.

I'm currently based in Dubai, having moved here for work just before the pandemic hit. I lost my job during the initial wave and started leather working as a way to deal with the stress of the situation. I have always loved leather, but never handled it before. I am teaching myself little bits at a time and still have a lot to learn, but I quickly became addicted to the craft! I'm sure many of you will know the feeling well! 

I've been making myself some small items using some 4-7ft leather pieces (from Etsy), a rivet press and some cheap rivets+snaps, leather belt hole punch, and contact cement.
I've made 3 bags and a couple of card cases this way. A couple of those items were saddle stitched (using Youtube tutorials) but I quickly found that my hands can't take it (because I have rheumatoid arthritis), so I relied on contact cement and must say the stuff has been perfectly fine for my needs up until this point.

Like many people, the pandemic has made me reassess my path and seek more joy. I've decided I'd like to start a small Etsy store selling purses and wallets. I'm aware that there's a ton of competition out there in this area, but I would like to spend my days running a modest operation and relishing in the joy of handcrafting unique items for others to enjoy. My designs have been unique (my own patterns) and I have had strangers comment on how beautiful my handmade bag was- which sent me straight to cloud 9! I have felt so excited, joyful and proud of my small creations and I'd like to lean into this passion project fully.

Now onto the questions and issues I'm facing.

I cannot picture selling items made with contact cement. I would have to stitch them for them to be worthy of other people's interest and money. However, I've never machine-stitched anything in my life! From my research, I have narrowed down the options for a sewing machine, but could use some input on which would be best suited to my needs and circumstances. 

Materials:

- I'm using goat/lamb/chrome tanned leather and suede, ranging from 0.6mm-1.2mm in thickness. For some designs, I would need to stitch up to 3 layers of leather. 
- I'm using reinforcements/interfacing  on the thinner leathers so they don't tear or stretch out when the bags are full.
- I'm also lining my bags with thin microsuede fabric.

Budget: I'm trying to save up to $2000 (usd) for my first leather sewing machine (including shipping).

Machine options (based on the threads here): 

1 -  Techsew 2700
2 - Consew 260RB
3 - Juki 1541
+ some sort of regular home sewing machine to stitch my linings and inner pockets- perhaps a Brother or Singer?

*I've been reaching out to local suppliers but they're not forthcoming with information. Basically they say that I should decide what I want and then they'll let me know if they can source the machine. I also have the option of finding a supplier abroad who will ship internationally but the shipping cost would eat into my budget.
** I'm not including hand-crank machines due to my rheumatoid arthritis, however I'm willing to consider it if they're not as hard on the small joints as saddle stitching.

Questions

1- Are the 3 options I've listed the correct ones for my needs? Is one preferable over the others? 
2- I live in a small flat, but have enough space to set up desks/machines/shelves. However, I'm concerned about the weight of the machines and the amount of noise they make. Would any of these machines be an issue if used in a flat versus an outdoor studio/warehouse. Are they too loud to operate in a flat? I don't want trouble with my landlord or neighbors.
3- Is it difficult to set up these industrial machines without any prior experience? I'm planning to follow Youtube tutorials and/or any information provided by the supplier. 
4- Franky, do you think I'm jumping in at the deep end and would be wiser, given that I know nothing about sewing machines, to use a basic domestic machine with a different head/needles for my leatherwork instead of investing in a proper leather sewing machine? 

Additional considerations:
1- My estimation is that the thickest total material I'll be stitching will be 4-5mm. Therefore, I would like to get a sewing machine that can easily handle 10mm so that I'm not having it cranking at its maximum capacity all the time.
2- I would like the option of a cylinder arm and flatbed attachment, as some of my designs have gussets and rounded corners. 
3- I would like to buy a machine that would last me a few years before needing an upgrade, if possible. I don't think I want to learn/start on one machine, then have to buy a better one in 6 months' time as I won't be able to afford that. I'd rather learn from the get-go on the machine that will be my workhorse.
 

Okay, I think that's everything! I hope it's not overkill, but I wanted to be as clear as possible so that I can be steered right. 

Thank you to anyone and everyone for your willingness to help us newbies out! I'm super excited to hear what will be recommended and to start my journey into this world properly.
I hope to be able to share some of my work with you all soon!

[chrisash]

For that sort of weight but not much thicker I would suggest the 1541 would be the easiest to find in Dubai and fit your requirements fitted with a speed reducer the noise at slow stitching would be low. not sure if they would supply to Dubai but this company may be a lot lower cost than typical; Etsy stores

https://buyleatheronline.com/en/?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=buy leather online&utm_campaign=S - Brand - UK&msclkid=fa0bc5195c5b15514243a50447ff2020

[Dwight]

Given all you have said, plus my own personal experience . . . i would look into a Tippmann Boss . . . totally hand operated and currently about a thousand bucks brand new

May God bless, 

Dwight

[Sam83]

5 hours ago, chrisash said:

not sure if they would supply to Dubai but this company may be a lot lower cost than typical; Etsy stores

Thank you very much for that recommendation! It does ship to Dubai and the prices are far better than I got on Etsy. :)

2 hours ago, Dwight said:

i would look into a Tippmann Boss . . . totally hand operated and currently about a thousand bucks brand new

I must admit, the Boss is very tempting. It is the least intimidating option for someone as new to this as I am. However, with my rheumatoid arthritis, I don't think I can handle hand-cranking. I'll keep it on the list of options while I gather more information, though. Thank you. :)

[Dwight]

29 minutes ago, Sam83 said:

I must admit, the Boss is very tempting. It is the least intimidating option for someone as new to this as I am. However, with my rheumatoid arthritis, I don't think I can handle hand-cranking. I'll keep it on the list of options while I gather more information, though. Thank you.

Depending on how mechanically inclined you might be . . . a small air cylinder could be rigged for the stitching . . . a separate one for the clamp . . . would take some thinking . . . and it was my probable path until I fell into a financial help that I could not pass up . . . and got the Cowboy.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Wizcrafts]

You could contact CowboySew to see if they have a dealer in India. A lot of leathercrafters in North America and Australia use Cowboy brand machinery. You'll want a compound feed walking foot machine.

As for the noise factor, as long as the machine you get is equipped with a servo motor it will run quietly, unless the machine is out of balance. I recommend asking the dealer you find to supply an analog servo motor, like the Consew CSM550-1. This motor has a simple rotary dial on the from to limit the top speed. It can be ordered with a very small 45 or 50 mm pulley to slow down the machine. As mentioned previously, a speed reducer between such a motor and the machine will bring it down to watching grass grow speeds.

Many of us have cylinder arm machines that came with a flat table attachment. I personally find it a pain in the ass to install it for one job and then remove it for the next. But, I am crazy and am addicted to industrial sewing machines. So, have flat bed, post bed and narrow arm patch machines littering the sewing room.

Since you're new to this, I agree that a cylinder arm machine with a table attachment is your best starting setup. They can be purchased with U-cutout tables, or pedestal stands. I sit on a bar stool when I sew on my cylinder arm machines and think a pedestal stand is best.

Whomever you contact about machinery, tell them up front that you will be sewing real leather, up to 9 or 10 mm. You want a machine that has smooth feet to reduce marking the top layer. Larger Cowboy brand machines come with not only smooth feet, but also a smooth feed dog.

Walking foot machines destroy lining material. Get a domestic bottom feed only sewing machine for your linings. They use standard household thread and needles.

[kgg]

9 hours ago, Sam83 said:

Are the 3 options I've listed the correct ones for my needs? Is one preferable over the others? 

The first one you listed is a cylinder bed machine while the other two are flatbed machines.

If you can afford a Juki and need / want a cylinder bed then seriously consider a Juki 1341 or a used 341. If a flatbed is what you need / want then buy the Juki 1541 but you should be looking at the Juki 1541"S" model which has a safety clutch. The cost difference is probably less then $100 but could save you an expensive repair if you jam up the machine. 

9 hours ago, Sam83 said:

My estimation is that the thickest total material I'll be stitching will be 4-5mm. Therefore, I would like to get a sewing machine that can easily handle 10mm so that I'm not having it cranking at its maximum capacity all the time.

The 4-5mm thickness in leather would be approximately 12 - 13 oz and your 10mm would be equal to approximately 24 oz.

I think if you want the ability to sew at 10mm or above consistently you probably should consider looking at cylinder bed machines in the Juki 441 ($10K) class and clones ($4k) and for flatbed machines in the Juki 1508 or better.  Those machines are going to well exceed you $2,000 budget so that really only leaves the one arm bandits (Cowboy Outlaw ($1400), Tippman Boss ($1000), Master Tool Cub($2000)).

kgg

[sbrownn]

5 hours ago, kgg said:

The first one you listed is a cylinder bed machine while the other two are flatbed machines.

If you can afford a Juki and need / want a cylinder bed then seriously consider a Juki 1341 or a used 341. If a flatbed is what you need / want then buy the Juki 1541 but you should be looking at the Juki 1541"S" model which has a safety clutch. The cost difference is probably less then $100 but could save you an expensive repair if you jam up the machine. 

The 4-5mm thickness in leather would be approximately 12 - 13 oz and your 10mm would be equal to approximately 24 oz.

I think if you want the ability to sew at 10mm or above consistently you probably should consider looking at cylinder bed machines in the Juki 441 ($10K) class and clones ($4k) and for flatbed machines in the Juki 1508 or better.  Those machines are going to well exceed you $2,000 budget so that really only leaves the one arm bandits (Cowboy Outlaw ($1400), Tippman Boss ($1000), Master Tool Cub($2000)).

kgg

Cowboy 3200 with crank handwheel.

[sbrownn]

9 hours ago, Dwight said:

Depending on how mechanically inclined you might be . . . a small air cylinder could be rigged for the stitching . . . a separate one for the clamp . . . would take some thinking . . . and it was my probable path until I fell into a financial help that I could not pass up . . . and got the Cowboy.

May God bless,

Dwight

Indeed Dwight...good choice.

The Weaver Cub could be modified to put a servo motor on but you might as well just buy a Cowboy 3200 because that's where you will probably eventually end up anyway.  Unless you need to sew in a place with no power the hand operated machines are too close to the price of a motor operated one.  As you branch out into other items you might find yourself with a lot of straight sewing runs which will make you wish you had a motor.  I do a lot of guitar straps and when I get to the end of the straight run I just run the machine by hand to get through the complicated end curves and then its back to the motor.  

[Dwight]

2 hours ago, sbrownn said:

Indeed Dwight...good choice.

The Weaver Cub could be modified to put a servo motor on but you might as well just buy a Cowboy 3200 because that's where you will probably eventually end up anyway.  Unless you need to sew in a place with no power the hand operated machines are too close to the price of a motor operated one.  As you branch out into other items you might find yourself with a lot of straight sewing runs which will make you wish you had a motor.  I do a lot of guitar straps and when I get to the end of the straight run I just run the machine by hand to get through the complicated end curves and then its back to the motor.  

Actually the Boss . . . is only 1000 bucks brand new today.  There is not a sewing machine out there for double the price that will do everything it will do . . . unless you steal a used one somewhere.

I did belts and everything on mine for 20 years . . . wasn't always happy with the cowboy rigs . . . especially when they were of the "jumbo" size . . . but they paid the bills . . . 

May God bless,

Dwight

 

[Sam83]

Oh wow! I'm beyond grateful for all the wonderful advice you've shared. Thanks to each of you for taking the time.

I realized after posting that I'm in over my head since I'm so new to sewing. I was so excited about my designs being well-received that I started to dream big, but now I wonder if I'm skipping over the essential starting blocks.

The first thing I'm going to get is a domestic machine to work on my bag linings and inner pockets, which I'm hoping will also help me learn to stitch cleanly and in straight lines. Presumably that's not too difficult to pick up, but since I've never used a machine, I'm focusing on learning the basics. Since these are just my sample pieces as I hone my skills, I can continue to use contact cement for the leather outers of the bags until I get my basic leather equipment in place.

In the meantime, I'll contact suppliers and see which of these leather sewing machines they can source for me (at least now I know the Consew is out, but Juki and Cowboy could be an option).
The local dealers did say that they'd assist me if I could narrow down which specific machine I wanted, so this attempt should yield results. I'll also start contacting international suppliers to see if they have authorized dealers in India or China that I could order from. Thanks for that suggestion, Wiz. It hadn't occurred to me at all.

One of my greatest concerns as I take this first step is getting an industrial machine that I just don't have the skill to work on at this stage. So, I'll do some more reading and learning, see what the suppliers tell me, then make my decision based on what is available, practical for the stage I'm at, and affordable as a starting point.
Unexpectedly, there is now a niggling voice in my head that tells me I should start on a hand-crank (probably the Boss, thanks Dwight) and just manage my workload each day so that I don't mess up my joints. I can always upgrade the machine later if my shop actually gets some customers. It's the exact opposite idea I had when I started this thread! 

I'll see what comes out of my enquiries and then decide the way forward. Thanks again everyone. I hope I'll be able to contribute to the community in some small way as I learn and grow.

Edited July 16, 2022 by Sam83

[RockyAussie]

On 7/15/2022 at 3:20 PM, Sam83 said:

Materials:

- I'm using goat/lamb/chrome tanned leather and suede, ranging from 0.6mm-1.2mm in thickness. For some designs, I would need to stitch up to 3 layers of leather. 
- I'm using reinforcements/interfacing  on the thinner leathers so they don't tear or stretch out when the bags are full.
- I'm also lining my bags with thin microsuede fabric.

Budget: I'm trying to save up to $2000 (usd) for my first leather sewing machine (including shipping).

Mostly this tells me you need a medium small cylinder arm machine. This video I made recently should be considered I think. A look at my Wild Harry web site shows a wide range of products we make and most of them can be made with the machine in this video. The machine is a clone of a Juki dsc 246. There are quite a few other brand copies of this machine including the Techsew 2600. Here is the video link - Note that the open end table is important in my opinion.

 

[Sam83]

Thanks for the video, RockyAussie! I learned a lot! It actually seems perfect for where I'm at.

____

A quick update for now. Local dealers cannot supply the Consew (260RB), Juki (1341 or 1541S), Cowboy or Techsew machines. This is not the right part of the world for this pursuit. 

They offered me these alternative options after I explained what I would be making:

1- Reliable Barracuda 200ZW- USD 1800
2- Consew CP206RL Portable Walking Foot Machine- USD1500
3- Juki DDL-8100 Lockstitch- USD 2800 (already way over my budget, but I'll save up if it's a suitable alternative)
4- Janome HD 1000/3000 (which Tandy is marketing as a leather sewing machine?)- USD900
Edit: Just got called back with an additional option
5-JUKI TL-2000Qi walking foot machine- USD 1200

Having read the threads here over the past couple of months, I'm thinking none of these are good leather sewing machines, but I'll ask again in case I'm just confused. Are any of these an option for my limited usage? I'm making small bags and wallets, and my max leather thickness would be 5mm of soft leathers. Could any of these work as a starting point or would I be throwing money down the drain? I don't want to make the mistake of buying a bunch of wrong machines. I'd rather invest once on the right bit of kit.

I'll wait until Monday to reach out to international dealers and see if there are options to ship in proper walking foot/triple feed machines, but I am asking about these local options in case I have no other choice. 

Also, I found that I can get either a Boss or a Sailrite shipped directly from them (so no chance of getting scammed) but the shipping would cost as much as the machine. 

Would really appreciate some thoughts on these other options. Thank you so much! 

Edited July 16, 2022 by Sam83

[kgg]

29 minutes ago, Sam83 said:

They offered me these alternative options after I explained what I would be making:

The prices they have quoted are nuts.

Portable Walking Foot Machines:

 

The Reliable Barracuda 200ZW sells for $579 US in North America and the Consew CP206RL sells for $549. These portable zig zag walking foot machines can be had from from China (without the name tag) for even cheaper off of places like Aliexpress. Those sellers would probably quote shipping to Dubia.

Of the machines that you were quoted on what I think would work for your small items would be the portable walking foot machines. They may need some small modifications to the pressor foot and feed dog to do thin linings. The Sailrite portable walking foot is a better quality machine but comes at a much higher price tag. Those portable walking foot machines originally were made to repair sailboat sails while at sea.

The other three you were quoted on are drop feed machines that would be best suited for your linings and the Juki TL-2000Qi is not a walking foot machine.

For your linings you would be better off getting a used vintage Singer 99k type / style machine. A lot of these domestic manual sewing machines can be purchase from India if you can't find one locally.

Remember no one machine will do everything. That is why a lot of us have a few different types (flatbed / cylinder bed / patchers / portable walking foot / etc) of machines with varying capabilities.

I would suggest starting out with either a domestic sewing machine or a walking foot machine like the Juki DU- 1181N to do your linings and to learn on would be a wise move before jumping into the more capable machines.

kgg

 

[Sam83]

1 hour ago, kgg said:

The prices they have quoted are nuts.

I was utterly shocked by the prices to be honest, given that they're not even industrial leather sewing machines. I feel like I'm getting scammed. Industrial machines aren't as accessible here as elsewhere, which I suppose is due to the fact that they import leather goods rather than produce them locally. I had no idea it would be this hard to get my hands on equipment!

1 hour ago, kgg said:

I would suggest starting out with either a domestic sewing machine or a walking foot machine like the Juki DU- 1181N to do your linings and to learn on would be a wise move before jumping into the more capable machines.

Thank you very much for that suggestion (as well as the vintage Singer suggestion). 
I plan to buy a separate domestic Singer or Brother for my drop-in linings along with the leather sewing machine for the outer leather portions; so I'll get started on the domestic for now and learn those inner pocket techniques, whilst I continue looking for a machine that will be able to take on the main leather bodies of the bags.

I haven't touched sites like Alibaba or Aliexpress yet, but I will probably do that next, as well as look into Indian dealers who can ship machines here at a fairer rate.

It's quite frustrating. It's been so long since I've felt as much joy as I have since I started playing with leather and crafting my bags.  I don't want to quit before I give it a proper go. Fingers crossed it gets easier once I get in touch with the right suppliers.

Thanks again for taking the time to advise!

 

Edited July 16, 2022 by Sam83

[Tequila]

@Sam83  I wanted to chime in with a couple of thoughts.  I started with a Janome 3000HD and while it will technically sew leather it was a royal pain in the posterior, then I moved on to a Cobra 26, put the Janome away and haven’t taken it out since.  Remember that machines like Cobra, TechSew and Cowboy, etc. are Juki knock-offs, doesn’t mean that they’re not as good or any better, so when you compare one to another it may come down to availability or warranty, etc. as to which you decide on.  Back to a couple of things to know, threading the Janome was a nightmare compared to my Cobra, same with bobbin winding.  The Janome had a lot of stitch options that I never used, the Cobra has one stitch that is fine for 99.99% of leather projects.  With the Janome I found it very hard to control the speed and the thicker the leather the faster you had to go or else the machine didn’t have enough oooomph to get through it.  My Cobra (and most others) have a servo motor which means that you can slow it all the way down and it doesn’t effect how thick the leather is that you’re trying to sew and it runs quiet.  And as @Wizcrafts said you may need 2 machines one for linings and one for leather.  Being in Dubai I would’ve thought finding an importer would not have been too big of an issue, but I’m pretty sure you’ll have to pay a good bit for shipping since the leather machines ship on a pallet.  Another thought would be to get the head, motor and stuff without a table, that would mean that it could be shipped in individual boxes which could cut down on shipping.  Keep us in the loop on what you decide. 

[Wizcrafts]

Why don't you search for any nearby upholstery or shoe repair shops. These businesses use leather sewing machines that sometimes get taken out of service when a new one is purchased. You just might be able to buy a half decent walking foot machine for a fraction of the prices you are looking at now.

Regarding the shoe repair shops, they also use universal feed "patchers" that sew in 360 degrees and have long, tapered cylinder arms. Some are mounted on foot treadle bases, others are motorized, and some are manually turned with the wheel in front, or on the back. If you can find one that has a so-called large bobbin, you can sew 16 to 20 ounces of soft to medium density leather, with thread sizes up to T135. Small bobbin models would be best limited to T70 or T90. Patchers are great for sewing gussets as the needle hole is about 3.2mm from the left edge of the arm.

[Wizcrafts]

Before any further talk about importing a motorized sewing machine directly to Dubai, one should be aware of the power situation there. 

What is the mains voltage in Dubai?

Just like the rest of the Middle East, the voltage in Dubai is 230 volts and the frequency is 50 Hz. 230 V ~ 50 Hz

Any motorized machine, especially those with a built in or solidly attached motor would need to operable at 230 volts, at 50 cps and have this plug. 

 

[Sam83]

1 hour ago, Tequila said:

And as @Wizcrafts said you may need 2 machines one for linings and one for leather.

Oh yes, totally agree on that. The domestic for the linings is easy to get (even Amazon has them here), but the leather machine is proving a headache.
Also, thank you very much for sharing your experience with the Janome. The sales rep was pushing it above all the others so I am very grateful to have a more accurate description of its capabilities. 

I would love a Juki, Cowboy or Cobra, as you suggest. It just turns out they're harder to source than I had anticipated. This city is fantastic for getting a lot of things, but I dare say the leather crafting niche is not well-served!

 

55 minutes ago, Wizcrafts said:

Why don't you search for any nearby upholstery or shoe repair shops. These businesses use leather sewing machines that sometimes get taken out of service when a new one is purchased. You just might be able to buy a half decent walking foot machine for a fraction of the prices you are looking at now.

Brilliant idea! I'll contact some on Monday morning and hope that I get lucky!  Great info on the patcher, thank you. I saw a couple of them for $200 on Amazon this morning, but didn't look into them much because I am still unsure how my joints will cope with hand-crank options. It's on my (ever-growing) list of options. I'm so far down the rabbit hole, it's insane! 

Thank you for mentioning the voltage! Yet another thing I hadn't considered. For all the research I was doing, it seems I really didn't consider the fundamentals at all. I'm quite embarrassed at how naive I was jumping into this. 

A quick browse on Alibaba has shown that I can get a 'Typical' cylinder arm leather sewing machine shipped here without issue. It's not a brand I've run across anywhere, so I'll start researching that as well and see if it may be what I need.

I'll keep asking around and searching all the avenues you guys have mentioned. I am sure there's a supplier locally- it just seems ridiculous that there isn't one. I'll ask the shoe repair shops to point me in the right direction if they don't have anything they can offload on me.

Phew! That was another very jumbled reply from me as I try to keep all the facts straight, lol. Thank you all very much for your help! I'll be sure to post updates once I've got somewhere. 

[MtlBiker]

6 hours ago, Sam83 said:

Thanks for the video, RockyAussie! I learned a lot! It actually seems perfect for where I'm at.

____

A quick update for now. Local dealers cannot supply the Consew (260RB), Juki (1341 or 1541S), Cowboy or Techsew machines. This is not the right part of the world for this pursuit. 

They offered me these alternative options after I explained what I would be making:

1- Reliable Barracuda 200ZW- USD 1800
2- Consew CP206RL Portable Walking Foot Machine- USD1500
3- Juki DDL-8100 Lockstitch- USD 2800 (already way over my budget, but I'll save up if it's a suitable alternative)
4- Janome HD 1000/3000 (which Tandy is marketing as a leather sewing machine?)- USD900
Edit: Just got called back with an additional option
5-JUKI TL-2000Qi walking foot machine- USD 1200

Having read the threads here over the past couple of months, I'm thinking none of these are good leather sewing machines, but I'll ask again in case I'm just confused. Are any of these an option for my limited usage? I'm making small bags and wallets, and my max leather thickness would be 5mm of soft leathers. Could any of these work as a starting point or would I be throwing money down the drain? I don't want to make the mistake of buying a bunch of wrong machines. I'd rather invest once on the right bit of kit.

I'll wait until Monday to reach out to international dealers and see if there are options to ship in proper walking foot/triple feed machines, but I am asking about these local options in case I have no other choice. 

Also, I found that I can get either a Boss or a Sailrite shipped directly from them (so no chance of getting scammed) but the shipping would cost as much as the machine. 

Would really appreciate some thoughts on these other options. Thank you so much! 

Sam, you've gotten some great advice from the members here, and the real challenge for you is availability due to your location.  I'm jumping in only to say that the first two options you were given, in my opinion are not right for you, and they're way overpriced as well.  I have something similar (more high end) to those two, a Sailrite LSZ-1, but use it in combination with other machines I have.  I also have a Janome HD3000 (which can be gotten here for $600 Canadian, meaning about US$460!!!!) and the price you are being quoted is again quite crazy.  I really do like my Janome, but the thickest thread it can use would be a v69, and the machine would be great for your linings and to learn with, but really not the machine for leatherwork. 

I guess there's no used market where you are? 

[MtlBiker]

3 hours ago, Tequila said:

 I started with a Janome 3000HD and while it will technically sew leather it was a royal pain in the posterior, then I moved on to a Cobra 26, put the Janome away and haven’t taken it out since.

Funny you said that... I too started with a Janome 3000HD and quickly found I needed a different machine (machineS) to sew the kinds of things I wanted to make.  But unlike you, I recently started using the Janome again.  Before COVID, I had never sewn anything and couldn't even sew a button onto my shirt.  I started by making masks, moved to pet harnesses and leashes, and then to tote bags, wallets and purses, and even started hand-stitching leather.  My reason for using my HD3000 again was that I needed new dress shirts, and decided that I'd try to make them myself.  After all, now I had *some* sewing experience.

Anyway, I finished my first men's dress shirt using a McCall pattern and I'm thrilled with the result.  The 3000HD is really quite a good (mechanical) machine, as long as it's kept doing the tasks it was designed for.  I just got some really find Egyptian shirt cotton fabric for my next shirts.  I'm stoked! 

Oh another thing... you mentioned that you found the Janome difficult to thread.  Are you SURE you are thinking of the Janome?  In my experience threading it is a piece of cake, and it's much much easier to thread than any of my other machines and the needle threader works perfectly too.

Edited July 16, 2022 by MtlBiker

[chrisash]

I spent a few years in the Gulf and Emirates, the problem is the whole of the emirate's only have about 9 million people who live there, and they have built Dubai up as a rich playboy area so quite unlike many other countries, high wages mean little need for repair type shops and i guess very few leatherworkers.

Prices reflect the wages of the population and not the Indian workers who do much of the manpower

May be worth importing a machine but guess it depends on the import tax, I still think a flat bed would have more chance of being available in Dubai than a cylinder machine and no chance of the US industrial machines

You could ask around car repair garages who might know a upholstery person who could give you a lead

[Northmount]

3 hours ago, Sam83 said:

I saw a couple of them for $200 on Amazon this morning

Be careful with patchers from Amazon and other places, hand cranked, and $200 or less.  These don't usually work well out of the box.  You will spend more time trying to get it working correctly than making something with it.  You can search for Chinese patchers here and see some horror stories as well as those that work well. 

 

[Sam83]

17 hours ago, MtlBiker said:

I really do like my Janome, but the thickest thread it can use would be a v69, and the machine would be great for your linings and to learn with, but really not the machine for leatherwork. 

I guess there's no used market where you are? 

Thank you for reconfirming that the Janome is great for learning on and linings, but not for actual leatherwork. I'll probably go for a Singer or Brother domestic machine as they are much cheaper here and the linings are straightforward enough that I won't need too many options on the sewing machine.

In terms of used machines, I was hoping Ebay would bring up something, but I get spare parts in searches, not any of the actual machines. It's likely due to the weight of them that prevents sellers from wanting to ship internationally. The local version of Craigslist doesn't have anything as of now.

15 hours ago, chrisash said:

Prices reflect the wages of the population and not the Indian workers who do much of the manpower

That seems to be the case, yes. If only I was part of that top 1%!  

15 hours ago, Northmount said:

You can search for Chinese patchers here and see some horror stories as well as those that work well. 

Thank you very much for the warning! I'll be sure to do my research before getting one at any rate. 

___

Update for now is that I'm out of luck locally. I spent the morning visiting various dealers and shoe repair shops, hoping someone would either be willing to sell me an older machine or direct me to their suppliers. No such luck- they even refused to tell me the brand of machines they used. However, a couple of shops took my number and said they'd contact me when they retire one of their machines.
I also got cheeky and asked them if they'd let me try a straight stitch on some scrap leather (that I'd brought with me) so that I can get a feel for using the machines, but they refused. Can't say that I blame them, it was a bold request!

The plan now is much simpler. I'll grab a domestic machine and start practicing my linings and inner zip/slip pockets for the glued together sample bags I'm making, just to tweak designs and master my basic techniques.

I've also found that I can get a "Typical" brand flat-bed, industrial leather machine from Alibaba, that comes in at around $1300 including shipping (+ possibly some additional customs duties). There are a lot of them listed so I need to really take my time and make sure I pick a model with the correct specs. It'll be an expensive mistake otherwise.
I've never needed to purchase off of Alibaba and this is a lot of money, so I also want to make sure I find a legitimate supplier. The site has been around as long as I've been alive, I think, so it should be a safe and secure transaction. 
Worst case scenario is that the "Typical" machine only lasts a couple of years, but even then it's a starting point and readily accessible, so it'll be an investment into my education in the craft. It feels far more fruitful than continuing to chase the superior machine options that are just not going to be available to me here. 

Edit: I just ran a search on the forums and found that the Typical machines are actually considered good! So, I'm not even settling with this option. Brilliant!

As for the cylinder arm option, I'm putting that on hold. I don't think I'm at the skill level where I can use one correctly, nor do I think it's even necessary at this early stage of my learning. As many of you have mentioned, it is inevitable that I'll end up with additional machines for different purposes, so I can always add this later if I require it. 

Thank you all so very much for sharing your experiences and advice! It's just wonderful how everyone's ready to jump in and help out. It's more than I expected, especially as I'm so new to this all and I need more advice than your typical poster. Wishing you all a great weekend and thanks again!

Edited July 17, 2022 by Sam83

[MtlBiker]

1 hour ago, Sam83 said:

Thank you for reconfirming that the Janome is great for learning on and linings, but not for actual leatherwork. I'll probably go for a Singer or Brother domestic machine as they are much cheaper here and the linings are straightforward enough that I won't need too many options on the sewing machine.

Just want to point something out... I said that I started with my Janome HD3000, but that isn't 100% true.  A few years earlier I'd bought a Brother computerized machine on a whim, and while I had great ideas about what I'd make, I actually never used it.  It was only when Covid started and we had to start isolating that I started to sew.  And it only took me about 2 weeks to realize that the computerized, mostly plastic frame machine, with all kinds of bells and whistles, wasn't really a solid machine at all.  The HD3000 has a metal frame and is a MECHANICAL machine (not computerized) and is way stronger and more reliable than most of the computerized machines.  And it was amazing how much it could sew compared to the computerized Brother.  But the rage these days is getting a gazillion different stitches with a computerized machine and I'm suggesting that isn't the best route to go,  Especially with the kinds of things you plan on sewing.  I think you should give your choice of a domestic machine a little more consideration before making your choice.

Good luck!