Feeding Issues with 441 Clone (Ferdco Superbull 2500)

[Deek]

Machine: Ferdco Superbull 2500 (Juki 441 Clone, like the Cowboy 4500 and Cobra Class 4)

I bought the machine about 2-3 months ago new from Hoffman Bros., it hasn't really had any issues other than a slipping bobbin winder.

I had a binding issue a couple weeks ago and after some research I thought it was an eccentrically drilled presser foot pressure screw
(I think if this is the case, it caused this issue but I am not sure)

Soon after the bind stopped (I don't remember if or how I fixed it)

A couple days ago I noticed my walking foot was traveling WAY higher than the presser foot and I was having issue traveling up layers of material.

So I watched Uwe's video

and this video:

 

 

After watching these, I attempted to fix the issue, but it revealed that the problem was much worse.

The walking foot wants to continue to move down after the needle is already on its way back up.
However the presser foot still starts to move up as it should, until it binds.

I believe this is causing the whole machine to bind up as the presser foot continues to push down after hitting the feed dog

The needle to hook relationship is still correct

The walking foot moves backward with the feed dog as it should
The needle still travels backwards with the feed dog as well

I cannot figure out how to make it so the lowest point of the walking foots travel is when the needle reaches the needle plate.

Photos:

The machine when the needle is at its lowest position

The machine when the needle is at its lowest position (presser foot lever raised)

The machine when the walking foot is at its lowest position (presser foot lever is raised otherwise it would bind if I tried getting the walking foot to it's lowest position)

I believe the culprit is one of these two, but I don't want to move anything else around until I know for sure what the cause is.

[CowboyBob]

You need to turn the cam on the topshaft that drive the rods you have circled in red & blue,loosen the 2-set screws & turn alittle @ a time if it gets worse you need to turn the cam the other way.

[Deek]

7 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

You need to turn the cam on the topshaft that drive the rods you have circled in red & blue,loosen the 2-set screws & turn alittle @ a time if it gets worse you need to turn the cam the other way.

I have done this and got the lowest point on the walking foot to match up with when the needle reaches the needle plate level, however now I am getting a slightly bind whenever the needle is almost to its highest and lowest positions. (the whole machine creaks while I push it through, but doesn't stop stop completely. The needle bar and take up lever seem to vibrate the most as I push it through.) 

Additionally I cannot get the presser foot to lift when the walking foot is down.

Edited August 1, 2022 by Deek

[Deek]

So after fussing with it some more today I have a few notes:

- I believe the other day I actually ended up adjusting the cam all the way around to where it originally was,
so it was probably in the correct position and that the walking foot is still supposed to continue to move down and this causes the presser foot to rise.

- I took the presser bar out of the machine and rolled it on a granite slab to check if it was bent and then pushed it through the presser screw back and forth and met no resistance. I believe that neither of these parts are defective.

- It seems instead of lifting the presser foot after the walking foot goes down, instead all this linkage circled below seizes up.
I gave it a generous oiling after taking putting the presser bar back in, which helped notably, but I do not think this is a lubrication issue.
And when I lift the presser bar on the foot pedal, it unjams.

 

[CowboyBob]

So is it sewing correctly now?

[Deek]

8 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

So is it sewing correctly now?

Still no sadly,

I took out the linkage entirely, checked for defects found none. (I've basically disassembled/reassembled the entire presser bar / walking foot assembly at this point, I'll check again, but I don't have very advanced measuring instruments, just a granite slab and digital calipers)

I got the presser foot to start lifting as the walking foot goes down again, but then it still jams once its maybe 1-2mm up , if I lightly tap the linkage with a rubber mallet it will begin the move again in spurts.

If I adjust it so the presser foot does not lift at all, then it does not jam, but then obviously it doesn't feed correctly.

The L shaped piece is very slightly bent or maybe unevenly flattened. I put it flat on a granite slab and pressed lightly on it and it wobbles the littlest big.
Visually I can barely even see the unevenness, so I don't think its the cause. But I've been wrong before.

[CowboyBob]

It could be binding on the bracket behind the roller.loosen both screws alittle & lift the foot up & see if it helps,the roller just need to be barely touching it.

Edited August 6, 2022 by CowboyBob

[Wizcrafts]

2 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

It could be binding on the bracket behind the roller.loosen both screws a little & lift the foot up & see if it helps,the roller just need to be barely touching it.

That might actually be the problem. I tried adjusting the roller to back plate for tighter clearance on my 4500 and learned that too little caused the foot to bind when lifted. I found a happy clearance and never touched it again. That was years ago.

If the presser bar is out of round in the top third it can bind after lifting.

[CowboyBob]

22 minutes ago, Wizcrafts said:

That might actually be the problem. I tried adjusting the roller to back plate for tighter clearance on my 4500 and learned that too little caused the foot to bind when lifted. I found a happy clearance and never touched it again. That was years ago.

If the presser bar is out of round in the top third it can bind after lifting.

Another cause can be tightening the ring on the pressure foot adjuster,it's best tio leave it loose it can't back itself out.I think once in a while the paint is high in one spot when you tighten the ring & will cause it to bind.

[Tequila]

All great advice, and I’m probably way off base with the next comment, but I thought I’d throw it out there. .  When I look at the picture  @Deek posted it reminds me of the linkage in a lever action rifle.  Keeping with that thought if you have to take the linkage out again I’d look at the hinge points and where’s movement, see if there is a rough spot or burr that might be catching.  It might be hard to see by eye, so get something soft like a dryer sheet or a Q-tip and run it across the surface, if there’s anything rough it’ll show up. 

[Deek]

11 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

It could be binding on the bracket behind the roller.loosen both screws alittle & lift the foot up & see if it helps,the roller just need to be barely touching it.

I think you are referring to the area circled in blue, it actually doesn't seem that the wheel contacts it at all during its travel, but I loosened it some more.

When I take it apart again I am going to check on this slot circled in red because I don't believe this machine came adjusted to with the presser foot travelling very high, and this issue only seemed to appear when I tried balancing the feet.
So there may be something going on there and I never noticed it until I attempted to balance them.

 

8 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

Another cause can be tightening the ring on the pressure foot adjuster,it's best tio leave it loose it can't back itself out.I think once in a while the paint is high in one spot when you tighten the ring & will cause it to bind.

I loosened it and it still happens, I took it out completely and noticed that when it starts to jam, the top of the presser bar that sticks out tilts towards that balance wheel side of the machine. 

 

7 hours ago, Tequila said:

All great advice, and I’m probably way off base with the next comment, but I thought I’d throw it out there. .  When I look at the picture  @Deek posted it reminds me of the linkage in a lever action rifle.  Keeping with that thought if you have to take the linkage out again I’d look at the hinge points and where’s movement, see if there is a rough spot or burr that might be catching.  It might be hard to see by eye, so get something soft like a dryer sheet or a Q-tip and run it across the surface, if there’s anything rough it’ll show up. 

At this point I am open to try anything to get this thing working, I'll check this tomorrow or Monday.

[CowboyBob]

I can see you oiled the pressure bar,how about the part you circled in red & at the top of the bar?When it sticks before you do anything try to tighten or loosen the foot pressure adjuster once in a while they aren't drilled straight & you might find a spot where it'll work w/o jamming.

Edited August 8, 2022 by CowboyBob

[Deek]

1 hour ago, CowboyBob said:

I can see you oiled the pressure bar,how about the part you circled in red & at the top of the bar?When it sticks before you do anything try to tighten or loosen the foot pressure adjuster once in a while they aren't drilled straight & you might find a spot where it'll work w/o jamming.

There doesn't seem to be a position for the pressure adjuster screw where it doesn't jam up, and it still jams without the screw.

When taking apart the machine again today, trying the method Tequila mentioned above, I didn't see any burrs.

I also slid the piece that moves through that slot up and down and met no resistance.

But I noticed the walking foot was meeting some resistance when sliding it up and down by hand so I removed the "upper feed bar guide" from the "frame driving base", oiled it and put it back together (names are according to my parts manual)
This reduced the resistance but when I put it all back together and timed and recalibrated, the problem still persists.

[CowboyBob]

1 hour ago, Deek said:

I also slid the piece that moves through that slot up and down and met no resistance.

Did you do this with the pressure bar in it?Once in a while I've seen where you have to polish one side (of the block that sets in the slot)  like the slot wasn't milled correctly.

[Deek]

On 8/8/2022 at 1:17 PM, CowboyBob said:

Did you do this with the pressure bar in it?Once in a while I've seen where you have to polish one side (of the block that sets in the slot)  like the slot wasn't milled correctly.

I will check this tomorrow morning.

I was told the mechanic at the company where I bought this should be back from vacation tomorrow as well, so I will give them a call and see if we can figure something out.

Machine is maybe 4-5 months old so it is still under the warranty.