Timing a Pfaff 345, where to start?

[barclay]

Howdy,

My Pfaff  345 h3 stitches but not full length stitches.  The needle enters the material too early in my observations.  So where do I start?  What do I do first?  Feed dog travel, needle bar height, hook timing.  From the beginning.  Right now the no movement for/rev lever up down produces no feed dog/needle movement at 6mm above bdc, instead of .6mm.    Which eccentric do I move? and so on.  Get me started and I should be able to figure it out.  The machine stitches very nice 3.5mm stitches.  thanks in advance, I am having fun learning.

I am confident @uwe knows the answer  :-)

[Uwe]

Thanks for moving the topic to the public forum @barclay 

The feed motion eccentrics on your machine should look like this: One eccentric (top picture) if your machine has no “P” in the model code, or two eccentrics if it has a “P” in the model code.

 

To adjust the feed eccentric:

1. Bring the machine into the “needle 0.6mm above BDC” position.

2. Loosen both set screws that clamp the eccentric to the shaft (NOT the two screws that connect the rod to the eccentric). One set screw should accessible from top, the other from the rear access port.

3. Flip the lever up and down and rotate the eccentric on the shaft until there is no noticeable feed movement. It should be a subtle adjustment in your case. Normally one set screw is vertically aligned with the shaft when the eccentric is in the neutral position.

4. Tighten the top set screw first (if it’s at the bottom you’re off by 180˚), then the other set screw (it should be accessible from the back of the machine)

If you have the vertical feed eccentric, adjust the horizontal feed eccentric first, then adjust the vertical eccentric so that the feed dog rises at the very front, just before it starts moving towards the back. 

By the way, you have to click on the user on the pop-up list that shows up as you type the user handle in order to properly tag a user and send notifications, like this:

The user handle then becomes highlighted and activated like this:

  

[barclay]

Thanks I will give it a try later after I make sawdust, my real job.  So I set the eccentrics before I set timing and needle height?

[barclay]

14 hours ago, Uwe said:

Thanks for moving the topic to the public forum @barclay 

The feed motion eccentrics on your machine should look like this: One eccentric (top picture) if your machine has no “P” in the model code, or two eccentrics if it has a “P” in the model code.

 

To adjust the feed eccentric:

1. Bring the machine into the “needle 0.6mm above BDC” position.

2. Loosen both set screws that clamp the eccentric to the shaft (NOT the two screws that connect the rod to the eccentric). One set screw should accessible from top, the other from the rear access port.

3. Flip the lever up and down and rotate the eccentric on the shaft until there is no noticeable feed movement. It should be a subtle adjustment in your case. Normally one set screw is vertically aligned with the shaft when the eccentric is in the neutral position.

4. Tighten the top set screw first (if it’s at the bottom you’re off by 180˚), then the other set screw (it should be accessible from the back of the machine)

If you have the vertical feed eccentric, adjust the horizontal feed eccentric first, then adjust the vertical eccentric so that the feed dog rises at the very front, just before it starts moving towards the back. 

By the way, you have to click on the user on the pop-up list that shows up as you type the user handle in order to properly tag a user and send notifications, like this:

The user handle then becomes highlighted and activated like this:

  

Well i have not been able to loosen the eccentric collar.  No way to get a wrench on it.  They must have a proprietary tool that threads into the set screw holes.  heat in such a tight place?  Threw some oil at it and will try again tomorrow night.  Eccentric looks to be off by less than an eight of a turn.  was going swell thanks to your info thanks.

[barclay]

Got it stitching almost to spec, 5.1mm.  Working well thanksI did not adjust the vertical eccentric as it looked like it was doing what it was supposed to.  Its a little touchy at start up but my foot skills will get better with the needle positioner doing one stitch at a time.  Rubber, leathe,r canvas.... it all worked.  thanks @Uwe.