Sewing machine for motorcycle leathers

[Devid]

Hi everyone, I'm pretty new here although I asked a few questions in the past logging in through my Facebook profile. I'm no longer able to sign in using my Facebook profile for some reason, so I've created a new one. 

I lived in the UK for about 12 years and repaired motorcycle leathers for the last 4. I've now relocated to Italy and I'll be starting a new motorcycle leathers repair business. I always worked with a walking foot flat bed machine, which I sold and a Singer 29k71 that I brought with me. 

I'm in that position again where I need to buy new machinery and I can only afford 2 industrial sewing machines. At first I was more oriented towards getting a flat bed and a post bed, but I'm now thinking that it might be best to go for a cylinder arm which can be made flat by adding a small table to it and a high post bed instead. Someone has recommended the flat bed Adler 267-373 and a modified post bed Adler 267-373. Is having a flat bed machine really necessary? From what I can gather, it seems that most second hand cylinder arms available here are Adler, Necchi and Pfaff. I'm just not too sure which exact model would be best to look for. 

 

Any advice would be much appreciated. 

 

Many thanks 

Devid

[Wizcrafts]

You *can* do it on a post machine. The only trade off it that you won't have a flat surface for zippers or certain more critical seams. I prefer to sew in zippers on a flat bed machine. It keeps them aligned properly. Sewing them on a cylinder arm or post machine distorts the alignment between the zipper and the two layers of leather that are doubled over inside the zipper pull path.

Then, there's the hanging weight to consider. If the jacket gets heavy, the hanging weight will try to pull it off the arm or post. You may get bad stitch lines. I have hossed a lot of leather jackets around sewing in zippers and I prefer a flat bed if they are heavy.  I suppose you could try using a cylinder arm machine with a table attachment and see how it works out. I have one that is mounted on what's called a U shape table. With this table there is a flat surface, albeit a foot below the arm.

[cdthayer]

I preferred a flatbed machine for most work on leather coats other than sleeve patches (Singer 29K70 then).  I agree that zipper work is best done on a flatbed (I used a Singer 16-41 jumpfoot treadle or a Consew 225 w/speed reducer).

When using a cylinder arm machine (Singer 29K70 or Adler 205-64), I used an old “across-the-bed” adjustable-height hospital table to support the heavier items.

My eyes have gotten so bad that I no longer sew.

CD in Oklahoma

 

[shoepatcher]

cdthayer,

You get the 205-370 rebuilt???

glenn

[cdthayer]

On 9/23/2024 at 4:54 PM, shoepatcher said:

cdthayer,

You get the 205-370 rebuilt???

glenn

Yes Glenn. Thank you. I got it into service with a set of Weaver Harness feet on it in April 2019, and then we closed the shop in May 2019 when we found out my wife had lost function in both kidneys and needed dialysis three times a week in a town 40 miles away. I never actually got to do a repair project with it, but it’s ready to go.

My son will be setting up a hobby sewing shop at his home in SW Colorado, so he’ll be taking it along with one of my Singer 29K70 patchers and a couple of other machines.  I’ll keep my Adler 205-64 jumpfoot machine and my other 29K70 in case my wife needs to do some heavy duty sewing. She can operate any machine we have. She got a kidney transplant in July 2022, and is doing fine so far, but we never reopened our shop. We just stayed retired.

CD in Oklahoma

 

[shoepatcher]

So sorry to hear that.

[Devid]

Thanks guys for the info. I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge with other members.

Since I already own a Singer 29K/71 and really need a post bed machine, my best option might be to go for an Adler flat bed machine instead of a cylinder arm. Let's see if I can get my head right!

 

Best

Devid