Looking for information.

[Mchar]

I am looking for information on the capabilities of this cowboy sewing machine. It’s for sale locally to me for $850. The seller has this to say about it “This sewing machine is used for leatherwork.  It has a 1/2” shank so it can sew through 1/2” thick leather.  There are several manuals and spools of thread that come with it as well as a bag of scrap leather materials” 

 

is this an accurate representation of the machine? I see pancake holsters, belts and wallets right now. Will this machine work?

Edited Sunday at 01:15 AM by Mchar
Duplicate image removed

[AlZilla]

I can't tell exactly what machine  that is but it doesn't look like any kind of a walking foot machine. A walking foot is where you're going to want to be for holsters. Also, a half inch lift doesn't mean it'll sew a half inch. It needs a little room to work.

While we wait for one of the experts to chime in on that machine, here's a thread you should read through:

https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/25239-the-type-of-sewing-machine-you-need-to-sew-leather/

And then look here and go over machines from the CB3500 down to the Outlaw. These are sort of the holy grail range for heavy leather like holsters and up:

https://www.tolindsewmach.com/cowboy.html

Plenty of other machines will work and there are always used machines to get the cost down a little.

And, who knows, maybe the machine you asked about will be some kind of walking foot. The 1/2" lift doesn't give much room for growth, but maybe.

Enjoy the chase for your machine.

[kgg]

1 hour ago, Mchar said:

I see pancake holsters, belts and wallets right now. Will this machine work?

This machine from what I understand is:

i) A drop feed needle feed machine. Not what I would attempt to use for holsters as you really need a compound sewing machine (feed dog, presser foot and needle) for leather work.

ii) I would consider this more geared towards fabric then leather.

iii) As far as sewing 1/2" I think this is very doubtful, at best maybe 3/8".

iv) The thread limit I would suspect would be V92 maybe V138.

How thick is the leather you are planning on sewing?

What size of thread are you wanting to use?

Are you sewing presently by hand or by machine???

1 hour ago, Mchar said:

It has a 1/2” shank so it can sew through 1/2” thick leather. 

The first I have ever heard of the shank size determining the sewing thickness.

kgg

 

 

[dikman]

Interesting that google comes up with nothing for that model number. Kgg  is probably pretty close to its capabilities, you can see the bobbins in the photos and they are small. It is definitely not a holster-making machine. And yeah, what "1/2" shaft" has to do with anything beats me.

[kgg]

To be 100 percent sure about the specs I would check with @CowboyBob he would know for sure and probably has a manual kicking around.

kgg

[CowboyBob]

Yes,it is a needle feed that will sew 5/16" using 138 thread max,your holsters would have to be on the very thin side for this machine to sew them.This model is for thinner leathers for sewing wallets,credit card holders.

[Mchar]

5 minutes ago, CowboyBob said:

Yes,it is a needle feed that will sew 5/16" using 138 thread max,your holsters would have to be on the very thin side for this machine to sew them.This model is for thinner leathers for sewing wallets,credit card holders.

Thank you.

[BlackDragon]

There's not much on the web about this machine. What I did find was here on the forums.

Best thing to do is to call Toledo Industrial because they used to sell the machine.

If this is a walking foot machine I wouldn't run anything thicker than wallets.