Can this be done?

[jontherigger]

Hi,

I am looking for advice on machining leather onto wire rope. At the moment I do all this by hand and it's just taking way too much time, could someone advise me how to do this and with what sort of machine. The leather is veg tan about 1/8" and the wire is usually 5/8" to 1" in diameter before leathering. The wire is straight before leathering and then the eye is formed afterwards, I understand that the look of it will be slightly different. My local sailmaker uses a roping foot which looks suspiciously like an ordinary foot with one side ground off so he can sew close up to rope, would something like this work?

Thanks

Jon

[Luke Hatley]

John, look at the cording feet that will fit your your sewing machine they will sew the leather around

what you are trying to cover, but you will have an sewed edge.

[Art]

Hi Jon,

Since the wire rope is fairly large diameter and the eye isn't on yet, you can take a piece of leather X long by 3.14 times the diameter of the wire rope plus 1/4 to 3/8 inch and stitch it lengthwise flesh side out 1/8 or so from the edge to form the tube, then wet the leather if necessary and pull it through itself to turn it grain side out, dry it, oil it and put it on then make the eye. That is how I have done it, but there is a limit to how small you can go. I've done covers for 1" nylon and it worked pretty well, depending on the leather and how large the diameter you can sometimes get away without soaking the leather before turning.

Art

Hi,

I am looking for advice on machining leather onto wire rope. At the moment I do all this by hand and it's just taking way too much time, could someone advise me how to do this and with what sort of machine. The leather is veg tan about 1/8" and the wire is usually 5/8" to 1" in diameter before leathering. The wire is straight before leathering and then the eye is formed afterwards, I understand that the look of it will be slightly different. My local sailmaker uses a roping foot which looks suspiciously like an ordinary foot with one side ground off so he can sew close up to rope, would something like this work?

Thanks

Jon

[Suze]

look up on regular sewing things -- how to sew piping

It might give you some ideas

also what your machine foot should look like.

and I don't know if it would work with leather but an easy way to turn FABRIC inside out is to sew around a cord (don't catch the cord in the stiching) Sew ACROSS one end (add a bit to the length you need)

Pull the cord - if you do it right the cord will start to pull the tube of fabric inside out. (I usually make the cord a bit longer than I need and put a couple of knots in the end that is stiched down on the "outside" so that when you pull it just doesn't shread and pull straight through.

[jontherigger]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies, I don't yet have a sewing machine for leather and would like some guidance as to something suitable. Singers seem to be readily available secondhand and there is a bewildering number of different types. There is a 7-27 twin needle, several 45K's, 29K's around but not having any experience of machine sewing leather I'm not sure what to go for. Would a cylinder arm or a flat bed machine be most useful?

I like the idea of an inside out tube - sneaky...

Jon

[SteveBrambley]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies, I don't yet have a sewing machine for leather and would like some guidance as to something suitable. Singers seem to be readily available secondhand and there is a bewildering number of different types. There is a 7-27 twin needle, several 45K's, 29K's around but not having any experience of machine sewing leather I'm not sure what to go for. Would a cylinder arm or a flat bed machine be most useful?

I like the idea of an inside out tube - sneaky...

Jon

A Singer 45K25 with the roller presser foot might do the job, as you can get pretty close to the edge with one.

Steve

[jimsaddler]

A Singer 45K25 with the roller presser foot might do the job, as you can get pretty close to the edge with one.

Steve

There is a RT side Foot, Needle plate & Feed dog for sewing up very close to Wire Rope and the like for the 45 K 25. Just leave a margin to sew on and trim it after sewing. The Roller Foot is on the wrong side (left) to get close on the rounded surface. I've also seen a setup on the Union Lockstitch to do it but it wasn't quite right.

Kindest Regards.

Jim.