Box X Or Bartacker Advice

[gottaknow]

5 hours ago, Constabulary said:

Eric or Gregg do guys you have experience with programmable bar tack machines? I often sew different sizes of box stacks from 1/2" up to 2" most of the time with 138 thread. I still can do it with the 111 but its a quite annoying job.

I have several pattern tackers. The most user friendly are the Brother 438 series. I also have the Juki 1900 series which are very reliable. I'm buying 4 new Jukis this year, but I haven't seen them yet. I also have some now antique Mitsubishi's (1980's) that still work fine, but getting new pattern chips programmed is an issue. We set all of our labels with a new Brother pattern tacker which we can program ourselves. Each label size requires a different clamp setup which are about $700 each, and we have 6 different labels. The older Brother 438 has a very tired servo that doesn't like webbing very much, and goes into error. It will do lighter stuff all day. Buyer beware on any used electronic tacker. 

Regards, Eric 

[Gregg From Keystone Sewing]

12 hours ago, ELeBlanc said:

Greg: I'm looking at what is described as a pair of Jado and Freeman Box X conversions. Are these yours? They look like the Singer 68.Should I have any hesitations? I don't think they have been used in years. Lousy picture but all that I have.

Jado Sewing is alive and well making these up these Singer 68 class conversion pattern tackers to order, for sure.  Frank Friedman & Sons, Inc./Gellman are long gone, and a lot of their cam patterns were taken over by Jado as well.

All I can tell you that when these machines are converted, they are built from cam up.  These machines are really only going to do what the cam is cut for, so if the actual pattern is not what you are looking for, it's not at all like you can go out, have a new cam cut, swap it out, and start to do something different.  These machines do not work like that.

The nice thing about these type of machines is that they are very capable of sewing heavier threads and materials, think of like cargo nets with a box cross pattern for example, or a WW pattern for a seatbelt.  

 

[ELeBlanc]

thanks for the quick response to a 5 year old thread.

[Constabulary]

Eric, I however cannot afford a new one but you never know what you come across . I narrowed down to Brother BAS 311 but, well, that was just an idea... I of course have my eyes open but you never know what you will find...

So you would generally say do not buy a used programmable tacker?

I really would love to have a Singer 68/69 but on my side of the pond I most likely will not find the cam discs need. And switching them is probably a too big challenge for me so thats why I had the idea with a programmable x Box tacker...

Maybe not the best idea....

[gottaknow]

3 hours ago, Constabulary said:

Eric, I however cannot afford a new one but you never know what you come across . I narrowed down to Brother BAS 311 but, well, that was just an idea... I of course have my eyes open but you never know what you will find...

So you would generally say do not buy a used programmable tacker?

I really would love to have a Singer 68/69 but on my side of the pond I most likely will not find the cam discs need. And switching them is probably a too big challenge for me so thats why I had the idea with a programmable x Box tacker...

Maybe not the best idea....

The problem with an electronic unit, is you have no idea what shape the drive unit is in. For my tired Brother, it will do two layers of heavy webbing, but not three. Two years ago it would do three. Even with testing, if it's been in a factory, they are run 40 hours a week. That's a lot of cycles on a ten year old machine. My Brother 311 is new, and all we sew on it is labels on one layer of wool. Find one like that and you'd be ok. My 438 has spent most of its life doing heavy webbing on tactical gear. You just don't know what you're going to get. 

Regards, Eric