Ah! Feed Dogs On Industrial Singer Scratching Leather!

[The Mean Tambourine]

Hi all, So I just bought an old industrial Singer211g165 with a compound walking foot. It works great- flies through the leather. But my problem is that the feed dogs are scratching my leather! I do use chromium dyed cow and buck skins, so it is a softer leather than veg tan of course, but wonder if there is anything I can do? Has anyone else figured out a way to fix this? I've tried tissue paper (pain in the butt) and baby powder- which works sometimes- but there has to an easier way! I've tried adjusting the height of the presser/feed dogs too, still not too much luck.... Suggestions/stories welcomed!

-Erin

themeantambourine.etsy.com

[Ferg]

If the reverse side isn't a problem with marks you need to use smooth feet. You can also use smooth feed dogs but on some leathers it doesn't feed real well. With smooth feet you have to readjust the pressure since the feet will mark some soft leathers. Takes a little "tweaking".

ferg

Hi all, So I just bought an old industrial Singer211g165 with a compound walking foot. It works great- flies through the leather. But my problem is that the feed dogs are scratching my leather! I do use chromium dyed cow and buck skins, so it is a softer leather than veg tan of course, but wonder if there is anything I can do? Has anyone else figured out a way to fix this? I've tried tissue paper (pain in the butt) and baby powder- which works sometimes- but there has to an easier way! I've tried adjusting the height of the presser/feed dogs too, still not too much luck.... Suggestions/stories welcomed!

-Erin

themeantambourine.etsy.com

[Sylvia]

Hi all, So I just bought an old industrial Singer211g165 with a compound walking foot. It works great- flies through the leather. But my problem is that the feed dogs are scratching my leather! I do use chromium dyed cow and buck skins, so it is a softer leather than veg tan of course, but wonder if there is anything I can do? Has anyone else figured out a way to fix this? I've tried tissue paper (pain in the butt) and baby powder- which works sometimes- but there has to an easier way! I've tried adjusting the height of the presser/feed dogs too, still not too much luck.... Suggestions/stories welcomed!

-Erin

themeantambourine.etsy.com

Hi Erin:

I come from a regular seamstress area of crafting and I have an idea that may help some. (at least until you can adjust, replace or modify your feed dogs.) When I have issues with things like this I float a piece of tearaway stabilizer under the item and over the feed dogs. If you don't have tearway, try some butcher paper... the kind with shiny side. On a test piece run, try it shiny side up and shiny side down to see how it affects your leather. Then when done stitching, just tear away the paper. (you may have to adjust top tension a little) Tissue paper is far too thin because the feed dogs are so aggressive on this kind of machine, you'll need something more substantial... and lots of needles.

I've used this method on Velvet which gets crushed easily. It might just work for you as a temporary measure. Good luck.

Sylvia

Edited December 21, 2011 by Sylvia

[The Mean Tambourine]

Thanks Ferg but the problem is actually on the bottom side mostly! Any suggestions for that?

If the reverse side isn't a problem with marks you need to use smooth feet. You can also use smooth feed dogs but on some leathers it doesn't feed real well. With smooth feet you have to readjust the pressure since the feet will mark some soft leathers. Takes a little "tweaking".

ferg

[The Mean Tambourine]

Well thanks Sylvia! I have actually tried the tearaway paper and stabilizer but it hasn't worked well for me. I find it to be a pain, and it affects the stitching tightness a little. Really, I'm wondering how they avoid this problem in factories when they are working on the same industrial machines I am!? I've never seen this problem on mass produced products? hmmm....

Hi Erin:

I come from a regular seamstress area of crafting and I have an idea that may help some. (at least until you can adjust, replace or modify your feed dogs.) When I have issues with things like this I float a piece of tearaway stabilizer under the item and over the feed dogs. If you don't have tearway, try some butcher paper... the kind with shiny side. On a test piece run, try it shiny side up and shiny side down to see how it affects your leather. Then when done stitching, just tear away the paper. (you may have to adjust top tension a little) Tissue paper is far too thin because the feed dogs are so aggressive on this kind of machine, you'll need something more substantial... and lots of needles.

I've used this method on Velvet which gets crushed easily. It might just work for you as a temporary measure. Good luck.

Sylvia

[Sylvia]

Well thanks Sylvia! I have actually tried the tearaway paper and stabilizer but it hasn't worked well for me. I find it to be a pain, and it affects the stitching tightness a little. Really, I'm wondering how they avoid this problem in factories when they are working on the same industrial machines I am!? I've never seen this problem on mass produced products? hmmm....

I worked in a production factory, but I don't recall this sort of thing happening when the sewers attached leather collars to vests we made. I know we didn't use any stabilizer on the leather, but I can't recall what the machine look like or how the feed dogs were set up. Maybe if you call your supplyer you can get some ideas for maybe some less aggressive dogs or adjustments. After all I've read on here I think I'll save my money and just do hand stitching until I can buy one of those super duper leather machines.

I hope you find the solution, nothing worse than having things go wrong while in the middle of a project.

[Ferg]

As I said before, use a smooth feed dog. You may have to adjust the pressure on your smooth feet to make the leather feed properly. This works for me and you have no other

"thingy's" to mess with.

ferg

Thanks Ferg but the problem is actually on the bottom side mostly! Any suggestions for that?

[Jimbob]

sand down your feed dog teeth.....buff it and it will make no or little marks, may need to get up or down with your pressure on pressure foot....works any time!

Jimbob

[DavidMillsSaddlery]

sand down your feed dog teeth.....buff it and it will make no or little marks, may need to get up or down with your pressure on pressure foot....works any time!

Jimbob

this is what I would do also, just smooth it out with some fine sand paper

[Order and Chaos]

I recently picked up a Singer 111 walking foot and it does the exact same thing, it's most noticeable on chaps leather, after I run a seam it looks like a tiny bulldozer left its track marks in the leather fairly deeply. I talked to the mechanic at the sewing machine shop I got the Singer from and he told me I had three choices. First was to take a dressing stone to the feed dog and smooth down and round off all the sharp edges milled in to the dog. The second choice is swap out the sawtooth feed dog for the smooth feed dog (the one he showed me had a hard silicone foot that would press against the leather). The third choice was a spur of the moment idea I had and asked him about. I was wondering if the teeth on the feet dog could be filled in with something like Epoxy or JB Weld and then filed smooth and flat. He told me that he had never tried anything like that before but he doesn't see any reason why it shouldn't work.

[oliverv]

Realising this is an old topic, but somewhere down the line bound to be someone looking for any solution somewhere here.

For that tank tracks looking mark that the feeds dogs produce on the 132K6, I glued small pieces of foam cut a drawer liner on top of the feed dogs.

I only uses contact bond applied single sided.. I applied it generously hoping that it will 'bite' into the crevices of the tooth  I might want to take it off at some point when sewing canvas or webbing.

After a 30cm stitching, the foam started to give in (squashed). Don't know how long it will last, but so good so far

 

 

[Gymnast]

I am not that expierienced in leather Work. But here is what I think.

The other replies regarding more gentle feed dogs are important factors, and I hope, it can help you.

You write "scratching" - and not press marks. If the feed dog is scratching, it seems to me, that they have a hard time moving the leather and dont get sufficient traction. So if the feed dog scratch, then you may have to increase the forces on the presser foot to prevent that to happen. But you may then get press marks instead.

You need a high traction, if you have a high thread tension. The traction needs to overcome the thread tension while stiching. So if you can achieve lower thread tension, you will need lower traction. Lower thread tension can be achieved by reducing the bobbin tension, thinner thread or thicker needle. However it may reduce the quality and appearance of your stitches. So it is a compromice.

If you make long stiches, then a different presser foot like a big wheel pressure foot may help. The stich is formed when the thread take up is at maximum in the cycle and you get the actual tension in thread. With a wheel this is done with the thread going more upwards from the leather, and it gives less vertical tension in the leather. With a normal presser foot the tread will be pulled vertical from below the presser foot and up to the needle, and it also require a higher thread tension to overcome the more (compared to the wheel foot) thread friction near the leather.