Tippmann Boss Problems

[SOB Holsters]

Which cowboy do you have billy?

[billymac814]

Which cowboy do you have billy?

I have the 4500.

[usmc0341]

I was wondering why I could never see people's location in their profile, as it turns out it is not visible in the mobile version.

Bryan,

If you want to throw your boss in the car and make the trip to Altoona Ill give you as much info as I can and hopefully get it set up right. You can also give a cowboy a test drive, I will forewarn you though, you will want one.

I may just take you up on that! I would like to have someone who knows what they are doing show me what I'm doing wrong.

[particle]

I would suggest confirming the tension is set properly (according to the manual as a starting point), and of course the machine is threaded properly. I believe the procedure was to loosen the primary and secondary tension nuts all the way, then from the point the nuts make first contact with the springs, the secondary should be turned two full turns, and the primary should be turned 1 1/2 turns. Once you've done that, loosen the locking nut on the bobbin case, then adjust the bobbin tension until your thread knot is buried in the leather, then lock the bobbin case screw. Once you've sewn with it a while and are comfortable with how it's stitching, take a permanent marker and draw a line so you can visually tell if the nuts have moved - because they will if you accidentally bump them while threading the machine....

Now, you may already know all of that. The next thing I'd suggest is to avoid using too much pressure on the presser foot so it doesn't mark up the leather. But, by doing this, you need to deliberately push the leather into the machine as you stitch. Not hard, but just enough to make sure it doesn't slip backwards as you push the lever forward, pulling tension on the thread (causing the leather to slip back towards you).

As a side note, make sure the thread take-up lever doesn't drop immediately after you start to pull the hand crank back towards you. If it drops, it'll cause a loop in the thread and mess up your stitching. You simply need to tighten slightly the "HS 98-3" bolt that secures the take-up lever.

Nothing wrong with winding a bobbin with a drill, just make sure you don't wind it too tight, and make sure you zig-zag the thread on the bobbin like an open-face fishing reel would do.

The Boss is a great machine, and capable of producing just as nice a stitch as the powered machines - it's a fantastic machine for holsters. But, it's only a needle feed, so it does have limitations that you'll need practice to overcome.

[usmc0341]

Hi Brian just looking at your and Bill's profile U are about 2 1/2 hour ride to where he is see if he has time to help and take a ride maybe both of U end up with another good friend! It's just a thought

Thanks for all the tips everyone but I'm going to take a ride to Altoona and have Bill show me how to use this thing. I'm looking forward to learning from him!

[SOB Holsters]

Hopefully you have worked out your machine by now, trust me, I am feeling your pain! I am on my 2nd new boss in a week, and I still have flippin problems! Well, I did up until about an hour ago. I am under the assumption these machines are "new", but after disassembling the shuttle and hook, I'm not so sure. This thing was missing stitches right out of the box! Followed all of their trouble shooting that was included in the manual, and nothing. The hook was just baaarely missing the loop, but not every time. Took the front end apart and found the shuttle driver is so sloppy, that it has to be an old part. You can see wear marks and everything. The flat of the shaft bore on the driver was oblonged, where it should sit tightly on its shaft. McGyver'd it and it works great now, But you bet they'll be hearing from me in a few hours.

[TwinOaks]

And that is one of the other nice features of the Boss....easily able to put it in the car for a trip.

[usmc0341]

I just wanted to hop on and thank everyone for the tips and help with my Tippmann. I just got back from McCabes Custom Leather in Altoona where I got to meet Billy and see his shop (which I'm very jealous of), and he got this thing running like a champ in less than 2 hours. It's not often someone takes time away from their work to help another person out but once again this forum and the people on it are awesome! Thanks again Billy!

[trekster]

Real glad to hear you got the Boss working to your satisfaction. Maybe it would be good if you shared some of your experience at McCabes and highlight some of the major things that were done to your machine that resulted in the "fix". Probably could help others who might be wrestling with similar issues.

[SOB Holsters]

Well done Billy.

And I second the posting of the fix it list.