Nakajima Industrial Walking Foot (I'd Love Help By This Afternoon Please!)

[shannon porter]

Hi all I missed out on the singer 111 but I'm prob (this afternoon) buying a Nakajima I think says 280L it has a table & clutch motor & he wanted 800.00$ but says he'll deliver 2 hrs away & go down to 650.00$ so I can get the servo motor. He's buying a new 3500.00$ or so machine. He says he's sewn tooled leather with it at a tack shop. He said he looked into changing out the motor & he didn't realize it was so easy or he might not have gone with the new machine. Is this true? He said he's seen servos for about 100$. Is this true? Am I getting it for a good price? I want to make belts with embellishments, different types of bags, cuff bracelets with fabric sewn on them, straps for jewelry, & possibly sew 2 thicknesses of belt together. Does this sound like a good fit for me?

Thanks tons!

Shannon

[Andrew Chee]

Assuming the machine is in good condition, that's not a bad price. Swapping out the clutch motor for a servo is usually pretty easy because the mounting holes are all pretty much standard (and if they aren't, drilling a few holes into the table is no big deal). You can find servos on eBay for about $100. Depending on what you sew you may want to get a speed reducer (this will give you more torque at low end speeds to help punch through thicker leather). This may not be necessary though depending on what kinda sewing you want to do.

What else is he selling with the machine? Different feet and guides can be found for the machine and they're not that expensive but it all adds up.

Andrew

[Ferg]

From what I find about the machine the price is about right, without actually seeing the machine.

Be aware, when you sew purses with gussets it is nearly impossible to do on a flat bed machine. If I didn't have any I would be looking for a cylinder arm with a table accessory .

Cannot see what the foot clearance is on the machine.Find that you can sew some pretty hard material but that doesn't necessarily mean you can sew more than 3/8" - 7/16" in thickness.

ferg

[Wizcrafts]

The Nakajima 280L is pretty much the same as my National 300N. They are standard upholstery grade walking foot machines, with large M style hooks. Basically, the capacities are 3/8 inch thickness sewn, with up to #207 bonded thread. They use system 135x16 and 135x17 needles.

[shannon porter]

So wiz, is it a good price? Do I need the cylinder for bags?

[Wizcrafts]

I got my machine for $500 cash, with a clutch motor. Then, I bought the SewPro 500GR (aka. Toledo SewSlow) servo motor for better slow speed control. I use it almost every day, for sewing on jackets and biker vests.

Anything circular is easier to sew on a cylinder arm machine. Examine your pattern to see if it lends itself to a flatbed or free arm machine.

[Ferg]

Shannon,

If you make bags that you sew the gussets in from the wrong side out, the flatbed will do this in most cases. I f you have any occasion to sew any kind of gusset from the outside, you will have a definite problem most every time.

ferg

[shannon porter]

Thanks guys! My next question was going to be on the type of servo motor I should get but you pretty much answered me Wiz! Sounds like you got a good deal Wiz but how long ago did you get yours? A place near me says they've got great servos for 200 & my friend thinks they traded her some for her clutch when she changed so maybe it won't be quite as much. My husband can prob change it out. I can't wait to get sewing!

[Wizcrafts]

I bought two from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines: the first in mid-2009 and the second in mid-2012. While they bolt into the 3 original holes perfectly, the shafts sit closer to the table. So, I needed to subtract one inch from the belt length, after accounting for the difference in pulley diameters. Since the SewSlow has a 2" pulley and the original had a 3" pulley, I ended up with a 2" shorter belt than the one on the clutch motor.

[Ferg]

Same as Wiz, I have two servo motors. One is a Consew other is a sew pro from Bob Kovar. The Consew needed a speed reducer set up, the sew pro/sew slow is a gear reduction servo and doesn't need any further speed reducing.

ferg