Has Anyone Built Their Own Industrial Sewing Tables? --Can You Critique My Idea?

[Southerngunner]

Here is where it is so far , I need to clean up the welds( the material is galvanized). Also I have to pick up more metal,casters, and 3/4" plywood for the table top and side cabinet. I think that it will work out ok

[dikman]

Should be pretty solid!! Keep posting your progress.

[Southerngunner]

Thanks ,  It will be solid for sure, I will go pick up materials tomorrow and keep going. So far it has all been done with stuff that I had laying around and a little time

[kgg]

7 hours ago, Southerngunner said:

Also I have to pick up more metal,casters, and 3/4" plywood for the table top and side cabinet.

The metal frame looks really good. A couple of things to keep in mind:

i) Why are you installing casters?? Unless you are going to be moving it around a lot they maybe a waste of effort and if you decide to install them install the lockable style.

ii) The table top needs to be 1.5 inches thick so I would suggest doing your cutout for the machine base first in the top 3/4" piece of plywood then glue the bottom layer of 3/4" to the top layer. Remember the grain of the mating surfaces of the 3/4" plywood have to be 90 degrees to one and another to get max strength.

iii) You may want to consider welding a 3/4" x 1/8" tick angle iron stiffer across the front to prevent any table top sage along the front edge. I have see some tables that had a bow in the front.

kgg

[Southerngunner]

13 minutes ago, kgg said:

The metal frame looks really good. A couple of things to keep in mind:

i) Why are you installing casters?? Unless you are going to be moving it around a lot they maybe a waste of effort and if you decide to install them install the lockable style.

ii) The table top needs to be 1.5 inches thick so I would suggest doing your cutout for the machine base first in the top 3/4" piece of plywood then glue the bottom layer of 3/4" to the top layer. Remember the grain of the mating surfaces of the 3/4" plywood have to be 90 degrees to one and another to get max strength.

iii) You may want to consider welding a 3/4" x 1/8" tick angle iron stiffer across the front to prevent any table top sage along the front edge. I have see some tables that had a bow in the front.

kgg

Thanks for your input, I  did plan on adding another 1-1/2"x1/4"angle across the front but I ran out of material  today .I am also going to weld flat bar under both sides and I need to decide what to mount for the go pedal and presser foot lift. Also I only need a belt cutout and 5 holes to mount the Cobra class 26, plus light and thread stand holes. I  think that I will hold off on the casters for now until I get further along and then decide.

Regards,Terry

[kgg]

6 hours ago, Southerngunner said:

I  did plan on adding another 1-1/2"x1/4"angle across the front but I ran out of material  today .

I should clarify my suggestion on the front edge angle iron. I am assuming you are planning on cutting out a fairly large section with the base of the machine sat on the front to back edge just under the machine. That would mean the edge of the plywood would be unsupported. That is where I have seen sagging. I solved that potential problem when I moved to the 441 by adding a extra leg directly under the center of the machine.

6 hours ago, Southerngunner said:

I need to decide what to mount for the go pedal and presser foot lift.

If possible go to a industrial sewing machine repair shop as they typically have old table setups. They usually sell the bits and pieces like the complete frame or individual parts like the pedal and cross member pretty cheap. I usually pay about $50 CAD for a complete frame.

kgg

 

[dikman]

This was my solution, it takes up the minimal amount of space for a machine its size. It was necessary to extend the foot pedal support and fit a castor under the end because the centre of gravity of these machines means they tip over if the machine is mounted right on the edge of the table. The foot pedal arrangement might look a little strange but it lets me operate the foot lifter with my left foot so I don't have to shift my right foot off the go pedal. It's on wheels because I need to be able to move it depending on the workpiece BUT even though a couple are locking wheels it's not as stable as having a fixed table.

Edited April 4 by dikman

[Southerngunner]

That is definitely a small footprint, I can see where casters could become a little tipsy.

My cobra 26 isn't quite as large  but I plan on adding a cabinet on the opposite end of the table and extending the tabletop the extra distance. That should help balance things.

I have room for a slightly bigger table but I still need to be able to get it to a designated spot.

I haven't fully decided on casters yet, I'm not going to get in a hurry and end up changing stuff . Think 3 times build once.

 

[Southerngunner]

Update on progress of home made table.

Edited April 5 by Southerngunner

[Southerngunner]

Here is some more pics

Edited April 5 by Southerngunner
Duplicate picture

[Southerngunner]

Here is a top view of where the head will mount, the back holes will go through the table and angle, the front holes will go through the tabletop

,

Edited April 5 by Southerngunner

[Southerngunner]

  I got a chance to do some work on my version of a sewing table today. Here is some updated pics . Let me know what your thoughts are.

[dikman]

Looking good, but you may find that having the leg between the two pedals might be a bit of a nuisance. Most tables generally have the two pedals side by side, makes for easier foot movement.

[Southerngunner]

9 hours ago, dikman said:

Looking good, but you may find that having the leg between the two pedals might be a bit of a nuisance. Most tables generally have the two pedals side by side, makes for easier foot movement.

Thanks for the tip, I've never had a machine with a foot lift before.And since I  haven't made the pedals yet I can fit them both on the outside of the frame. I was just going for a straight path for the foot lift cable so moving it 3 inches to the left is no problem.   

[GerryR]

The best "critique" you are going to have is when you actually use the finished product.  Then you will say, "I should have done this or I could have done that; all the shoulda, woulda, coulda's.  That looks very nice and very sturdy and already looks like a lot of thought has gone into it!  I took the easy way out and adopted a cheap work station from Harbor Freight to do the job:

[fibersport]

Not sure if this was brought up but a butcher block counter top would make a great top.  

[Southerngunner]

3 hours ago, GerryR said:

The best "critique" you are going to have is when you actually use the finished product.  Then you will say, "I should have done this or I could have done that; all the shoulda, woulda, coulda's.  That looks very nice and very sturdy and already looks like a lot of thought has gone into it!  I took the easy way out and adopted a cheap work station from Harbor Freight to do the job:

 At the end of the day it is all about usability and function. Your setup looks like you have everything that you need.

 This is like a personal challenge to me, I could have bought a set of legs with 2 pedals that just needed a new top for $75.00 from my only dealer  within 50 miles of my house.

I know that I'm just a stubborn old man trying to prove to myself that I can still fabricate a usable product. Who knows I may still end up with the one from my dealer.

 

[Wizcrafts]

On 4/6/2024 at 10:46 AM, Southerngunner said:

I've never had a machine with a foot lift before

It's a piece of cake if you are a pedal steel player, like me!

You have a movable foot pedal connected to the motor with either a rod or a chain. Adjust the height and angle to suit you right or left foot. I keep mine on the right. Mind you, I also like knee levers. Some of my machines have a knee lever.

[GerryR]

1 hour ago, Southerngunner said:

 At the end of the day it is all about usability and function......

I need things that are portable, as well as functional, because of space requirements.  I made a table/stand for my Chinese Patcher from 2" PVC pipe.  It has ball rollers at the bottom of the pipes and a handle to shift the weight to the rollers when I want to move it; functional and portable!  I made "T-nuts" from steel stock and used long bolts to fabricate the table using the pipe; not as sturdy as a weldment, but good enough for a small patcher.

 

[dikman]

Pretty clever, Gerry, as long as it works for you is all that matters.

SG, nothing wrong with fabricating it yourself, it's very satisfying to know you can still do it.. The table mine is on was originally a full-size table, then I decided to make a pedestal-style table and then it occurred to me I could achieve similar results by chopping up the table it was on. This also made it easier to move the lift pedal to the left.  In your case if you can use material you already have lying around that's even better!

[Southerngunner]

22 hours ago, Wizcrafts said:

It's a piece of cake if you are a pedal steel player, like me!

 

The musician gene jumped over me and went straight to my Grandson.  He is a blessed and talented lead guitar player with his own band. I could never get both of my hands to work together on a guitar, regrettably with the nerve damage in my legs and feet from 3 back surgeries my feet are not super cooperative to instructions for what pedal to push. Everything that I do has to be slow and deliberate.  Not whining about what I have , just explaining. I am determined to make it work.  At 71 years old I'm too thick headed to say I can't do this and just give up. I will get it done slower is all 

Thanks for everyone's advise and tips it's saving me a lot of rework.

 Best Regards, Terry

 

[billybopp]

54 minutes ago, Southerngunner said:

The musician gene jumped over me and went straight to my Grandson.  He is a blessed and talented lead guitar player with his own band. I could never get both of my hands to work together on a guitar, regrettably with the nerve damage in my legs and feet from 3 back surgeries my feet are not super cooperative to instructions for what pedal to push. Everything that I do has to be slow and deliberate.  Not whining about what I have , just explaining. I am determined to make it work.  At 71 years old I'm too thick headed to say I can't do this and just give up. I will get it done slower is all 

Thanks for everyone's advise and tips it's saving me a lot of rework.

 Best Regards, Terry

 

I'm lucky to be a pretty fair musician, but I've never been able to get my hands to move the right way to play stringed instruments ... Other than the ol' 88 string. 

- Bill

[Southerngunner]

Here is another update on my home  made table for my cobra 26. I did a test fit for the machine and pulleys to see how it all works. 

The first picture is the way the machine will mount through the angle, the 2x4 is slightly thicker than the table will be.

It works great, I'm happy.

The 12"and 2" pulley setup  really increases the torque and keeps the speed where it is completely controllable even on the 3rd setting on the servo

 

[Southerngunner]

[Southerngunner]

The go pedal has a built stop to keeping from  going over center and sticking the motor on. I still have to work out the presser lift pedal and linkage.