LewSchiller Report post Posted October 13, 2013 The garage sale ad on Craigslist said ,,,industrail (sic) sewing machine so of course - since I was going to be within a mile - I stopped by. Next thing I knew I was driving away with this thing in my van. A quick check of my wallet revealed that I did not pay a lot - so at least I have that going for me. It's a Singer 269W7 which, apparently, is a Shoe Tacker. Having never worked on shoes, and being a total novice to leather swing in general,I have no idea what I might use it for. I mainly thought the stand would be good for the Adler 30-1 I acquired last week. Now that one I understand :-) Any information or guidance will be most appreciated! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
electrathon Report post Posted October 13, 2013 Very cool. I would have likely got all excited and bought it too. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
forbeskm Report post Posted October 13, 2013 Very nice! Nothing like that goes on in my neighborhood, everything starts at 700 on up Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Constabulary Report post Posted October 13, 2013 Have you tested it already? What kind of tacks makes it? I´m also thinking of buying one .... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LewSchiller Report post Posted October 13, 2013 (edited) I have not tested it. I was enroute to a job and didn't have a lot of time. Everything turns over but there's no thread holder etc.. I'll have to rig it up this week and see what and how it does. What's it used for in shoe making? This would be the first time an "industrial" at a yard sale turned out to be something other than this... Edited October 13, 2013 by LewSchiller Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wizcrafts Report post Posted October 13, 2013 The garage sale ad on Craigslist said ,,,industrail (sic) sewing machine so of course - since I was going to be within a mile - I stopped by. Next thing I knew I was driving away with this thing in my van. A quick check of my wallet revealed that I did not pay a lot - so at least I have that going for me. It's a Singer 269W7 which, apparently, is a Shoe Tacker. Having never worked on shoes, and being a total novice to leather swing in general,I have no idea what I might use it for. I mainly thought the stand would be good for the Adler 30-1 I acquired last week. Now that one I understand :-) Any information or guidance will be most appreciated! That machine is known as a bartacker. It does just one thing: it sews a tight zig zag, approximately 5/8 inches long. The resulting stitch resembles a bar, thus the name. These machines are used to sew (tack) Velcro or webbing onto other things. It is not a shoe machine, per say. You cannot modify the stitch it sews. It is a one use machine. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LewSchiller Report post Posted October 13, 2013 That machine is known as a bartacker. It does just one thing: it sews a tight zig zag, approximately 5/8 inches long. The resulting stitch resembles a bar, thus the name. These machines are used to sew (tack) Velcro or webbing onto other things. It is not a shoe machine, per say. You cannot modify the stitch it sews. It is a one use machine. Thanks Wiz! Any idea what the maximum thread size would be? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wizcrafts Report post Posted October 14, 2013 Thanks Wiz! Any idea what the maximum thread size would be? I operated one in 1989 - 1990 that used #69 bonded nylon. That's what we stocked, and I suspect, that's the probable limit. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Chee Report post Posted October 14, 2013 If you ever decided to make jeans, it would come in very handy to bartack the belt loops and pocket openings. Andrew Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gottaknow Report post Posted October 14, 2013 The 269 series of bartackers includes a wide variety of machines and what they do differs. Each subclass does a slightly different thing. The 269W7 is a shoe tacker and can make tacks 1/8" to 3/8". It uses an 18 stitch cam because of the narrow width. Moving up to the common belt loop tacker uses a 28 stitch cam and is adjustable from 1/8" to 1/2" but can usually be fudged out to make a decent 5/8" tack. We use a 42 stitch tacker for back pockets on jeans. 42 stitches destroys a 3/8" belt loop. I'll be honest with you, maintaining these machines to work properly is not for the novice. Timing the hook is the easy part. Making everything else happen when it's supposed to is another. Don't get me wrong, these have been a real workhorse over the years. Levi Strauss was heavily involved in the various versions to better automate their jeans production. I use them for belt loops, the front fly, and line tacking over the end of a one piece waistband. There are several different size needle plates and clamps. Your machine has no tying stitches which is the last stitching on most bartacks. This prevents cutting the leather by repeating the same path as the initial staying stitches. It's a cool find, but I like your idea of using the table for another machine. Regards, Eric Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TXAG Report post Posted October 14, 2013 Bartacks are also used in sport parachuting equipment and (more frequently) in manufacturing tactical nylon gear (it is used to create MOLLE / PALS webbing channels...) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LewSchiller Report post Posted October 14, 2013 (edited) It's a cool find, but I like your idea of using the table for another machine And I think that's what I'll do. Interesting though. I was unaware of this class of machine prior to this. Never had any reason to look into them, In the words of Emil Faber, "Knowledge is Good" ! And besides... $50! Edited October 14, 2013 by LewSchiller Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gregg From Keystone Sewing Report post Posted October 15, 2013 BTW...269Ws were never painted white, the gray in the belt cover is the original paint color. Not that this matters in any way shape or form. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LewSchiller Report post Posted October 15, 2013 BTW...269Ws were never painted white, the gray in the belt cover is the original paint color. Not that this matters in any way shape or form. Indeed - it looks like a repaint. I wonder why somebody would go to the trouble? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gregg From Keystone Sewing Report post Posted October 15, 2013 Indeed - it looks like a repaint. I wonder why somebody would go to the trouble? Only legit reason I've seen is so a machine can appear more 'modern' with the white paint, trying to increase value or interest from a buyer. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
forbeskm Report post Posted October 18, 2013 (edited) One just came up in my neck of the woods. http://denver.craigslist.org/bfs/4135197231.html I'd get one if I had infinite garage space. This too was painted white too and not terribly well. I am dabbling in shoes but so far I don't see any need for a tacker, an outsole stitcher but not a tacker Edited October 18, 2013 by forbeskm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites