woodandsteel Report post Posted March 13, 2014 Hello all! Will a Cobra, 441 or other sewing machine good for holsters and belts also work well for upholstery with thinner fabrics and leather? Any other recommendations? Thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cascabel Report post Posted March 13, 2014 Well........ Can it be done ? Yes. Is it practical ? Not really. The big 441 clones need too much fiddling to get them to work well with the thinner materials. And then you will have to re-adjust for heavy materials. You will do far better with two separate machines. There are lots of good condition used machines out there that are suitable for upholstery work at decent prices. Not so much with the heavy leather stitchers. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wizcrafts Report post Posted March 13, 2014 No. Get a separate flat bed compound feed, walking foot machine for upholstery and thin leather. They take smaller needles than don't flex as much, have narrower feed dogs with smaller holes and are more easily balanced with lighter threads. Most upholstery machines are able to sew with bonded thread sizes 46 through 138, or cotton/polyester sizes T50 through T105+, into 3/8 inches of compressed material. FWIIW; I now use system 135x16, Titanium coated needles in both my walking foot and patcher machines. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
woodandsteel Report post Posted March 14, 2014 Alright, sounds like sage advice! I'll look into something for upholstery. Any models I should keep an eye out for? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wizcrafts Report post Posted March 14, 2014 (edited) Alright, sounds like sage advice! I'll look into something for upholstery. Any models I should keep an eye out for? Upholstery grade compound feed walking foot machines are found everywhere industrial sewing machines are sold. Look up industrial sewing machine dealers in your general area. I buy most of mine from Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines. Brand names you should look for include, but are not limited to: Adler, Brother, Chandler, Cobra, Consew, Cowboy, Econosew, Highlead, Juki, Mitsubishi, National (out of manufacture, but I own a very good one), Pfaff, Sailrite, Singer (old and out of manufacture, but popular), Techsew, to name a few. What to look for You should look for a machine with a reverse lever, large bobbin, easily set stitch length adjuster, clutch to protect the hook in the event of a thread jam (on vertical hook machines only), and a powerful servo motor for smooth speed control. Edited March 14, 2014 by Wizcrafts Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra Steve Report post Posted March 14, 2014 The COBRA Class 4 Premium package comes with all of the change over sets and accessories to sew from a #69 thread for upholstery to a #415 thread for extremely heavy materials. Yes, the ideal situation would be to have 2 machines, a flatbed for thread sizes up to 138, and a cylinder arm for 207 thread and heavier, but if you can only go with one machine, then always go for the cylinder arm because they are much more versatile. Thanks, Steve Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Anne Bonnys Locker Report post Posted March 16, 2014 Yet to meet any serious leatherworker who has just one machine Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
