Parts for Pearson #6

[badger]

I recently acquired a 1929 Pearson #6 Harness Stitcher.

What a lovely old thing it is. It had been bought by a professional leather craftsman, an old friend, 25 years ago. He'd used it for five years and simply stashed it under his bench when he bought another machine.

He bought it over and we threaded it and it stitched together two layers of 6mm leather perfectly, first time. They really built these things....

I think I got a good deal, I paid £1,100.00 Sterling for it.

I love the machine and want to restore it to it's former glory. It's been neglected. The flywheel is a modern plain steel replacement and it lacks the original cast iron stand.

Where on earth can I find an original flywheel and stand?

Any ideas?

Many thanks,

Karl

[SteveBrambley]

Hi Karl,

As you say, these things were built to last, and they are still much sought after in the harness and saddlery trade. I should think that an original stand and flywheel would be as rare as Rocking Horse Dung!! However, I do know a guy in Shropshire, UK, who may be able to help. He is called David Flint, and you should be able to contact him at: 01948 780593. He is a bit illusive, but if you leave a message, hopefully, he'll get back to you.

Steve

[torrbuidhe]

What needle system does the Pearson 6 use? Is it one that's easy to get or something more obscure?

[barra]

The Pearson uses the 331LR and they are fairly easy to come by from Schmetz dealers who stock Industrial sewing machine needles eg.

http://www.aaronmartin.com/product.php?cat...amp;submit=View

Barra

[badger]

Hi Steve,

Thank you for the advice. I actually bought my first Singer 45K from David. Illusive is a bit of an understatement

I've spoken to some great guys in Canada; Ivan Martin, Gordon Cavell (lovely guy who rebuilds Pearsons), John Leighton, nobody seems to be able to source parts for this wonderful machine.

I'll call David and see what he has.

Thanks guys,

Karl

[greg gomersall]

Depending on the seriel # on your pearson it could be the original flywheel. Both the real early models as well as the last ones made had a plain flywheel with no lettering. the machines made for North America had two rows of lettering on the flywheel while the ones which stayed in England or were shipped elsewhere in the world had one row of lettering. I know where there is a flywheel here in the US but the guy is using it for another purpose, I will check and see if he will part with it. The chance of finding a treadle stand is slim but not impossible, I did buy one from a guy a couple years ago but due to the fact that a lot of these machines were sold as a head only the odds of finding a stand are slim. They had two different stands on the 6 as approx. 1900 they came out with what they refered to as the new improved stand and these stands are interchangable between heads. If you are needing other parts let me know and I'll rumage thru my spares. Greg

[badger]

Thanks Greg,

You do seem to know a lot about these machines.

Where would the serial number be located on the machine?

I would really appreciate you looking in to the flywheel for me, I'd be happy to buy an original wheel. The one on it looks very recent to me. It's a kind of primer grey colour with a red plastic (not Bakelite) handle.

I only plan to crank the machine by hand, so any Pearson stand would do the job.

The oil bath on top is damaged. One of the hinge bases has been broken off the bath and the lid is sloppy and loose because of it. Would you have a spare oil bath assembly I could buy from you?

Here's the machine as it stands today.

Cheers, and thanks again,

Karl

Edited October 12, 2008 by badger

[greg gomersall]

Karl the serial # will be on the top of the head by the needle bar. It will be a 4 digit or possibly a 5 digit sequence. I do not have a spare wax pot but i will check around. The serial # is also just to the right of the handle on the flywheel. That handle can easily be replaced with a wooden style one as it just threads into the flywheel. Arron Martin makes a new stand for these, it is a plain stand no treadle assembly but real easy to attach a motor to. One of the Servo motors would work real nice on these machines. Greg

[badger]

Hi Greg,

Thanks once again for the information and your fast response.

What's your opinion of the flywheel on the machine right now?

I spotted the serial number, right where you said it would be. It's 9386. Can you tell anything about the machine from that?

I'll look into the stand from Aaron Martin.

Cheers,

Karl

Edited October 12, 2008 by badger

[greg gomersall]

That is a fairly high #. The highest I know of is in the very low 12,000 range. I would agree that is a replacement flywheel but if you painted it, pinstriped it and replaced the handle it would look good. The one I use every day is # 7489. Ther were several changes and modifications done along the way but very little changed from my machine to yours. the biggest change was in the early 30's the low 11,000 # range when they went to what they referred to as the "positive drive" feature. On these models the stitch lenghth was adjusted on the rear of the machine and the stitch advance arm travelled in a track instead of being held against the cam with a spring.

In 1899 Pearson& Benyon were purchased along with two other English companies by United Shoe Machine of Boston Mass. The new company was named British United Shoe Machine so any machines with the BUSMC label are after that date. I can't remeber exactly what serial # they were at then but it was the very high 4,000 or very low 5,000 range. I will check my notes when I am in the shop and see if I can get it a little closer than that. Greg

[badger]

Greg,

Thanks for the additional info, very interesting.

If I can't find an original replacment flywheel and your friend doesn't want to let his go, I'll take your advice and paint up the one that's on there.

I've emailed Ivan at Aaron Martin to ask about a stand.

I have a small box of bits that came with the machine. There's a roller guide which bolts on to the front, a needle guide too. There are a lot of bolt holes, seemingly for different attachments. What kind of attachments were/are available for the machine?

From the picture in my previous post, can you tell if anything is missing from it?

Thanks again for your help and your time.

Karl

[torrbuidhe]

I have a photo of a Pearson 6 I found on the web. It has a plain flywheel like yours Badger. The flywheel is painted black, with nickel plate on the rim.

As far as the handle goes, I have a Bradbury A1 where the handle has been replaced with the end of an old broom handle

[badger]

Hi,

Interesting...

Can you post the picture here?

Thanks,

Karl

[torrbuidhe]

It's not my photo, I just copied it off the web so I don't want to post it. If you PM me with your email address I'll send it to you though.

[Elton Joorisity]

Karl,

my dad took the wax pot off of his machine. I'll see if he is willing to let it go.

[badger]

Hi.

Thank you so much,

I appreciate that.

Of course I'd be willing to pay a fair price for it.

I'm so impressed by the members of this board. So willing to help and share.

It's really inspiring.

Wish I'd found it earlier.....

Cheers,

Karl

[badger]

Anther problem I have is that the machine didn't come with a bobbin winder...

What do you guys use?

I can make something if necessary, but it would be nice to get an original if there are any out there.

Cheers,

Karl

[Elton Joorisity]

Original bobbin winders seem pretty hard to find. Dad got an original with his machine and it's one of a few that I've actually seen.

[badger]

I'm a fairly handy kind of guy, I'll make one.

I have a zerox of an original manual for the Pearson 6. There's a diagram of the bobbin winder.

Cheers,

Karl

[DJ1935]

Congradulations on your purchase! It's great to hear that these amazing machines are still being used around the world. We purchased a complete machine last Christmas, serial No 6892. It came with the winder, needle steadies, edge guide and round rein attatchment.

Cheers

DJ

[barra]

This is my home made bobbin winder. The pins of the bobbin sit inside the small notches and the plate at the back is screwed in to hold the bobbin in place. Once held in place the pins of the bobbin protrude just enough so that I can attach my dremel or rechargeable drill. Once the chuck is tightened, I hit the power button and wind the bobbin. I have an old singer 132K6 bobbin winder on the side of the machine table and use the tension disks of this. Sometimes I will just use the hold the thread between the fingers as I wind tensioning method.

Hope this made sense

[badger]

Thanks very much for that.

Very interesting.

I have the roller guide and needle steady that came with this machine. I'm looking forward to trying out the roller guide.

I have a few ideas for a home made winder.

Cheers,

Karl

[greg gomersall]

Karl they had a needle steady for each size of needle. they had an inside as well as an outside rollar guide plus the round rein attachment as DJ mentioned. Greg

[badger]

Greg,

By inside and outside roller guides, do you mean one for the left side of the work and one for the right? The one I have bolts on to the right side of the machine as you look at it while sewing.

Cheers,

Karl

[greg gomersall]

Karl they make one that bolts to the left side as well. I have one of each. Greg