Difference Pfaff 335 En 345

[kathy78]

Hi there,

This is my first post here. My name is Caroline and I am from the Netherlands. I am interested in making fashionable sandals for people with a wider forefoot. I am also studying podiatry. Some of my clients told me that is hard to get fasionable sandals for 25 year olds that look nice under a cute dress.

I am looking for a machine with a free arm to sew bags from leather as well and thick leather for sandals(veg tan?) , maybe even the thin rubber soles that go under it. I was thinking of a pfaff 335 with the company selling second hand machines here came with a 345.

I am looking everywhere but have not found the difference. Anyone of you that have an idea or know an even better machine for the things I would like to do.

I am not particularly interested in a flatbed because with my household machine I already noticed that I often take off the table.

And also important, I need a machine that is available in Europe. I guess the Consews etc are not availble here.

Thanks a lot,

Caroline

[CowboyBob]

The 345 will sew much thicker than the 335 so you should try to sew on the 345 before you buy if possible to make sure it works for your thickness.

[Trox]

Hi Caroline,

The Pfaff 335 is a small arm horizontal hook for thin threads and light leather work (threads up to tkt 20/3).

Pfaff 345 have a vertical hook, thicker arm and take heavier threads (up to tkt 12/3 depended of subclass) .The subclass H4 is the heaviest. Both H3 and H4 is suitable for leather work, H1 and H2 are to light.

There are companies in Europe that sells Chinese clones too. Like: Sieck.de that sells cowboysew/Hitex machines under their own brand "Sieck". Medium cylinderbed machines are Dürkopp Adler clones DA 269-373 (heavy stitcher's are clones of DA 205-370 and Juki TSC 441). They also sell used machines. They sell Global in Belgium and Highlead in the UK. In France they sell several brands like Gemsy, Fox and more. Typical is an other clone brand sold in Europe. A clone machine sold the USA has normally an other name in Europe. If you buy a clone machine buy it from somebody that offer support and warranty. Do your homework prior to buying, ask questions about the brand here.

I do have a Pfaff 345 machine my self, they are good machines. Make sure it is complete and in working order, original Pfaff parts are very expensive. (hooks, feets and plates can be found aftermarket)

Imca in Haarlem (in your country) sells Global that is a well known clone brand, they also sell Ho Sing motors (very good Japanese pro motor systems). They are big on second hand machines too.

Good luck

Tor

[jimi]

Hi Caroline, i am trying to do the same, trying to get some sandals going for selling this summer. we used to stitch them by hand years ago but this takes a bit longer. i have tried to do some trails on a singer 45k and this will sew through thick vegi tan and rubber. but i have come to the conclusion that i would be better with a frobana/gritzner or a rafflenbeul outsole stitcher for sewing the sandals. they are small and compact and could be worked by hand. there is also a smaller type called junker & ruh. on these machines you could hide the stitching in the channel underneath the sole. also on a sewing machine you would need a narrow presser foot that wont get in the way of the straps when sewing. on the outsole stitchers you can sew very close to the straps. i think sieck in holland sellls second hand machines and spares? iam shure they sell them working? you can check them out on the web. anyway caroline good luck and hope this helps. jimi.