Members flanman Posted March 16, 2015 Members Report Posted March 16, 2015 Greetings All Earlier this winter I decided to get a treadle sewing machine thinking that it would allow me to sew a shirt out of buckskin. I originally thought that I had purchased a Singer 47k but now believe it to be a 25K treadle sewing machine from 1902. I had a local gentleman service the sewing machine and began practicing on fabric so as to get up to speed so to speak with using a treadle sewing machine. Once comfortable I gave a try to the leather. Initially it went well. That is after I adjusted the thread tension. Shortly after starting I noticed that it skipped all the stitches after the first two inches of fabric. I raised the foot pulled the leather, cut the threads and tried again. This time it only sewed three or four stitches and then skipped the rest. I went back to fabric and it skips every tenth stitch or so now. From what I can find on the internet it would seem that I have a dull needle. Is this correct and if so where can I get a good replacement? If wrong what do I do to correct this issue? Thank you in advance for your help/guidance. More questions to follow I am sure. flanman Quote
Members amuckart Posted March 17, 2015 Members Report Posted March 17, 2015 The best thing to do is read Wiz's thread on the type of machine you need to sew leather, which is pinned at the top of the sewing machines board and can be found at this link http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=25239 Quote -- Al. Medieval Stuff: http://wherearetheelves.net Non-Medieval, including my machines: http://alasdair.muckart.net
Members flanman Posted March 17, 2015 Author Members Report Posted March 17, 2015 thank you. Missed that one. Quote
Members flanman Posted March 17, 2015 Author Members Report Posted March 17, 2015 I hope it is not because I missed it but I did not see anything in the Sticky thread about treadle machines or the issue of skipped stitches. Any other help would be greatly appreciated. thanx again flanman Quote
Members amuckart Posted March 17, 2015 Members Report Posted March 17, 2015 What do you want to know? There are treadle machines that you can sew leather on but they're treadle powered industrial machines. The vast majority of treadle machines you'll find are domestic fabric machines. Even the best of those, such as the Singer 201k, won't sew leather well. As a general rule of thumb, if it takes standard 15x1 domestic sewing machine needles, it is a fabric machine, not a leather machine. Quote -- Al. Medieval Stuff: http://wherearetheelves.net Non-Medieval, including my machines: http://alasdair.muckart.net
Members flanman Posted March 18, 2015 Author Members Report Posted March 18, 2015 thank you. So it is not likely to handle leather even thin buckskin, understood. Now why would it be skipping a stitch every now and then? flanman Quote
Members TinkerTailor Posted March 19, 2015 Members Report Posted March 19, 2015 (edited) I have sewn alot of heavy canvas and lightweight garment leathers together on a 1917 FR White Rotary treadle machine, and it does fine. I make tool rolls and bicycle bags this way. I don't have to help the handwheel until I get up to 8 layers of 10oz canvas and a layer or two of light leather at a seam fold. When i first started using my treadle machines (i have 2 whites and 3 singer), I had the same type of troubles. Try this: 1.Crank the presser foot pressure all the way up. If the foot comes up too far while stitching due to friction or material thickness, the stitch will skip. 2. Some of these machines are sensitive to thread twist direction. Play with which way the thread comes off the spool and also which direction you wind the bobbin. I found an oddity with thick materials that the thread would gradually untwist while going through the thread tensioning system, and start tangling after a few stitches. Flipping the spool over on the top of the machine fixes this, don't ask me why. I also am careful to wind my bobbins off the spool the exact same way. And put the bobbin in the machine the right way around as well. 3: Clean every bit of lint and thread from the bobbin area. Get a flashlight, magnifyer, and mirror. A half inch piece of thread 'way up in there' caused me a few headaches 4: Drive slow on jumps..........When the machine drives off a cliff when you pass over a seam, drive slow. If you are brave, hold the presser foot down with your finger. If you are going fast, and 'Dukes of hazard" the foot off the seam, you will skip a stitch, perhaps more... 5. LUBE EVERYTHING!! Old sewing machine oil turns rock hard over time. The machine will be gummed up. This will cause performance issues. On a machine that is new to me, i like to lube all the everythings with a bicycle lube called tri-flow. It is fairly thin, but it has some solvents in it that will help break down old lube. It will also wick its way into places sewing machine oil cant. It will wick into bearings from the side as sometimes the oil ports are plugged. I will run the machine, oiling every time i sit down for a little while, until it is buttery smooth, then switch to less frequent applications of the quality sewing machine oil of your choice. edit: the wrong length needle, loose foot or needle, and needle put in machine in the wrong orientation can cause issues as well. If the needle clamp is not on the flat of the needle, it may spin while stitching. Edited March 19, 2015 by TinkerTailor Quote "If nobody shares what they know, we will eventually all know nothing." "There is no adventure in letting fear and common sense be your guide"
Members flanman Posted March 22, 2015 Author Members Report Posted March 22, 2015 TinkerTailor This is great info, thank you. One follow-up question if I may, how do I adjust the presser foot pressure? Also where can I order new needles and what size should I get for attempting to stitch buckskin? flanman Quote
Members TinkerTailor Posted March 22, 2015 Members Report Posted March 22, 2015 (edited) On most of the treadle machines ive come accross, the presser foot pressure is controlled by an adjuster directly above it on top of the machine. It is usually a cap or bolt that pushes down on the presser foot spring. Btw, I have, on junky machines, experimented with adding washers, stretching the spring to add pressure, and other mods however this can and will wear stuff out faster and break things. Proceed at your own peril here.Here are some pics of a underseat bicycle toolroll i a currently working on. All the stitching is done on a white rotary FR machine on treadle (with liberal handwheeling). It is 1 layer 3-4 oz of Hot stuffed bridle and 1-2 layers of 4-6oz hot wax stuffed boot leather. Both chrome tan, the bridle is veg re-tan and is very stiff. The boot leather is pretty supple. Total thickness stitched is 7mm, looks like 6 here due to angle: My starrett micrometer says 0.237" which works out to about 15 oz total thickness. Backside of stitching: Frontside: Frontside 2: (there is an extra stitch hole at the corner....my machine runs so smooth, it sometimes drops the needle slowly into the work if i am not looking. Sometimes i wish it was still a little gummed up) Edited March 22, 2015 by TinkerTailor Quote "If nobody shares what they know, we will eventually all know nothing." "There is no adventure in letting fear and common sense be your guide"
Members Darren Brosowski Posted March 28, 2015 Members Report Posted March 28, 2015 Need pictures! Ismacs only list the 25- class and most use the 24X1 needle which is very short. "-", "W" or "K" classes are not always the same machines. As an example the 99k is a domestic while the 99W is a bar tacker Quote
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