Been Given A Consew 230

[RavenAus]

Hi all, just picked up a Consew 230 from a friend who used to work at a factory making leather couches, and took the machine when the factory closed. Having not used it since then, she decided to give it to me. I'm looking at making corsets with it, with leather outers, maybe other garments. It comes with 2 teflon feet and the original manual ( 1 A4 sheet, folded in half ) along with a couple of bobbins and a few other feet. One I think is a hemming foot, looks like it's never been out of the drawer

I'm guessing the lever on the front is the reverse, and the dial above it is stitch length?

Is there any way to slow the machine down without large outlay? I'd prefer not to spend too much as I really don't have it to spare

Thanks all

[Constabulary]

Hi all, just picked up a Consew 230 from a friend who used to work at a factory making leather couches, and took the machine when the factory closed. Having not used it since then, she decided to give it to me. I'm looking at making corsets with it, with leather outers, maybe other garments. It comes with 2 teflon feet and the original manual ( 1 A4 sheet, folded in half ) along with a couple of bobbins and a few other feet. One I think is a hemming foot, looks like it's never been out of the drawer

I'm guessing the lever on the front is the reverse, and the dial above it is stitch length?

Is there any way to slow the machine down without large outlay? I'd prefer not to spend too much as I really don't have it to spare

Thanks all

Well, that is a high speed garment sewing machine not really a leather worker sewing machine. It´s probably fine for thin garment type leather but nothing for heavy work. Since you have the original manual it should give you good instructions and should also show the needle and thread size this machine was made for. It has an oil pump that needs high speed to lubricate the oil spots.

Slowing down sewing speed only works with a smaller motor pulley + speed reducer or servo motor + speed reducer.

Ceck LW.net for Consew 230:

https://www.google.de/search?q=Consew+230&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&ei=ouALVeWVKMjxUv3pg_gN#q=Consew+230+site:leatherworker.net

I´d sell it and save for a 111 type walking foot machine or s/t similar if you don´t sew thicker than 7-9mm

[RavenAus]

I have the 29k13 as well, but I wasn't about to turn this down. I'm planning on using this for fabric and garment/upholstery leather for corsets and cosplay items. As of right now getting a different machine is not an option, and at least this one was used on upholstery leather

[cdthayer]

[Posted 20 March 2015 - 02:16 AM by RavenAus....Is there any way to slow the machine down without large outlay? I'd prefer not to spend too much as I really don't have it to spare.]

It’s probably a little slower than you’re looking for, but I slowed my Singer 111G156 down without much outlay of money. I put an automotive steering wheel spinner knob on it. The slow speed control is fantastic!

I needed to reattach the (poorly designed) strap onto a purse that the thread had failed at the attachment point. And, I wanted to carefully place my needle in the original holes of the initial sew line to avoid further damage to the vinyl material. Another problem, was the bobbin thread needed to go into a shallow pocket of the purse design, so by using my machine as a tabletop machine instead of in its powerstand, I was able to provide sort of “freearm” effect that the purse could bend around to make the stitching possible.

CD in Oklahoma

Edited March 20, 2015 by cdthayer

[RavenAus]

Yeah, the 29k does that speed, I really need something I can work on with the motor.

[DavidJohn]

The Consew 230 will be fine with leather, make sure you use the appropriate leather needle for the material you are sewing, many of these older machines are better than the newer models, a good motor helps too.