Singer 66 Strong Enough To Sew Vinyl Bench Seat Cover?

[LoveToLearn]

I have wanted to learn to sew so I can make a new vinyl interior for my old car and reupholster the vinyl on some exercise benches I have. Will a 1928 Singer 66 18 be strong enough for that?

What is the strongest ugrade motor I can use. The original one pulls .6 amps. I have seen ones up to 1.5 amps and I have read somewhere that you can put on a bigger pulley to increase torque.

I recently found it at a garage sale for $10. The original cord has a short in it and the insulation on the wires is cracking and crumbling so that will need to be totally replaced.

It looks cool, its heavy and its old which I like. It seems very well made. I dont see any plastic on it. It came with a very nice wooden singer box with a key on a string. So it is portable.

Im not expecting to make saddles or gun holsters, catchers mits, work boots etc so maybe I dont need a machine capable of that.

In addition to the one off upholstery projects, I would also like to make some straps for my old film cameras and sew some curtains for the house.

It seems to be pretty complete and came with 7 attachments that I cannot identify yet because my knowledge of sewing machines at this point is still virutally non existent. I am a complete noob.

There are also 7 needles that say Simanco 14 on them. The needle package says 15x1. What does these numbers mean?

I posted photos of the attachments if anyone can help me identify the names of them and their purpose, that would be great.

Thank you for your help.

Gary

Edited April 19, 2015 by LoveToLearn

[Colt W Knight]

My 66 would sew through vinyl no problem, but since it isn't a walking foot, you may have trouble with stitch length and feed control.

They are built like tanks, and are very good sewing machines for fabric.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=54394

Numbers and letters on the needles tell you what size the needle is( what size thread it will sew with) and what style point they come with ( leather points are like chisels and cloth needles are blunt so they don't cut the fabric) you can google search the corresponding needle size, thread size, and material type. Singer 66 takes a very common needle, and you can find them at box stores and hobby stores like joannes fabric.

[LoveToLearn]

Thanks for the link Colt. I have seen it before while googling. It might even be the link that led me to join this site. Did you do all that with the stock motor? That's nice. Is a walking foot attachment available for this machine?

Edited April 19, 2015 by LoveToLearn

[Colt W Knight]

I added a stronger motor. They have a "walking foot" attachment available, but it isn't a real walking foot. It didn't work for leather, but it worked for felt. Never tried vinyl.

[Wizcrafts]

Vinyl fabric, like many types of leather, is basically sticky on top (except the glossy finish types). It drags under the presser foot, causing the top layer to move out of alignment with the bottom layer. Your stitch length may be shorter than expected and inconsistent.This is bad, because most Class 66 machines don't normally have stitch lengths much longer than 7 or 8 to the inch. You may end up filigreeing the vinyl if the drag is too great.

Moving along, the presser foot lift is maybe 1/4 to 5/16 inch. The even feed (so-called walking foot) attachments usually waste at least 1/8 inch of that clearance, leaving you with just over 1/8 inch sewing height. I think that a roller foot would work better.

The thread handling capacity is no more than #69 (T70) bonded nylon or polyester. The needle size for that thread is either #16 or #18. A standard sharp point needle will sew vinyl, as will a leather point.

You would do well to get a 1.5 amp motor, foot speed control, new drive belt and wiring for sewing vinyl, or denim. It has more than double the punching power as the original. Figure on about $75 to $100 for those items.

Forget the attachments. They were meant for sewing light cloth. The only attachment you will probably need is an adjustable edge guide and thumb screw.

If the machine faults at sewing vinyl, you can use it to hem your pants and lady's dresses, which is what it was built to do.

Edited April 19, 2015 by Wizcrafts

[LoveToLearn]

So since it doesn't have the true walking foot feature it wont work for sewing layered upholstery.

Maybe I can still use it for the camera straps and curtains though.

I also bought a working Singer 500A from the same garage sale for $20. I suppose that one wouldnt be any better since it does not have a true walking foot either right?

So far I have learned that I need a machine that pulls at least 4 amps on 120v, has a true integrated walking foot, not just an attachment, a reverse lever and be big enough to handle bigger needles and thicker threads and a motor/controller combination designed for low speed and high torque.

I like old german or american machinery. Can you think of some old Singer models that have those features? Then I will know what Im looking for and where to look when i go out rummaging.

Sure I would love to just make a phone call, give my credit card infor and a few days later a new or refurbished machine shows up at the door but I dont have thousands to spend.

My search continues. Besides, its fun to find orphaned machines that are just sitting there abandoned and get them running again. I've dont that with a lot of workshop tools and learned a lot.

Thanks for your help.

Gary

Edited April 19, 2015 by LoveToLearn

[Wizcrafts]

So since it doesn't have the true walking foot feature it wont work for sewing layered upholstery.

Maybe I can still use it for the camera straps and curtains though.

I also bought a working Singer 500A from the same garage sale for $20. I suppose that one wouldnt be any better since it does not have a true walking foot either right?

So far I have learned that I need a machine that pulls at least 4 amps on 120v, has a true integrated walking foot, not just an attachment, a reverse lever and be big enough to handle bigger needles and thicker threads and a motor/controller combination designed for low speed and high torque.

I like old german or american machinery. Can you think of some old Singer models that have those features? Then I will know what Im looking for and where to look when i go out rummaging.

Sure I would love to just make a phone call, give my credit card infor and a few days later a new or refurbished machine shows up at the door but I dont have thousands to spend.

My search continues. Besides, its fun to find orphaned machines that are just sitting there abandoned and get them running again. I've dont that with a lot of workshop tools and learned a lot.

Thanks for your help.

Gary

Here you go!

[LoveToLearn]

Here you go!

Thanks. Where are they made?

[Wizcrafts]

Thanks. Where are they made?

By Consew, in Indo-China

[Colt W Knight]

A compound feed walking foot machine makes a huge difference when sewing leather and leather like materials. I know from personal experience.