Newbie Need Recommendation On Medium Machine

[HVLW]

Hello,

I have 2 machines currently. The first is a new Singer "Heavy Duty" crappy machine, and the second is a Cowboy CB3200. I am trying to sew a fold on the edge of a wallet made from a soft thin leather. On the Singer, the piece barely fits under the lifted foot, it skips stitches, and stops completely at about 4 pieces thick. Yes, I am using new leather needles. The Cowboy is setup for thick belts I make, and the dealer said it won't work for the delicate stuff i am talking about, even with a smaller needle and thread. Any recommendations? I'm willing to get a restored old Singer...someone recommended a 15-91 or something like that.

[Wizcrafts]

Yeah, a Singer 31-15 will sew thin wallets, especially if you fit it with either a Teflon or roller foot and heavy duty feed dog and throat plate set. It will be happier if you don't exceed #69 bonded nylon thread, which is perfect for pigskin wallets. Almost any upholstery class walking foot machine will do wallets and interior parts (with #69 or #92 thread). I have a Singer walking foot machine that was custom built for me. Others use the newer Consew 206RB-5

[Wizcrafts]

Oops! I reread your question and realized that I mistakenly replied with info about a Singer 31-15, when you asked about a 15-91.

I used to have a 15-91 and I threaded it with #69 bonded nylon thread and a #18 leather point needle. It was able to sew thin leather and vinyl if it was slick on top. If the material was in the least bit grabby, the stitch length was all over the place, sometimes in the same hole. A Teflon or roller foot is necessary to feed the leather without separating the layers. The motor required hand assistance to get it going in leather. It grunted and groaned until I got it moving. Eventually, the motor smoked, so I rebuilt it, then eventually sold it in my leather shop (I rebuild and sell old iron body Singer machines).

One of the problems with the old Singer home sewing machines was that most have very limited presser foot clearance before the bottom of the needle bar and thread guide hits the top of the foot. Changing the foot to a thicker Teflon, or roller, or "even feed" foot will reduce the usable sewing clearance even more, possibly to as little as 3/32 inch.