Gave up on the antique Singer; bought refurbed Juki!

[horselady21]

So after weeks of fighting the old Singer 31-15 ( that thankfully I only paid $60 for...table, motor and all), I gave up. I spotted Uwe's refurbed Juki , drooled over the video of the LU-563-3 machine, emailed him, talked to him on the phone, and couldn't see a reason not to just do it. And 6 months no interest from Paypal credit just sweetened the deal!

Even better: the Jukii head fit perfectly in the Singer table after I removed the drip pan and moved the knee foot-raising part that is underneath. I never used that anyways so the fact it doesn't work isn't an issue for me. As for the drip pan, I am sure I can either modify one or find a deeper pan.

The pulleys lined up perfectly also, which I had been concerned about! I was thrilled!

I haven't threaded it up and tried it yet but wanted to post pics.

And I can't say enough good about dealing with Uwe! He drove over half way to meet me, answered all my questions, gave me extra bobbins and pieces, sent me links to adjustment videos, and just went way out of his way to make the deal awesome! If you are looking for a refurbed machine, look no further than this man!

 

 

[leecopp]

Well there is no doubt the machine will sew after Uwe went over it.  I used his videos to help get my 111w back on line. 

Have fun.  If you dont have servo motor think about it. I love the way it powers through my stuff. 

Lee in Florida

[horselady21]

Yep, the servo type motor has been on my list since day one....well, right after a machine that works!

[suzelle]

That's a great machine! Congrats! I used one of those a couple of years when I worked for someone else.

So glad that it fit into your existing table. A big time and money saver there. Hey, and you have reverse now too! Yay! Big plus, more time before thread runs out, because that is the "M" bobbin, right?

Anyhow, happy for you!

 

Edit: Wait, no reverse? I don't see a lever. Maybe yours is a bit different than the one I sewed on. That thing thing should sew through thicker stuff like butter. Still a great choice. 

Edited May 23, 2016 by suzelle

[Wizcrafts]

19 minutes ago, suzelle said:

That's a great machine! Congrats! I used one of those a couple of years when I worked for someone else.

So glad that it fit into your existing table. A big time and money saver there. Hey, and you have reverse now too! Yay! Big plus, more time before thread runs out, because that is the "M" bobbin, right?

Anyhow, happy for you!

 

Edit: Wait, no reverse? I don't see a lever. Maybe yours is a bit different than the one I sewed on. That thing thing should sew through thicker stuff like butter. Still a great choice. 

Wrong! The Juki LU machines use a double capacity type LU bobbin, which holds about 25% more thread than an M style bobbin.

[gottaknow]

My Juki LU562 does have reverse and uses a "G" sized bobbins, same as the Singer 111's and 211's. Glad you got a good machine. My 562 gets a lot of binding work in a factory, and we don't sew slow. Uwe really sounds like a good egg. I'd love to have him kick around the factory with me some weekend. You too Wiz. 

Regards, Eric 

[Wizcrafts]

I forgot about the LU-562 being the standard G bobbin. I owned a 563 with the double capacity bobbins. My Singer 139w109 long arm walking foot machine has a Juki hook and uses Juki LU bobbins.

[horselady21]

Yep, no reverse but no big deal to me. I am ecstatic just to have a working machine!

So after getting it asset up last night (the basics), I was happy to successfully adjust the stitch length to what my first project will need. Uwe's video was priceless for this!  My only problem at the moment seems to be that I only have the monster needle that he was using for the very heavy thread in the video (207?) And I am using a #69, sewing layers of coastline, so when I try to sew, no matter the tension setting, the top thread pluckers and pulls the bobbin thread up. Things are a bit better with more layers but I don't have any heavier thread to test my theory. 

But needles are ordered, so what's a few more days? Wish local places sold them.

 

 

[horselady21]

Actually, after thinking about it some more, that didn't sound right. Now I think that the bobbin tension was set pretty loose for the very heavy thread being run when I got it, and the heavy material being demonstrated.

Also, I had the needle in backwards. I had removed it and put it back, obviously wrong way. Hey, it was 4 am!

So tonight I will attempt to adjust the bobbin tension slightly and see where we go from there.

[Wizcrafts]

Adjust the bobbin tension to have a modest steady pull. Not too loose, not too tight. Use the top tension disks to balance the knots. Use the minimum size needle for tighter knots and vice-versa.