pfaff 545 hinge Will Pfaff 1245 hinge blocks fit a 545

[clintooo]

I didn't want my first post to be a question.  So I will answer it myself.  yes they do...

I bought this old 545 for $400.  The bobbin case was all jammed up with cotton and it had knocked the clutch out.  So it wasnt actually sewing when I got it.  In addition to that the previous owner had had a few goes at refurbishing.  I think the first attempt involved them spraying 50% of the machine in gold paint.  I assume the shop must have run out of gold paint, or they got a better deal on silver hammer tone paint.  As they then proceeded to spray the entire machine, (belt, pulleys, chrome base plates, feet, entire tension assembly and even the cotton that was threaded).  The bobbin winder hasnt been cleaned up as  I plan on buying a new one, so that is the state of it.  So I took a punt on it.

They then had a go at the table top and painted it with what I assume is white house paint.

 

So after a day of sanding, and rubbing everything with thinners, this is what I ended up with.  Someone had removed the laminate from the top of the table, so it was just ply.  I have sanded it to 600grit and then applied this hard burnishing oil I like to use for table tops.

I think the needle holder is broken.  How hard are these to replace and should I bother?

Back to the hinges.  The two rear ones had collapsed.  I wasnt able to source any 545 (they were rubber and had a metal rod running through them.  So the Pfaff guy wasnt sure, but thought the 1245 hinges would fit.  Turns out they do.

 

This is my first industrial machine.  I had just been making small bags and pouches on an old Elna machine.  Plus 30 pencil cases for all my daughters friends.  I want to make some heavier canvas and PVC bags for camping.  Plus I thought I might mess around with some leather.

 

The machine has a 2850rpm motor, which is way to fast for me.  It currently has a 90mm pulley, and I think even a 45mm will be too fast.  I was originally going to try and sell the motor and just pickup a 1425rpm motor.  But I'm considering a servo motor.  So Im trying to work out which way to go with it.  In the meant time, I think I will build some flip up out feed table and side supports to give me a bit more room to hold material.  I have just finsihed making some covers for outdoor couches out of a cheaper sunbrella material.  The 3 seater one was a little difficult to support all the fabric on the table.  But they came out quite well.  There were a few issues with the material being super slippery and me not being able to control the speed of the machine.  But for a first attempt I was happy with the finished product and how well the machine worked.

 

I even have the instruction manual, albeit it is entirely in french.

Edited August 5, 2016 by clintooo

[Constabulary]

I have an english manual for the 545 - send me your email address by PM as the file it too big to attach here.

[Uwe]

Those Pfaffs are very nice machines. I have a Pfaff 545 H4 N10 version that I'm working on.  I just ordered a new hook for it, but it hasn't arrived yet.

I usually go on a manual hunt whenever I start working on a machine. I came across a 1979 edition of the Pfaff 145/545 manual in english and with nice quality pictures. It has some inconsistent page sizes, but overall the quality is quite nice. I ran OCR on it to enable text searching and uploaded it here: http://docs.uwe.net/Pfaff-145-545.pdf

The 118-page parts manual for the Pfaff 145/545 hints at the complexity of this class and many subclasses of this machine: http://docs.uwe.net/Pfaff-145-545-Parts.pdf 

By the way, the administrators of this site can attach files to posts that exceed the normal upload limits. 

The Pfaff 545 needle bar (part# 91-710650-92) is available aftermarket for around $18: http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEEDLE-BAR-PART-91-710650-92-fits-PFAFF-335-WALKING-FOOT-/290918359686 

Not sure how well they work, but it may be worth a try. 

Edited August 6, 2016 by Uwe

[dikman]

Clintoo, $400 for a Pfaff walking foot is pretty good (for Australia!). It looks a bit like a flat bed version of the 335 (to me at least). If the machine is working ok, and does what you want, then give serious thought to fitting a servo - it will tame the beast, so to speak.

[clintooo]

thanks for the replies.  

 

I've been playing with it a bit more today, and have been enjoying it quite a bit.  I adjusted the angle of the foot plate towards the horizontal a bit more.  I'm not sure if it was that or that I was sewing some smaller straps, but I did seem to have a bit more control for the most part.  But it still catches me out.

I have found a 750w servo motor on ALi express (china website) that is US200 delivered.  So I'm contemplating that.  Just need to understand why it is half the price of the other ones I can find here in Aust.  Do I need a 750w for this machine or will a 500w be enough.  does the extra wattage translate to extra torque on these?  

[dikman]

clintoo, I've bought three servos from China, two 500w and a 750w. I fitted a 500w to my Pfaff 335 and it has plenty of grunt, although I have also fitted a larger (8") pulley to the machine itself. If you can afford the 750w it probably makes sense to get it, but in all honesty the 500w will probably be more than adequate. I bought mine from Lishui Skyrit (on Aliexpress), mainly because they have a warehouse in Sydney and shipping was included, so instead of waiting weeks to get here from China it only took a few days! As for the price difference, it's no different to anything else that is imported and resold by another company here, there will always be markups!!

If you look at their site, make sure that you tick the "ship from Australia" box. Oh, nearly forgot, they come standard with a 75mm pulley. I requested a smaller 45mm pulley when I placed the order but these had to be sent from China so took a bit longer to get here. (I've had no problems dealing with this company).

Edited August 7, 2016 by dikman

[clintooo]

thanks for the recommendation.  I'll look into them.  Yeh I had thought I would just spring for the 750w, as it didn't seem to be a whole lot more in the scheme of things.