Long shot...Siruba machines?

[trash treasure]

I just looked at your photos again, and it looks like you HAVE a manual - Doesn't it have the spreader adjustment in there?  Why did I just type all that?

Edited May 2, 2019 by trash treasure

[Sugarkryptonite]

9 hours ago, dikman said:

There's a lot of lint there!! You could probably start with a pair of tweezers and pull out as much as you can, then a fine brush and a vacuum to finish off.

Thanks. I haven't looked that deep into it but I hope I can take some covers off on the bottom of the machine under that point to help clean it out.

3 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

I would spray something like WD40 on it & blow it off with air if you have an air  compressor.That arm is for the upper thread to make it cover the stitch on top,it really isn't that hard to install,put it on & you'll see it needs to go in front of the needles,all the way to the left so the thread from it goes behind all the needles.

Any clear sewing machine oil will work.

Thank you, when you say "all the way to the left", you mean with the needles up or down?

2 hours ago, trash treasure said:

Bob is right - That arm is called the spreader, and it mounts where your circle is, and travels back and forth to "spread" the upper thread across the stitch. You do know, that on these machines, the handwheel rotation is CLOCKWISE - REVERSE, like a serger, right ?

Now keep in mind, I have a Kansai, but it's a similar machine, making a similar stitch - On the Kansai, the spreader is adjusted so the right, inner  point clears the LEFT needle by about 0.5 - 0.8mm, as it travels past from right to left on the needle downstroke.

At the end of it's leftward travel, the same inner point should wind up 4.5 - 5.5mm to the left of the left needle, just before it reverses travel.

I keep editing this, as I remember stuff - You have to make sure the spreader clears the thread guides - For the guide with the curved hole - At it's RIGHT travel end, the point should be approx. centered under the curved slot - So adjust the guide accordingly. For the upper, small moving guide, at the end of it's downstroke, make sure it clears the lower guide by about 1mm and is centered, or a little bit to the left of the center of the slot on the lower one. WHEW !

I've done these adjustments, and it's really not hard to do, if you have good eyes (or magnifying glasses, like I do), and some metric Allen wrenches (I see yours are just regular screws), so if you can't find more specifics for your Siruba, this will probably get you in the ballpark, hopefully.    But I'd really urge you to try and get an adjuster's manual for that series, if at all possible - It'll save you a lot of grief :~)

The actual TIMING of the spreader is done internally, and is supposed to be adjusted depending on the thread used.  But I don't have a Siruba, and I'll not pretend to tell you about adjusting that!

These machines, being self-oilers, are unfortunately going to be oily, especially as they are used and a little worn - There MAY be an adjustment for the oil feed, but I don't know on your machine - You'll just have to keep ahead of the lint, by blowing it out with compressed air - It could get messy!    Just use "Lilly White" type sewing machine oil - Buy a gallon!

Good Luck!

Thanks, I'll try to test it out like that. A bit confused when you say "the right, inner point clears the LEFT needle by about 0.5 - 0.8mm, as it travels past from right to left on the needle downstroke", but then "At the end of it's leftward travel, the same inner point should wind up 4.5 - 5.5mm to the left of the left needle, just before it reverses travel." When you say "clears the left needle by about 0.5-0.8mm", you mean front to back clearance? That would be adjusted by messing with the screws on the spreader bar itself to change the angle, right?

And when you say "right inner part", you're talking about this, correct?

2 hours ago, trash treasure said:

I just looked at your photos again, and it looks like you HAVE a manual - Doesn't it have the spreader adjustment in there?  Why did I just type all that?

You're right I do, but as I said in my OP, I did not find any information about it in the manual. There is info about spreader thread take up, but nothing about the spreader itself. The manual for this machine is extremely lackluster compared to some other industrials I've seen.

2 hours ago, fredk said:

I'd not use WD40 on this as WD40 leaves a residue which lint just loves to stick to. Nor would I use any of the motor oils. You can get superthin sewing machine oil, but I use good ole 3-in-1 oil

To clean this I would wash and rinse it down using paraffin oil. That will wash off the old oil and take away the stuck on lint. use a 1" stiff paint brush to help. Then re-oil using s/m oil or 3-in-1

Thx!

Edited May 2, 2019 by Sugarkryptonite

[trash treasure]

OK - Yes that's the inner point - The little point closest to the needles, that actually catches the thread - That's the one you measure from.

Yes, you have to use both screws to adjust it - On the Kansai, the bottom of the spreader needs to be 9-11mm above the needle plate, to start with.   Loosen both screws to get it in the orientation I described above - The spreader should NOT contact anything but thread, anywhere in it's travel.

I didn't see that you said your manual had no info on it - I told you I need magnifying glasses ;~)  

Now, your real assignment is to go find yourself a proper service manual for that thing, really - If you have to pay for it, it'll still be well worth it.

[Sugarkryptonite]

10 hours ago, trash treasure said:

OK - Yes that's the inner point - The little point closest to the needles, that actually catches the thread - That's the one you measure from.

Yes, you have to use both screws to adjust it - On the Kansai, the bottom of the spreader needs to be 9-11mm above the needle plate, to start with.   Loosen both screws to get it in the orientation I described above - The spreader should NOT contact anything but thread, anywhere in it's travel.

I didn't see that you said your manual had no info on it - I told you I need magnifying glasses ;~)  

Now, your real assignment is to go find yourself a proper service manual for that thing, really - If you have to pay for it, it'll still be well worth it.

Thanks again, I'll try to get it figured out tomorrow. Wish  i could find a service manual for the machine...seems to be very little information about this model online. 

I cleaned the whole machine today, came out pretty decent. I put 1L of oil into the reservoir, which is all I had on hand, and the float indicator didn't even move...I'm guessing it will take more than that to bring it up...thankfully the oil comes out as a steady flow out of the top tube now. Not sure why the machine was empty...or near empty...I doubt it was emptied for transport as it was still in the same house where it had been used for the past years.

A few more things I noticed:

1) In the manual for the newer looking machine (C007 instead of F007), it states to fill the oil holes in the bottom compartment of the machine 

After looking more closely at my machine, there are no holes like in the manual for the newer machine. No info about this in the manual that came with the machine (again, very lacking in detail). 

I put a few drops of oil where the bushings are on the shafts, and it seemed to seep in, but there are no actual oiling holes I can tell. Do these self oiling machines also somehow oil the bottom part of the machine, or is it just the top head of the machines where the main shaft is? Or do I need to somehow oil the bottom manually? I filled the little oil reservoir shown in the picture above, which feeds towards the needle area...not sure if the felts are even positioned correctly.

2) I noticed as the bottom spreader goes across the machine, both of the needles rub against it and are moved out of the way slightly. Is this by design, or is there something wrong somewhere? I've included a short video clip of it, hopefully it is visible. 

 

Thanks everyone

[Sugarkryptonite]

Found out where the oil was coming from...went to go check the machine again tonight just to make sure, and sure enough, oil is all over the place. Seems to be leaking out of the pan, not sure from where, maybe one or two of the bolts that go through from the bottom, the seal around the edge, or who knows where. Guess I have to take it all apart, this will be fun 

[trash treasure]

Hi again - I hope the moderators tolerate all this, as it really has nothing to do with leather sewing.......

That part in your little video is called a "looper", and I think it's set too close to the needles - It should just barely touch the right hand needle, and maybe clear the left one by 0.2mm or so - There are really 3 adjustments for this part - FRONT & BACK, HEIGHT (On the Kansai, the point should be about 1.5mm above the LEFT needle eye, when it's at the needle center), and the looper ORBIT,  BUT I'm not going there on that one, as I really don't have a clue about the orbit adjustment on a Siruba, and describing the Kansai adjustments might lead you far astray - I may have done so already .

And, good luck fixing your leak :~)

[Sugarkryptonite]

2 hours ago, trash treasure said:

Hi again - I hope the moderators tolerate all this, as it really has nothing to do with leather sewing.......

That part in your little video is called a "looper", and I think it's set too close to the needles - It should just barely touch the right hand needle, and maybe clear the left one by 0.2mm or so - There are really 3 adjustments for this part - FRONT & BACK, HEIGHT (On the Kansai, the point should be about 1.5mm above the LEFT needle eye, when it's at the needle center), and the looper ORBIT,  BUT I'm not going there on that one, as I really don't have a clue about the orbit adjustment on a Siruba, and describing the Kansai adjustments might lead you far astray - I may have done so already .

And, good luck fixing your leak :~)

Thank you. I really wish I could find a proper manual for this thing...

Also really hope the mods leave it up, otherwise I don't know where else to go, don't know of any other sites with the expertise people have here.

[Wizcrafts]

3 hours ago, trash treasure said:

Hi again - I hope the moderators tolerate all this, as it really has nothing to do with leather sewing.......

No problem. I don't know where else one would go to discuss those machines.

[trash treasure]

Thank You, Wiz !

[Sugarkryptonite]

9 hours ago, Wizcrafts said:

No problem. I don't know where else one would go to discuss those machines.

Thanks Wiz. Much appreciated. 

Knock on wood, but I think I got the oil leak figured out (so far so good). I took it apart this morning and didn't see anything wrong with any seals, etc. Then it occurred to me that maybe the float was broken, and I believe it is...I tried putting it in a bowl of water to see if it would move up and it doesn't on its own very well...maybe it has a leak in it or something. I ended up cleaning everything & putting it back together, after I measured the correct amount of oil that would be needed in the pan to be lower than the gasket, while still being about 0.5" above the oil pump, so there is plenty of lubrication (if anyone needs this information in the future for this machine, that amount was around 850ml). I also managed to get a replacement oil filter today so put that in as well. 

I believe what happened was yesterday I filled the machine up with oil, and because the float wasn't working, I ended up putting a whole pint in, while there was still some in the oil pan to begin with, but I didn't know how much. Not knowing myself how much oil the machine actually takes (again, not written in the manual), I figured I would just keep filling it until the float started to move, which it never did...but then oil started leaking everywhere. When I took the pan off today to inspect it, I noticed there is a notch in the oil pan underneath the gasket (factory made for sure). I don't quite understand the function...maybe a vent/overflow...or if oil is leaking from the machine on the outside, it will end up back in the pan? I'm not quite sure, anyway I took some pictures of everything to show everyone here who is interested what these machines look like inside. But this is definitely why they say to drain the machine before transport, because the oil will absolutely come out of the small notch and go past the gasket, leaking all over the place.

1) On another note, trash treasure I believe I have gotten the upper spreader in place correctly, but the lower is still confusing me a bit. It is touching the left & right needles (right more than the left), but if I try adjusting it so that it touches them less, then when it goes around to the other side of the needles on its other side of stroke, it will end up touching them on that side! Sort of a catch 22. I'm not sure where to proceed from here.

In your above post you said "on the Kansai, the point should be about 1.5mm above the LEFT needle eye, when it's at the needle center". Could you explain what "point" you are talking about exactly?  Also what did you mean by "when its at the needle center"?

2) Also was hoping you could just verify my threading of the lower looper thread in the rotating thread take up mechanism (only had time to thread one of them, geez I wouldn't want to rethread 5 threads on this thing very often). I just threaded it right through the the hole in the right side, through the slot, and back through the hole on the other side. I noticed there are also holes in the rotating assembly, but I wasn't sure if the thread was suppose to go through there? I was recording with one hand and turning the wheel with the other, so I couldn't put tension on the thread with my 3rd hand 

3) What's the difference between the 3 holes at the top of the tension assembly, and where am I suppose to put the threads?

4) On the upper spreader, does the thread just sit in that sharp notch that we had talked about before? What holds it in there?

Oh and a video of the gear oil pump, just for fun

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Sugarkryptonite