Consew 226R-2 manuals and questions??

[LanceR]

Greetings to all

I'm pretty new to sewing in general.  My initial interest was for sewing canoe spray covers, portage packs, climbing rope bags etc.  Some of those, especially the packs, get into several layers of canvas or duck, particularly where seams cross and the packs include leather straps, backing pads etc.

I have a 1950s Necchi BU Mira in an industrial style table for middle and light weight stuff but want to move up to heavier fabrics and leather so I brought home a Consew 226R-2 yesterday from an auction (that came with a Pegasus EXT 3216-03 serger in the same lot).  I'm into both machines for less than $200 right now.  Both have three phase clutch motors and I'm darned if I want to run my 5-HP rotary phase converter for sewing so I'm in the market for a motor for the Consew.

And although I found the parts manual online for the 226R-2 I can't seem to find a model specific operator's manual or a shop manual for it.  Any help in pointing me in the correct direction would be greatly appreciated.  It's made in Japan and the serial number is WBA0212590.

The Consew came with an attached guide and any insight into just whether it's worth keeping would be appreciated.  It sure doesn't look to be something that can be quickly removed (unless it's some sort of swing away guide?).

So, although I don't yet have plans to sew any heavy leather, what kind of leather should I expect to be able to sew and since that answer may be tied to the motor choice I guess that's the place to start.  I'm leaning towards a variable speed servo motor but remain open to suggestions.  I'd like to keep the cost to $200-250 or so but if that's not reasonable I can go higher.  High speed is definitely not needed.  Lower speed, especially if more torque consistent with not breaking things is available is a plus.

And suggestions as to what accessories I should be looking for would be very much appreciated.

In the next few days I'll be removing the clutch motor, cleaning and lubricating everything and checking the timing, feed dog height etc so I may be back with more questions.

Thanks and best regards to all,

 

Lance

 

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by LanceR
added info

[Pintodeluxe]

You'll be able to sew 3/8" thick material, whether that be fabric or leather.  It's a good machine.  Get a Family style servo with single knob adjustment.  They're sold under many names, but the servos with a single knob are easy to set up.  

The electronic servos with two or more buttons to set are a real pain.  The only advantage they have is they can run a needle position sensor, but I don't use one.

If the basic Family style servo with small 45mm pulley is slow enough for you, you'll be all set.  If you need slower, add a box style speed reducer.  That's the setup I have on my Juki LU-563.  My first machine was a 226 with servo and small motor pulley, and that worked great too.

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by Pintodeluxe

[bj139]

I like the Enduro servo motor with a 45mm pulley.  I have two, they are so inexpensive.  I also have a Consew 3000 servo which sews the same but was 3X the cost.

 

 

[DonInReno]

Great machine and a great price!

If you look closely at information on both Juki lu-562 and Singer 111w155 (as well as others) you will notice these are all the same design as the 226 and adjustment information and parts/accessories are essentially identical.  

There's a US Army riggers manual that has more detailed information, but there are tons of videos that are probably more helpful.

TM 10-3530-202-24 Operational And Field Maintenance Manual: Sewing Machines For The Repair Of Parachutes And Allied Equipment, Singer Models... : United States. Department of the Army : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

Edited May 29, 2021 by DonInReno

[chrisash]

I disagree. I know the Family type brushed servo is popular in the US i guess mainly because it was the first servo, but the brushless more modern servos give far better torque at low speed and easy to set up, have more control setting available if needed and needle positioning for only a small price extra

There is a good video on YouTube comparing the brushed motor to the brushless showing the difference in torque

But each to there own i guess

[LanceR]

Thanks for the info, Folks.

Don, having a good relationship with the riggers was always a good thing for being able to better outfit your vehicle with custom stowage, padding, carry bags and covers.  One or two dozen doughnuts could go a long way in the rigger's shed.

Best regards,

 

Lance

[LanceR]

Whatever the guide is for, it swings away.  The underside and inside of the machine is pretty clean but dry as it seems to have been sitting for a while before the auction.  At least it had a fabric dust cover over it.....  I took the three phase motor off, removed the bobbin case and cleaned and lubed under it and put the case back in and started cleaning and lubing the rest of it.

Upon further research, the Consew 226R-2 seems to be more like the Singer 111W156 than the 111W155 as the 226R and the 111W156 have reverse.  The Consew seems to have a 5-24 stitch per inch range.  The only manuals I've been able to find are Singer PDFs with blurry pictures that are pretty tough to see any detail in.  If anyone has a link to something better,  I'd really appreciate it and I'd love to have a shop manual for it.

Can anyone tell me how the stitch length adjusts?  I get that the left of the two spring loaded buttons on the base locks the shaft collar but what do I turn then, just the handwheel of the numbered ring on the onboard side of the handwheel and what is the index mark or point?

And what presser feet should I be getting to start out with?

Thanks and best regards,

 

Lance

[DonInReno]

1 hour ago, LanceR said:

Can anyone tell me how the stitch length adjusts?  I get that the left of the two spring loaded buttons on the base locks the shaft collar but what do I turn then, just the handwheel of the numbered ring on the onboard side of the handwheel and what is the index mark or point?

And what presser feet should I be getting to start out with?

Once the stitch length button is depressed you turn the handwheel to adjust the stitch length.   It’s not uncommon to have the parts somewhat stuck from old dried oil if the machine hasn’t been used in a long while.  Heating the parts under the bed with a hair drier until hot to the touch will usually free up the stitch length mechanism.   The stitch length might show through the sight window cast into the upper part of the head, but the length shown is often not the actual length.   There’s an adjustment to correct this, but most people seem to just set it and forget it.

As far as feet go, there are smooth bottom feet for leather and grooved feet for fabric.    The foot that will often be left on the machine for general use just has the left portion of the foot.   A right foot is often used for zippers.    The normal foot with both left and right fingers is good for general flat canvas seams with lots of room for the full size foot.

Depending on what you like to sew, it can be handy to have an extra compact inner foot, often with a cutout so the front of the needle can be seen directly.   If you enjoy tinkering, some people grind down feet to match their personal preferences, but most sizes and shapes are readily available with a little searching.   Quality of generic imported feet vary greatly so don’t be surprised if some feet aren’t perfectly shaped or point a little one way or the other. I often buy two sets from different suppliers knowing one will probably be noticeably better than the other.

For most adjustments one of the well done videos is much more useful than any of the manuals.  Uwe makes some of the best and most of the important adjustments can be found in one of his videos.    For instance his hook timing video for the Consew 225 also applies to your machine, the 111w155, 111w156, Juki 562, 563, and a dozen others that use this type of hook.   

 

[DonInReno]

As to the type of servo, I think you will find more votes for the Family sew motor than any other in older posts here.   It isn’t perfect, but it’s inexpensive and works. The Consew 3000 also works and is more compact, but don’t confuse the brand name with quality.   The new Consew motors are very cheaply made.

[LanceR]

Thanks, Don

Those are some very well done videos.  Both presser feet are missing so I'll whistle up those and maybe a few others while I'm at it.  Checking the stitch length without them is tough.

The stitch length adjustment had me baffled as the machine has an index wheel that sits inboard of the handwheel and it was out of index as the picture below shows when it was, in fact at the longest stitch length adjustment.  I engaged the adjustment pin and confirmed the setting of the stitch at its longest length and indexed the wheel and tighten the set screw.  Using a piece of card stock and trying to hold it down as the needle retracted I came up a little short of an inch with five stitch intervals and the stitch length set at a nominal 5 stitches per inch. It  will have to wait for presser feet to do any final adjustments of the forward and reverse stitches.

 

 

The timing seems perfect and it's been cleaned and lubed so there's not much left to do until I get a new motor and presser feet.

 

Again, thanks and best regards,

 

Lance