Finally Received My Cobra Class 26

[uncmph00]

I placed a deposit on my Cobra Class 26 on April 3, 2021.  I waited nearly two months before receiving a call from the store from which I made the purchase. (By the way, I purchased it from a local store instead of directly from Leather Machine Co. because the store was able to offer it with no shipping as long as I picked it up from the store.) The store employee called on May 26th to let me know my machine had arrived.  I was in the middle of facilitating a three-day training, so I told her I would try to pick it up Saturday, May 29th. On Friday, May 28th, I called to check to see if they would be open on Monday, because I was thinking about going out of town for Memorial Day weekend.  They told me they would be closed Monday, May 31st. I told them I would be sure to pick up the machine Saturday in that case.  That Saturday morning I drove a little over an hour to pick up the machine.  I got there, paid the remaining balance and waiting for the staff to bring out my new Cobra Class 26.  Instead, the store owner came out and told me he couldn't find my machine.  Everyone started scrambling, looking over sales receipts and call logs to figure out what happened.  The store owner later came to me and said they accidentally sold my machine to someone else that morning.  Needless to say, I was PISSED.  However, I maintained my composure and simply asked the owner what he was going to do to make this right.  I reminded him that I had waited for nearly two months and that I had driven over an hour to pick up a machine that now wasn't available.  The store owner apologized and stated that he could give me $75 worth of thread.  I told him that I assumed the Cobra Class 26 would use the T70 thread that I had been using and thus, I didn't think I needed the thread.  After a little back and forth, the store owner agreed to give me either the drop down roller guide or the work platform. I opted to take the work platform and I purchased the drop down guide. (They are the same price.)  He also promised to make the 1+ hour trip to deliver the machine to my work studio once it came in.  Though the owner told me the machine would likely arrive in 1-2 more weeks, it took more than another 4 weeks before my Cobra Class 26 arrived.  I called each Saturday of those last two weeks and even told them that I would be calling them everyday from that point forward until I received my machine.  The day they called to inform me that my machine had arrived, I could tell they were trying to back out of their promise to deliver my machine.  First, they asked if I had a forklift (an eff'ing forklift????) because they said the entire pallet would be on the back of a pickup truck and the truck doesn't have a lift gate.  My response was that I do not have a forklift and that I wish they had mentioned this so-called need when I was in the store 4 weeks prior and they promised to make delivery as a result of selling my machine to someone else.  Additionally, I reminded them that I was told I could pick up the machine with my SUV.  I told them surely they weren't going to load the machine in my SUV with a forklift.  They said the owner wanted me to understand that he was simply making a delivery and not unloading the machine.  I told them I would have help to unload the machine.  That was the point where I was deliberating whether or not I would EVER shop at that store again.  However, when the owner arrived with my machine, he was very pleasant and he did indeed help unload the machine...which saved him a customer.

So, now I have a new Cobra Class 26, complete with the drop down roller guide and work platform.  It's assembled, oiled and ready for use.  Now, I have a few questions. Everything seems OVERLY oily.  1) Does the machine (head) need to remain so oily?  2) How do you feel about the top thread going through the oiling pad just before sewing?  I have only stitched chrome tan leather thus far, but I can imagine it being an oily mess on veg tan.  Do people ever route the thread behind the oiling pad instead of through it?  3) Is there a style letter or number for the bobbins?  Can extra bobbins be purchased "after-market" or only from the Leather Machine Co.?

Thanks.

[chrisash]

I understand your frustration, but hopefully things will be better now you have the machine, still you most likely still have a learning period to look forward to if you have not used a machine before. Suggest practice on small offcuts and leave the big projects for a few weeks.

Sorry dont have that machine so can't help you but should not be oil over the surface, just clear it off

Edited July 5, 2021 by chrisash

[kgg]

6 hours ago, uncmph00 said:

2) How do you feel about the top thread going through the oiling pad just before sewing?  I have only stitched chrome tan leather thus far, but I can imagine it being an oily mess on veg tan.  Do people ever route the thread behind the oiling pad instead of through it?

I am going to assume you mean the little off colored white felt pad in the thread guide located after the thread take-up arm and just before the needle. A lot of machines have what you call an "oil pad". My opinion is that this felt pad is to maintain correct top thread tension and correct top thread routing while the take-up arm cycles up / down. The top thread is sandwiched behind not through the felt pad and the machines body. It is probably a good place to very lightly lubricate the top thread with a little silicon spray for certain incidents of sewing tough, thick or sticky stuff to help the thread slide through the material easier and reduce heating as well this pad helps remove and small particles of loose thread that maybe on the thread from the manufacturing process. This felt pad is not meant to be a sewing machine oiling station for the top thread under normal sewing conditions. I have never needed to lube this felt pad for my type of sewing on my machines.

kgg

[Handstitched]

@uncmph00 I had a similar issue with the delivery of my 441 clone many moons ago. While it arrived  from Queensland to Western Australia in good time, our local courier  in my town at the time tried to skimp out on delivery by asking me to pick it up . Same as you,"  WTF ?? I don't have a forklift"  , and with a stern voice "  mate, I paid for delivery to my house, ...you will  deliver it !! "

 It took 3 of us to off load it from his ute. the 441's  + the big wooden crate,  are quite heavy...as we found out   Needless to say I was like a kid on Christmas Day   

My machine did have a lot of oil on it, I just gave a a gentle wipe down with a clean cloth , I cleaned it  like it was a new car. 

While I can't advise you on your machine, but  I do hope you  have many happy years of sewing  

HS

[Wizcrafts]

New machines are heavily oiled before being shipped. When your importer got it out of the crate it may have also been covered in grease. They may have left the oil there for the reseller to deal with. Get some cheap wash cloths (18 in a pack) from Walmart and wipe it down. Oil it after heavy use, or weekly, and keep those Wally World rags handy. Leave a rag under the feet when you are done sewing for the day. Also, you have to open the faceplate and place drops of oil into the tiny holes in all of the bell cranks and moving parts. I buy precision oilers to do this. The oil will leak out the bottom until it settles in and you learn how much to give it. Failure to oil a new machine, especially the moving parts in the business end of the head, can lead to a seizure.

[uncmph00]

Thanks everyone. I was so excited about my machine that it appears I did not explain a few things as well as I thought.  I definitely oiled the machine in all of the red-marked oil ports.  All moving parts are properly lubricated and ready for use.  It came with its own filled oil bottle with a tip to reach all the right spots.  I wiped the machine (head) down with some old rags just prior to assembly as well.  (This is starting to sound a little dirty.) And I definitely routed the thread just behind the felt pad within the same frame and not through it.  However, there is a space (second frame) even further behind where the pad is located just outside of that metal frame.  I was wondering if people ever route the thread there.  However, it sounds like that is not a common practice.  I even saw a few YouTube videos where it looked like the felt pad had been completely removed.  I am guessing from the replies that the machine was heavily oiled prior to shipping and that the felt pad got saturated in the process, but that under normal conditions the pad would not be so heavily saturated with oil.

As an update, the machine stitches beautifully now that I have properly adjusted the tension.  I have already started working on a project that was cut out and had been sitting around for months. I'm super excited to have this machine. Does anyone have an answer to the bobbin question? Thanks again for all the replies. 

Edited July 7, 2021 by uncmph00

[Wizcrafts]

On 7/5/2021 at 1:00 AM, uncmph00 said:

Is there a style letter or number for the bobbins?  Can extra bobbins be purchased "after-market" or only from the Leather Machine Co.?

The Cobra 26 uses top loading large “U” style bobbins, which are oft referred to as Juki bobbins, as used in the Juki LU-563 and LU-1508 series machines. There are double the capacity of the industry standard G size bobbins used in the Singer 111 type machines. You can buy U style bobbins from most industrial sewing machine dealers and online suppliers. Or, contact Leather Machine Company for their price. I would by a pack of ten and preload them with various sizes or colors of thread to match your projects.

[uncmph00]

On 7/7/2021 at 1:38 AM, Wizcrafts said:

The Cobra 26 uses top loading large “U” style bobbins, which are oft referred to as Juki bobbins, as used in the Juki LU-563 and LU-1508 series machines. There are double the capacity of the industry standard G size bobbins used in the Singer 111 type machines. You can buy U style bobbins from most industrial sewing machine dealers and online suppliers. Or, contact Leather Machine Company for their price. I would by a pack of ten and preload them with various sizes or colors of thread to match your projects.

Awesome.  Thank you. I received a pack of 20 large U-style bobbins from Amazon today.

[Wizcrafts]

21 hours ago, uncmph00 said:

Awesome.  Thank you. I received a pack of 20 large U-style bobbins from Amazon today.

Do me a favor and let us know if the U style bobbins are a good fit, or if they are too big.

[uncmph00]

On 7/12/2021 at 12:13 AM, Wizcrafts said:

Do me a favor and let us know if the U style bobbins are a good fit, or if they are too big.

I'm confused.  Soooooo, you told me these bobbins are the right ones for the Cobra Class 26. Now you're asking me to try them out and let you know if they are too big? LOL  I'll try them out this week and see what I find. SMH

[JJN]

45 minutes ago, uncmph00 said:

. Now you're asking me to try them out and let you know if they are too big?

I think what Wiz was asking is are the U size bobbins you are getting 'in spec''. Sometimes aftermarket parts are made with slight dimensional errors and cause problems. 

[uncmph00]

2 hours ago, JJN said:

I think what Wiz was asking is are the U size bobbins you are getting 'in spec''. Sometimes aftermarket parts are made with slight dimensional errors and cause problems. 

Thanks.  I was kind of just being silly and joking around.  The look exactly the same size, but I will try one of them this week.

[kgg]

8 hours ago, JJN said:

Sometimes aftermarket parts are made with slight dimensional errors and cause problems. 

I agree particularly bobbins as they sometimes are not balanced but usually the center shaft can be either to small or to large. I have seen some bobbins so bad that when you try to wind thread on them they actually wobble on the winder so you can imagine what they are doing when inserted.

kgg

 

[uncmph00]

On 7/14/2021 at 7:28 AM, kgg said:

 I have seen some bobbins so bad that when you try to wind thread on them they actually wobble on the winder so you can imagine what they are doing when inserted.

 

These are okay.  They're definitely not perfect.  The center shaft is a bit small and they wobble a little.  I had to do some adjusting to actually wind them on the winder.