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Any suggestions on make and models of sewing machines that can handle heavy horse blankets? How about halters - is it worth it to repair them? We drop off our horse blankets at a place that does leather repair and blankets, but we have moved another 40 minutes away from there, plus we would like to do it ourselves. TIA
You can just sew them by hand. That's what we do.
Hi Pete,
You're going to need what is called an "industrial" sewing machine. There are quite a few different brands, and it will depend on various factors. I am not sure that the needle and thread for horse blankets and leather would be used on the same machine. Industrial machines are often specific to a task or medium.
My wife used industrial machines in her ladies clothing design business. New, they can run to several thousand dollars. But you often can find a real good deal on one used.
They have very powerful motors, and are usually very, very fast. You have to be really careful sewing with them.
One other thing about industrial machines is -- they are heavy. The machine is usually fitted into a worktable stand. You couldn't lift one by yourself.
This web site below is for a guy who does repair on industrial machines. I would drop him an email, or call him, and explain what you are looking to do. He can probably be of enormous help in telling you the specific manufacturers and models that will work for your needs.
Repair Specialist on Industrial Machines
Hope this helps.
Pete,
Here you go ...
I didn't realize it in my last message, but apparently EBay is a great place for industrial sewing machines and supplies. Just type "industrial sewing machine" in your search box, and you will get dozens of hits. For example, I found leather thread in rolls various colors, for $38.00. Sounds like there are deals there to me.
Plus this Pfaff 545 (good reputation for leather and upholstery work) is being auctioned right now, with bidding at $545 with less than a day to go (I have seem them go for up to $1,700 used):
"Pfaff 545 Large BobbinIndustrial Walking Foot Sewing Machine
PFAFF for Fantastic Fashions ! Work Wonderfully with a Walking Foot!
The Pfaff Model 545 Walking Foot Industrial Sewing Machine is perfect for work on leather, heavy canvas, synthetic canvas, heavy jeans, vinyl, upholstery etc.
This high quality sewing machine includes a table, bobbin winder, thread stand, lamp, belt and powerful motor with switch.
The 110V motor is rated at 1725 RPM and at 1/2HP.
Features of this powerful Pfaff Model 545 Industrial sewing machine are:
Easily lift and lower the presser foot with a knee control.
This machine has a presser foot lift easily of about 3/4 inch.
Simple Adjustment of Length of Stitch with easy access lever
Reverse
Walking Foot
Wide Bobbin and Hook
Used for upholstery, awning, canvas, luggage, automobile trim , coats, leather coats, gloves, overalls, heavy clothing, handbags etc.
This machine is a great addition for Designers, Manufacturers, Needletrade Shops, Leather Designers, Upholsterers etc..
Whether you create fabulous fashions, flags or futons you can finish it with a Pfaff!
BONUS: I will add some extra bobbins and needles with this machine.
We also pre-thread the machine for your convenience and to help you understand how the machine is threaded.
This machine has been tested and has been sewn off and is verified to be in full working condition as of this auction."
End of EBay listing.
Other good brands are: Artisan 797AB, Consew 146RB (Walking foot, reverse & zig zag), Consew 206RB, Consew 226RB, Juki 563, and Singer 211A (or maybe 411A). I have no experience with these, but was told they are good.
Now don't forget, you may need other supplies and accessories, scissors, etc.
If you don't do a LOT of sewing of this type, maybe you would be better off for occasional tears and small repairs, just to do it by hand. Otherwise you may be starting off on a pretty expensive hobby. [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img]
wow these machines are expensive.. unless we make this a business, I don't think it's worth it.. maybe we can get by with a regular machine.
Hi Pete,
Yes they are pretty expensive, and require some training to operate correctly.
If you are going to be working with leather, canvas and similar heavy fabrics, I am afraid all you will do is ruin a "standard" sewing machine. They simply are not up to the task. Wish the news was better.
My solution is to find someone who DOES have the right equipment, and is skilled at doing the repairs I need. In the long run, I save plenty of money, and a lot more is saved in terms of aggravation! [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]
A cobbler may have the required equipment.
Egon
You might get away with this for heavy fabric, but not leather:
Look for an old Singer sewing machine (mine is 1942 and $20 from a garage sale). Those have steel gears and hold up to heavy loads that the new ones can not handle. Plus, cost is so low you have not much to risk.
Go to a Singer store and get industrial needles - they are HD and have a groove in the back for the thread to 'hide' in, so the fabric does not rub on it too hard. To make them fit the home meachine, you have to grind off about 1/4" inch to make them shorter.
If you sew a lot, your motor will get hot. On mine, I made a larger diameter pulley and attached it to the main pulley, then moved the motor over to line up. Makes the machine run slower but helps the motor to run cooler. There was enough stretch in the rubber belt to work, but probably should get a longer belt if they make them.
I only used it on one project to do some upholstery for a car I was working on, but it worked fine.
Good Luck!
So there is a way.. yeah, we can do that(get an old machine and fix it up). Or find a cobbler.. never really looked for one before.. Thanks guys!
There are also sewing machines for sail making that may work.
Egon
ah.. there's more than one kind of sewing machine.. thanks
Typical of the can-do crowd of country folks here, I admire your spunky attitude in setting out to make do with a rigged up standard sewing machine.
Yes, you MAY be able to "make it work." For a time, and in a limited way. But, trying to do LEATHER on a standard machine is not likely to get results you deem acceptable.
Upholstery, canvas, tenting and similar materials sometimes will go through a modified standard sewing machine designed for cloth. You might even get it to work on "fabric leather."
But the items contemplated to fix here, such as bridles, belting, horse blankets and similar materials, simply will not work in a standard machine made for cloth. Even if it works at first, you will drive yourself crazy with breakdowns and repairs, which will plague any old machine overdriven in such a manner.
There are good reasons why all of the types of special-use machines are made. If all it required was to rig up a new pully belt, those factories who spends thousands per machine would be glad to learn of it. Or, the repair people skilled at working and fixing machines could get top rates for old equipment, by making just these kinds of modifications. But they don't.
If you are going to do anything beyond small and easy jobs, you will need an industrial machine that is designed for such applications.
You may also recall that the original poster even contemplated going into the repair and manufacture of these items as a sideline business (a good idea, I think actually). All of these criteria and requirements led me to the suggestion that I made, that he look for a used industrial machine, designed for this kind of work.
By all means go ahead and rig up something; see if you can get it to work for you. But it is wrong to assume that the average person with a few tools is going to obtain statisfactory results doing any significant volume of sewing with heavy fabrics and saddle leather, by making a few easy modfications to an old $20 used sewing machine.
My wife has done a lot of leather work on an old Sears machine. I just spent fifteen minutes trying to find it in the loft of the barn to get the model number. It is somewhere in the pile of boxes there.
I know it is from the sixties and was the top of the line at the time. It has all steel gears and handles strap leather just fine. The sharp heavy duty needles are important my wife tells me.
She has a new machine that has all the bells and whistles but if it is leather to be done then we will be digging that old machine out of the barn.
OK we got an old Singer industrial model. We got it at a sewing machine & vacuum cleaner shop. He said it was from the 1960s and was called a 'clothing machine'?? It has either a model number or serial number on it that says 188KI.
Any way, it worked fine in the shop, sounded very rugged and looked a little beat, but ran fine. It came with a table, with foot peddle and knee switch, a stand that mounts on the table for more thread reels. It had a reverse lever that you have to hold down.
We had to disassemble it to get it into the truck, which brings up my first question:
Is it normal to have the belt made of leather and be held together by a thick metal wire twisted together - he said you get new belts that are too long, you cut it to length and use an awl to punch holes in the leather near the ends and put the wire through it and crimp the wire. This looks and sounds kinda hoakie to me (apologies to Va Tech alumni). Is this normal?
Then we get it home and set it up, putting the belt back over the pully on the motor and the wheel on the right and as soon as I start it it slips off the outer wheel and slips down onto an inner wheel. I'm pretty sure it belongs on the outer wheel because the belt comes out of the holes in the table perfectly straight (lined up with the pully underneath). Maybe its not tight enough? Its a minor pain to put the belt back on because I have to pull the machine off the pegs in the table and lay it on its side in order to release enough tension on the belt to move it back on the wheel. Is there another way? Can I take off the plate on the end of the wheel?
Has anyone seen this kind of sewing machine?
Thanks..
He will warranty it for 6 months, and come out to re-align it when needed for $65. He did order a new belt and will get that and give it to us in a week.. I'm thinking I should just get him out to the house and put it on himself and make sure its all working before he leaves.
I'll try some attachments.
Model number/serial number.. maybe..
this is fuzzy but it kind of gives you an idea about the belt held together with a piece of wire.
Here's the motor.. or is that engine?
Last one
Can't answer for that particular machine, but many industrial drive belts are spliced with wire.
Hi,
My wife has had several machines almost identical to yours.
Yes, it is "normal" for the belt to be made of leather, and to be cut to size, and to be held together with a crimped piece of heavy wire. I agree, seems a little hokey, but that's the way these industrial machines work, especially old ones like yours appears to be.
She looked at your photos and believes you have the leather belt on the wrong pulley. She says in this photo, it needs to go on the larger cam, not the smaller one. You need to move it round the pulley wheel that is about one inch to the left of where it is now, on the smaller one.
That will tighten the belt considerably, and it should run okay, and not jump off the cam every few seconds. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]
She says you can't know for sure untill you get it rigged right, and sit down and see how it runs. She once had problems with one of her machines for almost a year, until it was discovered that one of the pieces was put in upside down by an incompetent repair person. You need to make sure th person really knows INDUSTRIAL machines. They are an item all their own.
It is a good idea to let the guy who sold it come out and look at it where it will be used. I am sure he can tweak it for you.
You will get a lot of service out of this machine, My wife has had them for almost 30 years, and sewed up enoug clothes to outfit half an army (well, us anyway!). [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]
Just out of curiosity, would you care to share how much you paid for it?
Good luck with it. Keep us posted. I am interested in how you make out.
Just for interest:
Many of the older farm impliments required belts. These were held together using a flexible metal connector that acted as a hinge. Both sides of the hinge were so designed that they had teeth and opened up. The belt end would be inserted, one end on each side, and then the jaws were clamped together. The teeth would be bent over with a special tool or using a hammer.
Most belts were made of a canvas type material and varied in width and thickness depending on the use. Usually the largest and longest were used to drive thrashing machines. These were purchased complete as an exact length was not required.
The odd time you would see a belt spliced [laced ] using a flat leather strip threaded through both belt ends and then tucked under.
Egon
Thanks Hakim, It is comforting to hear that this is not an unusual situation. We paid $250 for it, including matching stand.
I moved it to the pully wheel on the left, as you (your wife) suggested (I think that is what she said). Thats where it was slipping 'to' before and I thought that was wrong, plus it seemed too loose, and the running motor would not turn the belt. But I just put it on the left pully and tightened up the wire fastening the two ends of the belt, and this time it worked. With it tighter, the belt turned just fine. It takes about 1 or two seconds for the belt to turn, and another 1 or two seconds to get it up to full speed but it seems to working fine.
I will ask the salesman to install the new belt, to make sure everything is working..
My wife has about three horseblankets to repair and she will probably start that this week.. I will let you know how it goes! Thank you for your assistance.
Thanks Egon,
I like that fastening method you described - good tool for for the job. I'll keep my eyes open for one.. should be easier to use.
You should also be able to get belt dressing to help reduce slip without undue tension.
Egon
I just received one of these machines courtesy of Freecycle in Edinburgh, Scotland. I was able to download a free instruction manual in PDF form if this is any help. It doesn't tell you about the underneath bits, just about the machine itself. This is a huge list of free downloadable manuals, the 188KI is in here
There is also a UK seller of belts for this.
Sewing Machine parts
Sewing machine parts
Hope this helps. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]