I have several machines in my studio: three sewing machines, a skiver, a splitter, and many other smaller machines. If you’re like me, you accumulate a mixture of new and used tools and equipment. You know every moment of use of the ones you get new, but the used machines could have gone through hell and back, and you’d never know the difference.
For example, I know every sound my Nippy Skiver should and should not make. There is a distinct vibration when it’s not happy about the thickness of the leather, and I know to stop and do two passes instead of one thick cut. Similarly, there is a quiet hum when the blade is sharp and the roller pressure is just right. You can skive yards and yards of leather when you’ve dialed in the proper setup.
In contrast, my Juki 1541-S flatbed is more of a mystery. I bought it from a guy who used to make leather jackets. I did careful initial maintenance, looking for fixes and adjustments that I knew to do. I checked how it sewed through various leathers, thicknesses, and thread types. What the Juki felt like sewing after the initial checkup is what I assumed was how it should be.
Recently, a studio member mentioned that our cylinder arm sewing machine, a Pfaff 335, was making a strange noise. I bought this new machine, so I knew it pretty well. As a long-time studio member, Claire had more time on that machine than I did, so she thankfully noticed it was off immediately. I listened, and it sounded like a bearing rubbing too hard, so we oiled it, but it still made a troubling noise. Typically, I would bring in the machine to get serviced, but that was a 45-minute drive each way to get the machine there and then the same trip to pick it up, half a day’s worth of time.
I was loath to make two of those trips again, so I tried to find someone closer to take a look. I contacted a few places and asked a few fellow local leatherworkers. I kept coming back to the same place. Expertise, especially with repairs, carries a far-reaching reputation. One person even said, “We’ve tried others and have always regretted it.” Apparel City in San Bruno, and their resident repair expert, Billy, is the go-to place for industrial machine repair in the Bay Area.
As I mentioned earlier, some of my machines had never been tuned since I bought them, so I decided to spring for an on-site visit to have someone fix the problem machine and tune up all our equipment to make it worth the expense.
Having them come out was a decent cost, but it was worth every penny.
“Did you know these levers for the pedal are set up wrong?”
“We did have to move it, so is it misaligned?”
“No, it’s completely off; it is on the wrong side. Also, these two arms must be parallel, otherwise it throws off the pedal pressure.”
I had wondered why the pedal required such a sensitive touch to control it.
He sawed off a sizable chunk of the rod connecting to the motor. That rod came with the machine, and I assumed it was sized to the correct length. I was wrong. The now shorter stub easily connected in front of the cross rail that it had previously blocked. It’s something I would have never guessed. I had always assumed my lack of finer foot pressure control caused the machine to change speed unnecessarily.
After this simple adjustment, I could precisely control the speed with far less effort. It was a change to the vendor-issued parts that I would have never thought to do, but Billy immediately knew to do since he’s worked on many Pfaff 335s. I’ve only ever used the one; mine!
One by one, Billy fixed all of the issues, minor and major, that our machines had. For example, recently, the Juki had some thread tension issues. The fix was that the feed dogs (the culprit again) plate screws had loosened. Again, this was a detail I had never thought to look at, but he quickly found it in his routine checks. Often, he would shake his head, saying, “I don’t know why people set up machines like this.” It was a light chastisement; he meant that vendors should be more comprehensive in their machine setup before giving it to a customer. I set up some of these machines because they were shipped to be assembled later, so I couldn’t help but feel a bit like a teenager who forgot to put the car in park before turning it off. Still, things like custom cutting the pedal rods are not obvious unless you’ve been wrenching on sewing machines for a long time.
Aside: Feed Dog Movement
Another thing I learned was about the feed-dog actions. The feed dogs on a Pfaff 335 only go back and forth. This is fine if the machine can handle the leather. If the leather is too heavy, this causes problems. When the machine can’t handle the thickness, it stalls because the feed can’t pull the leather through, so it pulls it back and forth, causing it to stitch in the same place over and over again. I had experienced this in places like the hump of a wallet edge where all of the pockets overlap. The Pfaff can’t pull the piece, so it stitches in the same place over and over again, and, because the feed dogs don’t lower, they scrape the bottom of the piece.
This doesn’t happen on my other machine, a Juki 1541-S, because the feed dogs lower after going forward. I always wondered why that thing could pull through massively thick pieces, and now I know why.
You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know
I was used to being on the other side of this interaction. Some students come to my leather classes thinking they’re 90% perfect in their techniques, only to discover it’s more like 20 or 30%. The machine tech breezed through tuning up all of my machines. I had various types (sewing machines, splitter, skiver) and makes (Juki, Pfaff, Fortuna, Nippy). It was all easy for him. There was one moment where I thought he got stuck on fixing the splitter and I mentioned, “I have the manual for this old machine if you need to see which knob is which.” He politely ignored me and continued fixing it easily.
Expertise pays for itself. I may have been able to figure out some of the issues, but probably not. The rods on the Pfaff had been set like that for years. It’s like getting new shoes. You don’t realize how much your feet hurt until you experience what it’s like to walk in new, more supportive shoes.
You’re never too old or too skilled to learn something new. I always try to stay open-minded to improving my techniques and abilities. I notice the same with some of our most experienced customers. If I mention a novel, new, or better technique, they want to know all about it. Every detail of how it works and how it improves their work. Paradoxically, I’ve had some students who think they are experts and are loath to change their ways. Their work could use a lot of refinement, but they seem intent on only doing things their way.
There is a place for that learning mode, especially early on, where too many variations or nuances can overwhelm a beginner. Once you establish a solid foundation, it’s critical to continually expand your range and techniques to discover better and better methods. I always steer people to our fundamental courses, even if they are already experienced.
Find or Make A System
Billy took about two minutes to assess each machine and diagnose the issues. The speed was undoubtedly due to years of maintenance and a reliable system. I’m sure there is also a triage list that is far more comprehensive than my limited steps. This repair visit made me want to level up my maintenance skills to better assess potential issues faster. When I’m using a sewing machine and it feels off, here is what I assess:
- Is it oiled?
- Does the machine hand-crank smoothly?
- Is it threaded correctly, especially at the tension wheel, the check spring, and the needle?
- Is the needle sharp, and is it pushed in all the way?
- Are the feet installed correctly?
- Check the top thread tension.
- Check the bottom thread tension.
- Was the presser foot down when sewing?
This recent repair session helped to add a few new things to check, like whether the feed dogs are secured and how the rods for the pedals are attached. Do you have a triage list for sewing machine maintenance? Please share if you do.
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