Sewing Machine Suggestions

[lifeofreilly57]

I'm looking to buy a commercial sewing machine to do some dodger and Bimini repair, I'm also looking to make some other items for the boat.
Any suggestions on what type of sewing machine for this type of work.
I'm land bound currently so I'll be using 100/220 vac in the US.
A sailright is too expensive but there are good prices on second hand industrial machines currently.

[Turtle Blues]

I found my sailrite for 1/2 price by watching craigslist but that may not work for you. people buy them for a large project and resell when done.

So for used industrial old Juki or Pfaff (please forgive misspelling) are plentiful and not expensive. See them on e-bay regularly.
The important things are:
1. a walking foot -must have for moving heavy material and thick bindings
2. the deeper throat (longer arm) the better for large material.
3. Zig-Zag stitch function
4. Different feet for binding, button holing etc.

[Island Time O25]

I've had good results with sturdy Kenmore from the 70s. Picked it up at a yard sale for $25 and had a friend recut a jib for me to fit as my external roller furler main. He did go through a bunch of needles though as the only ones I could get during his short stay in town were regular needles size 90 to 110 from a crafts store. He said 120 and up would've been much better.

[MicHughV]

Do I like I did....trundle down to Walmart and get a normal, simple sewing machine. Nothing fancy, as long as it can sew straight and zig-zag, and has a walking foot, which I think most have, that's all you will need.

Now, here's the trick, get the heavy duty needles, not the flimsy stuff to sew clothes, and also get some heavy duty thread. These come in colors, so pick what you want.

As outlined above, with my Walmart machine, I sewed the bimini, dodger, sail covers, awnings, winch covers and several other items on my boat, like curtains, wind scoops, etc.
Several of these items required sewing thru' several layers of cloth.
Never had a lick of problems accomplishing any of it.

I've had the sewing machine now for 30 some years, and it still works like new.

I can't recall how much it cost, but it was under $100, and I doubt you'll spend more than this today.

You can spend a lot of money on these things, but why ??? Unless you are a pro, and will do this day in and day out, a Walmart machine is plenty. My model is a Singer, and I just priced one out for you...$84 at Walmart.

I practiced on some cloth for maybe one evening, before I set to it.

I typically always used the zig-zag feature, as this gives...in my limited opinion....a stronger connection.

Have fun !!

[JPA Cate]

Another thing to say for zig-zag is that it is easier to rip out if a seam went crookedly.

Years ago, I made a windlass cover in an attempt to help keep sea water away from the seals. Didn't work very well, as going to weather, the windlass was under water.

Ann

[OutOfControl]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

Do I like I did....trundle down to Walmart and get a normal, simple sewing machine. Nothing fancy, as long as it can sew straight and zig-zag, and has a walking foot, which I think most have, that's all you will need.

I've had the sewing machine now for 30 some years, and it still works like new.

Thirty(30) years ago most sewing machines were made with metal as opposed to the mostly plastic cheap models available now at Wal-Mart. If you do go this route I would suggest getting the extended service plan if reasonable or expect to return it.

Get an older Pfaff or Singer that is heavy and heavy duty. Lots of used ones out there.

[barnakiel]

There is at least one semi pro Singer that can do such jobs. Let me dig out the specs. One momo.


Singer Heavy Duty


So this one can do a limited, but useful, amount of dodger and sail work. I had it go thru 4 layers of (new) acrylic 350grm2


If you push the machine, it will do also most of sail work - except for 4+ layers of old dacron. Of course, if you do a lot of work, the machine will not last.


PS I have a simplest Singer model which was also good to fix dodgers - when it was new. Now with time the machine went out of sync and is not all that good anymore. But it cost only 100 bucks - so a good deal vs. any smallest sailloft pro repair !


b.

[NorthCoastJoe]

I bought a New Home sewing machine at a flea market. It was made in 1878 and was a tank. It would sew leather anything tough with ease. The crazy part was modern needles and bobbins worked in it. The heavier the material the better your leg work out was. No motor on it just muscle power.

[wsmurdoch]

Originally Posted by lifeofreilly57

I'm looking to buy a commercial sewing machine to do some dodger and Bimini repair, I'm also looking to make some other items for the boat.
Any suggestions on what type of sewing machine for this type of work.
I'm land bound currently so I'll be using 100/220 vac in the US.
A sailright is too expensive but there are good prices on second hand industrial machines currently.

You said commercial machine....

Singer 20U (there are several sub-models) straight stitch and wide zig zag but no walking foot. Great availability.

Brother TZ1-B652 (also re-badged with some improvements as a Sailrite Sailmaker) Brother's version of Singer's 20U. A tailor's shop machine.

Consew 146RB (again several sub-models) straight stitch, wide zig zag and a walking foot. A bit rare but has all the wish list items.

I think your best bet would be a pre-1970, all metal, home sewing, straight and zig zag machine. Singer, Pfaff, Necchi, Brother, re-badged Japanese machine, or... Ugly is OK, but try it before you buy it. Make sure it will sew V-92 thread with a 18 needle through 8 or 9 layers of Marine Sunbrella canvas. The photo is 6 and 12 layers (3.1 and 6.5mm) of Sunbrella and a 7mm zig zag sewn with a Sailrite Sailmaker. It was my trial piece before repairing and reattaching the UV protection to a friend's roller furling headsail. I also have a Viking 6430 and a Singer 15-91, and I previously had a Singer 403 that my older daughter now has.

[Island Time O25]

Basically any old machine that feels too heavy will do. Modern "Walmart" models are just too flimsy and plasticky to last. To prolong its life and/or to tune it up go to your local tailor shop or dry cleaning place with a tailor on premises and ask for their sewing machine repairman contact. If you bring the machine to the repair shop it will cost between $100 and $200 for a cleaning and a tune up and a "how to do's and don'ts" lesson for that particular model. IMO money well spent.

[wsmurdoch]

This is a reproduction of an article by Jim Grant, the founder of Sailrite from long ago. It is a do-it-yourself aid to using a home sewing machine for canvas and sail construction.

[Leadfree]

This lives aboard. Made by Yamata, has a bigger throat area than the Reliable/Barracuda/SR clones, and a good price new. Been very pleased with the machine.

https://zamirsew.net/family-sew-port...ng-arm-fs-388/


If this link works, this is an excellent primer on coordinating thread size to sewing needle size, and it also explains the concept of sewing needle SYSTEM as opposed to sewing needle SIZE (they're not the same). Left side page is the one of interest.

https://issuu.com/bbint/docs/2015_mc...og_for_web/134

[iansan5653]

A home sewing machine (including a Singer 'Heavy Duty') does not have a walking foot to help pull heavy materials through. It will also not have heavy flywheel to help punch through heavy canvas. On the other hand, it will be cheaper and lighter.

If you want a sewing machine for real heavy duty boat work like sewing dacron, sunbrella canvas, webbing, window material, and rubber chafe sleeves, a walking foot machine will be vastly superior. A non-walking foot machine may be able to punch through a few layers of sunbrella but it's very hard on the machine and it will be very difficult to get a consistent stitch length, which is important for both strength and appearance. Also, it won't be able to punch through enough layers when you reach the corners and things overlap and you need to add a piece of webbing... it will be a massive headache.

On the other hand, a walking foot machine like a Sailrite is not great at sewing lightweight materials. In the same way that a home machine will give you trouble sewing heavy materials, a Sailrite will make you miserable if you try to hem pants, sew mesh curtains for your windows, or repair a spinnaker.

If you're looking for a cheap machine to use once or twice a year to fix a small tear in your bimini, go for an older metal used home machine for <$50 on Craigslist. If you are planning to build yourself a bimini from scratch or you want to make high-quality durable repairs to your sails, just save yourself the pain and get a walking foot machine.

Personally I started with a home machine and built a bimini with it. It was a pain in the ass but I just thought that was because I was bad at sewing. I eventually bought a Barracuda (around $600 new) and it was so much better that I ended up scrapping the bimini I made and starting from scratch. I really enjoy sewing now and I've made line bags, sun covers for various things, shopping bags out of used sails, even a full cover for a large dinghy.

I still have the old home machine for clothing and spinnaker repairs. It's really nice to have both. It's all about having the right tool for the job.

If I was really strapped for cash, the first feature I'd sacrifice from my machine is zigzag stitching. You don't need it for canvas work and it's not the end of the world to repair a sail with a straight stitch if you have to.

[MicHughV]

I'm sure that any sailor/boater looking to sew his own stuff...will...like me....be pretty clueless about the whole procedure.
Walmart has a pretty big selection of sewing machines and my opinion remains that you'll be able to find what you are looking for there.

You'll be able to pick them and judge for yourself if it " feels" robust enough to be called into duty, that and a machine that can sew straight and has a zig-zag feature plus the walking foot gadget is really all you need.

The trick as opined before is to ensure you get the proper heavy duty needles and thread.
I don't think my machine was made for sewing canvas, but it performed the task admirably, managing 4-5 layers of canvas without an issue.

I learned to roll the bulk of the canvas so as to get it thru' the " throat" of the machine.

My finished product looked perfectly acceptable. To the trained eye, bits and pieces may have stood out as not being perfectly straight, etc, but I little cared.

One tip I can give here, when sewing two pieces together, is to " iron" the edges of the fabric, and then pin it together, so it it slides under the walking foot with ease.
It will certainly help to have someone familiar with this machine to stand by and give you a few pointers and tips as you move along.

[MicHughV]

Oh, I forgot, prior to sewing my projects together, I made a pattern out of thick cardboard, which I laid over the frames and cut them to fit, which I then transposed to the fabric.
Patience is required here.