Technical The upholstery thread to end all threads

I did a bicycle seat about 40 years ago with spray adhesive. The naughtiest is still stuck.

 

Very nice

 

That’s awesome

 

I went to a guy that a friend of mine told me about & he
told me a price that was too High 85 hundred dollars.!
So I told when Hell Freezes Over I wood have it Done.
I have the Front Seat done 2 years ago but he put 2 much
Foam on the Bottom part of the Seat which I had to move the Seat back
on the Track.

Just my 3.5 Cents

Live Learn & Die a Fool

 

After several weeks of hunting down a replacement for this broken screw. I think I fixed the stitch length issue. Someone said on this thread, that it sounds like I'm going to get to know this machine real well. Yep

 

I brought this home yesterday. Got an insane deal on it from a nice couple who bought it new. They had a boat, and they bought it to do a few things to their boat and then never used it again. It is literally new, and I paid less for this than I paid to have carpet done on my last project car.

I've got a lot (most everything) to learn, but anxious to start. I'm going in head first!

 

Anybody using an Artisan model 601 RB?
A buddy just gave me one, in serviceable condition, but I'm used to JUKI walking foot machines - looking for usr-experienced tips & nuances on this Artisan (limited parts availability because it was only imported from 1994-97, so I don't want to crash anything).

Thanks,

 

@Whoamel great score on a great machine. I recommend heading over to sailrite for some how to videos . I recommend doing some covers like tool box grill welder and then move to stadium cushions .I use the stadium pads for working on the car and wife in the garden. You can pickup cheap materials from rochford supply in mn. You can get seconds of Carhartt materials for 5 bucks a yard. Have fun

 

Thanks! It was a really great price on a (pretty much) new machine. I did order the Lucky Needle Apprentice Course, and I need to get oil, thread, and nearly every necessary small item before I can get started. I've seen a couple of the Sailrite videos, along with Cechaflo, and one or two others. Luckily for me, there are a lot of videos on how to thread, adjust tension, etc, etc on my machine. I appreciate the suggestions. Thanks!

I should mention that I recently acquired a '40 Ford Coupe, and while I was looking for a car, I told myself that if whatever I bought needed upholstery, I was going to get a machine and get started on learning how to do it. My car has fairly nice upholstery, but it's a very strange combo of 60's meets the 90's. I much prefer the 60's.

 

I have the same machine and as long as you keep it oiled good it will treat you rite! It is branded Consew But is basicly the same standard Singer head used by tons of shops over the years. I have had mine for over 20 years and it has never let me down. Sounds like you got a great price on it.

 

Congratulations on the 1940 coupe @Whoamel The one accessory I got for my sewing machine is a welting foot . It has been on my pfaff machine for 20 years and never take it off.
@hotrodlane is your consew a updated Singer 111rb

 

@hotrodlane is your consew a updated Singer 111rb[/QUOTE]

John, Yes it is the consew version of the old 111 I bought my consew head at a salvage freight auction over 20 years ago, It had been damaged in shipping (just the wheel was cracked) I gave like $35.00 for it and replaced the wheel. I sold my old singer 111 for $400 in the star classifieds and went and got a new table and motor for my new head. (So I was money ahead and had a brand new machine) The singer still worked great but needed a good cleaning from me not keeping it covered good in the shop while not in use. For a short while I had a older "juki" machine that some seem to favor, But In my opinion it is hard to beat the 111 style machine regardless what name badge it has on it.

 

First day sewing, ever.. My machine was used for doing canvas work on the PO's boat, so it had a larger needle and heavier thread than I needed. When I changed it over, I had to adjust tension, and I found this English leather worked explained it and demonstrated it very well in his video. I put a link to it in case someone is starting at ground zero, like myself.





I used his example of using two different thread colors so you can clearly see when the tension is off. The white is the top stitch, and the black is from the bobbin.


You can see where my tension is off and the overlapping horizontal and vertical makes it hard to tell, but I did get it sorted in a fair amount of time.

You can clearly see mistakes, but this is really my first time using a sewing machine. When I got a bit flustered, I thought back to my first day mig welding, my first day tig welding, etc, etc. I think this went a bit smoother.

I did order the Lucky Needle Apprentice course, but I ordered the DVD which I am still waiting on.

I am going on the assumption that it will only get better from here..

 

You did great for your first day sewing and understanding the mistakes and fixing them will make you better yet. The needle should fit thread size here’s a chart from Toledo sewing machine and a great place to get thread and needles. I also get parts for my machines as well with a great assortment of patcher parts.

 

I finally got my freebie Artisan model 601 RB up and running. Still trying to find a manual or anybody that's used one of these for advice.

 

Did my first upholstery job around 1965. It was my first 57 Chev. I watched an upholsterer sewing a diamond tuck seat. All the stitching was done on the back side of the material so there was no stitching on the face. Bought some black vinyl and premade buttons. Mom was leary about my using her sewing machine but let me do it. Years later while working nights I was able to go to Voc school in the daytime. Did cars for people nights and weekends. Worked in the parachute shop at McChord AFB for years. Sewed up a lot of C141 interiors including the cargo bays. At 74 I still do small jobs. No more complete jobs. I remember using machines that didn't have reverse to lock your stich, sewing rolls and pleats then stuffing them with cotton between two yardsticks. using horse hair for stuffing on furniture. I'm glad to see so many of you are interested in learning how to do upholstery. A good web site is The Hog Ring, lots of info in their library. Hope I didn't bore you. Wayne















































i

 

You will get better...It takes time to get a feel of it.
Just remember the tension should be set to the fabric weight [both top and bobbin] , If the fabric is too lightweight or tension too strong the sewing will pull the fabric like a draw-string.

Once you have got a "feel" for stitch length and machine speed, I recommend changing sewing style by using a leading hand. [this is an awesome "cheat" technique]
Put your Left hand around behind the machine needle and hold the fabric like a "hacksaw" [one hand behind,one hand in front]
This method allows you to control the fabric stretch, and fabric speed so you end up with consistent stitch length.
This ^^^^ is very helpful when sew something that is cut on a diagonal [onto something cut straight]

Now another "cheat" method when sewing stretchy fabrics [open weave, or sheepskin/soft leather]
Use 2" wide SELLOTAPE.
Tape the edges to be sewn, so it doesn't stretch. Then sew straight through the tape which ends up getting perforated .
Then peel the tape off later [it rips off easily through the perforated stitch holes]

 

Great story, thanks for sharing - keep on sewing, man!

 

just saw this and following . picked up a consew and am getting ready to start practicing.

 

Can anyone recommend something for marking removable lines on vinyl and/or carpet? I've tried a few things and haven't had the best success. Thanks!

 

space pens. amazon has 100 refills almost as cheap as a couple in the cartridge. wipe off vinyl very easy. calk triangles for carpet

 

Sailrite makes some great marking implements... Here's a guide on how to choose which one to go with
https://www.sailrite.com/How-to-Pick-the-Best-Marking-Pencil

 

Thanks! I ordered a tailors chalk, and I ended up buying some scribe-all pencils that work fine, and were available locally.

 

Practicing on some chairs. Here's a panel I sewed up with an old singer

 

Bought some hard board today and I have a couple of questions. Does it matter which side is out (shiny/textured) and can this be stapled?

 

Yes, I’ve used it and I used short stainless steel staples with good results!

 

I bought a Tacsew walking foot machine. It’s a chinese exact ripoff of a chinese made Consew machine. I had never operated a sewing machine ever. Got some chipboard and made patterns for my 36 pickup doors. Cut some hardboard to match size of pattern, then laid out material pattern on my chipboard. Hit the fabrics store for some vinyl, Bought all my thread, needles, sew foam, through Sailrite. Then are known for boats, but they have everything you need, plus show some automotive videos on YouTube. Started on a couple pieces of scrap, got tension set and went at it! My wife was impressed when I showed her the finished door panel.

 

Fabric stores have chalk markers that have refills in two collars blue and white. If you need something different the powered chalk carpenters use in chalk lines will work. For carpet upholstery outlets have tailers chalk . They are usually triangle shaped and are much harder so they don't break so easily. I hope this is some help. Wayne

 

That looks good! The panel fits really nice, and the sewing looks clean, too. I'm likin' the Gator Hyde...

 

Not sure if this has been covered before or not but would some heavy duty sheet metal screws into the door be enough to hold the arm rest in place?