I've been sewing since 1976, and have never come close to a "needle in the finger" The Walking Foot gives you a "Warning Shot" ,and the brakes on these machines will stop within 10 degrees of rotation. The best tip I can give anyone on the Hamb is. HOLD the fabric as if you are using a Hacksaw [ one hand behind the needle feed ] You can manually hold the correct tension on the fabric and assist it through the machine. This is also good when sewing a fabric cut on the "Bias" [diagonal] If you sewing a really stretchy fabric, tape it with "cellotape" to prevent stretching [ rip the perforated tape off afterwards ] Cellotape is your "friend"
I have said before,pfaff is my choice for the last 45 years.tried others,just didn't like them.ive probably sewn 100000 miles,1/8 inch at a time.when you look at an ad that says commecial,walking foot,sometimes they are only machines with a carrying case.that is not what you need,if it don't have a stand,you won't be happy.my machines are pfaff 145 h4,1245 ,145h3. I modified the lift on my h4 so it proides 1"of clearance,it will sew over whatever gets in its way.,and quickly[no sloed down drive.good luck with your search,expect to pay maybe 500,hope for better price.
"Pffaf 145 he" for $750 in Kijiji right now in Winkler but not for $2-300 or I can assure you it would be in my basement right now. I've been watching too. Like the idea of gearing a machine down but may not be easy on all machines. Had a Singer tailor machine that had the flywheel mounted on the motor. Wife would not use the machine when that 1/2 HP motor fired up and the only way to slow the sewing down was slip the clutch. Canuck
I have a Juki LU-562 and it works great. After I bought it for $300, I sent it out to be clean and adjusted - $100. IMO that was well worth the money. It is a walking foot machine and can handle just about anything I shove under the needle. Even though I put a smaller pulley on it, it is still tricky to make clean sharp curves. I am thinking of swapping to the newer motor that can be slowed down. To get serious, I also need to mount a table around it. The factory table is so small that as the pieces get bigger they get harder to handle.
I picked up 2 of these 211 G 155 singers cheap and used one for parts. Found a table with a clutch drive so we (my wife) should be good to go. Any comments if this model will handle heavy stuff? Is a piping foot available for it? Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
That singer should do fine, but I don't think it has reverse. There should be any thing available as far as feet. Check sewingpartsonline,the bay,or just search 211 parts. Good luck Jack
There should be a swing arm mounted to the motor which engages the machine. This should have a wingnut with a spring on it. Just tighten the wingnut down. This is the quickest way to slow down a speedy machine. Then proceed to a smaller pulley.
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