Amazing Low Cost Leather Sewing Machine? (AKA The Shoe Patcher) 

Thank you. The stitching looks great. Very helpful for a new person and mechanical puzzles. Thx

Mine too, no modifications needed.

A tip for the sticky needle situation... a product such as Sewer's Aid ... by Prym-Dritz it's a silicone thread conditioner. It can be touched to the needle.. or soaked into a bit of fabric and a pass under the needle/foot will typically lube the needle for that seam. If sticking happens mid seam... a stroke from a cotton swabs with the liquid will do the job. There are other products that do the same. Be aware it can cause spotting.

same, tension works fine for me

nyetloki well I think it would still fall under knockoff. There’s no rule saying knockoffs have to be labeled as the original.

@@RATsnak3 no the rule is that a knockoff has to violate a trademark or copyright or patent. There is neither of the 3 here.

nyetloki the definition of knockoff is “a copy or imitation, especially of an expensive or designer product.” There is no such requirement dude

@@RATsnak3 what statute is that defined in?

nyetloki the Oxford English Dictionary.

The screw on the side that is pointing down middle of main frame rests against the arm that has the circle welded on it is used for adjusting how far the foot walks,,hope that help's

I haven't replaced it. Sometimes I only use one of them. If the stitches are still loos then I use the two.

@@leathercraftertips Wow! That was fast. Thx. I'm still on test scrap until I dial it in.

wuraiyaade123 did you solve the problem? I have the same problem as you:/

Firatscustoms No not yet, still waiting for reply from the company that sold it to me.

When I got mine mine it was not rough it was "RUFFFF"'!!!!! I had to totally disassemble it and clean it up with sandpaper and files. You can't go crazy because too much slop is like it being worn out. There is a fellow who goes by Mainly Acres who has tons of videos on setting up these machines. Some of the parts on mine were sharp enough to cut your hand on. As an ex tool and die maker I refuse to use a machine this rough. When you learn it's finic ways you can do a decent job with it. But there are much nicer , and user friendly machines to be had.

Check the rear outside pillow block.. mine was gripping way too tight..loosen the two screws and you should get it freed up. Then tighten them while adjusting that block to run the crank shaft freely, Also when you put the crank wheel on make sure both arms bearings fall into their own individual slots and the wheel sits well on the shaft. There is a keyed slot that has to time the cam lobs , make sure the wheel drops into that key on its shaft then tighten bolt. Other problems I encountered was the bobbin holder that holdes the two part bobbin can come out and that little gear must be setup to turn the bobbin at the right moment when the needle is all the way down. It then swoops past the needle so that pointy part can grab the thread. If this is wrong and you need to correct it, Take out your bobbin holder gear and work the handle on the wheel till the needle just stops moving downwards now put the bobbin holder gear into its slot with the point just left of the needle position (looking from the front) this should set it up to time right.

Juan Rocha on eBay around 130$

Thank Steve for your help. I need to go to eBay!

@@juanrocha4252 I just added a link in the description.

RU-vid it. There are a lot of great instructional videos on putting the machine together and what you will have to modify to get to run properly.

Once I set it up right it runs great but it is a bit if a bitch at first..I'm a mechanic with lots of experience so I figured it out but I can see someone new to it might struggle

I don't know I've never sewn any on it. Check the link in the description for the machine and check out the reviews. There may be an answer for you there.

There is a screw that can shorten or make the stitch longer. Working with thicker cloth or leather can make your stitches shorter. This is due to there being less time for the needle to drop down before it hits the cloth or leather. When the needle reaches what your sewing it will stop the feed dogs from pulling any more.

@Richardson SantAnna I just added a link in the description.

I have one and I like modifying things to work better and at this price it works great once setup so yeah a fun afternoon and a satisfying one really making it work better then out of the box and I will get lots of use out of it. It powers through thick leather like nothing, even though I have an industrial machine I think I'm going to really like this. So yeah it's ruff and cheep and qc is abysmal but no pain no gains,,and no one wrote any books about people playing it safe.

I think that may be to thick.

Sounds like your walking foot isn't gripping like he mentions here.

For the machine to see in just one spot, the adjust bolt for the stitch length is backed out too far. It is upside down, behind the second top thread tension disc. It can be turned by hand & had a spring under the 10mm head. It is either up to far or down. I am not next to mine but if set wrong, the walking foot will not move. Look for this screw and change its setting as you can sew 20 stitches per inch or 3 stitches per inch with this one adjustment. Best of luck as other videos cover this issue.

Just like an old TV show from the 60's

Looking at other videos basically if it fits it will sow.

Yes.

Darcy, I had a 1930s Adler. Similar to this but larger, newer design and great German quality. It would run size 69 and on some things size 99. My 1917ish singer upholstery machine runs 138. Most any home machine will handle size 69 as that is about the same as standard Coats brand nylon "upholstery" thread. Use nylon or polyester, polyester is better in sun. Needle size I run the biggest it will run but get the right length for the machine.

totallyjonesin Thanks ! Merry Christmas to you all and family and friends.

Same to you, I think it was size 92 not 99. here is a good source of info, go to the needles tab and see "needle and thread size chart. www.thethreadexchange.com/

#69 bonded nylon with a #18 leather needle. I have links in the description now too. Thanks!

I'd figure he modified it to handle a larger needle, for sewing leather. I suppose its possible to modify many older machines to an industrial style needle, I was looking into that mod for some old 60's and 70s's style sewing machines I've had, the ones with side motor. Of course, I have alot of experience with older sewing machines, I've repaired them, serviced them, re-brushed the motors, sewn with them cloth up to leather projects. I just received one of these leather patchers the other day.

there isn't any mod! LOL!

@@budwhite3570 I just got one, too. I'm going through it. Filing everything down and figuring out why the thread keeps breaking. Are you having any luck?

​@@RenaissancePeopleNYC Sigh... Now I'm sad.

@@mikeg6064 Well, I haven't used mine yet, two problems, mine came in damaged, the thread leaping lever, bracket were both bent, metal loop that the thread leaping lever goes through bent down, smashed spring, negotiated a partial refund for the damage of $40 making mine $64 in cost, so I bent the pieces back to almost original, and finally found a proper replacement spring,...then all the leather threads and other supplies I ordered from Hong Kong that I was waiting for, I get a messaged from ebay from the seller that they want to refund my money for the large order cause the order may have been lost, ha, so I need to order some threads, some needles, etc from somewhere else, haven't gotten around to making an order from some company in the US this time,...but eh. mine seemed okay, not as rough, but I did smooth out the hand wheel channels with a wet stone to put less stress on the little bearing that rides in there. I could do with making a wood base to put on a table as well. I'm gonna wet stone down the sharp edges on the bottom of the walking foot cause it obviously is too sharp and bites into the scrap pieces of leather leaving marks. I do have #69 upholstery threads, so technically I am not out of heavy duty threads, but I would like some heavier thread.

Check the description for a Amazon link. If they don't ship to your location search for other sellers. Good luck!

Alexis Leon, I haven't actually done it myself, but I just finally got my machine working and I can't imagine this machine not being able to do it. You could fit a top hat over the arm and sew what ever you want on it. My experience so far is that this is a great machine; it just takes some patience and RU-vid videos to go through it and "finish it." I say finish it because it seems these things all come through needing tweaks (not impossible) and all are very slightly different from each other as far as condition and what they need. I'll bet they slam these things together in less than 60 seconds and toss it over someone's head into a box that's five feet away, where the next guy soaks it with oil (which is good for shipping) as he's slides it across the floor with his one good foot and closes the box while the whole thing is still hot from the metal forge. I'm guessing that's what keeps the price so low on these things. It's a trade off. I hear sometimes you get lucky and they work out of the box, but just know you might have to tweak it before you click yourself one.

No but it will sew a hat to a piece of leather just fine

Links in the description for the machine. I think it's around $120. now.