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Calling on Sewing Gurus

FletchDeep

FletchDeep

Active Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2018
Messages
169
Sewing Gurus! I am looking for some advice with regards to machines. I recently purchased an older brother project 631 machine.brother machine.PNG
It seems to handle the tougher materials pretty well, occasionaly I could make it bog down through multiple layers of webbing. I started having some tension issues, where no matter how I adjusted the upper tension or lower bobbin it would loop underneath or even catch multiple bobbin threads somehow.tension issue.PNG
So I took it to the closest sewing repair shop to see what was wrong. It had something wrong with the bobbin, he hasn't told me exactly what yet, just that he had to buy a new part for it. He also told me the sample of seatbelt webbing I left with it was also part of the issue. He said since it is so slick it doesn't feed well through the machine and with multiple layers was really too much for the machine.

He then said he did have an industrial walking foot machine he would sell me for 150. He sent me some pictures an info today and I just want to get some opinions from people more experienced than me. I can see the machine has been, lets say "put through the ringer". I'm assuming its in working order since he repairs the machines, but for the price and how little I will probably end up using it besides the occasional saddle / backpack gear would it be a worthwhile investment? Its a Chikon CK-563 (basically a taiwanese clone of a juki 563). https://www.masonsewingmachine.ca/chikon-ck-563/
CK-563.PNGCK-563 (2).PNG
Any help would be appreciated.
 
Just a thought of mine..

If he is a repair guy and you do buy it from him. He would likely give you a discount on any repairs as well as be sure it was in good working order when you got it.
 
I don't know a thing about that machine, but I found this... Includes good discussion on what to look for.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/64562-japanese-vs-chinese-the-war-of-the-clones/

If he can show you that the machine sews as it should, that is a heck of a price for an industrial machine.

As for your other machine...I'd be curious to hear what the problem ends up being. And did you pull on the upper thread by hand to see that there was tension? I was about pulling my hair out with mine doing something similar. I finally figured out while threading the machine the thread was slipping in behind one of the tension discs instead of in between. I kept adjusting tension and it made no difference. Felt pretty smart when I realized I threaded the machine incorrectly. Best part....I've done it twice. Didn't figure out the cause until the second time. I thread the machine a little more cautiously now...
 
skell said:
I don't know a thing about that machine, but I found this... Includes good discussion on what to look for.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/64562-japanese-vs-chinese-the-war-of-the-clones/

If he can show you that the machine sews as it should, that is a heck of a price for an industrial machine.

As for your other machine...I'd be curious to hear what the problem ends up being. And did you pull on the upper thread by hand to see that there was tension? I was about pulling my hair out with mine doing something similar. I finally figured out while threading the machine the thread was slipping in behind one of the tension discs instead of in between. I kept adjusting tension and it made no difference. Felt pretty smart when I realized I threaded the machine incorrectly. Best part....I've done it twice. Didn't figure out the cause until the second time. I thread the machine a little more cautiously now...
Click to expand...
That was the same article I found, not much else out there.

As far as I know the other machine was threaded correctly. I'm trying to remember what bobbin part he told me he changed, he talks pretty fast, it might have been the bobbin case itself was messed up. It sewed thin materials fine, I just had to have the tension cranked up to 9 all the time.
 
sounds like a upper tension issue. or possibly too much bobbin tension and the needle cant pull the looped lower thread up into the material.
as far as machines go, Im happy with my Singer model 15-91. is a direct gear drive(no belt). paid $50 for it.
 
I'll echo what Ed the Red said(poet and I didn't know it) and Skell, If you have to have the upper tension on 9 to sew a thin material, there is most likely something wrong with the bobbin tension or your upper tension.
 
I tried adjusting the bobbin tension so loose that it had basically no resistance, still needed tension all the way up. Upper tension discs were clean. I will find out for sure tomorrow and let you all know.
 
Turns out it had the wrong size bobbins in the smaller machine, needs a brothers specific one. Although I'm not entirely sure that was the whole issue or not, the guy basically told me running the tera 40 thread in combination with going through the heavy materials were just too much for the machine. After I got it back I switched out to a topstitch needle with the longer eye and it did a little better, still had to have the top tension at about an 8.

I did end up buying the industrial machine, it was kind of grimy and dirty, but everything was still tight and solid. It sews great through whatever you can fit under it. I can see a pulley speed reducer in my near future though. It ramps up to full speed real quick!
 
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