Pfaff sewing machine

[davem]

Don,t laugh but I fancy making some kites myself over the winter months.

The machine I have is not up to much and everyone tells me that a Pfaff machine with the integrated dual feed is the way to go.

There seems to be a big choice when looking so has anyone got any idea of what models to look at?



Dave

[cptpigpen]

I use a 20 odd year old Phaff and it is far better made than the new ones.

About 3-4 years ago i think Phaff was sold and then started to be made in the far east and build quality etc is not the same.

I would recommend a second hand metal bodied machine. if you contact a local sewing shop, I use Bromley Sewing machines (the branch I go to is in Tunbridge Wells) they are normally very helpful and get in second hand machines, Bromley Sewing Machines are always willing to offer advice free of charge.

I have also worked on a Bernina which belonged to Bazza and he swore by it it was great to work with and very smooth. The Bernina's tend to be a lot more expensive both new and second hand than the Phaff and much harder to come by second hand.

[C2LLN]

When I logged in this ad was displayed at the top of our site!!!


"Pfaff Sewing Machine
Excellent Quality Sewing Machines Free Delivery Within Mainland UK!
www.BamberSew.com"

Actually now I have taken a closer look, lots of similar ads have popped up....clever 'pro-board!
Lots of info on there...
Sick and tired of SWANNING around are we?

[davem]

Thanks Simon

I spoke to the sewing machine shop in the Broadway Worthing as its the most local to me, they said that the current walking foot ones were aluminum bodies but they would shortly be starting making them in China. They do secondhand as well so should be worth a visit.


Collin

Your powers of observation for the ads are second to none as usual. "Oh let me think are all the legs up" ;D

SWANNING is not as easy as it looks and sounds at this time of the year, so I thought of having a sewing room extension to the motorhome, however I will need my Genny back to be able to use it. ;D ;D ;D

[C2LLN]

Would anyone be able to tell me if this is a good buy? Or is there something I am not taking into consideration when looking for a sewing machine for kite-making?

Its on E-bayand although ended now it comes from an established shop and can be bought anytime with a phone call....

Collin

[Batchoy]

c2lln said:

Would anyone be able to tell me if this is a good buy? Or is there something I am not taking into consideration when looking for a sewing machine for kite-making?

Its on E-bayand although ended now it comes from an established shop and can be bought anytime with a phone call....

Collin

Having had a look at the specs the only things I would comment on are the stitch width, at only 5mm max it is possibly a bit narrow, 6mm would be better, 7mm would be great, and it does not state whether it as an adjustable maximum speed limiter, useful if you have a heavy foot and you are trying to stitch somthing a little more complicated than a straight seam, but otherwise it looks like a good machine.

If you want to read my thoughts on sewing machines for kite building, read these posts in the blog (or click the signature and read the feed). Part 10 wil be posted tomorrow (Tuesday 22^nd) and the 11^th and final part the day after along with a revised PDF version. ;D

[jelv]

Janet (my wife) does a lot of sewing & machine embroidery (she has also just started assisting with the teaching at a dressmaking class). Her comments:

1. It's a front loading bobbin and they always have a narrower zig-zag.

2. Speed limiter would be handy for the inexperienced.

3. You tend to get what you pay for, at that price for a computerised machine she would have grave worries about the quality/reliability.

4. A basic mechanical machine without loads of fancy stitches is likely to be more reliable & suitable.

5. As ripstop is quite slippy, pfaff IDT system may feed the material better, or a walking foot on any other machine.

[C2LLN]

Thank-you Batchboy Batchoy, I would recommend your 'sewing' links to everyone, enlightening and to the point! You answered questions there I never envisaged asking, but should have!!!

I have to ask, where do get your enthusiasm and perseverance from? And do you ever sleep? I am sure a LOT of people have learnt something from the articles you have taken the trouble to put up on your Blog.

Thanks John, I had problems at the 'Spirit' workshop with my machine as you mention " As ripstop is quite slippy, pfaff IDT system may feed the material better, or a walking foot on any other machine." AND to compound that situation I had no idea I could adjust the foot pressure....

All I want is a simple sewing machine to do the basics, reliably! Although cheap for what it is, the machine I was looking at has too much, (for my needs) and computerised.....more to go wrong!? But in my price bracket!

[Batchoy]

c2lln said:

Thank-you Batchboy, I would recommend your 'sewing' links to everyone, enlightening and to the point! You answered questions there I never envisaged asking, but should have!!!

I have to ask, where do get your enthusiasm and perseverance from? And do you ever sleep? I am sure a LOT of people have learnt something from the articles you have taken the trouble to put up on your Blog.

Why do people (you're not the only one C2LLN ) get my nickname/handle wrong? There is no 'b' in the middle, Batchoy is a Filipino chicken noodle soup to which I am partial, hence the original Avatar, it is also a Filipino derogatory term meaning 'fatso'. ;D

My thanks for the plaudits, however I will let you into a little secret, the articles upto and including the 'Know Your Sewing Machine' set were written over the past 18-24 months as part of a website I was developing, however I decided to publish them as partworks on a blog, as the blog is easier to maintain.

The next article 'Know Your Seams' is being written from scratch, the text is near enough complete, and I am just finishing off the images. After that I am contemplating a real idiots guide to making a 'pocket sled', since I have promised to make some personalised ones in order to raise money for my Bon-bon's nursery.

I use and swear by 'Elna' sewing machines and I wish I could get hold of an old mechanical one like my mother's one. They don't have dual feed and I rarely use a walking foot (my mother has one but I don't), the trick is in the set-up of the machine and the prepration of the fabric before sewing, i.e. pinning, basting and, or gluing.

One problem I have come across is that many of the manuals for new machines, my Elna included, do not cover the basics of setting up the machine, such as adjusting the lower thread tension, or adjusting the foot pressure, they do go into great detail about the myriad of useless stitches they can produce. Which is one reason machines find there way to the backs of cupboards never to resurface, they are factory set to an average fabric and people just do not know how to readjust them, and then get poor results.

[C2LLN]

Srry about that, somewhere there is a well known piece of writing that omits letters from the whole sentence but it is perfectly legible none the less as your brain automatically fills in the missing letter to make sense of the incomplete sentence! (Come on Jelv, no doubt you will find that 'article' somewhere now!) Of course I didn't appreciate 'Batchoy' was Filipino till you pointed it out, that might explain the 'usual' confusion you mention that people have getting your handle right?

Having used 'Sudocreme' (for nappy rash etc.) for around twenty five plus years....Ha, Ha..very funny, not on myself but the five offspring, it was advertised recently on TV for the first time and WAS pronounced Sudocrem, there never was an 'e' on the end of the word that even doctors/nurses recommended by calling it 'creme'!

[davem]

c2lln said:

Srry about that, somewhere there is a well known piece of writing that omits letters from the whole sentence but it is perfectly legible none the less as your brain automatically fills in the missing letter to make sense of the incomplete sentence! (Come on Jelv, no doubt you will find that 'article' somewhere now!) Of course I didn't appreciate 'Batchoy' was Filipino till you pointed it out, that might explain the 'usual' confusion you mention that people have getting your handle right?

Having used 'Sudocreme' (for nappy rash etc.) for around twenty five plus years....Ha, Ha..very funny, not on myself but the five offspring, it was advertised recently on TV for the first time and WAS pronounced Sudocrem, there never was an 'e' on the end of the word that even doctors/nurses recommended by calling it 'creme'!

See what you mean Ollin,
It does not help when you call yourself C2LLN as well

I gave up on a Pfaff machine after Simons advise and the shop telling me that is only a name you are paying for these days.

I purchased a Juki machine that sell a large proportion to industry. The machine is great, easy to use and very powerful (says it will sew through 15 layers of demin at slow speed) I have not tried that feature yet though !

You can also adjust the power to slow it right down for those of us less experienced.

Although its mainly for kites I sewed a leather headcollar the other day with absolute ease.


regards



Dave

[C2LLN]

davem said:

I purchased a Juki machine that sell a large proportion to industry. The machine is great, easy to use and very powerful (says it will sew through 15 layers of demin at slow speed) I have not tried that feature yet though !

You can also adjust the power to slow it right down for those of us less experienced.

Although its mainly for kites I sewed a leather headcollar the other day with absolute ease.
regards,
Dave

^{Now your talking Dave, lets keep this to ourselves, kite making is for sissies.....I also fancy making some serious leather 'stuff'....I will look into this machine and keep me informed if you do a 'leather' workshop.....ssshhhh....Collin}

[Batchoy]

And he asks whether I ever sleep!

c2lln said:

^{Now your talking Dave, lets keep this to ourselves, kite making is for sissies.....I also fancy making some serious leather 'stuff'....I will look into this machine and keep me informed if you do a 'leather' workshop.....ssshhhh....Collin}

Keep it to your self Collin, but if thats your sort of thing I can run a corsetry workshop, and my wife a lingerie workshop, she having been a sample machinist in the design dept of a lingerie manufacturer, till M&S put them out of business.

[C2LLN]

Having dithered around and not wanting to trawl to the bottom of my pockets with my 'short' arms...I was machine-less until this came up! ;D

Lidl this weeks special

Seems OK to me....probably the 'Lada' of the Sewing machine world, but I cant justify buying a rugged 'Range Rover' model? I'm sure it will do ME fine, actually looks quite well built. ^{(like me again)}

Cheap and cheerful....just like ME!!! Wont sew leather head collars but will sew lace ones that I can fix chrome studs / spikes on etc.

Best of all it was FREE as I asked to borrow it from my Dad (he only had it five minutes) and he told me to keep it! ;D ;D ;D

[C2LLN]

I cant believe how many people came up to me at the *Kelvin Woods workshop on the 1st.March to look at my 'cheap' sewing machine, from following this thread!!

I would have to give this machine a 10/10 as I couldn't fault it at all, Phaff connoisseurs at the event had paid more than £40 just to service their babys prior to the workshop. Price, portability, speed, foot pressure, ease of use, available stitch patterns, thread tensions etc. all you want to have to make a kite was there along with a three year guarantee! You could not differentiate which machine was used on which completed kite, by looking at the stitches anyway....workmanship was another matter....and another story! ;D

Collin
* When I get round to familiarizing myself with Webshots I will make 'Folders' so apologies for its random photographic content![/i]