Which Sewing Machine for Canvas ?

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STATUE

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My Grandma's old Singer has introduced me to making my own canvas covers for the likes of liferafts etc.

But I can see other possibilities - the sailing association I sail with has asked me to do a few things, but I have cried off 'cos my handcranking efforts are not that professional.

So, for about £100 - £150 which machine for canvas ?
 
Way more than your budget but the definitive model is one of the American Sailrite range - could see if there’s any secondhand ones. Beloved of liveaboards, wish I’d bought one when I was in the States.
 
An old one - and it probably won't cost that much :)

New "sailmaking" machines are way above your budget, so you need a good strong old domestic machine from before they started introducing plastic parts. Mine is from the 60s, all chrome and tail-fins, and cost the princely sum of £45 on eBay. I wouldn't want to make an actual sail with it, but it handles enough layers of acrylic canvas to do bags and covers etc. Choose a needle intended for sewing denim.

Zigzag stitch is worth having, I think, I use it a lot for eg bar-tacks on webbing. You don't need any features fancier than that.

Pete
 
I have a hand-cranked Singer 99K which does fine with the right needles.

I have occasionally thought of electrifying it (which wouldn't cost much) but never got round to it.
 
STATUE said:
My Grandma's old Singer has introduced me to making my own canvas covers for the likes of liferafts etc.

But I can see other possibilities - the sailing association I sail with has asked me to do a few things, but I have cried off 'cos my handcranking efforts are not that professional.

So, for about £100 - £150 which machine for canvas ?
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I bought an old heavy duty electric singer 196k5 about 11 years ago on ebay for £5. Fantastic investment, will sew through 9 layers of canvas (best cover materisl is Topgun double sided using Dabond v92 thread. In my opinion). Straight stitch is perfectly ok. I have made many covers, sail covers, window covers and bags and even recut/modified a topsail with it, all successful.

Www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk
 
Bernina have a good standing. This looks a cracking buy:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bernina-...109840?hash=item4413ed8710:g:7mEAAOSwI59aAuwk

Although the frame size may be a bit small - what the Americans call the harp - that is the space to put any rolled fabric through - a real problem with cheap, plastic bodied, machines.

I like old Husqvarna Vikings but my local mechanic says they are nothing special; mind you he is not exactly lavish with praise about any machine. The Viking has a switchable, slow sewing, gearbox which I find especially useful.
 
Unless you are made of money (in which case you wouldn't be doing your own sewing) you won't run to a Sailrite. Pre-1980 Jones or Singer (all metal gearing). Electric unless you are planning ocean sailing and zig zag is essential IMHO. Other makes possibly as others have mentioned.
 
I have an electric Jones 553. Tough as old boots and does zig-zag. I do all my sail repairs and fabric work (including clothes!) on it. The post from doug748 about the Husqvarna with slow speed is very interesting, though - would be a very useful feature.
 
I've picked up a Singer 4411 Heavy Duty last year on sale for £150. It did struggle to punch through three layers of 3 ton jackstay webbing, but coped effortlessly with repair jobs on the cockpit tent (couple layers of acrylic + vinyl window). Inside the plastic cover is the exact same metal frame as on Singers from the 60s and 70s. And it zigzags, which is important.
 
I have an old industrial Pfaff that came from a textiles factory that closed down. It can do from straight to zig-zag of up to 6mm. My only modification was buying a capacitor so that the 3-phase motor could run on domestic single-phase electricity.
Factory close-downs are a good source for cheap and sturdy machines.
 
I've been using the Toyota Super Jeans sewing machine for several years now. Ideal for canvas and domestic. It's very powerful and rugged and has zig-zag stitch for sail work as well. Price is about £150
Available from several sources - see google
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
Factory close-downs are a good source for cheap and sturdy machines.
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Only if you have space for them, though - factory sewing machines are generally freestanding pieces of furniture, whereas a domestic one can be tucked away in its case. A friend's partner was unexpectedly given an ex-factory machine by her family as "a great business idea", and now they're stuck with this enormous great thing which they don't really have room in the house for.

Pete
 
prv said:
Only if you have space for them, though - factory sewing machines are generally freestanding pieces of furniture, whereas a domestic one can be tucked away in its case. A friend's partner was unexpectedly given an ex-factory machine by her family as "a great business idea", and now they're stuck with this enormous great thing which they don't really have room in the house for.

Pete
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Mine lives in the workshop. Damn heavy to shift around though!
 
prv said:
Only if you have space for them, though - factory sewing machines are generally freestanding pieces of furniture, whereas a domestic one can be tucked away in its case. A friend's partner was unexpectedly given an ex-factory machine by her family as "a great business idea", and now they're stuck with this enormous great thing which they don't really have room in the house for.

Pete
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Industrial machines + table can be dismantled and assembled quite quickly and the bits taken apart don't take up much room at all.
 
savageseadog said:
Industrial machines + table can be dismantled and assembled quite quickly and the bits taken apart don't take up much room at all.
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Everything's relative - my Jones domestic machine in its case nestles under one arm of the sofa. I have no idea where I'd put even the tabletop of a dismantled industrial machine, let alone the rest of it.

Pete
 
I’ve made various canvas covers for the boat using a simple cheap domestic sewing machine - a Pfaff 160S. Use a denim needle, 90-110 size, and UV resistant tough thread. People try to sell you an expensive machine by sucking their teeth about whether a simple one is up to the job. It’s a cheap trick, an easy sale, and simply not true. Just do it.
 
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