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So I bought a chainstitching machine...

bonanz

By bonanz
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bonanz

bonanz

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So I bought a vintage Singer industrial chainstitching machine. It was kinda an impulse buy and nowhere around me chainstitches and I had a bad experience with taking my jeans to a tailor for a 'regular' hem and I'm anal, so I figured I'd get my own machine and do it myself from now on. Probably the main thing that caused this impulse buy is I need to hem my IH-634s and I really want to keep a chainstitch on them and I know that even places that have chainstitching machines don't like 21oz so I went for the gusto...

more details to come...

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bonanz

bonanz

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Thus begins the flood of requests to hem jeans....

lol, we'll see about that

how much did it set you back?

I got the machine for a steal, that also contributed to the impulse nature of the buy, but its not just plug into the wall and go, industrial machines (read heavy duty factory use) have a separate motor and need a specific table to configure it all...Those parts have yet to be sorted out and will add to the cost

columbo! is it?

indeed

where do you live?

FL

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bonanz

bonanz

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In a large field a long way from anyone else's property I guess?

Industrial machines make an industrial amount of noise.

:D

lol, I know. I have a house, but I mean it's not like I'll be using it constantly.

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fre-co

fre-co

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As someone else interested in these....

Be aware that there are a couple of different types of chain stitch. Usually the machines used for hemming denim by Japanese retailers and others in the industry are Union specials. I'd be interested to see the results of yours and pics of the machine. I started a thread about chain stitching in the UK which has some good info by synthi and others if you want to know some more.

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bonanz

bonanz

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As someone else interested in these....

Be aware that there are a couple of different types of chain stitch. Usually the machines used for hemming denim by Japanese retailers and others in the industry are Union specials. I'd be interested to see the results of yours and pics of the machine. I started a thread about chain stitching in the UK which has some good info by synthi and others if you want to know some more.

actually I'm not that much of a noob to just buy a 'chainstitch' machine without doing any research:D

You are correct. The chainstitch used on our beloved jeans is a "double lock chainstitch" or a double thread chainstitch. The difference between the normal (single thread and the one we want is a second looper thread on the bottom side 'locks' the stitch in place making it strong. Single thread chainstitches are used for temporary basting and such to be removed easily.

don't worry, I got the 'right one' lol

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tweeds

tweeds

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actually I'm not that much of a noob to just buy a 'chainstitch' machine without doing any research:D

haha, in this day and age you never know. what with the ease of getting a pair of ultra-premium limited edition japanese jeans...

photos are requested once the machine is set up and hemming of iron hearts is underway. :)

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Chicken

Chicken

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^ you might also have to start selling some jeans to make ends meet. the new "denim that'll destroy your life" jeans.

this is awesome bonanz. you might want to ask experts for advice. i think gordon at BIG has a technique to give the hem a bit of a ripple effect, so that fades will be more interesting.

good luck.

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bonanz

bonanz

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yeah, it is kinda crazy, when I think about it as a "logical" person it makes me laugh like it's ridiculous, but I know I'll be happier doing it myself getting it exactly right. I was thinking of buying a pair of STF's or wal-mart rustlers or the like and just keep hemming them and hemming them shorter cutting off a few inches each time (till they're eventually like shorts) and experimenting and then doing washes on all the "cuffs" to experiment with the effects of the different techniques.

I'll definitely take pictures haha...

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bonanz

bonanz

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yes it sorta looks like that snn47.

I had thought about trying to make my own jeans before, but it had no influence on me purchasing this machine and I'm in no hurry to try right now, although it would definitely come in handy. I'm sure I'll think about it more and more once i get the machine up and running and get some free time.

I'll take pictures when I get a table for this beast. it weighs like 70 lbs and I, like a dumbass, accidentally broke a piece of the tensioner on top off when I was moving it, so now I have to get that repaired... :( don't worry though, I think I'll document the whole process and make one of those interesting read threads with the whole process and everything I learned a la ande and his making jeans thread. It's so absurd that I think it would be fun to see everything involved if someone else did it too, so I'll do my part to contribute something interesting besides asking how brand X fits compared to brand Y lol ;)

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Uinku

Uinku

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Huh?! What! Are sewing machines supposed to look like that too? Because my mother actually has two of these kinds of machines! She uses it to sew only, maybe she just needs a different foot/needle to be able to chainstitch. Since the needle can't handle tough materials. I'll post up some pictures soon....

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bonanz

bonanz

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all industrial machines look essentially the same. I don't know what you mean by "are sewing machines supposed to look like that" because a chainstitching machine is a sewing machine... I went to my tailor and she had like 4 industrial machines that looked like mine (I wanted to steal her tables lol) but none were chainstitching machines. Industrial machines are built to do one thing and do it well and do it a lot, they were/are used in factories to do one part of an assembly over and over and over again.

don't post a picture. take the model number google it and see what she has. I doubt its a dual thread chainstitch machine because if she uses it all the time for regular sewing, she wouldn't use that stitch most likely, but maybe you'll get lucky :D

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fre-co

fre-co

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It's too small and not tough enough to push the needle through 3 layers of denim as far as I know. Although I might experiment..... I just bought it because it is a beautiful object and I'll use it for other sewing jobs.

The mahogony base that the machine sits on is only about 12 inches across. It comes in a box for portability, for chain stitching on the move!

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designstudent

designstudent

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So I bought a 19th century chainstitch sewing machine....

10276591.jpg

Won't do denim but it's a lovely little machine.

http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/images/I015/10276591.aspx

What a great collectible item to have, I'd love to collect older machines and historic photography and film equipment if I had the space...

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