Are the projects discussed here (hammocks, quilts, etc.) simple enough to do with a simple hand held machine? Has anyone ever used one of the cheap hand-held Singers they sell at Wal-mart? If those are functional for making easy cheapo gear, I may have space and money to give it a try. Any experience with these?
You'd be better off sewing by hand. The Stitch Witch I played with once, was like wrestling a rabid squirrel...
It was fun to watch, I'm sure...
Ok, maybe it wasn't all that bad, but it certainly wasn't worth the $15 price tag... (I got this one for free...)
Check estate sales... you can often score an antique that would out live any of us, and operates reasonably well... Also check with friends... there are an amazing number of machines collecting dust that you can probably have for free... (never borrow one, you never know when they're going to break.)
The die-hards here will tell you to go to a local Sewing store and buy a used one. It's cheaper and more reliable than buying an unknown and having to get it tuned up or fixed... That said, I paid $26 for my modern Brother machine, and it works like new...
"Do or do not, there is no try." -- Yoda
The hand held jobbies are not really thread injectors in my opinion. The vast majority I have seen form a chain stitch. This is the kind of stitch sometimes used to stitch seal dog and cat food bags. If you grab a loose end and pull the whole line will release and everything comes apart. Break a stitch and you can watch the seam zip undone.
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
That is kind of what I thought... The problem is I don't really have any space to keep a regular sized machine (at least the ones I'm familiar with) in my current residence. I may be here for a few more years, and I know I won't be able to resist the DIY bug until then...time to start looking at making space, I guess!
Thanks for the feedback! Any suggestions for a very compact, cheap and easy to learn on machine?
Thread injector? You guys can wear kilts but cannot call them sewing machines. You guys must not be getting enough oxygen up there in your hammocks.
Anywho. From my personal research, the general consensus is yes, they're decent. But they're lightweight so they like to dance around your table.
"For the Glory of All, The Light Shines on".
Certainly you can find the space to store a portable table top machine. You can use your kitchen table to sew on. When your done pick it up and put it in a corner of the closet.
Keep your eye out for a Singer model 99 or 192, also known as the Spartan. They are the same machine. They are 3/4 size machines, very small, but wonderful stitchers. They are as heavy as tanks, so the art quilters avoid them somewhat, opting for the 221 "feather weight" model. Because the 99 is not as popular, they can be had cheaper. The 192 can be had for even less, because it is a no frills version of the 99.
"Interesting! No, wait, the other thing.....tedious!"- Bender Bending Rodriques
i've got a Singer 192k Spartan, built in 1964. Great machine. I got it for $25.00.Originally Posted by pedro
Last edited by PapaSmurf; 08-21-2010 at 19:24. Reason: Added image
It never occurred to me to call my kilt a sewing machine... is that a side effect of too much oxygen?
Regarding handheld thread injectors... until two years ago, I did all my thread injecting with a needle and palm. 40 years of canvas and dacron sail repair, large sailor's duffles, ditty bags, whippings, lots of mending of clothing. Now I do everything with the polymer fiber injector.
- MacEntyre
"We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately." - Ben Franklin
www.MollyMacGear.com
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