[C38] Sailrite sewing machine

[tdtron at earthlink.net]

We also have the Sailrite LSZ-1 with the monster flywheel but be warned, it is heavy!

When we travel with it, I take the heavy flywheel off and carry it in the bottom our sewing case.  This makes the lightweight sewing case somewhat heavier but it also makes carrying the sewing machine manageable although still heavy.

I am impressed with the power of the Sailrite, especially with the monster flywheel.  I've kidded that I could probably sew two pieces of plywood together and that isn't far from the truth.

Tom Troncalli
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Max Soto 
  To: saintpeg at earthlink.net ; Catalina 38 Listserve 
  Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2011 10:09 PM
  Subject: Re: [C38] Sailrite sewing machine


  Thanks a lot for all the comments!


  It might not be an industrial machine, and suitable for heavy work, but as George stated, "it might work for personal work", this is exactly what I need it for... Just for the kind of projects that Don, Craig and Peggy use it....
  Also, the options, the bunch of online "how to" videos that they have will help a lot ,  and the best thing is that I have heard that they have great support over their products....
  Old Singers are a very good machines, they will be a lot cheaper and I'll be able to find one and the  spares here in Costa Rica, but I'm not sure if they have walking foot, or if I'll be able to handle it because they do require some experience and are not as user friendly as the Sailrite machines... If I buy one here, I'll save around $200 in shipping and taxes, but I'll never find a Sailrite here.......
  so I'm going to give it some thoughts and check if I can get a good deal somewhere for a Sailrite...


  Thank again,
  Max


  2011/1/20 Peggy Droesch <saintpeg at earthlink.net>

    Max,

    As a recent (3 yrs) owner of a C38 I don't usually have much to contribute
    in the way of technical info -- but as a lifelong sewer I can confidently
    chime in on this one!!

    I bought a Sailrite machine (the LSZ-1, the one that does straight & zigzag
    stitches) -- an older version that Sailrite has since made a number of
    technical improvements to. Got it used from a dock friend, another home
    sewer, who hated it & was happy to unload it. Her problem with it was its
    fussiness, it is a machine that demands careful adjustment of the thread
    tension before it will sew properly. I put a little time into fiddling with
    it during a 'test drive', learned its quirks & figured out how to work with
    it. I think I got a deal & would gladly recommend it.

    It works well with up to nine layers of Sunbrella (though it needs a little
    manual assistance getting through that much fabric -- more below). You
    definitely need the walking foot for the kind of sewing we do for our boats
    -- my German home machine could manage most of the canvaswork except for
    the fact that it doesn't have a walking foot. When I finally get around to
    ordering a cruising spinnaker kit, I know this machine will have no problem
    helping me crank it out. Rory & I are still chewing over the idea of a
    stackpack, but it won't have any problem sewing that either.

    One upgrade that I plan to buy for my machine is the 'Monster Wheel' - a
    heavyweight balance wheel that helps drive the needle through multiple
    layers of fabric, or through heavy material like sailcloth (it also helps
    you sew when you can't plug in to shore power). I have to help my machine
    along with manual turning of the original-equipment balance wheel when I
    try to sew through many layers of canvas. I made an anchor riding sail from
    one of Sailrite's kits, easy project, the LSZ-1 breezed right through it.
    But when I tried a bit of repair work on our genoa it gagged on the heavy
    Dacron sailcloth, couldn't put a needle through it. So you do need the
    extra weight behind the drive mechanism if you plan to do your own
    sailwork.

    Good luck --

    Peggy
    No Name Yet, #231
    San Francisc



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  -- 
  Max Soto
  C38 #198 ESTANCIA
  Puntarenas, Costa Rica



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