Resurrecting an old lady

[Ellabella]

Before I blow all my pocket money on a Jack HD2 I am wondering how my Singer 498 would cope with leather.

I’ve not used it for years and am wondering what I might need to do to get it running again. It was serviced not long before I upgraded and the plastic gears were replaced. I assume an oil and gentle cuddle should be enough and I’ll see how it is sewing before I chuck some leather under the needle.

I’m happy to pay for a service if I think it’s going to be strong enough for several layers of leather.

[HenriettaMaria]

That looks like a similar vintage to my Singer 522 - same overall body shape but with more bells and whistles.  From experience, although I've never used it on leather I do know that it had to be coaxed to stitch over a hem that included a flat fell seam in denim (at least nine layers when you add them up) so unless the leather is fairly fine, I'd be careful.  It definitely won't handle saddlery-weight stuff, of course.

I'd put a bit of machine oil on all the usual spots and run it without any fabric first, to make sure it's still working.  Assuming it is, get a leather needle and some leather scraps and give it a try.  The worst that can happen is that it refuses to feed the leather.

[Ellabella]

It’s fairly fine leather @HenriettaMaria, my Janome can cope easily with two layers and if I take it gently I’ve sewn three layers but four is a step too far.

I won’t be using anything any thicker.

[Sara-S]

@Ellabella does the HD in the model # stand for Heavy Duty?  If so, it just may work on leather. I agree that you should just oil it, plug it in & see if it works before taking it to the shop.

[Bill]

I'd advise using a teflon or roller foot so the leather doesn't stick. I'd also say not to take it easy. The machines muscle comes from electric current going to the motor. The harder you press the pedal the more current flows and so more muscle is provided. Taking it easy will just have the opposite effect and cause more problems than it solves.

[Clareew]

 The limit on my older machines was the amount the presser foot would raise rather than what it would sew through.  Maybe check that too.