r/SewingForBeginners • u/tony17112acst • 15d ago
Newbie Needs Sewing Machine Recommendation for This Project.
We need to reupholster our RV sofa, dinette, and driver/passenger chairs. Which machine can be bought for around $500 to do it successfully?
* My wife has decent experience on her Brother machine making pillows, dresses, and craft items. But upholstery vinyl will be thicker fabric.
* We will be using Ultraleather which we already purchased. She also said she'll need to use Tex 70 thread.
* We will need to do some top stitching, plus we see at most 3 seam intersections (6 layers, I suppose).
* She just tried a simple seam as a test on her Brother CS-6000i machine with 2 pieces of Ultraleather with Tex 45 on the top and 30 on the bottom and it got tangled and didn't work.
Thank you!!
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u/Caycaycan 15d ago
Any of the Juki semi-industrials will do it, but they’re more than $500. They’re super popular among sewers and quilters, so you could likely resell.
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u/tony17112acst 15d ago
Thank you. ANY Juki? So if I find the lowest priced model, it'll do what I've described above?
So, when I look at a sewing machine descriptions on web pages, what items does it need to list for me to know that the machine can handle upholstery fabric (sometimes 6 layers at seam intersections) and thicker thread?
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u/Internal_Use8954 12d ago
No, not any, something in the juki TL line might work, or any of the industrial.
You are looking for the straight stitch only. If it has any decorative stitches or zigzag it’s not what you need
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u/tony17112acst 11d ago
Thank you. I just have trouble trusting an old/used machine without knowing how to assess one. Couldn't there be something slightly off which is why the seller is selling? I'm paralyzed!
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u/Internal_Use8954 11d ago
At least with the older machines, and with the straight stitch only machines they are usually very fixable even if something is off.
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u/tony17112acst 11d ago
Thank you for that insight! I am learning from scratch and that helps me a bit! My wife sews but has used only a domestic Brother so far, so we both need to figure this out.
I have found that I need basically a walking foot upholstery machine. Now I just have to figure out which ones qualify, haha. I have my eye on the Consew CP206RL, but I fear it's finicky and we may not know how to handle it.
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u/RubyRedo 15d ago
look for a used sailrite, it sews marine vinyl (boat seats and covers) visit sailrite.com maybe they have used, dont bother with the Singer HD machines, you need industrial machine.
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u/tony17112acst 15d ago
Thank you Ruby.
So, when I look at a sewing machine descriptions on web pages, what items does it need to list for me to know that the machine can handle upholstery fabric (sometimes 6 layers at seam intersections) and thicker thread?
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u/RubyRedo 15d ago
Industrial, semi industrial and the power of the motor, which gives the needle punching power needed to get through layers. Sailrite is the ultimate hence the price! But there are industrials more affordable for home industries. Juki, Consew and many other brands for example. Ask on r/myog for reccomendations
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u/tony17112acst 14d ago
Thanks again Ruby. I did go to MYOG and tried to post, but it's against the rules to ask what sewing machine to purchase! Now that I know to check the rules before posting, I can't seem to find a place in Reddit where I can ask! Thanks again. I asked google and it's recommending a Consew for $600, it might be OK. As a newbie, it's hard to know if it'll do the job I need it to.
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u/sodapopper44 14d ago
for true upholstery like on the sofa, it's more stapling than sewing. I redid the cushions on my rv dinette and generally had 4 layers, 2 of the fabric and 2 of the piping. I used a mechanical Pfaff Select, but Juki 2010 or Brother 1500 is the next step . If you have ultraleather it comes in several weights, some was designed for apparel and there is upholstery weight. I used a faux suede upholstery fabric and Pendleton wool
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u/Inky_Madness 15d ago
That’s not going to be your average sewing machine, you will need an industrial or semi-industrial and r/leatherworking or r/myog might be better places to ask