Good point, unfortunately that can also be a great way to break needles lol!

@@thejasonofalltrades definitely need a beefy needle, if anything it just tells you the machine isn't as much of a bottleneck as the needle is. Do you have any good videos on needles?

Hi! I was prepared to put it on if needed, but for the limited applications I tested in this video, the machine fed the material fine with the standard foot and the teflon foot. The exception of course being the folded sample, and based on my previous experience with the Singer "walking foot attachment," I would not expect it to make a difference. I may have to re-do that test and if it makes a substantial difference mention it in a later video. Thanks for the suggestion and thanks for watching!

Thanks Andrew! I agree that the HD has been more capable that I was expecting. It is, however, FULL of plastic gears. Honestly, I'm not 100% sure but I strongly suspect that it is identical to many of Singer's non-HD machines with a slightly more powerful motor. As this series progresses, I intend to try to confirm that with a direct comparison. But, my opinion on this machine has definitely shifted already, and if it doesn't break unexpectedly, I might even keep using it from time-to-time! Thanks for watching and commenting!

@@thejasonofalltrades huh. Guess I was misinformed… I took it from the thrift shop where I got it, to be serviced but didn’t look under the hood. I just kinda assumed. Shame on me. Lol

Hi! Both tension and stitch length are variables that will change depending on several factors. Generally, thicker fabrics (or leathers) will require a longer stitch length, and to some extent stitch length is also a cosmetic thing. Tension needs to be adjusted to have the knot where the two threads intersect be buried inside the material being sewn. This will be impacted by the thread thickness, needle size, and material being sewn. So far in my limited experience with the Singer HD, I've had the tension adjustment cranked all the way up the entire time, and other than failing to achieve proper tension with certain webbing, it's been great in all the materials I've sewn. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!

Hi! I did a whole video on the walking-foot attachment, and I came away quite unimpressed. The machine performed quite well without it in this case, so I didn't have a reason to put it on in this video. For the record, the "walking-foot" attachment (I think Singer calls it an "even feed" foot) is really more for keeping layers of fabrics "in synch" as they are being sewn, as in quilting. With a drop-feed machine, sometimes the feed dogs on the bottom push the bottom layer(s) of fabric while the presser foot holds the top layer(s), preventing the top layer(s) from moving as much, and they aren't kept in alignment. A true walking-foot sewing machine generally does the same thing, but in a different way that also makes it excel at overcoming larger changes in thickness and other feeding challenges. They're pretty different from one another in practice. Thanks for watching and commenting!

I haven't, but I have a bunch of scrap jeans pieces, so maybe I can work that into a video soon. Thanks for asking!

Hi Shane! Good point, I should have shown that. It was actually fine, though. I was very surprised that it sewed that piece as well as it did, although I was pretty nervous about how it was sounding; if I break the machine, I want to do it fairly, and that was a pretty unfair test to be honest! Thanks for watching and commenting!

Hi! In this video, I used a size 90 leather sewing needle, and size V69 bonded nylon thread on top and in the bobbin. I don't have links, but the needle is commonly available anywhere home sewing machine needles are sold, and I usually order my thread from The Thread Exchange. Regarding needle and thread size, if you don't already know; the method is to select your thread based on the fabric/material being sewn, then choose the needle that best matches that thread. There is some overlap in all of these choices, but that is the best order of priority. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!

There are two versions of this machine, a 23-stitch and a 32-stitch (I'm pretty sure those are the right stitch counts, going from memory). So, a 4423 is a 23-stitch, 4432 is a 32-stitch, I think. In all other ways, the Heavy Duty models are identical, and the model numbers basically only describe what accessories come with them. Mine is a 6360, and I chose it because it came with the extension table, teflon foot and "walking foot attachment." Otherwise it could be any other Heavy Duty machine, they're really all essentially the same (or the same two, I guess). I also don't know that I would recommend this machine for upholstery, depending upon what you mean by "upholstery." If you're recovering some dining room chair cushions, sure; if you're reupholstering a sofa, I don't think so. I have grown to love my HD machine, but it is still a household machine, not an industrial. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!

I have typically used bonded nylon, usually size V69 (my go-to thread), sometimes I use size V92. I've never used waxed thread, my hunch is that it is not compatible with machine sewing but I can't say for sure. My leather sewing experience is limited to making bags, so if you're doing something like horse tack or gun leather I don't have much info to offer, I'm afraid. But if you're sewing softer, thinner leather to make wallets, bags, etc., bonded nylon works fine. I hope that helps!

Hi Charles! I actually have some sailcloth (Dacron) lying around my shop, I think. I'll try to work that in to a video. My hunch is the HD might be fine for sewing in a patch or something that isn't too many layers, I'm not sure how far beyond that it might go. I made a tote bag out of that Dacron a few years ago, and there were some spots my industrial walking-foot machine struggled with, but that was quite a few layers. Thanks for the question, and thanks for watching!

Hi! Bonded nylon thread in size V69 (aka T70). I use that thread for 99% of my sewing. Thanks for watching!

Hi! I used whatever needle was already in the machine, I think it was a size 90 or 100, but not a leather needle.

Mine is the 6360M, but they are all essentially the same machine. There are two variants, one with 23 stitches and the other with 32, otherwise the only difference between the different model numbers is which accessories they come with. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!

Antique machines will definitely sew thinner, softer leathers (as will virtually ANY sewing machine). You can definitely get away with trying thicker stuff with something like, say, a 15-91 (all metal, pinned shaft so can't go out of time). You'll break needles before anything else. (I suppose there could be a risk of stripping the gear in the direct-drive system on that machine, too.) Thanks for watching and commenting!

@@thejasonofalltrades thank you 👍

There is not a simple answer to your question, because it greatly depends on how thick the leather is, how tough the leather is, etc. My general advice is; if you want to add a simple leather accent to a fabric construction, make a simple wallet out of a softer, thinner leather, and that kind of thing, a machine like this is fine. If you are wanting to do actual leatherwork, you should probably be looking at a leather-specific machine, which is considerably more expensive than most sewing machines. Lightweight leathers in reasonable layer counts and thicknesses is not a big deal for standard machines to sew. I hope that helps!

Hi! I apologize for taking a while to reply, but I wasn't near the machine for a few days, and wanted to verify this. The backstitch on my machine varies with the stitch length of the forward stitch, but IS NOT the same length. If getting the stitches in the same holes is critical to the appearance you are going for, you will probably have to backstitch "by hand," meaning hand wheel the needle up, raise the presser foot, manually slide the piece toward you to align the previous hole with the needle, lower the foot, and hand wheel the needle down; repeat for each stitch. With a machine like this, that can be cumbersome and time consuming. This is actually one of the ways I do backstitching on my Consew 225, which doesn't have reverse, and with a knee-lift it's not that slow, relatively speaking. I've used a lot of machines, and used to sew for a leather bag manufacturer, and I don't know if I have used a machine that I would trust to get the needle length in reverse exactly right (I'm not saying it doesn't exist, just saying I don't think I've experienced one that I would trust to do it perfectly). Many of the machines I used at that job didn't have reverse. At the risk of repeating myself, this kind of machine can certainly sew some projects made with leather, but it is NOT a leather sewing machine, and I wouldn't expect professional results from it. I hope that helps, thanks for watching and commenting!

Hi! This one is the best 6360M. To a large extent, the model is irrelevant; there appear to be 2 basic platforms, a 23-stitch and a 32-stitch, otherwise they appear to be exactly the same. The model numbers seem to mostly describe what accessories are included. I chose this model because of the price, and it included the extension table and a couple of feet I wanted to experiment with (teflon and even-feed). I have a whole playlist devoted to the evaluation of this machine, and more to come. I hope that helps, thanks for watching!

Sorry...thinner leather

Mine is a 6360M. You might want to check out my first couple of videos in this series; in terms of performance, there is absolutely zero difference between the many different model numbers of Singer's Heavy Duty line. The model numbers primarily describe what accessories come with the machines.

I agree! I need to emphasize that , to my ear at least, it sounds a lot worse on video than in person. Definitely "jankier" than a vintage metal machine, but not offensive, to me, at least! Thanks for being part of the channel!

Actually, they are pretty quiet

Hi! I generally agree with you; however, as this video shows, this machine worked just fine for the LIMITED applications I tested it on. In case you don't know, I entered into this series with a strong bias AGAINST the Singer HD, and it has continued to surprise me. I still strongly prefer vintage machines, and I still think the "Heavy Duty" name is problematic, as it can mislead new seamsters into buying this machine when it might not be what they need. But, so far it has worked at least as well as my vintage machines, if not better in some circumstances. Time will tell how long it will hold up, that's my biggest concern about it at this point. Thanks for watching and commenting!

Hi! I have three minor areas of disagreement with your comment: One, when I first became interested in sewing, I focused on this machine, and as you suggest, did some "research" online. That research led me to stay away from this machine. Now ten years later I finally get one and it turns out to be a pretty good machine! Maybe it's good I didn't encounter it until now, but reading some stuff online doesn't necessarily yield the right information, and I hear from many people who clearly think "Heavy Duty" means more than it really does in this case (still my biggest criticism of the machine). As you point out, there are many videos about this machine that one might check out to learn about it, and this series of mine adds to that number, so someone doing their "KZfaq research" will hopefully get something from it! Two, you can totally sew leather on this machine, to the same extent you can sew leather on any household, non-walking-foot machine. Most people interested in sewing a little leather aren't prepared to drop thousands of dollars on a machine to see if they like working with leather. You are absolutely correct that to do real leatherwork with thicker leather, you should absolutely buy a proper leather machine, but leather comes in a lot of forms, many of which can be sewn quite easily by household machines. Three, there appear to be two variations of this machine that differ only in the number of available stitch patterns. Every other "version" of the machine is just a different model number to describe what accessories it comes with; the machines themselves are identical. Thanks for watching and commenting!

No more than any other domestic machine. Industrial and domestic are not comparable, and not designed to be. They both have there places, just for different purposes.