The Upholstery Forum

I am thinking of pulling the trigger on a walking foot machine. I have had a good practice on a 2nd hand lockstitch machine and can gain reasonable results, for a beginner.

What are the main advantages of a walking foot, in terms of ease of use and quality of work.

Can I expect to produce better results using the walking foot, or do they simply make life easier ?

Of course it depends on what it is you want to do with it. I'm asuming it is upholstery based on some of your other posts, then i'd say both...better results and making your life easier. For example, i do a fair bit of marine work. It doesnt take long to find yourself climbing from 2-6 thicknesses in a run, or from 8-4 etc. and foam backing makes those transitions much thicker. A walking foot will climb up and down those layers without noticing a difference in effort or stitch length. A boat cover is another example. When putting together a blank for say a 24 foot boat i take 2 (sometimes 3)widths of fabric and put my seam stem to stern. On a long run like that, with a walking foot, your pieces come out even at the end of the run. Without a walking foot, your top piece will come out a several inches longer at the end of a long run like that no matter how perfectly even they were when you started. Same thing with long zippers.

In terms of walking foot machines, there are 2 types . . .

1) a simple walking foot like that Sailrite LS-1, or Consew CP206 where the top foot moves with the bottom feed.

2) a compound feed walking foot (aka needle feed) like the Sailrite Fabricator, or the Consew 206RB

The compound feed machines are going to be the best in terms of quality and ease of use. the needle actually moves back & forth in addition to up/down, so that the needle pulls the work through the machine and stitch length is highly consistent regardless of the irregularities in the number of layers being stitched, etc.

@TedP Is giving good advice. A good used compound feed machine is a better investment any day than a new walking foot machine that does not have needle feed.

I mentioned here recently, I started with a Walker Mini Brute 25 years ago and found out pretty quickly how much it limited what I could do.

Good luck with what ever route you take.

John Long

Great advise guys! Couldn't have said it any better myself.

Thanks for all the advice guys. Invaluable as always.

I managed to find an absolute bargain here in the UK. I think Covid19 may have actually helped. A local upholstery place was having a clearout, due to it being quiet and I picked up this Seiko machine for £150GBP.

I have had a play and obviously practice is the key, but I can notice the difference. My sewing feels a bit more controlled and accurate.

I have even gone nuts and cleared the corner of my workshop and set it up for sewing stuff !!!

Congrats! You did really well...that's a geat machine and did i convert that right?...about $200usd?! i'll take 2 please

That is a good price.... I guess you live in the midlands! I’m down on the south coast and I waited six months for something to come up at a reasonable price. And even then I had to part with £300 (which I thought was a steal!)

I see you’ve already gone out and upgraded to a servo!

Thats an amazing deal on a machine that nice!

Cheers guys. I am in Wales actually Yalan. I couldn't believe my luck when I offered £150 and they said OK

Thanks again for the advice.