great to read darrens post. the voice of practical experience is really important, since again i dont have sail making experience myself. especially nice to bring up some more examples of machines and their pros and cons.
singer 400 series vs pfaff 1222 - for the right price either one of these are good with one important caution on the pfaff 1222 (below). singer 401a wins on durability and still has good power, but the pfaff 1222 wins on torque, control, and having a top feed.
for sails, singer 401a, 403a, 404, are strong machines but somewhat collectable these days, especially the 401a (kinda expensive). but what darren says about the feel of using the machine brings up an important aspect i didnt mention before, TORQUE! It is the power to rotate, but in the context of a sewing machine, i feel it as the power to punch through the material. the pfaff has that punch-through torque and, though the 401a is not a wimpy machine, not so much torque. also, the 1222e has electronic control. the "e" in 1222e stands for "electronic", which means the controller doesnt use a rheostat like an older machine (e.g: singer 401a). it will give more control over the machine: even power throughout the whole range of speeds. darren and everyone else has to start the 401a with a little pull on the hand wheel (thus the name). electronic control is why darren can enjoy slow speed sewing, which is good for making a sail too for sure! the
IDT (integrated duel feed) looks nice. instead of the whole foot moving in tandem with the feed dogs below, there is a little tongue that moves between the tabs of the presser foot. so nice!
Caution - many people swear by these pfaff 1222 machines: powerful but smooth and quite. but unfortunately that smooth quite design comes at a price which darren already identified: plastic gears.
as machines modernized, like everything they started using more contemporary materials where they are a better fit. in sewing machines, that means plastic gears which really smooth and quite things out, especially a nice nylon gear turning off of a steel worm gear. that is great for mama's winter evening quiltings in the parlor with the dog lying in front of the crackling woodstove in 1978, but maybe not so good for sewing a saill in 2016. the problem with these plastic gears is polymer degradation. it might be from oil, but i think its more from heat, time, oxidization, etc. the big risk is that the 1222 has had a few decades for the plastic (nylon?) gears to become brittle and, while it can handle the light sewing like the champ it was back in the day, the gears might crack when the machine hits 6 layers of sail material today, especially with all that nice power and torque that i mentioned above pushing from behind. i hope darrens 1222e goes forever but its a real risk. i think that the cam stack gear in the pfaff is cheap and easy to change oneself, but there are others that could be expensive.
this quilter blogger says it well.
"[the pfaff 1222 is] One of the best vintage workhorses around, it comes with IDF that eliminates the need for a walking food. German engineering that is top quality. Be careful when purchasing because this model does have the plastic gears and if stored in an area without climate control those gears can crack. Some swear by this model and only use it for all their sewing. A great machine and very quiet compared to other models"
on this same point, i have a machine that i really wish i could recommend, but i cant for just this reason. viking 6000 series machines are similar vintage to the 1222. i bought a beautiful viking 6440 IN MINT CONDITION for just $25 at a garage sale. its is a heavy, cast iron frame (as are the singer 401a and pfaff 1222e) and has an amazing balance of quiet power and smooth control (i love the foot pedal!) with a truly beautiful stitch. even more, it has a transmission which gears down to make a SUPER POWERED slow stitch, talk about torque! it is like a tank. nothing could be better for a home sail maker, but they have both the waxy grease problem of the pfaff 260~360 models and also some plastic gears. this is the worst combination. its just not a good choice. i went thought the machine and got it all tuned up nice. puuuuurrrrrrrrr.... it was sewing machine love. on my first pair of pants boom! bang! pow! the plastic cam stack gear broke, and it is a little tricky to fix.
after asking the oracle (internet) about the situation, i went to a very sweet old sewing machine mechanic, and the moment i brought it in he said, "ahhh, youve got a new boat anchor." he basically told me that many machines like this viking and the pfaff 1222 are wonderful but are now facing $200 to $300 plastic gear replacements. he does do them though, and it is a testament to the inherent quality of these temptresses. remember the quilter up above? well she is now grandma and after 40 years of quilting, she loves her old vintage pfaff 1222 or viking 6440 soooooo much, that she will good ahead and pay the mechanic $275 to change the plastic cam stack gear so that she can keep her trustee old friend humming along again in the parlor.
the good news is, since i love reusing/repurposing/recycling stuff, after i finish my boat and someone asks me about my anchor can proudly tell them i use a 30lb. viking 6440.
paul