New machines for the Seattle factory

We've purchased several new Juki DLN-9010 sewing machines recently. The DLN-9010 is a straight-stitch machine: straight-stitch machines are the least specialized machines in the factory and therefore the most utilitarian and most used.

Our new Juki DLN-9010, shipped from Orange County, California.

This particular machine is for Sim who will use it to take sub-assemblies and from them create a finished bag; basically, creating a 3D bag from 2D panels. It's hard work and Sim is already appreciating having a new machine to help her.


There's plenty of room for more machines in our new factory.

While the DLN-9010 is not specialized in that it can sew many different parts of many different bags, it is by no means simple: it is a needle-feed machine which means the needle not only goes up and down but it also moves (ever so slightly) back and forth, helping feed the fabric through. This is a big deal when sewing heavy fabrics, making the seams look better and the work a little easier too. The DLN-9010 also has a number of computer assisted features like automatic back-tack and thread trimmers; it's light years ahead of the home Singer machine Tom's grandmother gave him years ago. (Tom muses that we should really call them sewing tools rather than sewing machines -- read some Ivan Illich and maybe you'll get what he means.)


Son, our mechanic, does a pre-flight inspection on the new machine.