The Consew 206RB-5 is a standard among heavy industrial sewing machines.  It’s strengths are simplicity and durability.  Aftermarket parts are readily available and several other manufactures produce machines with interchangeable parts.  Indeed, the Consew 206RB-5 has been one of the most copied designs ins sewing machine history.  This illustrates the combination of simplicity and durability that this upholstery and canvas machine has come to represent.

 Consew 206RB-5 links:

• To view the Consolidated sewing machine corp. webpage about the 206RB-5 click here.
• To view the Consew pdf manual, click here.
• To view the parts manual, click here.

The 206RB-5 Review:

I purchased my Consew and a 18″ long arm clone from a vinyl seat upholsterer in Hyde Park N.Y., through a Cregslist ad.  Both machines were used and in inoperable condition (due to minor problems) at the time, and the seller didn’t know how to use, let alone maintain the machines.  He informed me he mostly re covered motorcycle and snowmobile seats, but that someone else did the sewing.  The long arm is a clone of the Consew 206RB-5 made by Chandeler.  After fixing a few small parts, giving them a good cleaning and oiling, and making several adjustments, both machines have worked exceptionally well for me over the past few years.  The machines have mostly interchangeable parts except for the parts specific to the long or normal length arms, and a few small parts “under the hood”.

I set my machines up with #20 needles and I sew canvas with T-138 bonded polyester thread.  The combination works great and the result is a tough stitch that can handle a lot of abrasion, especially if you double or triple it.  Forward and reverse movement of the machine is smooth an nether machine ever miss stitches.  The full rotary hook gets the job done, with few snags and jammed thread.  One word of caution though, you would be wise to carefully wipe oil off after oiling, or risk a drop falling on your workpiece.  After oiling the machine, I always open the end plate  and remove excess oil off of parts after sewing on scrap material for a few feet.

Stitch length can be adjusted from 0 to 10 mm., and I leave mine around 4 or 4.5 mm. for most work.  There are many styles of walking feet available, and a good selection will provide versatility.  The machine also readily accepts folders of various designs and sews with them well.  The Consew 206RB-5 sews thick fabric easily up to about 3/8″, forward and reverse, without breaking needles.  A 3/4 HP motor is a great pairing with this machine, and I prefer the Consew Con-Serv 3/4 HP brushless motor with needle positioning.  The positioning sensor takes a little while to set up, but once in place, speeds up production and increases enjoyability of use.  I keep my needle positioner set so it comes to a stop with the needle down.  A quick push of the treadle with my heel raises the needle.  The motor can also be set up in other configurations depending on your preferences.  One nice mod to slow the machine down a little and provide better slow speed torque, is to replace the larger pulley on the motor to a 2″ pulley.  The only down side to this is it sometimes slips on the belt during extra heavy sewing.

All in all, the Consew 206RB-5 is a very solid machine capable of extended use under demanding conditions.  These are the reasons why this machine has earned it’s place among the best and most affordable upholstery class walking feet machines in the world.