Industrial, Commercial, Professional, Domestic Sewing Machines- Confused???

Should you get an industrial machine? How about one that is “commercial grade” or “professional”. What about an “industrial strength" sewing machine? What do all these terms really mean and, what's the difference between them? It’s all so confusing!!

Both eBay sellers and sewing machine manufacturers seem to have a knack for confusing the realm between  household & industrial machines, and there are models out there that attempt to straddle the line between the two types. This article will try to clarify and categorize the different types, and help you determine what might suit your needs best.

First, lets talk about “true” industrial machines. These are highly specialized machines. Unlike a domestic household machine that is expected to handle a wide range of sewing tasks, the true industrial machine will not. Some just make belt loops, while others sew straight seams on shirts, but they all perform their specific task very well, really fast, and for many hours, every day, for years on end. For high volume production work this approach increases the overall productivity of the factory and results in the item being manufactured more quickly and at a higher profit. Watch the video below, and notice how many different, industrial sewing machines are used in making a pair of jeans. 

Many people assume that if a machine is industrial, then it sews thick or heavy materials. This is just not the case. Many industrial, lockstitch machines are designed to sew lighter to medium weight material, albeit at a fast speed.

For example, the Juki DDL8300 (pictured on the right) is designed to sew light to medium weight fabrics and is suitable for shirt making and lighter weight home décor materials, not multiple layers of heavy upholstery or thick leather. This typical, straight stitch single needle lockstitch machine sews up to 5500 stitches per minute (SPM), weighs about 90 pounds when you include the motor (about 30 pounds). The typical cost for this machine is about $700.

Juki DNU1541

Then, there are specialty industrial machines intended specifically for heavier, thicker materials (beyond most garment weight fabrics), but these machines are NOT suited to sewing lighter weight materials at all. For instance, a machine like this would not be used to sew delicate chiffon. The Juki DNU1541 would be an example of this type. It is a compound feed, aka walking foot, machine. The sewing head alone weighs 80 pounds and the motor another 30 lbs. That puts the total weight, without the table at about 110 pounds.  It sews at approximately 2500 SPM (notably slower than the DDL8300 at 5500 SPM). This machine also makes very long stitches (max. stitch length 9mm - almost 3/8” ). These are usually priced in the range of $1500 including the required industrial motor (mounted below) and the industrial table.

Notice that these machines are straight stitch only with no built-in buttonhole or any extra stitches. Given the highly specialized nature of true industrial machines, that’s typical.

Moving along , we come to the next class of machines. Those which are often referred to as a commercial or professional machine. These sewing machines not intended for high production factory environments, but for cottage types of business applications (tailor, alteration shop, dressmaker, etc..) or the very active, very serious hobbyist. The true industrial machines can also find their way into these types of environments as well, and will do just fine.

Sometimes these types of machines will be mounted into an industrial style table with a motor mounted below. An example of this would be the Tacsew/Bernina 950. It is not made for sewing the really heavy stuff like the Juki DNU1541 compound feed machine. It’s intended applications would be along the same lines as the Juki DDL8300 type of machine. The notable differences between the two is that the Tacsew 950 has 21 stitches compared to straight stitch only function of the Juki DDL8300, and the Tacsew/Bernina 950 is considerably slower at 2000 SPM vs. 5500 SPM for the DDL8300.

Next, we have machines that are actually portable machines which are supposed to be built and designed to handle a larger, more frequent work load than the typical, modern home machine. These machines are not industrial, and are often referred to as "commercial grade" or "professional".  These are actually domestic sewing machines, but they are suppose to be more durable than average or are designed for specialty applications.

On the new machine front, there are several models marketed this way. They usually sew a little bit faster than most, new home sewing machines (1000 to 1600 SPM), and can take either standard home sewing machine needles or use one of the industrial needle systems. Prices for these types of machines range from about $300 to approximately $2,000. These machines tend to be more sturdy than the budget, domestic models, but still don’t match the over build quality and durability of the better, vintage machines, or true industrial machines. However, they should hold up to more usage better than a new discount store machine or other economy, household model. At the same time, it’s doubtful that they will be still sewing along in 40, 50 years like many of the vintage machines.

Also along this line,  there are the Sailrite and other portable walking foot machines. These are a more specialized type of machine. I have used them, and they are quite capable at handling the heavier jobs when a portable model is desired. Keep in mind the material you are sewing must compress down to ¼” or less or it won’t fit under the presser foot . If you can get it under the foot, It’s likely these machines will sew it. Now they are not intended for constant production work. If you are opening a boat cover or automotive upholstery business, this should not be your primary machine, and if you want to sew lighter fabrics, this type of machine won‘t do well at all.  They sell for approximately $400 to $900 (depending on brand) and weigh about 40 pounds.

Finally we come to the vintage domestic machines. While many are high quality, sturdy, machines capable of a wide variety of sewing applications, they are, by no means, industrial or "industrial strength".  In fact, "Industrial Strength" is simply a sales term with no factual definition or meaning when it comes to sewing machines.  However, many vintage/classic models such as the Singer, cast iron straight stitch machines,  some of the Necchi's and others,  have been favored and used successfully for decades by serious dressmakers, tailors and alteration shops. They are designed to handle a wider range of materials, weigh much less and offer more versatility than a true industrial. However, a constant “diet “ of heavy duty projects will certainly takes it’s toll on such a machine eventually, and they are not suited to extremely high production applications at all.

Since not all industrial machines even sew thick or heavy materials, the term “industrial strength” is obviously meaningless. Take it for what it is - a clever marketing term meant to confuse and mislead people.

We are fortunate to have so many choices within the realm of sewing machines. It’s important to sift through all of the hype and find the type and style of machine best suited to your application. If you are buying a new machine (industrial or another type) your best bet is to go into your local dealer and test sew samples of the materials you will be using on the machines you are considering. If you are considering a Sew-Classic machine, rest assured that I will do everything to help you chose just the right one for you. I encourage people to send me their fabric samples or specify the types of materials they will be sewing and I will objectively test them on the machines you are considering and report back to you with detailed results. Of course, if you are within driving distance of Northern Ohio, please set up an appointment to come over and try them for yourself. If you are buying from a garage sale, thrift store, or eBay, you will really have to dig in, research and do your homework about the machines you are considering.