10 Questions You Should to Know about Shank Adapter Supplier

Depending on the way a sewing machine is built, the shank can be high, low, or slanted, and is equipped to use snap-on, screw-on, or clip-on presser feet. Some brands, like Bernina, also have their very own presser foot system. Let’s clarify this for you so you know whether or not Madam Sew’s presser feet will fit your machine. Maybe you just need an adapter to use our wonderful sewing aids.

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We’ll go over the following questions in this blog post:

1. 1. Do You Have a High Shank or a Low Shank Machine?

   2. What Kind of Presser Feet Fit on What Type of Sewing Machine?

   3. Do You Need an Adapter to Use Universal Snap-On Presser Feet?

   4. On What Sewing Machines Can You Use Universal Low Shank Screw-On Presser Feet?

   5. How to Attach the Different Presser Foot Adapters

Most sewing machines come with a few basic presser feet for different sewing tasks. You can also purchase additional specialty feet to make some sewing and quilting tasks even easier. Our online sewing and quilting tools webstore "Madam Sew sells a 32 Pc Ultimate Presser Foot Set, as well as a range of additional specialty feet, such as the very popular walking foot. Our feet are designed to fit as many types of home sewing machines as possible. We also have three types of adapters to make the sewing machine attachments fit even more sewing machines.

Some sewing terminology used in this blog post might be new to you. In the image below, you can see the different parts of a sewing machine around the shank, the presser foot, and the needle, to help you understand what I am talking about later.

Most domestic machines are LOW shank. If you don’t know what kind of shank your machine is, chances are it’s LOW shank. HIGH Shank machines are generally more “fancy” and expensive, embroidery models or industrial machines. I think most people who have these, know that they have a HIGH shank. But there’s an easy way to know for sure. Here we go...

You need to measure.

Grab a small ruler.

I made a little cardboard 2” ruler to show you.

1. Put the presser foot on your sewing machine in the down position.

2. Measure from the bed of the sewing machine to the center of the thumb screw (presser foot holder screw).

3. If the length from the bottom of the presser foot to the center of the screw is half an inch, you have a LOW shank machine. In the pictures below, you see a Pfaff machine (green plastic) and a Brother Innovis Anniversary (the bigger image). They are both low shank.

If you measure 1 inch or longer, you have a HIGH shank sewing machine.

You snap the presser foot on and off your presser foot holder by pushing a little button at the back of the presser foot holder or just pull the presser foot down and it will let go.

The good news: Snap-on presser feet work on both HIGH and LOW shank sewing machines with a snap-on system. So, in order to use snap-on feet, the height of your shank is not important.  

Most brands use the same universal snap-on system and that is the snap-on system Madam Sew uses on our universal snap-on presser feet. Some brands, like Pfaff have a different snap-on system, though. The bar isn’t the same width or the thickness is different. However, with a suitable adapter, you can use all universal snap-on presser feet on a Pfaff sewing machine as well.

In the picture above, you can see three screw-on presser feet. You need a little screwdriver to remove and attach these feet to your sewing machine.

The screw-on presser feet in the image are

• the darning foot,

• the adjustable zipper foot,

• and the free motion quilting foot.

If your sewing machine uses snap-on presser feet, you can also use screw-on presser feet. You just remove the presser foot holder and attach the screw on foot. If your machine doesn't use snap on feet and you always have to use a screw to remove a presser foot. Your presser foot and presser foot holder are in one piece. In this case, you have a screw-on sewing machine and you will need the low shank snap-on adapter to use snap-on feet. But this adapter will only fit your machine if it is low shank. I'll explain this further on…

As you can see in the GIF below, you first remove the regular screw-on foot or your machine’s presser foot holder, plus snap-on foot, and then you screw on the new presser foot on the shank.

The Madam Sew universal snap-on presser feet can be used on many sewing machines. Most people will be able to use them without the need for an adapter, some will need one. Read on to find out if you need an adapter, and if so, which one.

From what you read above, you now know:

• whether you have a high or low shank machine and,

• if your machine is made for both snap-on and screw-on feet or just uses screw-on presser feet.

Your machine will probably be one of the five types I listed here for you. I will explain them one by one below.

Most sewing machine brands use the same, universal snap-on system for their presser feet. The Madam Sew presser feet also have that universal snap-on system that is widely used. That means the MadamSew presser feet snap on easily on most sewing machines. So in this situation you do not need an adapter.

Some brands, most notably PFAFF, have a different snap-on system. Their snap on bar has a different length. Some HUSQVARNA VIKING owners also let us know their snap-on feet don't fit.

Universal snap-on presser feet can be used with these sewing machines when using a universal low shank snap-on adapter. In fact, you just replace the presser foot holder with the adapter and the presser feet will fit.

Madam Sew sells universal presser feet. We have a wide range of presser feet and adapters in the webstore and the collection is still growing so be sure to check the collection page from time to time.

The chart below shows some of the most common presser feet you may be interested in. All are included in our Ultimate 32pc Presser Foot Set or the Big Five Presser Foot Set. For every presser foot Madam Sew has online user instructions and a video that explains how to attach it, how to use and maintain the sewing machine attachment. You can find all presser feet user manuals on the webstore.

Wow, congratulations! You made it all the way to the end of this technical post. Technical stuff is not my favorite. I would rather write about creating beautiful things. But I actually enjoyed making this overview. As we get a lot of questions asking if a foot fits a specific machine, I know it will help a lot of our customers to get a better idea of what they need (or don’t need) to start using our oh so useful universal presser feet.

And I remember very well how I felt when I discovered all the amazing things I could do with specialty presser feet.

If you have any more questions or hesitations about this, don’t hesitate to send me an .

Have fun sewing and discovering how easy it is to use specialty presser feet! We have clear tutorials, manuals, and instruction videos for every single presser foot we have in our store. Check out all the videos on YouTube, our sewing blog with a lot of sewing and quilting inspiration, and all the online manuals on our webstore. All free for you to use and have more sewing fun!

An
Blogging for MadamSew.com

When I needed one for my old AEG/Unifix drill, I made one out of an old MT2-MT2 extension that I had in stock.
ARC sell them, new but there are obviously many other sources.

Mine was slightly more complicated as I also needed a threaded section, to screw in to the hammer mechanism of the drill to disengage it and make the drill rotary only.

From past experience, just be a wee bit careful using large metal cutting bits in a hand drill; even in just hardwood.

With competitive price and timely delivery, KunXu Drill Tools sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

Bill

…Modern SDS plus machine with a clutch and set to rotary only is a lot safer and the if you get one with vari speed even nicer to use. 1/2" chuck on SDS+ arbor will then hold your parallel shank adaptor.

There are some challenges with this idea.

The major dia. of the SDS shank is circa. 10mm, with its cross-sectional area reduced by grooves and slots. Its torque-transfer ability is therefore limited. Compare with the traditional way of holding oversize drills in a standard 1/2" capacity chuck – blacksmiths's drills (Silver and Deming). They have a full dia. 1/2" shank.

The adapters from SDS to 1/2" UNF for drill chucks are often made of low quality material, so when overloaded, they twist, making them very difficult to remove from the SDS chuck. This is especially a problem in rotary-only mode where the chucks's drive key bears on the same part of the adapter all the time, as there is no reciprocating action to create uniform destruction.

Your idea has merit if he wants to stand in his own house and drill a hole in his neighbour's one. There is a big issue with length. A Jacobs chuck on an SDS adapter sticks a long way out from the nose of the drilling machine. To that you want to add a straight shank to Morse adapter (minimum length slightly over the tapered length of the bit's shank) and into that you want to poke a relatively long Morse taper drill bit.

This one on eBay has suffered some bodgery but it has Morse taper (the ejection slot is shown in one of the pictures) https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-very-large-Wolf-Drill/

It seems Wolf and Kango had some connection so a search under that brand could help.

Also made by Black and Decker, when that was a good brand:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-and-Decker-2-Speed-Industrial-Drill-240v-3-4-22mm-Chuck/

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DRILLING-MACHINE-BLACK-DECKER-HIGH-TORQUE-INDUSTRIAL-3-MORSE-TAPER-240-volt/

I have also seen an old DeWalt version of the same, in 110v.

Arc do these:

**LINK**

but clearly supplied for precision – not a drill waving around about half a metre from the chuck.

The obvious alternative is one of these. Less extra length but has a groove down one side (not a problem with a 3 jaw chuck?). Not 1/2” but you can’t expect everything for a bodge like this?

**LINK**

I just hope you don’t intend drilling holes greater than the drill manufacturer recommends (the chuck size fitted is a good indicator) and it might appear your drill is only a 1/2 inch one?

Edited By not done it yet on 06/01/ 10:33:21

Adapters are available – here is an example but rather pricey: Link

I am sure I bought one from Arc but can't find one in the current catalogue.

Hi John, Arc had a 1/2" to 2MT one in their No.10 catalogue.

I have used a 2MT to 3MT extension one in my 2MT gut buster drill on several occasions without any problems, it's all a mater of assessing the job and having the correct stance and keeping your mind on the job in hand allowing the drill to do the job and not forcing it. Gut buster drills were all you had to use on site work many years ago.

Regards Nick.

Edited By Nicholas Farr on 06/01/ 11:48:28

The only parallel sided MT Adaptors in the Arc Euro catalogue are 3/4 or 1" diametr for 1 MT and 1" diameter for 2 MT, so are far too big to fit into a 1/2 capacity chuck.

Arc sell MT taper shank extension sockets. It MAY be possible to shorten the external MT shank, and turn it down to 1/2" diameter (Depends on how hard the shank is! )

The internal taper has a slot for a drift to eject the MT drill.

They come in 1MT to 1MT, 1MT to 2MT, 2MT to 1 MT , 2MT to 2MT, and 3MT to3MT,.

So, IF the shank can be modified, you would need

2MT to 1MT, 2MT to 2MT and 2MT to 3MT (A 1MT shank will probably finish up at less than 1/2" by the time that it is parallell ) Cost of materials will be about £35..

If you have not already got drifts to suit the three MT sizes, you will need to buy these as well, adding another £6 to the cost of the project.

Total cost circa £45 including shipping in UK, plus .time and effort to modify the shanks.

Howard

In true Blue Peter fashion, here's one I prepared earlier; as per the second post in this thread
These were made for an old AEG-Unifix drill I'd acquired previously, which just came with a conventional drill chuck on a proprietary Unifix arbor.

Each style is for a different purpose; these drills don't have an on/off for the hammer action.

The chisel at the top has a round shank, so there is no rotary drive, the flat is for a half round key to save it falling out.

Middle is the item relevant to this thread; it looks like I mis-remembered, and it was made from an MT3 extension, rather than MT2.
The material turned absolutely fine when I made it. The threaded part (cut on the lathe) screws in to the main spindle of the drill and the round projection disengages the hammer mechanism, leaving rotary drive only.

The lower item is a home made SDS adaptor. I picked up a conventional Bosch SDS item and re-used the outer sleeve, spring and the oval locking dowels.
The new centre arbor is made from a broken Landrover half shaft; no idea of the steel alloy, but it's tough stuff.
Drive is via the hex at the end, which allows both rotary and hammer action.

Personally, If I were to make an MT-½" adaptor, for use in a hand electric drill's chuck, I'd make the end round rather than provide three drive flats.
That way, is something does bite, there is a chance it will slip before breaking any bones.

My version of the old Gut Buster has a 5/8" chuck on a Bosch 3HP plaster mixer.
Unfortunately it's an old one; the current models have safety clutches.
It's not something I would lend anyone else, and when I've needed to use it with a large drill, the big handle opposite the trigger handle has a long steel tube over it, braced to something very solid.
The only time I've had it bite seriously, it snapped a 7/8" bit like a carrot; please treat this sort of kit with the utmost respect, even releasing the trigger doesn't stop it straight away due the inertia of the armature and gearbox.

Bill
.

Edited By peak4 on 06/01/ 17:05:34

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Shank Adapter Supplier.