Punch card sewing machine

July 2025: Sometimes there are interesting coincidences. One evening in a pub in the middle of nowhere in Austria's Mühlviertel region, a weaving colleague from Hesse walks into the bar. After a big hello, I ask him over dinner if he knows anyone who can sew my punch cards for the Lyoner Feinstich loom. (I didn't even dare to dream that such a machine could be bought anywhere.) My colleague replied that he had such a machine that I could take over immediately. Of course, we didn't think twice about it.

November 2025: After some difficulties, the machine was delivered by a shipping company at the beginning of November. The delivery arrived on a Friday instead of the following Monday, and it was fortunate that I was there at the time. The machine was initially parked in the yard.

At the end of November, on two days with good weather, the machine was brought into the workshop. First, heavy-duty rollers were mounted under the frame. The machine weighs 700 kg and then had to be pushed over bumpy cobblestones and a sloping pavement to the workshop entrance. This alone was a challenge. But the real feat of strength was lifting the machine piece by piece to the level of the workshop – two steps had to be overcome. With the help of two car jacks and lots of small boards, this was finally achieved and the machine could be pushed into the workshop on planks.

January 2026: In January 2026, the machine was fitted with a new electrical installation. We were able to keep the old motor, but the connections had to be replaced. The motor must run in the right direction, otherwise the synchronisation in the mechanics will no longer be correct. Thankfully, a neighbour with electrical qualifications took care of this.