I'm leaning forward and listening carefully :)

I couldn't wait: Just ordered various sizes from that auction web site. Curiously, my local shop only has Schmetz, and they showed me the equivalent yesterday (which actually had "HLx5" printed on the box). The Schmetz were the exact same size as 15x1, hence my ordering them from.... New York city! So, Great White, you'll probably have already tested yours by the time mine get here (or I hope so) and given us 206/306/319/320 owners the good news.

I haven't tested mine yet, but have done a quick and dirty assessment by putting a schmetz #18, an HLx5 #18 and a 206x13 #16 side by side.

Sad to say, the organ HLX5 is about the same size as the Schmetz. They are shorter to the tip, but it's in thousands of an inch shorter.

So at this time I have to say there is no difference.

I'll ge tthe vernier out and put some numbers on these difference, but I don't think it's going to work.

Now, they will work in my machine since the schmetz 15x1 needles do (again, not recommended that everyone with a 319 go out and start using 15x1's). The organ needles are noticeably more robust than the schemtz. I'll be swapping to the Organ needles for that reason alone....

That's not what I wanted to read but it's what I expected :(
I do have a small stash of 206x13s in size 16 and use the Singer 96K49 for heavier stuff so I'll save the 320K2 for normal and free arm uses.
Still excited to get the HLx5s though. Ordered 16s and 18s.

Just a quickie.

Using 15x1 leather needles in my 319w to do exterior grade vinyl. Stitched up a sleeve to make a foam filled gasket (pool noodles) to seal my truck cab to my bed cap.

6 layers of vinyl in some seams and Velcro closure parts thrown in here and there.

Worked great!

It seems to have a funny quirk now and then with timing. It will be sewing fine and then its like the shuttle hook goes 180 out.

A re-time fixes it just fine, until it does it again a few weeks later. Everthing is tight, clean and running well. I'll have to get deeper into its guts and have a closer look. Very odd behavior. I do have a complete spare shuttle hook assembly if I need to swap it out. I bought it online from a guy scrapping out a couple 319w's. I grabbed it since it came with the original bobbin case and the whole thing only cost as much as an aftermarket case.

I will say that I no longer believe the "can't use 15x1 needles" thing. I use them all the time with no issues. Stitches great. My machine is a little altered, but nothing radical. Just a little clearancing and I don't think it even needed that.

But overall,very happy with the old hack. It will sew pretty much anything that will fit under the foot. Well worth the 100 bucks I paid for table and machine.

:)

What a read, indeed. Only your pics didn't come out, and I don't know what a 319 looks like. Congratulations on your acquisition and perseverance to get it home with you. I fly with a sewing machine of one kind or another all the time, only on SW from Nashville to Austin, and mostly with a Featherweight. It does get some funny looks when I go through security, and they sometimes make me step to one side while they finish looking at it on their monitors. This from a little ol' lady who is afraid of fireworks and guns.....but I am careful to smile and say "sure" when they ask me to step out of line.

I'm with you JoAnn, I had to look it up. here is one off the internet.