Any Advice On Attaching Leather Shoe Soles?

[lordpoint]

I've been interested in shoe making for a good while now and I finally found the spare time to make my first pair during my New Years vacation. I had a great time doing it and I really look foreword to developing the skill. One thing I noticed however was, despite the fact that I enjoy the labor and the process, my little leather patcher sewing machine was a life saver. I used it to sew the parts together on the upper portion of the shoe (relatively light leather, 5 iron I believe) and it only took me about a minute to make a seam that would have taken hours to do by hand.

Unfortunately, I did not have a machine capable of sewing the thick leather used for the sole so I ended up doing all of that by hand and it took a good 2 or 3 hours. I'll include a few pictures so that you have a better idea of what I'm talking about but I'm looking for a machine that can both sew through the thick leather used for a sole and one that can sew into a corner, so to speak. The seam for the sole sits right up against the side of the shoe and the presser foot on most sewing machines is too wide to allow me to make such a close seam. I'm hoping to find something small and hand-powered (like this

) that won't cost an arm and a leg, but I'm open to other suggestions.

I should mention that my ultimate goal, and the reason why I'm looking to save some time, is to do this as a business. A side project at first, of course, but I'm very interested in getting out of my office environment and making a living with my hands.

I've got more pictures here, as well as a brief catalog of the process.

Thanks!

[Wizcrafts]

A Frobana sole stitcher will do what you want to do. It only sews along the outer edge of a shoe, with a minimum 1/4 inch thickness, using curved needles. The machines and needles are available from Power Shoe in Holland. They are available in manual or power stand configurations.

Alternately, you can buy a Landis sole stitcher in the USA.

[electrathon]

Short of buying a dedicated machine I would suggest a local shoe repair shop with a landis. Have them sew the seam along the sole. Should not cost too much, about a 15 minute job if he stops and talks to you a lot.

Edited January 2, 2014 by electrathon

[Wizcrafts]

I happen to know a dealer who has a Gritzner hand operated sole stitcher that he just might sell, in the USA.

[lordpoint]

Wizcrafts, that's perfect! Thanks so much for your help. I'd love to get the contact info for your man with the Gritzner.

[MonicaJacobson]

Sweet shoe! I'm interested in shoe making, but I can't get away to take a class -- is there a book you would recommend?

Edit: After I asked this, I looked more closely at your website and found your "reference" section, which answers my question. Thanks!

Edited January 10, 2014 by MonicaJacobson

[Hunhunt]

I have found the 5 DVD series "The Art of Shoemaking" on the "Healthy Handmade Shoes" website to be a great resource for learning how to make shoes using stitch-down sole method.