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There are no State or Federal exams or licenses here in the US. There are trade schools, apprenticeships, and self taught. I'm one of those self taught but I wouldn't take on jobs that are critical unless I know what I'm doing. I focus on small repairs and if I see something that needs a pros hand I'm not afraid to admit it. There's a couple saddlers in my area. One is an old timer that's been doing it since he was a kid and his father showed him. Another is around 30-40 and he was taught by his father and he was taught by his father. I tell people to go to them for major repairs.

I was attempting to equalize the forward and reverse stitch length, as described in the video by Ewe. Got to the point where you move the block, to either lengthen or shorten the forward stitch, and it wont move. After loosening the screw, when I try to move it, it just moves the reverse lever. Isn't it supposed to pivot on the shaft?

I cannot agree more with all of you. There is a reason that in most places in the world being a saddler is connected to getting qualifications and even long apprenticeships. And seriously, I personally cannot stand for the life of me, most saddle fitters, as even they are often undereducated. A saddle fitter (with unknown qualification, probably a weekend course at one of the saddle manufacturers here in Germany) just sold a friend of mine a jumping saddle with a broken saddle tree. But she kind of beats that! I mean you shouldn't miss that the tree is broken, but it can happen. She willfully patched and even made a tutorial out of it. My first thought was: "Hopefully she has good insurance!" The second was seriously questioning why one would patch a billett? That is critical equipment and I learned in riding school that you renew everything that is a safety risk ASAP. If that would have been my saddle, the whole straps would have gotten renewed! Just to be sure, and by someone licensed, also as they are insured for failure of equipment. Just to be on the safe side. Do you Americans don't have to pass training and official examen to be a saddler? I mean no saddle fitter would hopefully do such a job, they are certainly not qualified for that or whatever she calls herself. I'm a bit confused and maybe thinking too European. Can someone explain?

Thank you, @AlZilla!

They might have come by the manual honestly from their Chinese friends who make the Cobra machines. Glad we're all on the same page. You got a bargain.

Ok, @Shoe repair daughter, thanks for taking care of this. What a great deal for someone. I moved it to the Used Machinery area.

@WMages Hi there, I have one for sale in case you are still interested. Fully functioning with all parts original, I assume. Heard it works like a charm for thicker sole leather, but since I'm a fashion designer and work with really soft and thin (0,5-1,2 mm) garment leathers I don't have much use for it. Let me know if you're interested. I was thinking around 2k USD, but I'm open to suggestions. I live in Sweden but if you can arrange the shipping to wherever you are located I'll take care of the rest. I'm pretty used to sending heavy stuff so I know how to package it well. I'm new here on the forum but I'll try to post it in the sell ads section where it belongs. Kind regards, Grace

Hi - I'm in Dallas and would like to come take a look and probably buy.

Hello, my father and I owned a couple shoe repair shops in Diamond Bar and Covina, CA. We closed our Diamond Bar location and are officially now only in Covina with extra machinery. We have a total of about 11 machines all in different working conditions. See below for details. DESCRIPTION OF ITEMS: Mixed lot of industrial shoe repair working machinery including: Red Sutton Landis Chain Stitcher (WORKING CONDITION) Charlotte Sewing Machine (WORKING CONDITION) Additional shoe repair working machines (PARTS ONLY/NON-WORKING) Make/Model: Various manufacturers - Sutton Landis, Charlotte, others Condition: Mixed lot - 2 working machines (Good condition), remaining machines (Parts Only condition) Dimensions: Heavy industrial machinery - exact measurements TBD upon inspection Weight: Extremely heavy - requires machinery/equipment to move Color: Various (will be shown in photos) WHAT THESE ITEMS ARE/DO: Industrial shoe repair machinery used for professional shoe rapair and finish, shoe making, and heavy-duty sewing operations. The chain stitcher and Charlotte machine are functional for immediate use. Remaining machines contain valuable parts for restoration projects or can be used to repair other similar equipment. PICTURES: [PHOTOS TO BE ADDED - Pictures of each machine will be posted showing current condition] PRICING & TERMS: Price: $3,000 USD for entire lot (individual machine pricing available upon request) or BEST OFFER. Payment: Cash, certified check, or Zelle Shipping Policy: BUYER RESPONSIBLE FOR PICKUP AND TRANSPORT Heavy machinery requiring professional moving equipment Seller can assist with coordination but buyer must arrange/pay for: Professional machinery movers OR Appropriate lifting equipment (forklift, crane, etc.) Sufficient labor for safe removal Pickup can be arranged over multiple days if needed All items sold AS-IS, WHERE-IS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Working machines: Red Sutton Landis Chain Stitcher, Charlotte Sewing Machine Non-working machines: Available for parts or restoration projects Serious inquiries only - these are substantial industrial machines Inspection welcome by appointment before purchase Will be marked SOLD when transaction completed If you know someone who may be interested please let them know! Thank you! CONTACT: Respond through forum messaging or you may email me at beabosscoaching@gmail.com.

I will try that next time, thank you! I'd forgotten about piercing the thread, thanks! I think you may be right! I will try bending it first on the next bracelet. Since the copper is sandwiched between two pieces of leather, the copper never touches your skin. I've never had any issues wearing them. Here is a link to the video where I learned how to make them. Interesting! I'll give this a go, thank you!

I agree her use of tools was horrible. Her stitching was equally so, not only was it just a plain running stitch but it was a fairly loose one at that. So even if this would be an acceptable repair the stitching would make it not so. It really just shows her lack of knowledge in horsemanship. Setting a rider up for potential equipment failure not puts the rider in danger but also sets the horse up for failure weather through loss of confidence or through an injury. I’ve was in a horse wreck dragging calves to the fire and had the rope get under my horse which led to equipment failure, my fault for thinking it the reins were ok, I ended up pretty cut up over the deal. I can’t imagine what it could have been if my latigo of off billet had failed.

I use a smaller oval shaped punch . . . Never quite got the hang of it . . . minor miscues really look bad with it. Finally put it in a vise . . . made sure the punch was oriented straight away . . . Took a file and engraved a line down the middle of the top of the punch. No more problems . . . works great. May God bless, Dwight

Excuse me for laughing TomE . . . but just for the heck of it . . . I went to the page on threading . . . the Chinese actually coppied the same images and everything in my book that came with it. I could not afford even a used Singer here . . . and this one was only 335 bucks. May God bless, Dwight

I have severe peripheral neuropathy in my feet and legs . . . (starting in my hands as well . . . ugh) . . . so I have to sit while using it. Coincidentally . . . saw a Singer frame for sale . . . had to laugh when I thought of it . . . Wound up buying two frames . . . will make a table for our church out of the other one. I sit on a folding stool when using it . . . and it is really comfortable. It is a Chinese copy of a Singer 29 something . . . it is one of the two with the smaller spool . . . about the size of a quarter. I was somewhat concerned about the thread . . . turns out that good old carpet thread works great in it . . . I'm also going to remodel it some day down the road . . . in the arms (solid 2 x 4's right now) . . . I'm going to make some long drawers . . . keep all the thread, bobbins, needles, etc. in them. May God bless, Dwight

That's a beauty! I am still making friends with my patcher but find it is very handy for repairs. It seems reasonably forgiving of my lack of experience with it. Have fun. Here's the manual for the Cobra 29-18 patcher. https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0631/4000/3933/files/29-18_Manual.pdf?v=1747672941

Nice re-use of the old Singer base. Keep us posted on how it works. I've been considering one of these myself.

Good tip. I prefer hard copy of references, but anymore they're harder and harder to find. Sucks being an analog man living in a digital world.

I used to mess with cars before I resumed leatherwork. I had good luck with these products for leather interiors. https://www.griotsgarage.com (couldn't embed the full link to leather care products, but you can search the site for "leather"). Now I would probably clean the seats with glycerin saddle soap and a wet sponge, rinsing the sponge often to remove dirt and excess soap. While the seats are damp I would apply a cream conditioner like Bickmore's Bick 4. If that didn't restore the seats to your satisfaction then I'd find an upholstery shop to recover them.

Thanks, PastorBob!

Thank you! I've tried to use GPT but I got approximations such as "tandy" and "weaver", which is quite unaccurate. Also, I dont remember buying on any of these 2 sites, so again, no clue where I got them :D btu have them in silver and brass version. @FrankHester Yes, it surely does look amazing tho! Want to buy more tho

That is excellent!!! Stohlmans , The Art of Embossing Leather, is a good reference if you can find it. They use leather under the embossing to raise it. I, 've never tried i but i did get the ebook off of the Tandy site. I don't know if they still have it listed.

Was able to finish up 2 portraits this week. Next one is none other than Ozzy Osbourne. Granted, labeling the portrait is a little bit of cheating lol. This is my first time doing deep embossing (around the hands) to achieve more depth to the piece. I like the effect, but find I can't get the crisp detail out of the carving if I try to add tooling to the embossed section. The filler material (Renia 3D embossing filler) has a lot of give to it. I wonder if a hard setting epoxy or similar may be a better solution? Also maybe I should tool, emboss, then retool to establish the crispness that I lose by pushing out the embossed section? Not sure. I also used the black eco flo antique which I find I prefer the dark brown of the other portraits. The black is too much of a contrast for my taste. The brown seems to marry the leather undertones better, but just my opinion.

Most of my hand sewing is using #207 bonded nylon that I wax. If fact, I always re-wax waxed thread before use because the wax is usually dry and flaky. I use a cobbler's wax that is a mix of beeswax and pine resin. After waxing I burnish the thread with a piece of heavy brown wrapping paper to even out the wax.

it also works on wood screws, tap and die sets, your awls and needles. Just about anything that needs some help against friction, weird, isn't it?

I like that wallet, utilitarian design, simple I carry one very similar, and you're a front pocket carry, A' me to for the last 58 years. I have done some airbrushing, but I will definitely try your method on my next project. Thanks again.