Dwight

I have the 4500 . . . which will sew a bit thicker and use some heavier thread . . . but from my perspective . . . the 3200 would very probably do what you need with no trouble. I have nothing but good words to say for the Cowboy sewing machine I own . . . was worried to spend as much as I did for it . . . but am certainly glad I did . . . May God bless, Dwight

I would take my cell phone / camera . . . and go visit a half dozen camper / hunter supply stores. They have oodles of back packs in there . . . Take a bunch of pictures . . . print em when you get home . . . then cut and paste the parts you like best. Personally . . . all my back packs have two main compartments . . . both the full length and width . . . but separated in the middle to only give me half the depth. As well there are two pockets on each side . . . a larger bottom pocket in the back . . . and a smaller one also in the back. As well there is a little slip pocket on the flap cover . . . it lays up on the top . . . for papers / permits / licenses etc. Multiple pockets means you have to fold stuff up tight . . . but you also don't have to sort thru the whole pocket to find just one thing. Kind of a "file cabinet" back pack. I would also consider the one in the pictures if I was in a hurry . . . as it is less complicated to make. But to each his own . . . May God bless, Dwight

Using that pattern . . . I get an end product that I really like . . . as the piece making the front of the belt loop has the hair side showing. A lot of others don't and while it won't hurt the function . . . the flesh side to me is just not as desirable. I think it is "purtyer" this way. I took the knife blade . . . used it for the back template . . . then used that for the template for the front . . . and for a wedge that goes all the way around in the stitching of the sheath. That blade was really thick . . . and I just didn't want to do a fold over . . . so the bottom is three pieces. May God bless, Dwight

Had a fellow bring me his handful of knives that had no sheath . . . so I made em for him. Here they are. May God bless, Dwight

Put a coat of 50/50 Resolene and water on that inside . . . then take a glass slicker while it is still wet . . . slick the fibers down real good . . . let it dry for about 1/2 hour . . . then apply another thin coat . . You'll be good to go May God bless, Dwight

What would be the purpose of the conditioner??? Resolene pretty much seals up the leather . . . I've never put on 4 or 5 coats . . . but I'd come close to betting that it would be water proof by then. May God bless, Dwight

I have never used Pro Resist . . . so I cannot tell you what will happen. All the purses I have ever done either get ONLY an oiled finish . . . or I give them a coat of Resolene . . . 50 / 50 diluted with water. I do that inside and out . . . unless there is some kind of liner inside. My buddy at Tandy said the rub off is probably from the antiquing . . . so you would have to cover the antiquing with either another coat of Pro Resist . . . or Resolene. I've never had any rub off after the Resolene treatment . . . and no dye separation when it gets wet. Find a piece of scrap . . . re-do it to match what your project has done on it . . . then mess with the Resolene or Pro Resist. That's what I would do. May God bless, Dwight

Resolene will give you a similar effect if you do not dilute it before using it. Try cutting it 50/50 and do a light coat with it. Resolene when thinned makes a really good finish Maybe your product will do the same May God bless, Dwight

I was over at the factory on Tuesday . . . had a minor problem with the Boss . . . One of the techs took it (and me) back to his desk . . . went thru it with a fine toothed comb . . . adjusted this and that . . . replaced a small part . . . showed me where I missed on cleaning it up . . . When he was done . . . he ran off a piece that was equivalent of two pieces of 8 oz . . . then he stacked up a pile that just barely went under the carriage . . . and sewed it like a Singer doing silk. We shook hands and he walked me back to the front . . . no charge . . . I like those kinds of companies May God bless, Dwight

Thanks . . . didn't know the real name . . . just what Joanne used to sell it as. May God bless, Dwight

My Chinese copy of the Singer came with a bobbin that does not hold much like you said. It also said I had to use thread that wound a certain way. I generally use carpet thread for just about anything I sew that is not done on my Cowboy4500 . . . it is strong enough that it can cut your fingers if you try to jerk it and break it. Using a mike . . . it is just a couple thousandths bigger than the cotton thread that came in the machine . . . and it works great so far . . . and I've never been able to pull a seam apart that I've sewn with it. I used to get it at Joann's . . . will have to go to Michaels from now on from what I heard. May God bless, Dwight

Just for kicks and giggles . . . make another one . . . use most of the same techniques . . . Just change one part of it. Make the back completely flat . . . mold the gun over a hard . . . flat . . . table . . . and then put it together. It will be two pieces . . . front and back . . . and in actuality would be called a pancake except for the way it is carried with the belt loop. You will be 100% amazed at how much MORE COMFORTABLE it will be . . . especially if you do not have an extra layer or two of body between your belt and your bones. I have two holsters made that way . . . got the idea from a couple Milt Sparks holsters . . . I sometimes carry a full size . . . all steel . . . 1911 . . . or an officer's model . . . all steel 1911 . . . both weigh in at 3 lbs fully loaded . . . and I can carry them all day and not be noticeably bothered . . . because that back is FLAT against my poor boney body. My usual carry piece is also a 1911 . . . but it is a little Springfield micro compact . . . in .45 ACP . . . looks identical to their EMP model . . . But you did a good job on this one . . . stitching is much more even than my hand stitching . . . which is why I use a machine. One other suggestion . . . try super wetting your leather . . . and forming it with a vacuum sealer of some sort. I use an actual vacuum pump . . . don't really have to do a lot to get the molding to come out the way I want it. Thanks for the pics . . . May God bless, Dwight

One of the advertisers on here . . . Toledo sewing machine co . . . handles used machines. He may not give you a deal . . . but his machines are good . . . and a used price will save you some money. Buy the used one . . . learn how to use it . . . let it make you the cash for the new one . . . then sell the used one. May God bless, Dwight

Good looking leatherwork May God bless, Dwight

I had the same EXACT problem with saddle tan . . . darn near quit using it. Now I take a bristle brush . . . and coat the hair side with NFO . . . and make sure you ARE NOT using the compound . . . buy the good stuff. I dip the brush and start brushing . . . watching that every square inch gets a light wetting . . . it has to change color or I add oil to it until it does. I leave it for 24 hours . . . belts laying on their side . . . holsters laying on their back most of the time. After 24 hours . . . I get out the 9 by 16 baking dish (my dyeing pan) . . . and I put it in the dye just long enough to know for absolute certain that every piece of it has contacted the liquid dye. Pull it out . . . and set it up to dry. I quit having "serious" blotchy problems using the above process. There are still slight variations . . . but nothing like your holster. And I can't comment on your process because I've never tried it. I've also never dampened my leather . . . as that is water . . . my dye is oil based . . . and I never believed that oil and water will mix in a good way. YMMV May God bless, Dwight