Matt S

Of be great to see some details of your heater blocks Sandy, I understand they are even rarer than paraffin or gas jets. Do you use them?

Sandy is that the cable for an electrically heated needle block?

Then you need to look at the needle block. If the tension on the gibs is excessive or unbalanced, it can cause the issues you describe. It's one of the few issues with the design of the no6, the forward movement of the needle after completion of the stitch relies on a relatively small spring. A little friction or dirt and it simply won't cope.

What's the back like? I have had some success pasting the back with gum (Arabic, though tragacanth would work) and polishing the tar or of it. Also I have found that wetting or soaping the back and running it through a pasta machine works to stiffen leather a bit. Think it's called "jacking"? (Be very careful googling the term though.)

Sieck sells the Cowboy 6" splitter, in crank and motor versions.

There is a screw on the upper arm of the Y-shaped casting at the back of the machine. This screw contacts the screw on which turns the stitch length wheel (after 12 o'clock). This rear screw may need adjusting to make the stitch length correspond with the stitch length dial. Remember to slack off its locking screw first though. If this doesn't fix the problem, you probably have to adjust the tension on the gibs of the needle block.

There is definitely something not right with your machine, those two bolts should touch at all stitch lengths when the wheel is between 12 and 1 o'clock. Luckiily Pearsons are easy to adjust as most of the timing is fixed from the camming surfaces on the main balance wheel.

Ian Armitage has a video showing how he uses a heat gun and IR thermometer to manually heat and regulate a stamp. This is what I would recommend for someone who doesn't have experience or extensive research into building automated heating systems. When buying one from a reputable source you pay for a lot more than convenience.

Does the screw on the back of the stitch length adjusting dial touch the corresponding screw on the large arm at the top back of the machine at any point? It should touch as you turn the handle somewhere between 12 o'clock and 1 o'clock.

Ah yes I remember you had some issues with stitch length. Did you look at the tightness of the gibs as I suggested?

The Pearson/BUSM no6 harness stitcher uses a rotating dial with the stitch length indicated in stitches per inch, which is always accurate when stitching the heavy, stiff leathers for which it was designed as (a) it is a needle feed, so no chance of slippage (b) in normal use the needles are kept straight by us of the needle steady and (c) it has a true square motion drive on the needle, as opposed to the more common pendulum motion which changes stitch length depending on the thickness of the material. Shame they stopped making them about forty years ago... Out of interest, why do you want this feature? I have never felt at a disadvantage using a machine without it -- I always use some scrap of the same substance and thickness as the project as a test sample, and that can be used to check stitch length.

These are indeed excellent slings. The specs are available online with some judicious Googleing -- search for "M1907 sling".

I saw a Tag Heuer in a department store last week. Bargain at £14000 reduction... To £56000...

Thanks for giving us your time Brian, that machine looks like the dog's doodahs. The extra detail really helps too. Do you think the knurling on the wheels adds much to paint pickup?

It's basically a recently produced Pearson no6 with a cylinder arm. Big thing for harness work etc. and no reverse.

Is that the Tony Luberto one where you can move the foot side to side?

What machine do you have Mike? I would look at a zipper foot, you can get very close with one of them. I once made one from a standard smooth bottom walking foot set by cutting off the left toe of the outer foot.

How Northern! Do you peg your teabags on the line between uses? My UK-based money-saving tip is regarding strap cutter blades. Bloody fiddly to strop (i think that's the idea) and 50p+ each. Schick injector blades are even more, and double-edge razor blades don't snap cleanly enough to fit. But No10a scalpel blades work out 10p each and fit just fine and I buy them anyway for other leather uses. And they can be stropped more easily. Need a quiet motor for your burnisher? Silverline bench grinder for £25 including delivery. Pull all the safety junk off and put a felt wheel on the spare end and you have a power strop too. Just remember it's the most dangerous tool in the place (except for Yours Truly). Plus you end up with two 6" abrasive wheels you can put to other uses.

Yeah that'll happen. Apparently it's common on pull splitters. I split a bunch of belts and 4" strips for wallets with my Cowboy 800 but ruined a lot of leather too. So much that I just bought a 7" crank splitter... Night and day difference. Those little Cowboy bench units are really best for doing lap skives, and that's why I keep mine around. A single lap skive or maybe two and the knife is faster. Any more than that the Cowboy comes out.

This is why patcher machines like the Singer 29 were invented. Very small cylinder arm and can sew in any direction. I can't think of a way to do what you want with a normal cylinder arm machine. I would sew it on by hand with a whip or blanket stitch.

How close to the edge of the arm is the needle on a large cylinder arm machine like the 441, 105, 205, or 45k? If a chap needed/wanted a machine for sewing heavy (v347/M8) threads as close as possible to a large protrusion on the underside of a piece, what other options are there out there?

They want $100 for an edge beveller. That's a good chunk of the way towards a bluegrass edge machine.

For edge dyes I use those empty 1" markers that graffiti artists enjoy. Very accurate and not messy.

What about a 331LR, as used in the Pearson/BUSM 6 and Landis 1? They are about a 1/8" shank and 3" long.

Yeah burnishing bridle can be a challenge. My current process is: (1) quick motor burnish with plain water to consolidate the edge (2) apply dye, giving it a quick rub with a rag before the alcohol dries (3) rub on some tallow to keep the fibres down (not too much) (4) apply burnishing solution, burnishing with the motor while it's still damp. Very easy to burn the leather here so keep bloody alert. (5) Put some beeswax on (not too much) and rub well in. Repeat a few times if you like. This is the result of a few years' casual experiments and gives the best balance between initial shine and longevity. It's an ongoing development but pretty much what most saddlers use. (I'm not a saddler, nor do I depict one on TV.) I have found it crucial to always rub in the same direction. Not all leathers respond the same.