Northmount

For detailed tooling and such, I don't think there are many of us that really make much out of it. If you have a big name and wealthy customers, then you can sell items for $10,000. You have to find that niche market and work your way into it. Need a good salesman to do the promoting while you do the physical work. There are a number of contractors that do a really great job of their work, but have lots of ups and downs because when they are busy on a contract, they spend all their time working it. Then when it is finished, they have to go on the hunt to find the next job. So either you need 2 people, or you have to take time during your busy contracts to do your promoting and be bidding on the next contract. I think this applies to us as leatherworkers as well. And yes, having the right equipment can make a big difference to your production and product. Depends on how serious you are and what you can afford or are willing to borrow. Tom

If you look at automotive repair shops, they have added a couple lines at the bottom of the bill: Misc shop cleaning supplies Misc shop materials Environmental fees Everyone pays the same fees regardless of the size of the job. You can do the same to account for the small bits and pieces. When we were running a computer sales, service and networking business, there were a lot of low cost items like power cable splitters that were bought in bulk, and used 2 or 3 at a time. Instead of trying to put a fixed markup on these items, we said anything under $4 gets charged out at $5 each. That helps avoid having to have a price list for all the individual items, freight, replacements due to damaged or defective items, etc. You can look at other sellers and commercial establishments and see what similar items are retailing for. Need to consider quality when you do this. Then price your product accordingly. Then you don't need to count all the bits and pieces that go into the end product. There are lots of ways to determine pricing. But if you spend too much time figuring out the bits and pieces, you will have to add that cost into your product too. You can do a search on our forums and find many ideas and comments on pricing, including spreadsheets or similar. Or just get to work and make some money. Tom

See the following post Aug 20 2018 http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/15122-how-to-post-pictures-on-lw/?do=findComment&comment=551171 Tom

Here is a PDF of the forgoing info for any that would like it. Basket Weave Belt.pdf Tom

Stick it in an old dryer, no heat, along with some rocks and gravel. If you check the wiring and disconnect the element(s), you only need 110 VAC to spin the dryer. @PerniciousDuke If you reduce your file size (picture size) to 800 x 600 pixels, you can post tons of photos in one post. Tom

@Mayasimone Moved your post to Leather Sewing Machines. Might get more attention here. Tom

Fantastic carving! Tom

The OP is located in Brooklyn NY according to the IP address. Tom

I don't have access to fix your account, but do notice one thing that may be causing you some problems trying to reset your password. You are using 2 different email addresses. Old one is on me.com, new one is on icloud.com. So supposedly your reset info would have been sent to me.com. I have used the password reset in the past and had trouble until I remembered what email address I had used originally. Thank you for your congratulations!!!! Tom

To go stitch by stitch, you need a servo motor with a speed reducer. If you are well practiced, you might be able to do it with a clutch motor, but would have a number of misses. Tom

Most smart phone pictures are now over 2 MB. So have to be resized. If you are re-setting the file/picture size the camera saves, you have to do that before you take the photo. Have you tried emailing it to yourself and selecting the size to mail? Have you tried "An Online site http://www.shrinkpictures.com/" It should work with your phone. I see it is primarily for FB posts, and they refer to another website for batch resizing http://www.shrinkpictures.com/ Tom

OP is located in Edmonton, AB, Canada according to the IP address. @CourtneyYEG It's a good idea to update your profile with your location so you get information that may be more applicable to your area on this planet. Tom

You can resize photos. Lots of programs and web apps to do that. Reduce the size to 800 x 600 pixels and you can post maybe 100 photos. Tom

Here is a very simple pattern for clip-on sunglasses. Easy project for beginners. Decided to replace a case I made about 20 years ago and have been carrying in my shirt pocket everyday. Copied from a cheapo case. Used some embossed alligator from Tandy, and since I still have some, will just duplicate the last one! I was surprised at how long it lasts with no treatment or care at all. Print the PDF full size, fold in half along the centre line (CL) so it comes out symmetrical! Tom Clip-on Case.pdf

You can link your gallery into your post. Also, instead of hitting the submit button 3 times and getting 3 threads started, give the server time to respond. It could be busy, or your internet connection could be slow/busy. Tom

@whitetail Moved your post to Leather Sewing Machines. You will get more response here. Are you holding onto both threads when you start a line of stitching? Tom

You can reduce the file size to 800 x 600 pixels and be able to load lots of pics. This is a clutch motor on your Adler. Pressing on the pedal engages the clutch. To run at slow speeds, you will have to learn how to slip the clutch. Tom

Really great work. As with your other portraits, colouring will not spoil it! Tom

You lose all the advantages of a servo by making it an on/off control. There is a post somewhere here where a person is using a hand cable control similar to bicycle brakes or motorcycle throttle. A system where you can adjust the speed and lock it at that speed might be handy. And a quick release. Try a Google search such as site:leatherworker.net sewing machine servo hand control and see what you get. You can modify the search parameters to use words that you feel might get better or different results. Found this one Tom

There are a few posts about using a vacuum setup to collect the waste, along with some photos. Try a Google search for them. site:leatherworker.net bell skiver vacuum Tom

I've had people sniff a new article that was finished with neat lac. Then tell me how much the love the smell of leather! All they are smelling is the lacquer fumes! Maybe it reminds them of sniffing glue. Tom

Sold

Keep the humidity around 50%. Too high will go moldy, too low dries out the leather. Tom

@Googledave I moved your post to Leather Sewing Machines. You'll get more answers here than in How Do I Do That. Tom