Northmount

Since you list the sewing machine in the title of the thread, I would put up a photo of it as a minimum. Tom

You must have read Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn when they were disguised as girls! Tom

Obviously you read the market place rules as you added to the thread before you posted these items. Please update your for sale postings accordingly. Tom

Do a search here for wet molding and you will find lots of threads. Here is a pinned topic http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=19782 Tom

Looking good! I've only rinsed off the surface. Had no problems after. It is a fairly weak acid so gets "used up" quickly. I occasionally treat pieces of leather that don't have an even colour. It usually helps. Tom

For smaller quantities, OTB sells under the name Hardware Elf. Higher prices though. Tom

The cost difference is small if you cost out the added features individually. So you need to decide if you need those features or not. If you are doing a high volume of work, the needle position system is really nice to have. If you are sewing hard temper 8 oz (or more), you will want to get a speed reducer as well if you want to sew really slow going around corners, etc. The Techsew 2700 is the same basic unit as the Cowboy 227. One advantage of buying in Canada (for Canadians of course) is eliminating the costs of brokerage charges unless you do your own customs clearance. UPS and Fedex work on a percentage fee for brokerage. If you ever have to ship the head back for any reason, dealing with a Canadian dealer removes the obstacles of clearing customs in both directions. I have a 2700. I have added a speed reducer pulley set, a drop-down edge guide, and a LED light above the needle. Make sure you get left and right toe presser feet. Also get leather-point needles. I have no complaints with Techsew or the machine. I have thought different times that the EPS would be nice, but I don't do high volume work. Tom

Iron and the tannin in the leather makes black. Take away one or the other and it won't turn black. So for veg tanned leather, you have to keep all sources of iron contamination away from it while wet/damp. (Normal stamping with steel tools normally won't produce black spots.) Vinegar is dilute acetic acid. It will not produce black in leather anymore than oxalic acid will. But once you dissolve iron in the vinegar, that is a whole different story. Now it contains iron and will react with the tannin in the leather. When you add enough iron to the vinegar, all the acid is used up and the vinegar smell is mostly gone. Many people use "vinegaroon" to their advantage to get a nice solid black that doesn't bleed and may color the leather from one side to the other depending on how you apply it. Tom

If you are using the 1/2# or 1# spools, the thread comes vertically off the top of the spool. You will have a spool stand that holds usually 2 spools. The spools don't rotate. Take a look at the web photos of your machine or a number of videos that are out there. Tom

To obtain these patterns, use this link Looks like the only way to stop the requests to email the patterns is to lock this thread. Tom

Edited Title for you. Tom

Al Stohlman's books on making leather cases, available at Tandy and others. Tom

Here are a couple more views I found. The second view shows the back side. http://gadgetsin.com/uploads/2012/03/handmade_leather_iphone_wallet_1_0001.jpg http://gadgetsin.com/uploads/2012/03/handmade_leather_iphone_wallet_4_0001.jpg Tom

Really great work. Great skills. Tom

Looks like you've got the key -- to a new idea! Very nice. Tom

Leather Machine Company, Toledo Industrial Sewing Machines and Techsew as advertisers here (see top banner ads). Plus, Gregg at Keystone Sewing and Dan at Campbell-Randall are contributing dealer-members. Techsew is in Montreal. Most dealers also have used machines, depending on recent trades or acquisitions. Edit: Give them a call so you can discuss. Tom

It would probably help if you gave some information about your machine. Make, model. Check the banner ads at the top of the page. One is in Montreal. Not real close, but avoids shipping your machine to USA if you need to ship to a dealer. Tom

You need to clean, remove the waxes and other finishes and use a spirit type dye. EcoFlow is water based and will not likely soak into the leather. For cleaning, use a deglazer. There are other threads here about using deglazers and what they are made of. So do a search for them. Tom

ClayB, a member here does embossing and has a couple tutorials. Look at the open mouth bear and at the buffalo. http://badlandsleatherart.com/BadlandsLeatherArtTutorials.html http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=62 Tom

Read post #127, and other subsequent posts. Always a good idea to read the last few posts in a long thread like this. Tom

See this thread http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=53760&hl=aerostitch Tom

I gather you like thin soles. Thin wears out faster. If you put thicker soles on, they will be stiffer and not have the flexibility that you appear to need. Tom

Take a couple photos, back of the head, top of the head, and post so someone that knows the machine can point to the adjustments. Tom

Buy Methyl Hydrate at your paint/lumber store. Low cost, 1 gallon / 4L size. Works well for thinning alcohol based dyes. Tom

3x12x18" http://www.busybeetools.com/products/SURFACE-PLATE-12IN.-X-18IN.-X-3IN..html surfacing granite at Busybee. Tom