Northmount

Depends somewhat on the type of dye (solvent) you use. Slightly dampening the leather seems to help with both spirit and water based dyes. Since the leather is slightly damp, there is less wicking action. Another alternative is to apply a finish ... Like an acrylic and use a spirit based dye that will penetrate into the finish, but not bleed into the leather. It is a little harder to get a nice even colour, but if you build it up slowly with diluted dye, you can even it out fairly well. If you are going to do it this way, you need to practice on scrap to get the colour and feel that you want. Tom

Yes, larger patterns are easier to work with. When they are small, it's harder to fit into the tiny spaces, sometimes need smaller stamps to fit the scale. Tom

Looks like your outline swivel knife cuts may not be deep enough. Caused some problems for you following the cuts while beveling. Make sure to keep the toe of the beveler in the cuts. Practice keeping the beveled smooth, can go back over it, or use a spoon to smooth out any choppy sections. Backgrounding needs some practice to keep the depth consistent and to make a consistent pattern. Have you reviewed how to case your leather prior to stamping? I can't tell for sure, but the floral pattern may have been too wet. Takes practice to stay in that zone of not too wet and not too dry. Looks similar to some of my first pieces. So I can't say it's bad work for the first couple carvings. They are pretty fair for where you are at experience wise. So now what comes next? More practice. Redo these same carvings about 4 more times and see the magic change start to come about. Tom

To make straps with the edges folded (rolled) in, you need to skive all the long edges so they are thin (1/2 thickness for double plus a little more than your seam width), dampen slightly (depending on the leather), fold the edges over to make nice straight edges, press down tight with a bone folder, glue in place, do the same for the other layer, glue the stack together, and stitch the edges. If you don't skive the edges down, then the strap is 4 full thickness layers on the edges, and 2 layers in the middle. Not pretty. Now if I just had a nice power skiver!!! Then I'd be set. I'm not very precise at skiving by hand, so I don't make straps this way. And of course, they don't look as nice. Tom

Need to control the moisture where the chaps are stored. If you are storing in a plastic bag, then you need a desiccant to absorb the moisture. The desiccant will need to be renewed each time you remove them from the bag. If you can keep some air flow around the chaps, and the relative humidity is low, that will reduce the risk of mold. Storing in a damp cold closet on an outside wall during cold weather is a good way to generate lots of mold, so don't do that! Listerine (as mentioned above) or Lysol in your water when cleaning up the mold will retard mold/mildew growth. Keep the mold away from all other leather, it spreads the spores and you will therefore spread the mold. Keeping the leather dry is key, but also need to ensure the leather doesn't lose its natural oils. You will need to oil it occasionally to restore the oils. Note also that air conditioned spaces have a higher relative humidity level. Tom

CA normally refers to cyanoacrylate glue, super glue. So be careful using shorthand like CA for contact adhesive. I had to re-read the previous post a couple times to understand what was being said. Tom

The stuff I have is not acrylic dye. Acrylics are water based, thinned with water. Not the extremely harsh solvents like in this stuff. But I agree with getting a pro to do the job. Tom

I was going to say spray dye, but you have already tried that before. There is a leather garment shop near here, and they use the spray dyes to rejuvenate worn jackets. The dye they used didn't seem to leave a build up layer, nor become really shiny. I have a can of stuff called "Tana Leather Magic Renew Dye". I bought it several years ago, I think from the same shop as above. Haven't used it. It has all kinds of solvents in it. Acetone, toluene, propylene glycol methyl ether acetate, 2-butanone, diacetone alcohol, xylene and of course propane and butane as a propellant. Note that acrylics will not behave the same as leather. Acrylics don't really absorb the dye. Leather is absorbent as long as you have removed any surface treatment containing waxes, etc. Open up the lining seam at the bottom of the back so you can experiment with a bit of leather that will be hidden if it doesn't work right. Then try your selection of dyes and see what happens. Then the one that works, use that to treat the whole jacket. Be careful with these dangerous and flammable chemicals. Work safe. Tom

See this chart Tom

Your email should have contained a link to your PM as well. But WinterBear is right on for getting back to it later! Tom

Prospective buyers would like to know your location. Tom

Try oxalic acid or lemon juice Tom

Pretty much the only way to get all the parts to line up and have a nice smooth consistent edge is to cut a little oversize and then trim the excess after it is stitched (or at least glued) together. Looks pretty nice, and of course would ba a little nicer with the edges trimmed to match. Tom

Too much top tension pulls the bobbin thread up. If the top tension feels fairly light, then the bobbin tension needs to be increased. Large needle size makes it easy for the top tension to pull the bobbin thread up too high. It is a balancing act. Check your needle size vs thread size first. Look at this thread needle chart http://www.tolindsewmach.com/thread-chart.html. I'd try the top tension next before increasing the bobbin tension. Tom

If the link is a direct link to the PDF, right click, save as or save link as (depending on software versions) and save it where you want it. Tom

Sounds like your top thread may have jumped out from between the tension disks. With the bobbin thread laying on the bottom, not pulled up into the material, says there is no or too little top tension. Tom

You can sort by any column, just by clicking on its header. Click again on the same header and it reverses the sort direction. So like Dwight says, can sort filenames alphabetically too. Tom

Nice stitching! Tom

Acrylic finishes are water based versus a lacquer. Acrylic can be cut (thinned) using water. Many cut it to 50% to apply! and apply multiple coats. Tom

277 is too large a diameter for some bobbins, such as cowboy 227 and techsew 2700 and related clones. Tom

Can also stitch the fold lines to make it a little stiffer. But won't make floppy leather stiff. Tom

Ask UPS, or talk to a brokerage agent. If you learn the ins and outs, you can clear your own stuff from UPS instead of paying their exhobitant fees. FedEx does same as UPS. If you clear your own stuff, takes time and travel. Can tie you up 3 or 4 hours depending on the day. Lots of info on the web. Including instructions and forms. Tom

Nail polish remover is now acetone. If you use much, it's cheaper to buy at paint and hardware stores. Also used to cleanup tools after using fibreglass resin. So is also available at automotive and boat shops/stores. EPA doesn't and California haven't classed acetone as a smog producing volatile organic compound, so it is being used in paints and finishes now. That doesn't mean it's not a harsh chemical. Don't breathe too much of it! Tom

Could use cornstarch to absorb the oil too. No smell. Tom

Moderators watch and delete double and triple posts when they see them. Welcome to the forum Tom