Art

If you want to use contact cement, thin it out a lot so it is easier to control. Place it in a very thin line (use Q-Tip if necessary), and wait till it dries. Put on another coat if not shiny when dry. Or cheat and use Seamstick tape, it works just fine. Get Seamstick at Rochford Supply, or ask Kevin, he may carry it (you'd be suprised what he has at Springfield). I find it hard (impossible for me) to get a zipper in straight without it. Art

Robeson (Nashville area) and Nick-o-Sew (Memphis area) are two in Tenn. There is also Ron up in Canada. There are a few industrial dealers in Georgia also. Art

Usually, when the needle is all the way up or the thread tension arm is all the way up, the stitch has been released. This varies a little bit with each machine. And ALWAYS go in the forward direction. Art

If you like using linen thread, the Campbell is a good fit. If you are just edge stitching, the Landis 12 is also a good fit and if you keep your eyes open, one can be had very inexpenisivly (I have 2, one for black and one for white thread). I also have a Campbell which is also very very good. If you are using poly or nylon thread, a Cobra or Cowboy will do well too. Art

Sloppy, but if you want to, you have to go "all the way around" and complete the stitch before moving to the new hole. Don't try to back the needle up. Just backstitch or in some way tie off each line of stitching. Traditionally, the outer stitch lines were tied around the edge a few times. I don't do it that way as it just seems to me to be a wear point. Art

I use Pecard's on MC gear (it is all pretty much the same formula, they just package it differently for different markets). It may darken just a little, but most of MC gear ends up in the sun anyway so it is going to darken. I use Montana Pitchblend on most everything else, does great for me. With either product, a little goes a long way, especially on restorations. Art

Steve at Leather Machine Company has a 10-Ton clicker that works great. I have one. Steve is a full brick and mortar shop and has excellent product and customer service. The clicker from Steve came completely set up bolted to a steel pallet with a protective crate around it. I left the pallet attached and the machine is easier to move around with a pallet jack when necessary. It was a wire it up and throw the switch affair. The clicker also has a converter so that you can use it on single phase, which I do and it works perfectly. Plenty of power for the 12oz plus that I do. Large complex busy clicker die patterns might require more power, but it has done everything I have asked without even a grunt. Art

It will work till you get something better. The compressor might pulse a little bit because there is no tank and it will run all the time, hard to tell how loud it will be, depends on what you can tolerate, they are usually not loud. The airbrush is cheap, but some of the cheap ones are quite suprising. I like the Veda cheap airbrushes. You can always get another brush or compressor and for under $100, what's to lose? I also like my Iwata equipment but it ain't cheap. Art

Just replace your current motor with a reduction motor. I think Bob sells them. You might need a new belt if the pully size changes. Should be a bolt for bolt, hole to hole replacement. Art

If you do bullet loops, get the longer arm. Art

Casey, We need to know where you are located to give you advice on dealers. At the top of the page, you will find several machine dealers that can set your machine up for leather. Hopefully, you haven't bought just the head. Call Steve at Cobra or Bob at Toledo or Ron if you are in Canada, and see what they can provide. They can each provide a setup for leather. Don't try to shop it for price, they will put it all together for you and it will work from the start. Art

When you are fading, you use the overspray from holding the airbrush 4 to 8 inches or more from the surface and using passes along the edge going from the dark part into the fade. You can exaggerate this somewhat by putting some angle on the brush, but you can do perfectly well holding the brush perpendicular to the work. If you need to hold the brush closer for a smaller fade, then you might have to tilt the brush. Take a piece of paper (buy a pad of newspaper from the art store) and start the fade at the bottom, and work your way up the paper one overlapping pass at a time. You will be putting multiple coats on the bottom fading to lighter at the top. It may seem that you are holding the brush too far from the paper, but the multiple passes will build up the color fading out toward the top. If you want sharp edge fades, you use a stencil to give the sharp edge. The more distance to the paper, the larger the area and the lighter the coverage. You have to practice some to get the feel of how the brush lays down the color. Three or four hours of playtime are very valuable, more is better. Art

Ferg, I haven't used Infinity for a few years, but ordering was ok and the product was top top quality. Art

Six or more years ago, I get some W&C samples (on a ball chain) at a show and was not favorably impressed. However the rep said "trust me" and I did. For veg tanned, that is all I order now. Their leather is excellent. Art

If your husband is handy, he can make you a compressor out of a refrigerator compressor and a tank, with a couple of controls and a regulator, I have seen one and it is whisper quiet. Art

I was and still am a user of Iwata airbrushes and compressors. They are eeeexpensive. Recently, I have ordered and used some Veda brushes from Hong Kong, and quite impressed, even if they only cost about $35 for their best brush shipped. I have a few of then now that cost much less together than any one of my Iwatas. And they work pretty good, in fact very good. They make several models, Gravity, Siphon, and side feed. I tried the top of the line Airbrush Depot compressor, but it and a replacement weren't quite ready for prime as the controls were not right. TCP Global was great about it (maybe because I bought it through Amazon) and replaced it with shipping both ways and full credit. I bought an Iwata compressor through them and they were also great and shipped fast. The Iwata compressor is quiet and works well with any airbrush but is, like I said, expensive. You might want to read Chuck's website as he has some tutorials and product demos of these airbrushes. Much better info than I can give you here. http://www.chuckbauman.com/airbrushes-free-airbrush-reviews.htm Art

Acrylic is water based paint, not dye, it is opaque to different degrees depending on thickness. Water works, acrylic medium works better, marginally, since I airbrush a lot, I use acrylic airbrush medium (Liquitex). Art

Art acrylics work great on leather. I use Liquitex, but any good Acrylic will work. Airbrush or regular brush works fine. If you use heavy body acrylics you might want to thin them some to get more penetration and grip. I din't know about freezing antique. Art

Looks a lot like the new Mitsubishi made by Highlead. Looks a little like the LS-1130 but I can't be sure. I think Industrial in the UK imports them, you can get parts there and ask them what the base machine design is. Art

Southern Leather. Art

It is a good cylinder arm machine. There are two versions, the -1 has a smaller bobbin and the -1B has a big bobbin. Medium Duty, 3/8" or less total. Highlead machines are very good. Art

Landis Canada might have the parts you need. Art

If you're going to pull the trigger, the Adler 867 (get a German one) with an Efka positioning motor is the way I'd go. Art

Bevel down was how I was taught. One bootmaker I know puts a bevel on both sides, maybe for ambidexterous use? It may depend on if you pull skive or push. I mostly push. Art

For the cost of the big Adler, you could buy both a 441 clone AND a medium duty machine like an 206 RB5, Cobra Class 18 or the like. Art