Art

A used 206 RBWhatever is a good machine. A new 618 (Cobra Class 18) is about $1595. Foot sets are much more available for the 618 and are really not expensive. If you buy used, you have to make sure the machine is in good condition as these types are common in upholstery and trim shops, not to mention drapery, canvas, and awning shops and get used hard. If you can find a Nakagima 280L or model with similar numbers, they were good old machines. Usually, anything you buy will be set up to run fast, you don't need to go slow with canvas and upholstery grade leather. By the time you replace the motor and add a speed reducer, you are in the $1300 range, so go the extra $300 for a new machine with a warranty and a lifeline. The inspection and setup are part of the package, as is the servo motor and speed reducer. Art

In that case glue the binding and hammer down or use a bone folder or the like to smooth it down. You could also sew the edge down with 33 or 46 and a 14 needle at 12spi. Art

A Rotary Punch from Weaver Leather would work. Art

MM, Those styles and others are outlined in Salaman. He also provides copious references to other texts. Dictionary of Leatherworking Tools c. 1700-1950 and the Tools of the Allied Trades by R. A. Salaman: paperback, 350+ pp. Useful information for harness and saddlemakers, shoe and boot makers, hat and glove makers, book binders and more. The most complete leather-working tool reference available. Available at Proleptic and also Amazon which is cheaper and has Super Saver Shipping (free over $25 which this is). Art

Hi Omar, Mold is pretty easy. The trick is to let whatever it is on get very dry, like furnace room for a couple of days dry. When dry, wipe the mold off with a dry cloth, if you have a really moldy piece, you might want to put a mask on. Just keep after it till it is gone. I then use Murphy's Oil Soap and clean the whole piece, optionally I use Lexol Cleaner. After the piece is dry again, I apply Montana Pitchblend, the pitch and beeswax are antimicrobial and the mold stays away. Mildew is another animal entirely. Sometimes it is just tough to get out. Handle as above, but if any is left after cleaning, use oxalic acid (good hardware store will have it), about 3 or so tablespoons in a pint of water, go at it to get the mildew out, but you might have to again do the whole piece because the acid might lighten the leather. Neutralize the acid with a baking soda and water bath, and then just water, and then wipe off and let dry. After dry, Montana Pitchblend. A really bad saddle can be every bit of a day's work. If they let it get that bad, check for rotted leather and everything else too. Art

Hi FB, Yes, draw out a template of your needs and send it to Heather at Texas Custom Dies. She will tell you what it costs. What you are asking for can easily be handled by a 10 ton press. Your options are motor driven hydraulic or manual, the manual will work, but if I am right about what your doing, the hydraulic clicker will be faster. Cost and shipping is the problem, a 10 ton hydraulic clicker press will cost $3000 and as much as another $1000 to ship. If you get the die made, you can send it to me and I will click out a dozen to see what you think. Art

Another thing I thought of, They use Pfaff Bobbins, which some folks replace with "L" bobbins. Often this works, but when it doesn't you can get tension type problems. I know sewing machine mechanics who swear up and down they are the same as an "L" bobbin, but they are not. I often have "L" bobbins that are all over the place with diameter and maybe the bigger ones will work, but smaller not so much. If the bobbin has a big hole in the side of the bobbin that usually lines up with a hole in the case cover then it is a Pfaff Bobbin. There are aftermarket ones that don't have the hole, but do work well. When you said sews well for 10 or 15 stitches then starts skipping etc., it reminds me of this happening. Art

A little bit different machine, but not by much. The 145 has a riser shaft to drive the bobbin shaft and the 545 has a belt I think. Check the shaft and gears for wear. Check for excessive play everywhere as these were used a lot. The problems you mentioned could range from trivial to significant, and parts for an old Pfaff are not cheap. If the machine is sloppy, it has seen a lot of use and if the wear is overall (that means not just a sloppy needle bar) then a pass may be your best bet. However there are good ones out there, but a bad one that needs parts is a nightmare. Same story for a 545 or a 1245. Art

Hi, Harbor Freight has big magnets, however they may not do the job you want. Try this; There is a plate at the bottom of the Arbor press that has 4 U shaped cutouts of different sizes. These are used for holding gear or other wheel hubs when cutting keyways (that is what the press is originally designed to do). Go to the hardware store and get a piece of allthread that fits your chuck. Drill and tap the required hole for the allthread into that aforementioned plate. Screw the allthread into the plate. Then screw the chuck onto the althread sticking up. You should make sure the shoulder of the chuck rests on the plate so that the force will be transferred there and not to the allthread, cut and dress the allthread to the size that will allow for this. In a machine shop, this is a 10 minute job (which includes getting coffee). Art

Taxidermy also has a reality? show, "Stuffed in Alaska" or something like that. Seems everyone wants to make stuffed animals and choppers or whatever the current reality craze is. Now I say lets have a leatherworker show with kind of a BDSM bend, like "Flogged in Philly", or "Spanked in Spokane", "Leather Laddies", or my favorite "Bottom Gear". The proceeding all Copyright 2011 by AV Leather. Note that my original title "Top Gear" is already spoken for by the BBC. Then there are classics like "Repair My Shoe" to go on a different tack (pun intended). If I go any further, I will have to moderate my own post. Art

The 47 is a darning machine, common in the 50's and 60's and before that in dry (and wet) cleaning establishments. It has no feed system other than the operator. Not a lot of use for them now, really not for leatherwork. Art

The 545 is an excellent machine, but in your instance (where you do bags), why not a 335 cylinder arm? Still, it wouldn't hurt to have the flatbed if it is in excellent condition. Art

It seems (or seams if you want a pun) that all they are sewing is chrome tan and mostly splits. Different animal sewing veg tan. The motor won't last very long before it is toast, and the parts aren't very heavy duty either. I know 4x the price may be a little hard to come up with, but a Cobra 5550 or a Class 17 will be nice to leave to the kids when you pass on (or get out of the leather business). A singer 31-15 or 31-20 is also a good machine if you fit it with a roller foot and a servo motor. With sewing leather, Walking foot is better and needle feed with walking foot better still; of course every time you add one of those features, it will cost you $250, but money well spent. Art

All I can say is use Campbell Bosworth and get what you need. They are a very good source for Schmetz needles and have an eCommerce site. They also know how to answer the phone. I would tell you to use Bob Kovar for needles or Cobra Steve, but they don't have eCommerce sites that I know of. If you need something, you can always give either of them a call. Art

Hi Edvin, What you are displaying in the pictures is BINDING, not PIPING. Binding will just do that crunch up thing as you go around a corner with veg tan as the excess has nowhere to go. If you use a piece of piping, it will go between the outside and the liner and because of the cord in the middle, it will cover the raw edges. When you go around an outside corner with piping, you put little V cuts in the flat part of the piping (called pinking), these little Vs close up as you go around the corner. On an inside corner, you put little slits which open up as you go around the corner. Of course, you can do the same thing with Binding, and if you are very good at cutting the little Vs, it will be very close to unnoticeable when assembled. Art

Hi Evan, I just rub it in with my hands. Art

Hi Omar, For leather conditioning products, I have worked through the following: Fiebing's Aussie, Bee Natural Saddle Oil, Pecard's Leather Dressing (Paste), Montana Pitchblend (Oil and Paste). All of these products have given me good service, but somehow I have gravitated to Montana Pitchblend and Pecard's (Pecard's if the customer doesn't like the light pine smell of Montana Pitchblend), so Montana Pitchblend is my primary. When product performance is relatively equal, the knowledge of exactly what is in the product and that it is pretty much natural does carry some merit. I have never seen or used your product, and while it may be very good, I am getting excellent service from the products I use and have no reason to change. Maybe I am too old to change, or more probably, I am a proponent of the if it ain't broke, don't fix it school. Art

Anything Petronio: Master, Petronio, Renia Colle de Cologne, Renia Multi Colle. They all work. You can also use Fiebing's Tanner's Bond, if you prefer PVA (Poly Vinyl Acetate, white glue), it works well also, but you have to clamp it till it dries. Art

Hi Dave, I talked to Steve, and (if you are the right Dave) your machine will ship Thursday the First. I think you ordered it July 1. Steve sells those machines as fast as he orders them, and the cycle time is about eight weeks. As I have said before, these dealers put in a days work on most every big stitcher (Cobra 3 or 4 type). That's why you get a machine that runs so well for so long. That is why you want to use a brick and mortar dealer instead of an eBay seller. Enjoy your new machine. Art

I use a Cabinet that was used to take food trays around in a hospital, it's about 5' x 3' x 3'. It is of course better if it is insulated. Art

If you are on a budget, set it outside in a box on a sunny day, if up North it will have to be in the summer. The box (and the holster) will get to 125 pretty easily. Art

Hi Michael, If you are serious about it, build yourself a drying cabinet. Exterior plywood will work or most things wood. If you are worried about the heat, then line it with sheetrock and/or tin foil. Two incandescent lightbulbs of 100 watts or so will do as a heat source. You have to rig a thermostat for it to turn the lightbulbs on and off, but that ain't rocket science. A circulating fan is optional. Art

Hi Bob, Let me have #s 5, 10, and 12 Please invoice me by Paypal if that is ok artvanhecke at gmail dot com. Art

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Your best bet there is to call LCI and see what they have, or call Wickett & Craig and see if they can apply something, they have a great finishing dept and spray line. Other than that, spray dye, let really dry, buff of excess dye, spray with something like Saddle Lac. Art