Andrew Chee

Glad to see there's still garment manufacturing in the US! Malik, how much does something like the 867 cost? Personally for me, Artisan Toro 3000 (441 clone), Pfaff 335, Consew 206-RB5, and Consew 206RB-3 (got that for free). The last three machines all have Positioner servos, speed reducers, and adjustable guides. I actually should sell one of the consews since I don't really have a need for it. Andrew

Another question. What is the purpose of resolene or neat lac at the end of the process? Will it keep the fuzz from coming back? Andrew

It's the new modern housing with the synchronized binder. I took a look at the timing and lowered the needle bar a bit. Then I redid the tension and things seem to be ok now. Not sure what needle bar height might have to do with tension... Maybe Wiz might know? Andrew

Hello all. I have another tension problem question. I have a Pfaff 335. I have it set up with 138 thread top and bottom and a size 22 needle. I was trying to get it to sew through a single lay of 6oz W&C harness leather. It was giving me a lot of thread loops on the bottom. I had to crank the top tension all the way up and the bobbin tension all the way down just to have it make a good stitch. I switched over to stitching three layers of the same leather (skived down to 3oz each for a total of 9ozs with contact cement between the layers. Using the same setup and tension, I got thread loops all over the bottom. I tried switching to a 23 needle instead and it was a little better but I still had a lot of inconsistent tension. I've attached some images of the bottom stitches after switching to the size 23 needle. Any suggestions on what might be wrong? My top tension is pretty much cranked all the way up so I'm not sure what else to adjust now. Thanks. Andrew

Your buy Zulu hardware section works but your buy Nato hardware section doesn't work. The size dropdown doesn't work and the paypal button doesn't work on that page either. Andrew

A Techsew 2700 or 2800 will be pushed to the limits of its ability sewing the thicknesses that you are talking about. The machine will not be able to handle the thickness of thread that you used on our bag. You can use the machine if you don't go thicker that three layers and if you use a lighter thread. If you want to sew as heavy as that and more, I would suggest a heavier machine. Andrew

How thick si the leather? What size thread is that? Andrew

Interesting. Do you have the hardware in different colors? Gold nato hardware or black zulu hardware? Also, your website doesn't seem to work. I don't see how to actually order from that site. Andrew

If you're talking about horse tack (reins and stuff?) you're probably talking about a heavier machine. most of the machines on eBay won't do. I think that when you get to that thickness of leather, there's really only one or two classes of machines that will work; either a Juki 441 clone or an Adler 205. Adlers are nice machines but I think there are fewer clones of those machines so they tend to be more expensive. Juki 441s have quite a few clones out there that are well supported.Cobra, Cowboy, Artisan, Techsew... They all make clones of those machines. On the low end I'd say you should expect to spend at least $1500 on these machines. Some may recommend the Tippmann Boss but be aware that that's a manual machine and you have to yank the lever with each stitch. If you're sewing a long rein, that can be quite a bit of manual work... Andrew

Google S H Frank in SF. They don't have a website. The place doesn't have a lot of tools but they do have a lot of leather and buckles and stuff. They can be a bit difficult to deal with if you don't know exactly what you're looking for. It's not really a retail store but a warehouse that does mostly wholesale I think. Andrew

I saw a video (I think on Youtube) from Siegels leather in CA that says Veg Tan leather will immediately curl up with put in boiling water which chrome tan leather will not. Might be a way to find out... Andrew

This is interesting. The plate I have comes from cobra Steve and was designed to use just with a right toe presser foot. There's no room for the left toe. It's also not designed for use with a feed dog. It is pretty high so the sewing capacity is definitely lessened but I guess you trade capacity for clearance. I'm interested in looking at this 3d printed plate. Can you post a picture of it? Is it durable enough with the constant thumping of the feet? Andrew

You don't need to reduce the height if the stirrup plate. It will work just fine as is. Make sure you use a right toe presser foot Ecuador that's what the plate was designed for. You have to lengthen the stitch length because the stirrup plate requires that you remove the feed dog and that reduces the contact on the leather thereby reducing the stitch length which has to be compensate by increasing the stitch length. Also be more careful when you go around the bend because the stitches tend to bunch up a bit around these tricky areas. Not a big deal, just something to watch out for. Andrew

There's a couple of this you ideally need to do to make a good gusset. You have to skive the gusset piece so it bends more than the main panels. Then you should use contact glue to assemble the pieces before sewing. I use a 441 clone with a stirrup plate and it works fine. I don't need to readjust my tension at all, just the stitch length. After you sew it, you sand the edges until they are even and any residual glue is gone. Then you finish the edges. Looks like you might have tried to out in a liner in your pic. Unless the liner is leather, it won't work cause fabric will fray over time. Hope that helps. Andrew

I've purchased from both places. Part of the answer to your question depends on what kind of leather you're looking for. W&C makes pretty much all vegtan stuff (not sure if their latigo is chrome/veg retan or not though...). I like dealing with them because you can order one single hide from them at a time. You can have them split the hide to any thickness you want. I have been ordering either their skirting leather which I refinish myself or purchase harness or bridle leather that I have them split to the thickness I want (usually 5-6oz). I also have them stake the hides. Staking softens the leather a bit without breaking up the grain that drum milling does. It doesn't completely soften the leather but it makes it a bit softer than its regular state. You can also order entire sides or just the backs. Horween is of course best known for their shell cordovan. They also have a lot of other leathers and their leathers or more "fashion" leathers than your typical saddlery leathers. Very nice stuff. I've ordered the shell cordovan, football leather, chromexcel horse butts, and Dublin leather. They have wide ranges of thicknesses and colors to choose from. You can also order retail from their thetanneryrow.com website. The problem is that their leather is really expensive and it can take a long long time to get stuff from them. I'm not sure if you can ask them to do any custom splitting or anything on small orders. I don't know if you can ask for just the back or have to take the entire side. I don't think Horween does straight veg tan, non finished leather. Anyways, a large part has to do with what type of leather you want to work with. Both places sell leather by the side (W&C will do backs as well. They basically just cut the belly off). Anyways, hope this helps. Andrew

Is there a good supplier in the US for Sedgwick leather? I bought some single shoulder english bridle in about 5-6oz weight from abbey England and the stuff is great. The only problem was that it took like 4 months to get to me and the shipping sucked. Anyone know where I can get this stuff in the US? Thanks. Andrew

What's the best part of the hide for belts when you want low/no stretch and strength? Is it better to use backs and cut along the length of the animal or to use double shoulders and cut across? Or does it not matter? Andrew

These are watch straps so hopefully extreme wear won't be an issue. So as for glue, do I finish my stitching, dip the awl in contact cement, run the awl through the hole again, and then cut the thread? Andrew

Hello all. I have been making the below straps for some customers. I don't stitch all the way across but rather do a single hand stitch using a waxed linen thread. I was worried that the single stitch would come undone over time and I have been told that they can indeed become undone with use. I don't want to stitch all the way across the strap because it's not the aesthetic that I'm going for. Are there any suggestions as to how I can secure this single stitch so it won't come undone? Thanks. Andrew

Thanks everyone. The gusset on this is a bit tricky. I have an artisan toro 3000 and I have the harness plate for it. That plas The lets you sew around difficult corners like that cause you canngetnright up to the edge with it. Also, I had to contact cement the pieces together first or else it would have been too difficult to hold the pieces in place while sewing. I'm not sure a boss has the harness plate attachment so I'm not sure what you can do. Perhaps you can try sewing from the inside of the gusset out? Andrew

No. This was machine stitched. Andrew

Hello all. Just finished this one. It's a satchel/briefcase made in Sedgwick english bridle leather. Interesting leather to work with. The interior has a small selvege denim pocket but otherwise unlined. Andrew

Check out the video at: http://donektools.com/videos/ The last one shows the drag knife cutting through some pretty thick leather. Looks like at least 8-10oz. Andrew

Hi wiz. Thanks for the tip. Indeed it appears that the needle bar was slightly higher than it should have been. Just enough to cause intermittent skipped stitches. It looks like the set screws that lock down the bar loosened over time. I adjusted and tightened, ran a test line of stitches, and everything looks fine now. Thanks. Andrew

Hey, look into something called a drag knife attachment for a cnc router. I don't remember the link but I saw it a while back where they used it to cut out shapes I leather. No charring. Not sure what kind of detail you can get out of it vs. a laser but it might be cheaper and won't have the charred edges. Andrew