mlapaglia

Springfield leather will sell you as little as 2 sg ft. They have some really good leather. You can find them in the banners at the top of this page.

What needle are you using on the 207 thread? It could be a different shape of 794 would be better for you or a new one that is sharp. I use 794 S 200's on 277 and 207 thread and the upstroke is never that hard. Even through 3 layers of 9/10. Is it possible that your leather is old and dried out?

Try this for a matte finish. Eco-Flo Professional Matte Finish. It has a very chemical smell until it dries so make sure you have a lot of ventilation. It will not give a high shine.

They are sometimes referred to as a "self healing" cutting mat.

Maybe hold them in a pair of channel locks.

Slightly dull blades wont work anywhere else.. You can strop the blades as long as you can come up with someway to hold them. You might look around for single edge injector razor blades. Thats all they are. Just bulk packed instead of in an injector.

The most common cause of a loop like you described is not pushing the handle all the way back at the end of each stroke. What side thread and needle are you using? There are a few points, like the rack gear, that are designed to break if the machine develops a problem. This prevents something expensive from breaking. How did you fix your thread pickup problem?

There is very little timing that needs adjustment on a Boss unless a part is broken. Can you post a picture of the bobbin shuttle area. Make sure the handle is pushed all the way back before you take the picture. Michael

If you have it around do one layer of 10/11 and one of 4/5. Gives you the same thickness of 15/16 which is where you are with 2 layers of 7/8. I use two layers of 8/9 because thats what I have. It works great so far. Michael

Make sure your bobbin thread is coming off the bobbin counter clockwise. If not turn it upside down and put it back in the bobbin case.

Sinew is not normally used unless you are doing period correct pieces. Linen 18/3 is strong enough. I have found that Tandy thread tends to break when I am using it. Barbors is probably the best linen to buy and you have to wax it yourself with bees wax.

Due to Ilness this is the first thing I have made to sell for the last 5 months. I've puttered with leather during that time but never felt well enough to do something to sell. Gun Belt, (2) 8/9 pieces of HO, Vinegaroon black, Resolene finish, size 40 belt. Had a few problems Ill post a different thread about but it felt nice to be able to make something from start to finish. Customer liked it well enough to put it on right away in his office. feel free to comment as needed. I know the edge could be better but I found out my arms are too weak to do a proper hand burnish anymore. Thanks Michael

I have a Kydex one that I have used once or twice to try it. It's ok but Id rather use leather. If you want quick on and off then a paddle holster is faster than a clip in my opinion. I made an all leather one and it worked as well as the kydex one. Just not totally fond of them.

DEA = Denatured Ethel Alcohol? Thats a new one on me.

I have them and dont really use them. They make holes that don't really close up like the awl does. But I have used them at times when I am feeling lazy.

I made a mistake, My thread arm that sits over the spool was bent somehow and the thread was jamming, I fixed it and my tension on the upper is 2 lbs not 6. 2 lbs make more sense to me. Now thats with the tension arm all the way down.

I don't use their rope. I use the company for other stuff. Different size zip lock bags. Ans size you need they have. I just knew thee sold rope.

So whats the "good stuff" I thought white vinegar was all the same

Uline has 600 ft lengths. It also has a 1200 ft length thatis only available in 3/16 dia. They are a good company I use them a lot.

Thanks for the tip. I did shake the bottle but didnt case it. I put a second coat and it smoothed right out. Perhaps it soaked in too fast the on the first coat. This would explain why casing it works too Thanks again Michael

Who makes the dye? some is oil, spirit or water based. It all depends on what you have.

Its not a good finish but its a great natural looking dye. Not really a dye but it will darken it to that nice undyed leather look. Leave it out in the sun for several hours and it will give you a rich light brown look. Sun tanned leather. Then give it a coat of leather balm with atom wax and you are set. I love the look.

Then why does it work so well on some of the holsters I make? As well as Resolene if not better.

My first bottle of Tan Kote is a little thick. Not like rubber cement thick but thicker than water. I tried it and it seemed to leave light brush strokes. FWIW, the bottle says not to mix anything with it. Can it be thinned and if so with what? Whats the best way to apply it other than a spray/air brush? Thanks Michael

Thanks for the info. For those that do not have photoshop Image Resizer for Windows is a great program that is available from a right click in Windows explorer (once installed). It will resize single or multiple images and make a smaller copy or replace the original. Its a free program. Ive used it for a year on Win 7. The only thing I see is its slow to load. To use it select one or more pictures, right click and select resize (This is where it takes about 20 secs to load). From there make your menu selections and it resizes. I agree Photoshop is a great program but for just quick resize this is a good way to go.