Sylvia

Yes, Chief I did see that. (hugs) I wanted to make sure the seller provided appropriate info for our friends across the pond. It's hard to get excited about a post with no pictures or pricing. Per the marketplace rules... he must post a picture and price.... etc. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showforum=70

Could you please post pictures of the machine(s) and your price?

LeeRoy: I did this once too. Add some dish soap to your water to help pull the oil out. The trouble is if the over oiled piece is oiled un-evenly.... it will take MONTHS for it to look and feel right. I used salt, cat litter, powdered laundry detergent, and soapy water... and still ended up remaking the piece. 3-4 months later the over oiled piece looked ok enough for me to back ground the initials out and sell it as a second. What a pain.

Rawhide. If you have any chop sticks around pull off some of the 000 steel wool and twist it around the stick... use that like a "hone" and polish those channels. I use Metal Glo professional metal polish. It's a very fine polish in a toothpaste tube. http://www.amazon.com/United-Cutlery-UC2723-Metal-Polishing/dp/B000F6UC98 and regular 3n1 oil thin coat then a good wipe off.

Youtube has a lot of videos on how to make a work bench. Metal legs would likely make your bench a bit more noisy, IMO. I based mine on this design it's easy enough for most anyone to build and you can make the dimensions any size you want.

Someone said, and I forget who it was.... "Do one thing and do it well." I tend to agree with that when it comes to entrepreneurship. Far too many folks "diversify" then get too involved in their variety of products and end up losing money. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs make one thing. Paper clips, staples... cookies, bbq sauce, chicken poop lip balm, monkey butt powder. Only when the business is "in the black" do they add one or two products. Just something to think about.

Saddle soap and some water, make a foam and work that into the arm wipe down with a clean towel then buff. That should get rid of any grime and oils. Not sure what you can do about the surface damage from the tape.

For me it was a quite innocent comment. Someone online asked what I had been up to... so I posted a picture of a "practice piece" Compliments Then I said "I think I'm gonna make me a guitar strap." My friend John said... "Sign me up for one of those." And I was off and running. And I don't give them 50% off or sell my straps for $40 either. Funny thing is... I still haven't made MY strap. LOL

A couple of the members here who suffered from arthritic hands got one but I've not heard whether or not they felt it helped or if they liked them. Apparently there is a bit of a learning curve if you've used a normal swivel knife for a while.

Sorry about that..... I thought I had corrected it but apparently it didn't take. Try this one.

Thanks for the kind comment. That was my 3rd ever strap. Yes, definitely get a quality swivel knife. Currently, My best knife is a Barry King. The next one I hope to buy is a Tangleboss one that does the swivel in a different manner. I think it will take the struggle out of scroll work. Here's a vid if you are interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgXL01nfWgA The clear plastic and monitor idea isn't mine... but I have ran with it. It opens up a whole new world of designs. If you can take a photo and turn it into an line drawing... you are only limited by the size of the monitor but even that could be solved with reference marks and basically cutting a larger design into 4 or 6 sections. Line art, and fonts are readily available online, even free coloring book pages... patterns in old books... etc. I can't wait to see your first attempt at this. btw... now is the time to stock up on heavy duty clear sheet protectors if you plan to use those. I recently got some thin clear vinyl at True Value by the yard. It is like 54" wide and sold at around $5 a yard. That's a lot of designs.

Hi Big Daddy T. Thanks for asking... Questions are a good thing. I tape the clear sheet over my monitor. Size up the font the size and orientation I want... then I take a felt pen to trace the font on my clear sheet.... then lay that clear sheet on my cased leather piece, sometimes I tape it down so it won't move... then I use a stylus to re-trace the letters, through the plastic, indenting the leather. Then I swivel knife and bevel... or swivel knife background it in. Since you call yourself Big Daddy T. I'll show you something I did using this method. (the fellow is 6'7 and rather "robust") The strap was 67" long tip to tip at it's longest setting. (was like wrestling a python I tell ya!) This one is swivel knifed and beveled. https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/s720x720/522379_3587573457152_1939540644_n.jpg

Sledge hammer? <giggles> Depends on what you like best, I think.

Hand sanding works pretty good. 150 and 200 grit and a sanding block. Use the 150 to knock down the big bits then 200 (or finer grit) get it more like suede. Then gum trag and slick. then seal it with your favorite sealer like super sheen, wyo-shene, or Resolene. Oh gack... someone resurrected a dead thread. LOL Oh well.

I actually watched a method this morning. It involves a round knife and a "jig" made from wood. I'll get you the video if I can find it again. Ok. It starts at about 8:30 of this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItFR99yOzss&feature=relmfu

It appears to be an upholstery technique called a piped edge. Basically a cord is captured in a narrow strip of leather then the raw edges are lined up with the edges of the seam allowance then it's sewn tight to the piping... then the seam allowance is trimmed in a graduated manner to reduce bulk.

Hi Natalie: On the binding issue. Check to make sure the take up lever isn't causing the binding. I had an old singer that felt that way and I found that the take up lever had been bent in shipment. a pair of vise grip pliers sort it out but I had searched and searched before I found that problem. Also make sure there is no threads and gunk in the workings. I servo should fit ok but I seem to remember someone saying they also change the pulley.

holy smokes that's quite a tool collection!! Nice pieces too.

Oh good! I am glad you found it.

I don't think you have it threaded correctly. Seems to me you have to do a 360 around that tension knob. Do you have your manuals that came with the machine?

I think it depends on how much shipping would be, I think.

If that doesn't win a grand prize I'll eat my hat. Very nice work.

Here's one that's not exactly like the one you seek.... but it might work in a pinch. http://www.beaducation.com/shop/seashell-design-stamp-p-1112.html Here's another, again not and nice. http://www.beadaholique.com/p-29319-sea-shell-punch-stamp-for-blanks-15-inch-5mm-1.aspx Considering the rarity of the one you saw on Etsy... it might be worth the time and $$ to get a custom stamp made with the image and your name. There are several makers out there that can do it quickly and inexpensively.