hillsmithy

Thanks, Constabulary! That could be the case. I will test the bar today. I do have a new one in case it is bent. I guess not many people use this machine... So I did some digging and testing...Turns out the presser bars are too close together. I'm in the process of adjusting that distance. Unfortunately whoever worked on the machine previously was an idiot. So many screws have mangled stripped heads. I need to get a big screw loose to make the adjustment. It's inside the machine, so not easily accessible. It's frozen and stripped. Going to tackle it right now and hope I get it loose.

I just picked up this machine and am trying to get it set up to work. I can't seem to find many videos about working on it on the tube. I did print off the manual and have been reading it, but to be honest, it's a bit over my head. The original feet on it didn't seem like the all-purpose type. I'm not sure what they're for. However, I noticed right away that the needle did not go down through the center of the hole in the inner foot. It was off to the side. I tried loosening up that foot and adjusting it a little but couldn't get it to make much difference. It still sewed. I sewed multiple layers of thick fabric and a couple layers of thick leather. It seemed to do fine. I ordered what seemed to me regular all-purpose feet and a set of new feed dog plates and they just came in the mail. I installed the new feet, but the fit is even worse. It seems that the inner foot and the outer foot hit each other in the back and cause quite a bit of friction. And the needle is in even a worse position. It hits the back of the hole in the inner foot, as well as the side. What can I do about this? I did put in a new needle for all of this testing. There's a section in the manual that talks about "adjustment of the needle bar rock frame." It talks about adjusting the distance between the regular presser bar and the vibrating presser bar. Do I need to adjust that? Thanks for any help...

Cut the filler and added extra filler to top and bottom, skiving to blend in. Stitched it all together, and took a walk in the desert. Performed as I had hoped. Now I need to finish it. After touching up the profile and burnishing, do I rub in oil then apply Mike's "Mop N Glo"? Do I "Mop N Glo" first and then oil? Do I just "Mop N Glo" but not oil? Thanks!

Thanks, immiketoo. If I know myself, there will be a pretty significant learning curve with tanning. But we'll see. Made a little more progress on the holster tonight. After throwing around a bunch of ideas, I just decided to stay simple. I stitched on a dark decorative band. Then a hammer spur strap, and finally the belt loop. Next I'll cut the edge filler and stitch her together.

Thanks! I'm all over these "guerilla" types of solutions. I also fool around with blacksmithing, and love scavenging and coming up with improvised tools and implements. I make all of my knives and tools with scrap. Don't ask what my yard looks like, or what my wife things about it.... We also raise goats (we get all of our milk for a bunch of children from two goats, with extra for kefir, yogurt, and the chickens!). I have at least one nice skin in the freezer. We also have four goats that have been needing butchering for way too long. (We need the meat and can't afford the feed.) I'm going to give processing skins my best shot. Finding time is the hardest part.

Thanks, CountryTrash. The pic link was helpful. Renegade, enjoyed looking at your site. Nice work. Katsass, yes I'm using the Stohlman book. Tight budget is definitely my situation, so I like the coffee dye suggestion. At the end of your post you said to "apply the finish." What do you suggest. I've never finished any leather.....This is not only my first holster, it's my first attempt at anything with leather.

Amazing work! I'd love to see the revolver resting in it...

Well, I dug around and found some dark leather I had stashed away. It's thinner than the holster leather and will provide a wonderful contrast. I'm not sure exactly what to do as far as design is concerned, but I'd like to have the light and dark playing off each other. I was wondering if dark leather can take tooling/art work. It doesn't seem to me like it would show up very well. Thanks for any suggestions.

Here are a few shots of what I've done so far....

I appreciate the additional thoughts. I'm going to take some sandpaper to it and see what happens. I kind of like your idea too, Shooter McGavin. Will get some pics posted.

Thanks for the feedback. It's Tandy and it's quite thick. I could thin it for glueing another piece. I'm operating on a real low budget, and only have a few pieces of leather, so I might try other options. I'll search "slicking the flesh side." Yes, I doubt I'll make this mistake again. Hopefully it will turn into a happy mishap.

Hello! I'm just getting started with some leatherwork. I'm making a holster for my first project. As is usually the case when I'm learning something new, I make every mistake possible. So, I made the holster pattern, traced it on the leather, then cut out the leather. Unfortunately I did things backwards, so now I have a left-handed holster. I can make it so the flesh (unfinished) side is out, but obviously that isn't ideal. I was wondering if you all could suggest some solutions. Is there a way to finish the flesh side to make it smooth? What should I do? I intended to try some decorative carving/stamping, but that may be out of the question now. Thanks for any tips and suggestions. Todd