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WELL! Just plugged the compressor into it and blow me, it works a treat. So thank you @RidgebackCustoms I wouldn't have tried it without your explanation. I'll try to get a video but in the meantime, rather than having a 35ft air hose running through the house, can someone please find me a cheapish quietish compressor? Well I tried but as you can see I'm no film maker. It's short but you can just see the waste bag shimmering. Also the black air hose on the floor. I can't believe that after all the time I've had it, all I had to do was plug it into the air. A feeble attempt to show the waste in the bottom of the bag. It's in there I promise.

I might just have to try it with the air to see if it's better. I've just noticed it's got a treadle activated on off micro switch. I was thinking the air had to be on continuously.

That is cool. So does that mean my system is worth a few bob then?

Had it stripped down today and removed the wiper. Couldn't find anything loose or wrong except the bar on the end of the con rod was missing which was strange must've fell out today else it wouldn't have worked. Had to move the intake a bit and elongate the hole co a couple chunkier bits didn't want to go down but apart from that it's been great. Might have to treat it to a new presser foot. Is there one that leaves the center and skives down both sides of say an inch wide to make a non piping piping if you know what I mean. I think Cechaflo does it by just skiving either side and leaving the middle.

Thanks for the info. More than I've received in two years of asking. I've decided to go the simplest way with my domestic (for now) vac and it's doing a good job. I need to put a different shape to the intake nozzle because some of the chunkier skivers can get caught up.

I'll certainly look at those redundant pieces Brian. I wondered what good the wiper was doing when I first got the machine. The video was taken because after the first try with the vac, I could hear it gobbling up the small piece I put through it but I couldn't see it. The video shows only the second small piece I put through it. The piece that was stuck in there was already there and I think was forced in there from a previous build up of waste. I'm rather more concerned with the movement of the bell and maybe other worn bit's. It moves with the speed of the bell. So much so that it can sometimes take a chunk out of the leather when speeded up after chugging along nicely. It does an excellent job if going slowly or at a medium speed but if you slip up and go faster it will give you a different depth of skive or even take a chunk of the leather. Are there adjustable or replaceable bearings that can be seen to? You can see the movement in the video.

Short answer is no but you can turn your work to do it with the needle down or needle up and manually manoeuvre the work 2/3 stitches back and go over again.

Sorry Keith. Tagged the pics on the end of @keithski122s answer. Thought it was you.

Tried em all. Have a rubber one now. Steel was the worst. pics: Vac nozzle. Great fit. Under table plate. Angled top of pipe (brown tape around it.)

I saw a few like that online but they were too small. Just as good a design as any if you're gonna make one though. The ones I saw had three pips though.

I'm made up me. Tried my little "Henry" vac which is very good. Undid one hose clamp and the end of the Henry was a beautiful push fit and it fitted in the available space like it belongs there. Literally within ten minutes I took a short vid to see if it was working. Watch this space.

I will admit to learning most of this stuff as well though forgotten most of it. Never used the try square one but used the compass method a lot. Also using a small leather patch to put the point on works as well. As an aside, talking about learning stuff, I needed the learning at one job I did. I was given the drawings of a water heater to accompany an enormous on site concrete mixer to cold climates. Was 9ft dia and a little taller with a chinese hat roof. Because my face didn't fit I had to make everything out of scrap 1/8th plate so lots of cutting and welding before I could even start. The fun started when the drawings only gave the apex of the roof so with only the radius to go by I had to make the overall diameter and then work out how much of a wedge to cut out to arrive at the required height. Good job I thrive on that shit.

I hate smart kids

Thanks Chuck.

Not talking about bending it. Were talking a quarter of a millimeter. A gentle tap is all that's needed on the end. Nothing to lose but if you're not comfortable...

I used to wonder what all the fuss was about vacuums when I first got my skiver until I had a piece of waste wrap around the feed roller and ruined the piece I was working on.

Thanks Keith. I was actually thinking about those smaller types for the size and bagless because we're not talking dust really. I'm beginning to see the end of this.

Looks like a great setup Tom. They've done an excellent job.

Thanks peeps. Isn't it great to have peeps to bounce ideas around. I've had a couple of thoughts (didn't hurt much). Firstly, a compressor system can't have an on/off switch if used with a receiver and secondly, a dedicated vac would be cheaper than a compressor. So, thoughts on the right vac for the job? I used to have a shop wet/dry from Karcher with a plug socket incorporated so when you started your sander/planer etc it would automatically start the vac. But as always, cost is a factor so it wouldn't kill me to bend down and switch a normal vac on. Belay that. Just realised the way it's wired up is just more problematic so just a normal vac then.

I've had my 801` skiver for a while now and never given it enough work to worry about the vacuum system. Having said that it has been nagging at me in the recesses of my mind and I'm now thinking I might get off my arse and feed it enough work to warrant sorting it out. Trouble is I know nothing about it or vacuum systems in general and I'm hoping some of you guys can help me out. It's compressor driven and I have no idea how much compressor it needs to work. I have a 50litre one in my little garden shed but it's too noisy. (I have old guys either side of me). So I'm looking for the smallest silent compressor that will do the job and double as an airbrush compressor as well. Tomorrow I think I have a long enough hose to at least make sure it works. I know I could rig up an ordinary vacuum but it would irk me if I didn't at least try to get it working. Any thoughts peeps?

That's annoying but as you say it's usable. If it's aluminium you should be able to clamp the v in a vice and give the edge a gentle tap in the direction of where it needs to be.

How many times do we punch out a circle or draw around something to get a circle and then find that we don't have a center to work from? If we draw the circle with a compass we have to deal with a hole in the middle. I determined to get a center finder for this job so earlier this year I bought one online and as usual I didn't pay attention and this turned up. So I went back online to look for one like I used to have on my combination square. I bought one with a center finder on it and this turned up minus the center finder. They did refund my money and told me to keep the junk. At this point I decided to make one, it's not rocket science and I had the welder out already so I found a couple bits of steel and set to. It's ptretty much there already but when I'm sure I'll weld it properly and might even put some paint on it. Happy days.

Haha! A gloved hand over it also. Was a fabricator/welder by trade many many years ago. Before the days of the mighty mig I had a season ticket to the eye hospital to get stick welding slag out of my eyes, Probably why my eyesight is poor now. I'm so impetuous that sometimes I feel like an Aussie

Wish I thought like you Folker. Didn't realise these parts were that generic. Will definitely look into that but need to see some better photos. There's hardly any space under the hole for the needle. If you look closely you can see the metal has been dished out to allow the needles passage. On mine the dish only goes half way so the left hand side of the needle is almost touching the feed dog at the bottom of the stroke.

Dug out the little mig. Mitigations first lol. Old guy with failing eyes and shaky hands. No helmet cos the two that I have are probably over the road in the garage but being the impetuous fool that I am did it with eyes closed so not pretty. Plus exhausted after spending half a day picking up daughter from airport.