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Look at my post on this thread. It includes the cost and the company is in Kent. You can be up and running in a week.

I don't want to teach my Grandmother to suck eggs and I hope I'm teaching somebody something. Especially for large pieces of leather. Just remember 3-4-5 Scribe a line along the longest side and measure 4 of whatever you want to work with, it doesn't matter. We'll say 4 feet. Put a mark. Then, using string or a couple of straight edges, mark one at 3 feet and one at 5 feet. When you have a triangle where every mark is touch the other marks you will have a perfect line that is absolutely square to start your measurements from. Try it on a piece of papert in front of you. It doesn't matter if you use inches, millimeters or cubits as the Egyptians did when they built the pyramids.

Have you thought about changing the handwheel Chris? Depends on the machine of course but I've done it twice and it works fine and the difference in time and cost is stupendous.

This'll need some explaining to those not familiar with "Sarf London" A policeman came across a young lad of about 10yrs old loitering around the Dilly (Piccadilly Circus in London. A known haunt of ladies of the night). The policeman said "Are you on yer own son?". The boy replied "Yeah why?". - "Well you're a bit young to be around here on yer own, what yer doing here anyway?" "I'm looking for a prostitute" says the boy. The policeman trying not to look shocked said, "And what would you want with a prostitute?" "Well if I can find a prostitute, I'll "do" her and then I'll catch a dose of the Tilburies. (Tilbury Docks, pox). Do keep up. "And then I'll go home and "Do" the maid and she'll catch a dose of the Tilburies. Then my dad will "Do" the maid and he'll catch a dose of the Tilburies. Then he'll "Do" my mum and she'll catch a dose of the Tilburies. Then my mum will "Do the gardener and he'll catch a dose of the Tilburies, And I want him to suffer cos that bastard killed my Goldfish.

Great job on the bag and a great workshop also. I too have a habit of trying things just to see if I can. Trouble is once I've proved to myself that I can do it, it doesn't always get finished.

You won't be joking if a bit of it gets on a gun or a knife that's used in a homicide.

Humour? You kept that hidden Folker.

Thanks dog. I have no problem hanging on to old names even if they're redundant. Where I struggle is when they put £50 on the price because "It's a Clicker knife". LOL

Have looked at the clicker type but has a thicker blade so can't get enough pressure if holding like a pencil and if you use overhand I seem to have trouble seeing the line. And why clicker?

LOL! Third from the right in Hardradas pic above. I hold it like a pencil and it's easy to follow any curve with precision. Bear in mind I only work up to 2.4mm.

It does indeed but £30 + Shipping is less easy to slough off than £15 delivered. If I get on with the action (I've never used a push knife.), I'll look for quality. I've tried a few different knives and my favourite believe it or not is one of those skinny ali things with the really sharp point. A couple of strops now and then and it's as sharp as a sharp thing.

I think I might like the action of the quarter moon in the first pic so I've just ordered one of these, firstly, I know the edge is probably crap but it will let me know how well I get on with the action before buying a proper one and secondly I had a thought that the gubbins that comes with it might work as an upside down version of the two nails lace maker. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Professional-Welding-Flooring-Crescent-Trimming/dp/B08LBFX1YQ/ref=asc_df_B08LBFX1YQ/?tag=bingshoppinga-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=&hvpos=&hvnetw=o&hvrand=&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583520393551512&psc=1

Very nice. now don't waste it. Do another 4/5 then stitch em all together, make a top and bottom and you'll have a pouffe that will be an heirloom.

What machine Christine? A link or a picture might get a response.

For those with an interest in this sort of thing. The inspiration came from one of Harry Rogers videos although I will put my own slant on it. It will be used on my 1 ton arbor press and here are the main components. Along the top from left to right. Various cable. three 120w heaters two part stuff to ensure thre are no air gaps around the heaters 4 inch Dia x 4 inches tall block of aluminium Next line The bit that sets and reads out the temperature The thermocouple that screws into the ali block and reads the temperature The tap for the odd size thermocouple (£17.50) The project box. I had to guess the size so erred on the larger size. No matter it'll be mounted on the wall and have enough room for something else down the line. next line A 40amp relay the heat sink that goes with the relay the on/off switch. The biggest cost by far are the letters. The font that I'm looking at is £64 for upper case and another £64 for lower case. A lot of people have two letters the same in their name so that's double that and that's without two sets of numbers @ £28 a set for number plates. And then there's the T slot holder to put the letters in, £35. I look at that as an investment. If I get a better machine down the road I'll still be using those letters and I'll probably get most of the cost back If I ever sold em. I'm making haste slowly on this because I want to make it as easy to use as possible. I want to make the ali block so I can swing it up to change the letters because it's fiddly otherwise and you can't really see what you're doing.

That's the way to do it. Well done

Nor me. Someone more knowledgeable will answer that. I haven't messed with helicoils for fifty years.

Will do Mac. I have all the bits now. Biggest job now is cutting down the aluminium lump. It's 4 inches in dia and 4 inches tall. Now, not being a thermo guy I'm pondering which way to cut it. I have three 120w heaters (around 9mm) to sink into it along with the thermocouple. I don't know how thick to cut it before it's just wasting heat and taking longer to heat up. I think about an inch will do but that's a guess. I could leave it in the round and just lop off an inch or so. I could cut it "lengthways" and have it 4 inches square. No doubt clarity will creep up on me. I've hijacked this thread enough. I'll start a new thread when I update.

It's amazing how we ideas people will always find a way. I went the easiest way. Pay £17.50, use it once and put it back on Ebay for £15 used. Just hope I don't break the bloody thing.

I'll add a sideways rant here. I'm building a hot foil press and the thermocouple that screws into the aluminium block is M6. I have M6 taps but being a belt and braces guy I bought three more on ebay for around £8 the three. The first thing that pissed me off was the thread pitch is not standard. Instead of being M6x1 which is standard it was M6x1.25 (which is standard for M8). The second thing that pissed me off was no one I knew had a M6x1.25 tap and the only one I could find anywhere was £17.50 . I'll only use the thing once. I got onto inkbird and suggested they change it because that amount of money could well tip the balance when considering the cost of the parts to build versus buying ready made.

Thanks man but it's a Dieselpunkro pattern and the stitching holes are marked on the pattern. Still need to be careful but it's hard to mess up and his patterns always come with a video and instructions.

My daughter Joanne has been working really hard lately so I thought I'd make her (another) bag. I had a bag in mind that she said she liked a while back so I printed out the pattern and I even spent $35 on a Sergey French Bulldog (she has two) That I was gonna gold foil front and center. Of course she'd gone off that pattern by now and chose this one instead. Fortunately I'd had the pattern printed out for a year, just never got around to building it. Main leather is Oil Tan PU and the other bits are veg tan. Magnetic clasp under the nose. She loves it to bits and hasn't stopped talking about it since she came to collect it.

Can only be Cechaflo.

I use one of those kitchen types for hole punching for stitching but like I said, after a while you're looking for fresh spots. I did buy a couple of harder ones but they were really hard like plastic. The one I got for the arbor press has a similar feel on top to the kitchen type but is denser and rigid. I think HDPE is high density polyethylene but must come in different formulae because milk crtons are made of HDPE as is a lot of other stuff.

I've trird looking for the one I bought. It was a hard HDPE board. It's hard and rigid. Was suggested by Fred and works a treat. I walk around my small clicker dies and there's no danger of going through it. The surface is soft enough to not damage knives/punches etc, The silicone ones are soft and fine for cutting and punching where you're not going too heavy but edges will cut into it necessitating renewal after a while. Look for a HDPE chopping board around 12mm thick.