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Thanks Matt. Just feelers at the moment. Can stretch it for something good, just have to justify to myself for what is just a hobby at the moment although I'll have to start getting some money back soon.

Despite read these pages and many more beside, I'm thinking about another machine and have to ask you guys to help me out. My .17 Hornet has been in the cabinet for far too long and I'm thinking about turning it into a cylinder arm machine. My evolution has taught me that I almost certainly won't need to go heavier than handbag types, maybe a decent belt but I've got the trusty Durkopp for that. What can I get for around £700 - £800? New would be nice or as near to it as I can get. Don't mind clones as long as they're reliable and I don't have to hunt for a manual. Pretty please guys?

Amen to all the above. There's far more trepidation when I sit down to my machine than when I hand stitch. I think the artisans among us are more likely to rear up at the dark side.

Old splitter. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/rare-cobblers-skiver-made-by-whitfield-hodgson-brough-leather-splitter/223924400582?hash=item3422ef31c6:g:nywAAOSwgFld7AJb

I have an old copy of Fireworks MX that can degrade an image but I've never experimented with how much I can take out without making a difference. Clearly I can go a lot further as evidenced by your post.

Thanks Folker. Amazing stuff. How many machines were turned out daily in it's most productive time? What resolution did you use to get so many pics in one post?

I love hearing about what people can do with the minimum of equipment. It's much easier to turn out good stuff with £1000s of equipment and machinery.

Some different techniques put to good use there. I'm hoping there's a welt in there to protect the stitches. Good job.

I got one of these. Very strong and works well for holding things in place as in the video. Can also be used for a stitching guide as Mikesc said about microwave magnets. Might get a stronger one to experiment with but you have to be careful. These things can hurt you if you're not careful. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Strong-Magnets-30x20x5-mm-Neodymium-Block-craft-magnet-30mm-x-20mm-x-5mm-N42-Bar/182942145946?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&var=690259429188&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

A location might help.

Good find dikman. Don't know if you've seen it but look at this from Geordie and get some magnets.

Wow! Now that was something worth striving for. That's what a pair of boots should look like. I'd say you have some serious machinery to acheive that. Well done.

Thanks guys. Appreciate it.

My shooting buddy didn't want drill the butt of his shottie. An interesting project, with no straight lines there was a lot of thinking and head scratching. My first attempt at the box stitch could have been easier if there wasn't two different radiuses (radii?) that were constantly changing.The YouTube vids don't show how to deal with that do they! It's not perfect but I think he's gonna like it.

There's no such thing as a free lunch and with very very few exceptions every single thing that passes your eye from day to day is designed to part you from your money. Whether it's a film, a play, a fluffy puppy playing with a toilet roll etc etc. And until we learn to stop idolising the pound note it's only going to get worse.

Very neat. Excellent job.

Thanks Brownie. I wouldn't go as far as quality. This was more about getting thick leather under a flatbed machine and it was a struggle sometimes.

My daughter wanted an all day sized bag rather than a going out at night bag which the last one was. I liked the look of this circle bag but I wasn't sure how much of it I would have to hand sew. The only suitable leather on hand was 2.4mm veg tan and this bag is 10 inches across and 4inches wide so I wasn't hopeful. It was a struggle at times but how wrong was I? apart from across the Ds this is all Durkopp flatbed. Don't forget I'm still learning this stuff so there are mistakes but they're getting fewer as I take on different projects. The next one of these will be in softer leather and then I'll think about piping and inside zipped pockets but I'm well pleased with my old Durkopp and I take back all those nasty things I've said about her over the last couple of years.

A good general effort but I would think that anyone who has a fortuna skiver, hotfoil machine, heated creasers etc etc has already reached this stage. If I wanted to produce teaching videos I would do a search for the questions asked most often on the search engines re leatherworking and also the not so common like design or how to shrink or enlarge patterns etc.

Have got this stuff from Toolstation. Don't like it much but it holds stuff before stitching. https://www.toolstation.com/contact-adhesive/p14503 I actually like the Wilco stuff in the tube. It's wetter and easy to apply. But if you want permanent try Gorilla glue. Stuff has to be damp and it foams and expands a bit but by Christ does it hold. I made a mistake once and I had to cut the leather. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323073322446

A quick job for a lady that likes Wolves and Purple. As you can see, an artist I'm not. (unless you put a five inch angle grinder in my hand.) Not in love with the magnets.

Then make your point off your own bat and not someone elses. Show us how you're taking the art forward. I love Tony See to bits and made several of his patterns but you're talking apples and oranges. Tony See doesn't do tooling, he does steampunk and as I said before there's nothing new under the sun. Tony See didn't invent the Plague Mask.

I see your point and for me Sheridan has run it's course also. I'd love to see the same principles applied to more modern designs But you can't stop a guy exploring what's in him, no matter what he does it's all been done before. Albob made the thing for someone else and he got some learning from it and some pride and deservedly so. You could have said it differently.

Forgive me Yin. I didn't mean to suggest the edges were unfinished. They look awesome to me. I was just meaning the orange next to the lizard didn't gel for me. I don't think I'll ever get to that level which is why I stick to handbags.

Was going to suggest two interlocking angled pieces under the flap but I think you'd have to make em. Imagine two Js, one upside down and interlocking.