Undeadzombiehunter

They are very nice. I have made on or two myself, but my watch is very tight between the pins and the housing. What did you use between the layers to pad it out ? Tony

You caught my attention when you mentioned riveters. I just bought an old french fly press riveter. I ahve ordered some dies for snaps and double cap rivets, which I will machine to fit. I would love a foot press riveter, like the weaver heritage, but at $700 ex-usa, that is a bit steep. Please post picks of the riveters, just so i can drool a little. Tony

If or when I get up there i will bring my cameras, and would be happy to shot video and high quality images for you. Post your blog link here and lets all see it. In many cases the more hits on the site the better it gets referenced. Tony

I thought I would provide and update. I ended up buying a singer 45k25, which is a wonderful old machine and can sew anything that you can fit under the foot. But sometimes ones eyes are bigger than the belly. It is way too much gun, and while it is great for heavy stuff, in reality most of my work is not. Those few heavy stitching jobs need to be done by hand generally. So for lighter stuff I bought a tailors light weight unused juki DDL-555 for $100, and has genuinely never been used. I found that when making a handbag for my wife that at time required 4x2mm leather the juki handled it, when run gently. As i am not a Holster maker and my few sheaths i am happy to hand stitch, i have now bought a reconditioned and warranted seiko STW-8B with new table and new servo motor for a very good price. I suspect that the seiko will do 90% of what I want to do and will even deal with light weight fabrics. The shame is that my now not quite, but basically new. Juki might be surplus. The lesson here is one that Wiz described once. One is rarely satisfied with their first machine, and there is usually a learning journey we all have to take and hopefully not drop too much cash along the way. Those with very clear needs might get lucky and buy there one and only machine first go, i suspect they are either cashed up enough to buy a new cobra or such like, or have experience. For the rest of us hobbyist, who have to hunt down elusive bargains, that might not be the case. We find what we can when we can and by machine number three we might have hit the mark. So my journey to date is: buy singer 45k for $900, buy juki for $100, sell 45k for $1100, buy Seiko for 900. End state investment $800 and might yet sell the juki. I did not mean for this be an essay, but wanted to share my specific journey of trial and error and compromise. Tony

The kydex does not need to be very hot to mould it. 170 celsius should not burn leather. I would likely wet the leather so that when moulding you are also moulding the leather and getting a little shrinkage to accommodate the required undersize of the leather. We use unlined kydex / plastic holsters on the job, but with working guns, who cares about slides getting polished, wear and tear is the armourers problem. For personal carry, i would only use leather.

Gorgeous, as an archer, i would love something as well designed and beautifully crafted. You should be very proud of it. i would hang it on the wall as a display piece. How many beers does it hold ?

So did you get it. Hows it run. Tony

Steve, that 98-3 is something. Man i would love to see it running. I need to do a trip up and see you, but you real should consider getting some quality video shot of you collection. You are saved in my favorite sellers and i am always anxious to see what you post next. Half the fun is trying to pick out the machines in the background. Tony

Steve, what a beauty, it looks like its out of some steampunk set. That that purchase mean you have to move another on? I thought i noticed you posting another pearson. Cheers, pal, Tony

Hey Olds Cool, great handle by the way, I think I agree with you, as does my wife. The thinking behind the idea of lining it, was more for comfort, but I would always be wearing a shirt underneath anyway. It is in fact quite comfortable. it is s real Igor look though, or some sort of medieval cosplay thing. Tony

I have never tried garments before, and while I had though this jerkin design was a simple one to learn on, it had hidden complexity. This style leather jerkin were issued to first and second world war dispatch riders. This one if based on a 1956 synthetic one I bought from the UK to pull apart to make a pattern. This was sewn on Juki ddl-555 which coped well with the #69 thread and a 110 needle. I used the singer 45k on the two shoulder seams because I wanted to a heavier (210) thread at that stress point. I made to wear in the workshop when working the forge and making damascus steel. It will keep sparks and flying flux. However the leather is so nice it would be shame to get it burnt and scared. The buckles are hook and dee snaps, similar to those found on fire fighters turn out jackets. These were from ohio travel bag. Comments and suggestions are most welcome. I am thinking of lining it with a simple cotton flannelette. what do people think? leave it as the leather underside or try and line it.

I have never sewn garments before, i usually make pouches, belts, breif cases which is why the 45k, a patcher and hand stitching. I am. Nothing is not versatile ;-). Tony

I love my Singer 45k25, but at time it is just too much, as it struggled with light stuff. As I decided to make a couple of leather garments and needed something a little lighter, able to sew 1.2mm leather and textiles. I found a Juki DDl-555 for $100 and 1/2 a tank of gas to pick it up. At the saem time I found a Consew 206RB but for $1500 versus $100, hmmmm let me think. The Juki has not even been run in, no paint wear and al I needed were some bobbins and I decided to give it an oil change just in case. Yes, it is textile machine and yes it runs like a belt fed, but is very controllable at slow speed, though I have 45mm pulley on order to replace the 105mm currently installed. But man it makes a nice stitch, every stitch forever. very nice. In light garment leather the photos speak for themselves. And this is with standard 100 size textile sharps, as my leather needles are int he post. The point is, that while NOT a leather machine, it is a bargain professional textile machine that has a lot of offer the light weight leather engineer. Besides, $100 for the beautifully engineered unused machine could not be passed by. Tony

This is fantastic. Great job.

Ha ha, the able290 is a little ripper. In fact it got a flogging last week sewing name patches on several of the load bearing vests from work. It was great. A 29k would have done the job, but not much else. Getting inside the little pockets and working around the ammo pouches and other PDE to attach the velcro for the patches. It was and is perfect. I also use it for other small light weight jobs for which the 45k is just too much gun. Tony

Thanks, the buckle is a cinch buckle and widely used by col littleton, i managed to find it at. Ohio travel bags? Imthink they are called. Tony

Having made a belt pouch and getting lots of wear out of it, I got frustrated by dtill carrying my ipad mini, so...upsize. The new one is comfortable, fits all I need including the ipad, could be a covert carry for a small handgun. The first images shows the size comparison, followed by a pic with it on a col littleton belt. Edited to downsize images Cheers, Tony

Hey Steve, would you have a pair of tension disks for the 45k? Mine is working okay but the discs have groves cut n them from wear and that means thead usual drops into the grooves requiring what I think is over tightening the tension. Is you do, let me know the price and post and your paypal address, Via PM i guess so not to breach the forum rules. And thanks for the offer ofmthe manual, I have the user guide (next to useless) and the service manual (quite good) so am good on that front thanks. And whenever you are ever in Canberra feel free to drop me a line, I would love to meet. Cheers, Tony

Aser my other post , I did not intend to offend, it is what it is. I see a 10 hour colt 4500 locally for $3500. These are very good, based on owners feed back clones, 441 or 205, can never leep them straight. So I could buy that, or a new one for $4000, or a 45k98 for $3000 delivered, or a 45k25 for $1100 picked up. I love old iron and the beauty of the engineering, but a contempory compound feed machine with digital stitch by stitch motor just walks all over the vitange stuff, generally. I would love you big singer but at $4500 i get a new arguably better machine new with warranty and support. It might not last 100 years, but neither will I. And I missed out on a junker hand stitcher, went for $450 ish, bugger. Cheers All.

On, dont get me wrong, i understand the cost of get this old iron into au, and if the collecting market is driving up prices as well, so be it. It is simple a matter of proportion. As a hobbyist and therefore not making revenue, there is only so far I will go, and with a $1000 budget, I had to take what I could get and I am very happy with the machine. It runs well, once I got some proper thread, and I have even used it to punch perfecty spaced holes in the few pieces I have to hand stitch. While I would love a pearson, I would pay the extra and get a campbell lockstitch. I had found one for $3500 and learned that I could get it shipped to au for $800. Man could I go for one of those, but then again, I dont make anything that warrants it. Or even a pearson for that matter. I just want one.... Cheers,

Thanks Steve, appreciate it, but I don't need it now as I went with the 45k. Cheers, Tony

Oh, and I forgot, the seller, Mel, siad he knew you. That might ring a bell. Tony

Yes Steve I did se your 45k and would have Iked it but the price was just too much. The seller has many ther beauties that he still uses, a Singer 7- x, an adler 104, a pearson 6 and a 29k. He is winding down as age creeps up on him, a real shame to his craft dwindle, with no one to take over the business. I am buying a stitching horse that he designed an built a couple of. Being a saddler all his life, with thousands of hand tools and his entire workshop made me drool. A very nice bloke, and he still had a new briddle under construction and a saddle under repair. Long drive there and back though. I would so dig a pearson, i see the one you just listed, just wish I had a few grand to send your way for it. Cheers, Tony

Here is one example from Steve of an p te arm Adler. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Adler-Koch-43-4-up-the-arm-industrial-cylinder-arm-sewing-machine-/121168658410?pt=AU_Sewing&hash=item1c3636ffea&_uhb=1

Hey Wiz, why are most roller feet knurled, or otherwise textured? It seems that they only need to press and let the material roll underneath. I see little value in having them textured, for leather anyway. I am thinking of putting my 45k25 roller on the lathe and turning and polishing it, even though the lines on the 45k25 roller are quite fine. Tony