PaulakaFrenchy

Hi Bob, I wonder if you know that us Brits can't buy or sell knives on aBay! For some reason - most probably a political one - eBay has become one hell of an offhanded dictatorial beast and at one stroke scuppered quite a sizeable market in knives on-line. We can't even bid on the USA eBay site as we get blocked straight away. One way to get around that is to contact the seller directly, but a few can be suspicious even when I explain the situation. As well as a knife maker, I'm a collector as well and sometimes I do see something nice on the US site and send a tentative enquiry. On average I do OK with about 10% responding positively, but some won't even bother to respond. The good old British way of life is being eroded and diluted in the extreme. Politicians together with the Media who always blow things out of proportion are alarmists and scare the general public with dastardly deeds that in places like the USA won;t even register at local level, never mind on the Nationals! I've served for 18 years in the Army and it was OK for me to shoot and kill people if the situation warranted it. And yet, now I've to be very careful and double check to see what knife is on my Key ring!!! Now that a farce in itself for the powers that be to say that it's OK to carry a knife with a 3" blade as long as it doesn't lock. I bet that with a a 3" bladed pocket knife I can make someone regret very quickly for thinking that he can have a go at mugging me! Yes, I might get hurt in the process, but better that than give in meekly to bullies...

Hello all, I've got this lovely all original Singer 45K56 Cylinder Arm machine that I bought a few months back to do my knife sheaths with. I did this in anticipation of my sewing arm getting worse, but since I had a hydro cortisone injection, it got a lot better. Moreover, I don't make that many Sheaths anyway as I've cut back a bit. Considering how much time, effort and money I wasted chasing down a suitable proper leather sewing machine, I felt that I ought to let folk on here know about it before I put it on eBay etc. I'm not a dealer so you won't get any BS from me. Check me out from my website http://www.customknivesandsticks.co.uk/ and you'll then know who you're dealing with. Well, if one was to see where I've got the machine set up you'd wonder how come my good lady hasn't left home! It's taking far too much space and I'd like my kitchen table back in its place. So if anybody in the UK is interested, get in touch with me on paulfenech@talktalk.net and we'll do a fair deal. I got this machine from a fine and proper trustworthy gentleman called Michael Hill, who's work is just superb. I haven't even got around to practising with the machine, but I guarantee it that all is fine with it and it'll work a treat. I live just north of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. By the way, I fetched this machine in my Subaru estate car, so no larger vehicle is needed really. I won't post any photos on here as I can easily send them via e-mail. OK, that's it from me. Just so you know; I'm allergic to time wasting greedy idiots who think they can get something for silly money. Treat me with respect and deal fairly with me - that's all I ask. Best wishes to all - Paul (aka Frenchy)

Hi Ski, Thanks for your kind words, they're appreciated. Anything you want that I can help with, just let me know. The machine I got (Singer 45K58) was from Salford. It is indeed a solid machine and can sew four layers of veg tan well enough. However, after much practice on odd pieces of leather combinations I had, I eventually had a go at trying to stitch a proper Sheath. It was a total disaster and made me feel really down as I was pinning my hopes on the machine doing the business. Basically I wrongly assumed that because it can go through layers of veg tan leather, stitching my three/four layer sheaths would be a doddle. Well, what I failed to take into consideration was that once the belt loop and/or a Firesteel loop were attached, which they always are prior to folding the body over and gluing the the edges, the Sheath doesn't sit flat for it to allow me to run the two lines of stitches as is my normal way when hand stitching. I suppose being a flat bed doesn't help and now that I am a bit wiser, maybe I should have opted for a cylinder arm machine instead. As a last resort I wet one of the Sheaths so it became more plyable, but that didn't work either as the tracking went of all too easily at various points along the seams and I ended up with such a horrible mess. I must say that it's not the machine's fault, but rather the way I make my Sheaths up with 3 to 4mm thick veg tan. At the moment I've got £700 quid of machine that is no use to me. The specialist at the hospital gave me an injection of Hydrocortisone in my shoulder and I'm not in so much pain now, so I'll get on and hand stitch the dozen Sheaths I've got outstanding and see what I can find out about a cylinder arm machine and go from there. Thank you very much indeed for offering to help me out with the hand stitching, but I'll try and manage for now as I've got a bit of time in hand to sort myself out. If you happen to know someone with a cylinder arm machine who can tell me if I would be able to fare better with one, do please let me know. At the moment I'm in touch with Techsew to see whether it would be worth my while buying one of his cylinder arm machines. Anyway, you take care... Cheers - Paul

Hello Scouter, nice Sheath. Looks like it'll last a few generations! I too often wonder how folk in certain craft related businesses make a proper living. It's just as well that I don't have to make knives and Sheaths for a living and charge proper hourly rates as otherwise I'll never sell anything. The best I can do is base my cost on materials and consumables with some extra for electric etc. Time is definitely not a cost consideration in my case, especially when it comes to making Sheaths as there's no way I make a decent Sheath in a few hours. I don't often get asked to make Sheaths, but when I do, I charge between £35 and £50 depending on size and complexity. Generally speaking few folk appreciate what's really involved in making a Custom sheath, so their perception of worth and value for money tends to be way off target. I used to make walking sticks, but I don't anymore because I could never get a fair price for them and hardly covered the cost of materials. As I make knives complete with sheaths, I figure out an 'all in' costing and things sort of work out OK in the long run. Another problem I encountered when at one time I thought of organizing myself on a business footing is that no matter how good my stuff is, there's only so much as a 'one man band' I can make in a week, month etc. Even as a committed hobbyist I now find that I'm running behind all the time and my turnaround time is getting longer. Sometimes it gets a bit too much and everything becomes a chore and the enjoyment/fun factor ebbs away into oblivion. Another aspect that would impinge on making a decent living is that you never know from one week to the next what orders would be coming in. You could go weeks with no orders coming in and then at other times you get too many to cope with! I'm lucky in that I don't have to rely on orders coming in to get by, but I wonder how many skilled artisans struggle to make ends meet. To finish off with, here's is a link to a page on my website that shows the sheaths I made for my Damascus 'Puma Hunter' type knives: http://www.customknivesandsticks.co.uk/StickTangKnives.htm I've got to say that I'm getting a lot of pleasure from this forum, picking good tips as I go along. So many thanks to all who are good enough to share their knowledge and experience.

Hi Bigfoot, Things have got on top of me lately and having injured my stitching arm I had no choice but to get on with my present commitments as best I can and the start afresh in the new year. After all, it's supposed to be a hobby and thus wholly enjoyable and not a chore to endure! I'm hoping that with getting the Singer 45K58 machine will help me to keep going even though I know that nothing beats hand stitching. I'll soon know how well I get on with it as I've got a dozen Sheaths to make up once I've finished the knives by the end of the week. You're welcome to get in touch in the new and we'll see what we can do together... Cheers for now - Paul

Hi Silverback, As the machine is stitching nicely with 24 needles and 12S waxed thread I've ruled out the shuttle area and needle hitting something. I had a look underneath and nothing seems amiss. The problem is that I know how smooth and quiet it can go, so when it starts clanging I start assuming something is going to give! I sew veg tan leather (slowly), from 3 to 4 layers of 3mm to 4mm thickness, so as you say, that could be the problem. Someone told me to use silicone spray from the needle backwards, which I tried; but must say I find this odd. I got the machine as being fully serviced and saw the man stitch all my samples well enough. I did find a sewing machine about an hour's drive from me, but when he said he only needs the head I lost confidence in him. If I had to pay a mechanic to service my machine, I'd want to see it going properly sewing samples of the leather I work with. I love tinkering though and I'd rather have a go myself if I can and learn by my own trial and error - as I did with knife making - or from the experience of others who are generous in thought and deed and care enough to give a helping hand. I'll help anybody with knife making as that's part and parcel of my ethos; from which I derive pleasure... Toolerlass, yes it would be creepy if you lived next door, but I know my neigbours and I don't think any of them are into leatherwork! Lovely of you to say Hi, you're more than welcome to get in touch direct through my website and if you need any help with anything please don't hesitate to let me know. Take care... www.customknivesandsticks.co.uk

After having read a few interesting topics that lead to my buying a Singer 45K58, I now decided to join as I've got lots to learn still and I know no better and friendlier place to get involved best I can. I make Custom knives and Sheaths (www.customknivesandsticks.co.uk), not for a living, but as a hobby first and foremost. I normally stitch all leather work by hand, but having injured my right arm and shoulder I find the hand stitching a very painful experience, hence buying the Singer 45K58. I've been practising with it using different thread combinations on various types of leather it stitches fine. The concern I have is that the machine doesn't run smooth all the time. Every now and then it clangs for a while as if something is hitting something else and I obviously worry that I'm doing damage to it. Maybe the timing is off or whatever; I hope to find out though as I need it to work properly. Anyway, I look forward to getting to know some folk on here and will be most grateful for the experience and wisdom of many... Paul (aka Frenchy)