billybopp

My "free shipping" order from goodsjapan took nearly two months ( I think it was 6 or 7 weeks) and arrived by USPS. In between I ordered something... paid for the shipping ... And got it in under two weeks. I'm pleased with the punches, awls, and edge slick that I ordered, but will always pay for shipping from them in the future. Bill

JoeSnuffle ... You'd best go back 'n edit that last post to say "Dozens" rather than "Thousands" before your wife gets eyes on it. Else we may NEVER hear from you again! Bill

It's actually easier to pierce the thread with braided. It doesn't unravel when pierced, so you can make the tail relatively short. I also don't bother waxing it down with Tiger thread, as it's pretty waxy off the spool. I do wax the Chinese thread a bit, as it is less waxy off the reel. Has anybody else who has tried both Tiger and Chinese noticed that the Chinese seems to be a little thinner than Tiger? I suspect it might just be that the Tiger thread is "plumped up" with wax, but there is a noticeable difference when viewed side by side 1mm by 1mm. Bill

That looks like a challenging project, but if it works out a good one. Before you start drilling or cutting on screws to remove them, try some of this if you can find it: http://crcindustries.com/auto/?s=05330 It's sold under a few different names and brands which are listed on the CRC website. It's been around for decades in one form or another and just about works miracles. My grandfather used to work on heavy construction equipment that sat out in the weather year round, and was all too often rusted. Spray some on where it will penetrate .. Ideally from both sides of the screw if you can get to it, let it sit for awhile .. even over night .. and then give the screw a try. Tor: We call them "screw extractors" here in the US. They do indeed work well as a last resort. Be careful when using them, however, as they are usually EXTREMELY hard to the point of being brittle and will easily break if you aren't careful with them. Hope that helps Bill

Thanks for giving it a go, Bob. It is appreciated. I think I'm going to stick to acrylic for whites from now on. Bill

That is a really REALLY slick idea, electrathon! I love seeing folks get creative with making tools! Bill

Tom's right. It's Jonah that was swallowed by the whale. Job was the long suffering guy beset by all sorts of problems and disasters. Not unlike leatherworkers. It's a good looking cover, Colt! Bill

Lookin' good Joe. You've about got hand stitching down perfect. Just in time to go to a sewing machine! I'd buy that messenger bag, and the first wallets are looking good too. I like the look of stitching all the way around on the third piece, even if it's not necessary it looks nice, and I would even have taken it on around the outside panel at the bottom ALL the way around! The trucker wallet is a bit rough, but tooling takes practice. And patience. Lots of patience. Go slow and you'll get it. Watch out for your layout lines .. Place them so that you can more easily hide them as you do the tooling. I like the design for this wallet, and have never seen another like it. My only concern would be the tab that the chain attaches to. It's got a line of stitches right across it and could tear relatively easily. I'm not sure, though how you would work around that unless you made outside and inside from a single piece of leather joined by a cutout for the tab. We've also gotta get you a proper rivet setter!! Keep up the good work! Bill

For blades, I'd recommend #11blades for the #1 knife, and a #2 blades for the 3 and 5 knives. If you can find it, a package like this one on Amazon is probably cheaper than the knives individually, and has a nifty case and extra blades as well. http://www.amazon.com/X-ACTO-X5285-Blades-Zippered-Storage/dp/B00JWFIKOC/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1405105228&sr=8-7&keywords=x-acto+5 I suspect that the tutorial has you gluing the parts just to keep the two halves from wandering around while you punch the holes. You could certainly do it without glue if you wanted. I took a quick look at Tandy's website and they do still sell hi-lite, at least here in the US. Antique gel and paste accomplish about the same end as hi-lite, but in a somewhat different way. There is a video on Youtube that shows some ways of applying antique and hi-liter if you wish to view it. The technique is different from your tutorial, but still may be helpful to you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8MV5oXKak4 Additionally, if you'd like a video about resist techniques http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW7wcLik9LY The Kingsmere tutorial is good, but if a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is worth 10,000. Note, of course, that the Tandy videos are aimed at selling you Tandy products. The techniques shown are sound, but other maker's products may be better for your purposes. Cheryl is quite right about the figure stamp ... There are a TON of different ones available. It would be less expensive than an alphabet set by about 1/10th or so. I don't know why it didn't occur to me to suggest that! The tools Cheryl mentioned are indeed a must if you intend to do anything more complex than this project, but I'd wait on those until you see if you like this project. If you want a look into your potential future as a leather crafter, here are the basic six and swivel knife. http://www.kingsmerecrafts.com/page30.html Hope that helps Bill

I can only avoid those long enough to not cut myself when cutting, Red. Otherwise, wavy edges be damned!! Bill

Hmmm .. Where to start! Being from the left edge of the Atlantic pond, I can't help so much with where to find things, but I'll try to recommend some relatively inexpensive items that will do the job well, and hopefully be useful for other uses as well. Knife: For a small project like this, a hobby knife (x-acto) will probably do nicely and is useful after you go to sturdier tools for leather and other things as well. They come in three sizes (1, 3, and 5) and should be readily available there if you don't already have them. #1 might be a little flimsy for this, but #3 or 5 will work well. Craft stores, fabric stores, department stores are all likely to have x-acto knives. Cutting surface: A self-healing cutting mat will save your work surfaces. These can also be found at craft stores and fabric stores. Letter stamps: They come in several sizes, with 3/4" being most common, and about right for this project .. And useful for most others as well. The only retail source I'm familiar with for these is Tandy, although I'm sure there are others. The Tandy stamps, as well as others, are frequently available here on e-bay, and probably there as well. Hole punch: You can't go wrong with a rotary punch, particularly to start with. Rivets: You can often find rivets sold in a package with the setting tools, so that's a good starting point. Double-cap rivets are the way to go for this project. Tandy sells these, but you can sometimes find them on e-bay as well. Mallet: What you're seeing on the tutorial site is a rawhide mallet, rather than wood. That's one possible way to go, and good enough for a start. But you might also look at poly mallets that will serve as well. Many people prefer a round maul over a mallet, but they are generally more expensive. You certainly want to have a mallet around for many tasks, even if you get a maul. For letter stamping, I find that regular mallets / mauls can bounce and give you a double-stamp image. For that purpose, a dead-blow mallet is a nice thing to have. You can probably find all but the mauls at a department store with a good tool section, or auto parts store, or a hardware / home improvement store. None of the above with exception of a good maul will cost much. Lacing: Save yourself some headaches and buy the best that you can from the start. Calf lace is very good stuff. Be sure to get a couple of needles to use with the lace too. I use Tandy's 2-prong lacing needles. Split ring: If you can't find them at a craft or department store, buy a cheap plastic key fob and take it off of that. Adhesive: Tons of options. Tandy's eco-weld, Fiebings leathercraft adhesive or contact cement being the most useful and common. Contact cement is pretty widely available. I'd avoid rubber cement for this project. Finish / Resist: For water-based dyes, Tandy Super Sheen or Fiebings Resolene will work. Tandy also makes a block-out dye resist that will work, but don't use it with your good brushes! Super Sheen and Resolene have the advantage of doubling for your final finish after all the other dying is done. Dye: Again, tons of options. For a first project, Tandy's gel antique might be nice, it sort of takes the place of hi-lite. You'll find a tutorial video for how to use it on youtube. Note that the gel dyes will leave a little bit of color even to resisted areas, but it usually looks pretty nice. Otherwise, I prefer Fiebings dyes, and Fiebings professional dyes, but these don't always play well with resist. Fiebings antique is nice for it's use, but doesn't really do double-duty the way that Tandy gel does. Brushes: Go sort of middle of the road. Cheap brushes aren't worth the wood they waste, but expensive brushes aren't really necessary for this sort of thing and can be hard to clean of dyes, so you will not want to re-use them for restoring that Rembrandt in your living room. It's a good idea, also, to mark your brushes with colored tape, or a paint band, or whatever so that you will always use the same brush with similar colored dyes. Pigment can stay in them and carry over to other dye jobs. That should get you on your way. You'll find many other items that you will want along the way, but this is a good start. Hope that helps! Bill

Nice! You'll have to show us the full piece when you've got it done!!

It also occurs to me that if timing is that far out, somebody may have disassembled things and not put it back correctly. That might be worth a check. In the video it looks like the hook is positioned on the plate beneath by a rolled pin. That pin might be a shear pin to prevent excessive damage if something jams up, and could be broken. We used to use shear pins like that in some of the big laser printers, check sorters, and other equipment that I worked on in a former life. That might be worth a check too. Hopefully some o' the pros will chip in on this and help you too if they're not worn out by Chinese machine questions. I also just noticed your post from yesterday about the motor cap. Sometimes you can get by without one, but usually not. Read the markings on the capacitor it should give you the info that you need to get a replacement. It'll be marked with some voltage (VAC) and some capacitance, probably in the uf or mf range. A good source for motor caps is http://www.grainger.com/category/category/capacitors/motor-supplies/motors/ecatalog/N-9yp?redirect=capacitor Hope that helps Bill

OOPS. Right you are. Here's the link! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pGCn0iw-50 Unfortunately it probably won't be as helpful as I hoped, but the guy does show how to re-assemble and lube the bobbin area which you will probably want to do along with the timing as well as now and then afterward. He does give us a clue, tho that timing is not set in that immediate area with this machine. If you look at the link that dirtclod posted above, page 2, entry 2 by CowboyBob mentions a belt that can cause timing problems. That may give you a starting point and an idea what to look for in the service manual. Google translate might be helpful at that point. Wish I could tell you more, but I don't know much more about sewing machines than you do, but I'm following a lot of the sewing machine threads so that when I do finally go that route, I'll have some info under my belt. Hope that helps! Bill

I poked around a little on youtube and found this video for ya. If the guy is correct, the 267 in this video should be very similar to, if not identical to the 67 and 167, at least in the bobbin area ... That's what he said at the very end of the vid. Between that, your German service manual, Google translate, sister-in-law, and here .. You'll get it working. And we'll anxiously be waiting to see how creative you get with it!! Bill

Are you talking about these? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Snap-On-Tool-Snap-Pressing-Machine-Kit-Various-Moulds-Dies-Sets-Snap-Fasteners-/181454214405?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item2a3f839505

Red! Looks like you got a pretty nice gift there! I don't make holsters, but I understand that some folks use their arbor press in forming the leather for form-fitted holsters somehow. There are tons of things that you can do with the press including setting rivets and snaps, punching holes, and stamping. There's a video on Youtube showing how one guy modified his arbor press for setting snaps and rivets. ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVyV3ZTVpqY He is just using the standard hand setting tools in his arbor press, which works OK. You could also use the dies that Tandy and others sell by modifying the ram and base to take those if you do enough of them to justify the expense of the dies. Another guy sells a modified press on ebay to use for stamping, it should give you some ideas for that sort of use ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBb-SsRwS7U My setup is similar to this, replacing the circular part of the base with something flat. In my case, 3/8" plywood, but many prefer a chunk of flat steel. My ram hasn't been drilled, but it would be if I had a drill press! This guy's idea of building up a flat table either side of the press is a good one. It lets you keep the piece you're working on flat as you work which is helpful. Chiefjason's idea for adapting a drill chuck would probably work well with your 2 ton, as it probably has a longer throw than my 1/2 ton. I'm really happy that my stamps don't bounce and make ghost images anymore! If you want to use it to punch holes, blackriverlaser now has a nice hole punching die set that you could easily adapt. Or you could just find a way to chuck up your punch tubes and put something soft under the leather being punched. There are a few ideas ... I'm sure there are many more! Bill

If you think that's bad Kevin. Your computer is now infected with a virus will cause your computer to hack some secured networks sending the info back to China. You can expect the FBI to knock at your door any day now.

I really like the gel Mahogany, saddle tan and tan. It always smears a little bit with the first coat of sealer, but usually that's not too bad. Some months ago, I made some arm bands using Mahogany and Saddle Tan with 2-3 coats of resolene to seal. They seemed to be fine until I wore them out a few weeks ago as the weather got hot and sweaty. The dye bled profusely with sweating and left me with some lovely colored stripes on my arms. While I was able to get the dye mostly off when I got home, it was not a good day! I'll find something else to use for that sort of thing from now on. Bill

I like the color you get from the Mahogany, Saddle Tan and Tan antique gels. But I made some arm bands using Mahogany and Saddle Tan. They seemed fine until I wore them on a hot and sweaty day. I now have nice marks on my arms where the dye bled profusely, through about three layers of Resolene. So it's certainly a no-go for that sort of thing from now on for me. Bill

Same thing for me. Even after sealing with several layers and several products. I'm done with Tandy gel antique. Bill

What Tom said! Most cell phones and services will allow you to text or email a picture to yourself, which you can then download onto your PC to upload here. Some will even offer to reduce the file size which is usually a good idea. Most cell phones will also let you copy pictures onto your computer via a USB cable. Still others use a removable memory card (NOT the SIM card) for which you can get a USB adapter. Hope that helps! Bill

You are right. US currency goes down to $1, so that is very likely why. And yes, it does make for a slimmer wallet, which is kind of important if you keep it in a back pants pocket. We do sometimes see women carry wallets with a coin pocket, since they are more likely to keep their wallet in a handbag ... Where it isn't uncomfortable. Bill

Good question! Here in the US, most of us ... Men especially ... do not keep coins in wallets, but rather loose in pockets or a separate coin purse. I understand that it is far more common to keep change in a wallet in the rest of the world. If you want a pattern for a wallet with a change pocket, Ian Atkinson offers one on his Etsy store. https://www.etsy.com/listing/186830794/build-along-leather-pattern-2-coin-and?ref=shop_home_active_2 He also has a video of construction of one of these wallets on youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNXfMC0SqP4 I hope that helps. Bill

This isn't entirely on topic, but I'd like to get some multi-colored thread for an upcoming project. I have not yet ventured into the world of leather sewing machines, so it will be hand sewn. I've looked around a bit but have not yet seen anything that looks usable for me. It probably does not help that I'm totally mystified by thread sizes unless it's in mm. I usually use .8mm or 1mm poly thread. Does anybody have suggestions? Bill