TwinOaks

Most likely age. One other thing occurs to me, and that is to see what you can find as far as accessory feet -i.e. left toe, zipper, binding, etc.

absolutely! There's a video on the Weaver site that shows precisely how to do it (I'll see if I can find and link it). 30 min later, and I can't find it....maybe one of the other members knows where it is. My google-fu is weak tonight. Here's how you do it- first inspect your punch to make sure the edge is flat and not chipped anywhere. If it is, place it edge down on your sharpening stone and work it until you have a uniform edge, even if it isn't sharp. Then, hold the bag punch at the correct angle and sharpen the long sides in even strokes, no back and forth. When you do the rounded ends, start at one side and roll the punch along as you push the edge into the stone. Always push the blade to avoid getting a burr on the edge. You may have to work through several grits of stone, depending on whether you're sharpening or actually having to reprofile the edge. Once you've got your edge sharp, strop it.

I'm sure you'll see advocates for both chime in, but since both are so similar, I think the issue will come down to price. If they're both the same price, flip a coin. The only thing I recommend between the two of them is to make sure the one you choose has a reverse. As long as both are reconditioned correctly, either should serve you quite well.

I would recommend going with a dairy cow instead of just a feeder. That way, you get free milk, free meat, AND free leather when it's all said and done.

Bonjour et bienvenue!

Bekka, there is always the option go purchase some leather and just make the belt yourself, since you've already quoted a price which seems to leave very little room for profit for anyone else to make it. We'd be happy to help you learn the steps to producing your belt design, so that in the future you wouldn't have to 'outsource' anything.

Ah....I stand corrected. Yes, the acetate is the glue, derived from the alcohol. Let this be a lesson, kids, stay up to date with your industrial chemistry! And please excuse my use of the hyphens, spiel Czech was having a hard time with chemical names.

Buy the linen and just taper it with your knife. Incidentally, you might have better luck with the chisels if you only use them to mark the stitch spacing on thicker leathers instead of trying to punch the holes with them.

A 3/8" socket extention with a 1/4" socket extension taped to the bottom closely matches the profile of the barrel and under lug. Just tape the drive ends together (and the rest of it too)and you have something that can reach down into the holster to stretch it. Or, if you've got access to wood working tools, you can profile out the "muzzle" from some dowels.

I am curious about the method you're using - whether you're wet forming, trying to cut to size then build, what kind of seams you're using, etc. I'm not trying to pick apart your construction method, just trying to see where the assembly challenges are. For example: Tramps mentioned wet forming- is that something you're doing? And if so, are you starting with an oversized piece so that you can wrap and tack the edges, or are you trying to fit pre-cut sections and running into alignment problems after stretching?

Either trim just inside the line of the leather (1/16th or so) or use a rolled edge.

The attachment via ring does have the advantange of giving more knuckle room AND being able to 'lay down', when not being used. Other than that, I think it would be a matter of design consistency- If you have a permanently sewn shoulder strap, then I'd go with a sewn on handle. If you're using Ds to attach the strap, then Ds for the handle as well, just so everything matches.

Welcome to the best site on the internet....officially. I only have to ask "what took you so long?" We're glad that you joined, and looking forward to seeing some of your work.

If you want to purchase new ones, you can check with Makersleathersupply.com

You can use just about any leather you want, really. Yes, even embossed leather. Have a look at this page and you'll see what can be done with regular ol' veg tan.

There's Tanner's Bond, Master's, Barge.....and my personal preference (since I can buy it at a local hardware store) Weldwood. They are all very good contact cements, which are chemically different from "white glue"....which is often times just a variant of PVA (Poly-Vinyl-Alcohol). As Jeff said, you won't pull it apart - but you CAN tear the leather fibers if you try hard enough. I mix machine stitching and saddle stitching - I don't like the doubled up threads in a lock stitch (because of the angle of my needles), so I leave a tail and saddle stitch my thread locks. That also gives me the option to add a half-stitch, which leaves both threads on the same side of the leather.

Just some plain disposable nitrile gloves (the blue ones) will improve your grip. I don't use 'leather needles', either. i punch the hole with an awl, then run the needles through. It's okay if you need to wallow the hole a little to get the needle through- that just means that the hole is going to close up nice and tight around the stitch.

I can't comment on the use of liquid latex and paint, but for using DYE, I suggest masking first. I made a clutch with a painstakingly dyed section (hours of building up layers of diluted dye), and used liquid latex to mask off that section so I could airbrush the background. That idea worked well as far as keeping the background color off of the detailed part. However, when removing the latex, it pulled every iota of the dye out of the detailed area. I should note, that after the 'practice' I got on the first time, the second dyeing of the details went much faster. Also - if possible, have a cut line around anywhere you don't want the dye to creep. In the pics above, you can see some areas where the dye bled under the latex a tiny bit. As long as you aren't flooding the piece with dye, the cut should stop it from going any further.

I'll chime in and confirm what Bob wrote- I spent a while on the phone with Paul a good while back and he told me almost exactly the same thing. As to what makes a good knife - quality materials and funtionality. The SK3 has both. It certainly isn't the only knife in the tool box for many people, but Paul has blended a lightweight barrel with a very smooth (ball bearing supported) yoke. Then the addition of his super secret allow blade yields a knife that is easy and comfortable to use, and also doesn't require a whole lot of upkeep. That last part means that your time can be used for carving leather instead of working on your blades. The other low maintenance option is a ceramic blade. By the simple choice of a non-steel blade, dulling by corrosion is removed as a factor. However, they are NOT 'ready to go' as they are purchased. There is a good article by 'Shtoink', that examines how and why ceramic blades need to be sharpened.

Me too Jeff.....

A machine CAN and often DOES give a quality stitch. It won't look just like a saddle stitch, but it can get very close. As far as strength...the tensile strength of the thread is pretty high, and you're not likely to break it. If you prefer the angled stitching, you can get needles that will do that. What you're going through is a little buyer's remorse. Sit down and make a double layer belt, and sew it. 10 minutes later, when you're NOT still sewing the belt, you'll start realizing that you made a good purchasing decision because: You bought a good machine, from a reputable dealer that's going to support you and the machine long after the sale.

That should help out a lot, but I can't make any suggestions about price. For general checking, look for significant wear on any metal to metal parts. Be sure that it turns freely - a little oil might be needed. I'm basing this on my attempts to restore a 1915-18 Champion - mine was completely dry, but a can of good quality oil (gun lube is what I had avail.) got it turning freely. Look inside ofthe machine to see if it has operating rods and if so, check the condition of the rubber bushings. If the machine was at all maintained, they should be fine. Mine sat in a barn for 40+ years unused, so the rubber was sorta dried out. A little oil on them revived them fairly quickly. As far as parts.....Pilgrim Sewing and Cambell-Randall are the only two places I know of - I'm SURE there are others, as the ASN is still used by shoe/boot repair shops. You might also check with cobbler's supply for the thread and thread lube. If it's a large part, you might have to talk to a local machinist and have a part made. The Champion has several cam wheels on the back of the machine that have roller bushings in them...I don't know if the ASN does or not, but if you need the little roller bushings that fit in the cam grooves, you can use drill bit stop collars.

I haven't used it, but the brand has a good following on here (and elsewhere) and the reports say that it's a good thread.

Of course there's a way to handle this!!! You'll need a set of wing dividers, and here's what you do - measure how much short or long the odd stitch will be. Then divide that number by 3, 4, or 5 (whichever is easier) and subtract/add that from/to your standard stitch size. This new stitch size , either slightly less or slightly more, should cover the odd spacing. Then set the wing dividers to the new size and mark the holes. You spread the variance over 3, 4, or 5 stitches and it is less noticeable than one or two stitches that are different.