Kevin

The backstitch is a type of stitch. I do it everyday, but I am not smart enough to explain it. There is a good explanation on here somewhere though, justv keep searching. Good luck, Kevin

I have shares in TLF and made $4.50 this year, I shall now retire. Kevin

Try removing the lacquer from a brass buckle and then soak the buckle in oxalic acid, it will bring out the copper in the brass. That or toilet bowl cleaner, I'm not sure which, I haven't done it in a while. Kevin

Unless I'm mistaken, if you look closely at the Weaver catalog, they carry the brass hoof picks in two sizes. Kevin

Beiler's in Ronks, PA has elastic and probably patent leather, maybe white . Do not buy bridle buckles from Weaver, they are huge, somebody thought they needed to be redesigned and I don't know what they had in mind. I buy most of that from Windmill Saddle Supply in Ohio. Kevin

My grandmother sent me one when I was a kid. When you sew canvas, the thread is too big and the lock shows, when I tried to sew leather, the needles broke. We did have a luggage repair guy in the shop for a little while and he used one as an awl, but didn't actually sew with it. Kevin

One more thing, If you don't have the plates already, I like plates by The Engraver in West Chester, PA, or Quillen's in KY. Don't get plates from Dover, the holes are too big and they aren't centered. Good luck, Kevin

This is what I do everyday. I just use a rubber mallet and the bic (horn) of an anvil. I buckle the belt and imagine where the hip bones will be and bend away, it's easier to unbend if you bend too much. The brass in plates is pretty soft, you just can't quite fold them in half. Kevin

Add to the buckle end, that way the billet end will cover it up when buckled. Kevin

Ditto on Katsass, no good. It's probably too old anyway. Kevin

Wow, I have a Randall and have used several, but I've never seen one with the wood screw. I've only seen that on European stitching horses. Kevin

Just to add to the confusion, a few years ago, Nissan advertised that their seats were handsewn and I've seen some bootmakers advertise that their tops are handsewn, I highly doubt either is really handsewn. I think they are trying to say a human runs the machine as opposed to a computer. Kevin

Some of the older sewing machines require one twist on top and another on the bottom. Kevin

I hate to be a fly in the ointment, but the custom tailor we share our building with got an order of belts with that buckle and it is very inconvenient. Sure, the pressure might hold it once it's buckled, but you've got to get it buckled first. Maybe if you wore your belt to the right like ladies, it might work, but I don't even know of many women that do that. Kevin

I've never heard of a #20 needle, The smallest I've ever used is a #5 and that's pretty small. I finally made one (awl) from a bicycle spoke as suggested by someone here on the forum and it works great. Good luck, Kevin

I don't know anything about that machine, but on some machines you can adjust the height of the feed dogs. Kevin

I believe on the old needle and awl machines, this was recommended in the owner's manual to get a tight stitch. Kevin

I can't answer all your questions, but I'll take a stab at a couple. Back when wax was solid, it had to be heated to melt and flow. The machine had to be heated to keep the wax from solidifying while you were sewing. Now there are liquid waxes, so there is no need for heat at all. As for the choice between a Champion and a Landis 3, I would get the Landis because there are parts out there or they can be made. Campbell- Bosworth has some or will make what they don't have. Hope that helps a little, Kevin

That buckle is for a string girth, is that what you want it for? Kevin

I've had this happen to me a couple times, in my case, I think I used too much finish and that caused the surface to crack. Both times I had done 3 or 4 coats of Leather Balm w. Atom Wax because they were special projects. Good luck, Kevin

A Landis 12-K weighs in at about 700 lbs. Kevin

If you do decide to sew the lining in, curve everything when you glue it together. You can flatten it out while you sew it, but if you don't curve it, the lining will wrinkle up badly on you. Kevin

The wheel itself is wood and has a layer of ribbed rubber on top. The canvas is actually pretty smooth because the ribs and wax do the real work (I think). You might try Puritan, they have brushes for finishing machines, maybe they'll have the wheels. Good luck, Kevin

One reason you see so much of their hardware is because there is (was) a hundred piece minimum, no mix and match, no ifs, ands, or buts. I'm finally getting low on 1 1/2" brass rings after twenty years. They used to be the sole supplier for English type hardware in the U.S. that I needed. Kevin

I always punch holes after dyeing, oiling or finishing, because more dye or oil will be absorbed into the holes. Kevin