mikesc

Selling copies ( to order ) of what is copyright ( the original Adler manuals probably are still copyright to Adler ) is illegal, unless you are only selling your personal copy (in which case it is fine ) ..as in ..you can't take orders and print and bind more..It isn't clear from your post ? It seems to be you are just selling the one copy that you made for yourself ?. That is OK :)

Actually, spirit(s)/ solvent(s) evaporate, oil(s) oxidise/ polymerise. it is even a bit more / lot more complex than that..but..they ( spirit / solvent or oil dyes ) both get older..some spirit / solvent dyes you could get lucky with , add more solvent and re-dilute them again, but, much better to throw them, or at least not use them for anything that you want seen.. They will also risk "bleeding through"if you add solvents.. Oil dyes are not possible to "re_dilute" as they will have changed chemically..you could add solvent, but they will never be the same. Best to get rid of either once they have "gone over", why take the risk of spoiling something that you have put a lot of time into , just to save a few dollars on fresh dye. Water based dyes evaporate ( the water part does ) and also change chemically when they are left..adding water or solvents back into them doesn't recover them properly.. Seal all stock airtight, keep it in the dark, ( preferably in dark glass bottles* ) only take out as much as you are going to use. *if you can get any of those glass marbles, even kids marbles, they don't have to be dark, add them to any dyes in the bottles that you are storing so that the level of liquid is as close to the caps as possible, restricting the amount / volume of air that the dye is in contact with in it's bottle will help them to last longer.Adding glass marbles brings the levels up.Reduces the air volume..Lab technique :) In chemistry labs you use clear glass marbles..clean kids marbles will work for dye.

If you are on a phone, emailing them to yourself shrinks them to a size that can be uploaded here, always provided that you can access your emails from your phone. :)

If possible photos should always be uploaded to here rather than to any image hosting site, so that everyone can see them, and so that they will still be there when eventually the hosting site closes down ( Google close down things every month ) ..Google+ being the most well known thing that they shut.

Thank you, those may be very useful to many of us :)

If anything your last photo ( shame the focus is off ) shows you may have the needle's eye pointing slightly towards the rear of the machine, which would mean the "loop" would not be as "full" as it should when the hook gets to it..Try putting a toothpick, or another needle , point first into the eye from the pulley side..does it point along the arm parallel ? Or slightly to the back of the machine..If the latter? Loosen and re "set" the needle so that the toothpick / other needle then points parallel along the arm..It should then sew better, with less chance of occasional "missed stitches".

Nothing hard about that with a machine..looks like a 1/8 th inch edge..either use edge guide on the machine ( swing down or mounted on the bed / arm ) or guide built into the foot..Go slow..Go carefully..The same method will also allow you to do the seam that is all around the top..Also the stitching on the straps. Easier with a cylinder arm machine than with a flat bed..Possible with a flat bed , but you'll be fighting the leather and manipulating it a lot, with not a clear sight of what you are doing, and that may show in the final product as creases. Best not use a flat bed if you want to avoid throwing the bag and the machine out the window :) Brian ( RockyAussie ) has posted a few videos and threads that show how to do very similar techniques.. edit : Thinking about it a little more, I think a "spring edge guide" on the foot would be easier than a guide on the machine.

Which seam ? There are multiple seams visible on that bag.

Yes..nice close ups..the needle is in correctly ( allowing for a little parallax in the shots along the arm )..one way to "set" your needle is to put either another needle or the tip of a toothpick into the needle's eye from the machine side, then before tightening the needle clamp you can use the other needle or the toothpick to make sure that the "eye" and the arm are parallel..Then tighten the needle clamp ..the toothpick acts like a "direction amplifying pointer/ indicator.

I think the Stohlman books look great..a lot of "modern" illustrations are nowhere near as easy to understand as to what goes where etc.. edit to add ..The first "art" degree I ever did / obtained ( BA hons ) was as a medical and scientific illustrator..so I have a professional appreciation for good clear illustration that actually looks like the thing the accompanying text is talking about..Al Stohlman illustration is great.. :)

A highly laudable thing to do..I grew up with a beehive in my bedroom in Ireland ( they decided to take up residence there, sort of "half inside and half outside", old stone walls ) they didn't sting me, so my grandfather left them, I like bees, :) )..Yes, if bottom thread is showing on top, reduce the top tension until the knots "centre" in whatever you are sewing.

The needle looks like the "scarf" is facing towards us..if we were sitting in front of the machine..it should be facing the end of the machine where the drive belt is ( in your case that white cord that looks 2amp lighting cable going around the pulley at the treadle and around the pulley on right hand end of the machine if you are sitting down in front of it to sew on the machine ) ..You appear to have set your needle with the long groove at he back and the scarf at the front..it should be long groove at the left, and the scarf at the right..you then thread from left to right.. On the bottom picture of the stitching..there is not enough tension on one of the threads..but..you don't say which was on the top ? Ps..Try to avoid sewing through the thumb or fingers, even on gloves..bad habit..one day your thumb or finger might be in there :) is that blood ? :)

I think when Stohlman was writing his books..The idea of downloadable pdfs ready for printing were not even a gleam in anyone's mind's eye..Not even Sir TBL.

Unfortunately, despite loving wine, and having a large collection of full bottles of very good wine ( some people only have a large collection of empty bottles ) :) I became allergic ( not the sulphites, happens with organic wine too ) to something in red wine about 10 years ago.. Never could see the thing about oysters, they are like having a really heavy cold and swallowing, snot with shells on. Foie gras, no thanks , the way they make it is disgusting and cruel..bad for the geese, and bad for humans too, fills your arteries with crap, your intestines too, ( yes I know they are already full of crap )neighbour who loves the stuff has had two operations for intestinal cancer already, his surgeon has told him ( remember this is France ) "lay off the foie gras before it kills you".. Back in the day when passports had one's profession written on them..mine said Artist / Designer. Nowadays they ( passport authorities of UK and Eire in my case ) don't have that "field"..if they did, it would read as it did previously. I see both here ( and in offline life ) many many examples of work by both hobbyists and professional leather workers that in my opinion are certainly worthy of the label "Craftsman"..many certainly worthy of "Artisan", as relating to the quality of the work, most of them are much better than I can do as regards some of the specific techniques, I'm also now a bit old to have the time available to me to perfect techniques to such levels..that kind of technical perfection takes time..Leather work is not my main business nor interest, I'd rather spend the time I have on the things which are. I also see here some people's work ( I've never seen them describe themselves as Artists, but I consider them to be the perfect blend of artist and artisan, well above my skill level ), I'm thinking in particular of those who are currently posting on the site here, but not yet in this thread..RockyAussie, and Rolandranch..and for work that makes me smile each time I see it at the level of artistry ABhandmade..Of those who no longer post , Azmal / Prince and a lady who did a lot of work with decorative leather combined with horn , who's "nick" I cannot remember at the moment..There are currently , and have been others, but those stand out to me.. Tangential to the OPs question, if I may make a suggestion..get out of basic belts and wallets.. "The world and his / her dog" are doing them, you can always be undercut on pricing, whether it is by the stand next to you, or the other side of the fair, at the craft-fair, or the Chinese with free shipping.. Explaining why the customer should buy quality over mass produced or "roughly finished" ?.. Heinlein said it years ago..teaching pigs to sing , annoys both you and the pigs"..and I would add, is a futile waste of your time.. They either want quality, know what it is, and will pay for it.or they won't..all the time you spend explaining to them, is time that you are not doing what you want to be doing..and all any of us have is time.. If they want cheap, let the other guy or girl make it..Once you begin "price matching"..you'll be competing with guys like the Kenyan ( or with those who import ) who posted recently offering leatherwork at $4.00 per hour. Yesterday I saw ( at the "hat fair" that I mentioned in another thread) a stand with obvious Indian handbags and belts marked "handmade"..their prices would not cover the cost of the leather..But they looked the part, only the dog didn't have a pony tail and beads..they had lots of "lookers" , but very few buyers. Belts were badly finished "splits" with top finishing..equivalent pricing in Euros to USD $30.oo to USD$50.oo per belt, ( no stitching around, only at buckle, and in the wrong direction ) and bags ( with badly hand stitched, and badly machine stitched work ) at USD$50.oo to USD$100.oo.. again some "lookers" no buyers.. The only real artisan, retired ( Compagnon du Devoir ) there, who I mentioned in that other thread link about the Compagnons du Devoir ..( copy and paste into your address bar..hit "go" ) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compagnons_du_Devoir was just demonstrating making belts and card holders and wallets on a small table, with basic tools..he had a few card holders for sale €12.oo each, a few wallets at €20.oo each, no price on the belts, but if anyone asked, they were €30.oo , but he said "they are not dyed , nor finished..they are not for sale here, I'm merely showing what we can teach your children ( from age 4 to 14 ) to make at our free classes..You can bring them next week and buy a belt, let your kids see what we can teach them".."Not just leatherwork, also stone carving and a host of other things, trying to get kids interested in working with their hands".. He was surrounded, he was cutting, stitching belts around one per 15 minutes( using a French clamp), explaining as he went.. If you are going to sell belts , wallets and card holders, make some in front of the people..have some others ready to go.. But..I come back to it.. Much better to make something that others do not or make yours very different, ( filigree, or carved, or multicoloured dyed ) or offer names ( to be sent on later, paid in advance at the stand ) make them more expensive..Maybe put some bondage cuffs* out..just enough to get some interest from those who won't ask how much, but will ask "can you do"..and when you say you can, but that it will be ..... and will need paying "upfront"..Those who order, will keep you busy enough to not regret being" too expensive" compared to the guy who calls himself a "craftsman".. Go "upmarket"..add some "sizzle".. You are not selling to us ..nor to JLS :) You are selling to people who have been conditioned by the ad business..( another of many areas in which I have worked ) ..they like "presentation".."entertainment".. don't tell them "hand made" and "high quality"..Hand make something of high quality..right before their eyes.. And have some "already made and finished" ready to go .. It is irrelevant to sales of leather goods to the non leatherworking public what the leatherworkers would buy, or what we leatherworkers want to hear..or not hear. *Depends on the venue..church folks will probably buy them, ( huge numbers of them do ) they might not want them out on view though.. edited to add ..everywhere that I write "man" as in Craftsman etc ..please also read "woman"..it makes the text unreadable if I try to make each word "neutral".

Ok , not getting on your case :)..just in light of the OPs initial question , I thought it worth making the definitions clear.. I read the thread when it began..later, when I've eaten, I might join in..if it can be of any help ..

An artisan is not a combination of artist and craftsman..Michelangelo was an artist, the artisans did what he designed..artisan is, if you will, a grade above craftsman..an artisan is rarely a creator ( when they are, they are an artist ), but is a highly skilled craftsman. A sculptor is an artist..a stone mason is an artisan. Artists are born Craftsmen and artisans are made via practice , training, and frequently apprenticeships. Today I was talking at length with a retired artisan in leather, at a fair ( a hat fair, yes they exist ) around 50kms from my house..he has worked for Hermes, LVMH, Longchamp etc..He is a Compagnon du Devoir.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compagnons_du_Devoir This is the highest grade of artisan in France, if not the world..some of them are creators, thus they are artists, most are highly skilled craftsmen.. He would not call himself an artist, he does not, he calls himself an artisan..

You could try a pm to Rolandranch ( I think he is Ryan ? ) in this thread https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/82855-snake-skin-tanning/?page=2 he mentioned that he had some rattler skins..maybe he can spare one ? Btw..I know that you said it could be python, or maybe Boa..( probably not rattler, but with the turquoise stones and settings, maybe ) but if you have a picture of it?

Usually, on other machines, the "synchroniser" ( head part of the needle positioner system ) sits on the end of the shaft that the hand wheel is on, and is held in place ( prevented from rotating ) by being attached to a bracket on the belt cover, or by a bracket attached to the machine just below the hand wheel, often to one of the screw posts on the machine that the belt cover would have been attached to, if it is missing. As long as there is sufficient length of the shaft protruding out from the hand wheel to "hang" the syncro' head on, you should not have any problems, just might have to make bracket that is longer than usual. The belt pulley is "inboard" ( nearer to the needle end ) of the machine than the hand wheel on many machines..as on my Singer 211..I don't like needle positioners though..They are OK for fast production work in factories, but a right pain on slow work like leather..you don't always want the needle either all the way up or all the way down when it stops.

Surely "the flop factor" is what the blue is supposed to fix ? Or else they'd make them pink or another colour.

Even now..Silver ( Ag ) costs less than many people who are not jewellers or sculptors think..Similar to how much non leather workers think leather costs. Btw..further to my mentioning China and Amazon above..This link might make interesting reading for some people. https://www.marketplacepulse.com/articles/40-of-merchants-on-amazon-based-in-china Ps..IME most ( not all, but 99.9999999% ) of the people that make all those videos of any subject on youtube or facebook, do so because they think that Google / facebook will pay them money for each time someone sees the video ( and the advertising, unless people are blocking the ads ) ..What they do not know is that unless they have a certain number of followers , they won't get paid at all for the ads which are shown, only Google / facebook will get paid.. But, they live in hope, many of them think they'll become rich by copying what they see in other people's videos..a tiny percentage do. Most of the really rich youtubers are either cute girls pushing make-up..or guys doing dumb things like banging their heads against a wall to music. There are an awful lot of dumb people, they spend an awful lot of time on youtube and facebook, they do an awful lot of ad watching, keeps them distracted.."bread and circuses"..makes the really rich, richer..and like rock stars , movie stars, sports stars etc, sometimes via youtube/ facebook, the "plebs" get a chance to compete with each other for the chance at some crumbs from the top table..Very clever business model, making money from other people's content, with ads around it , watched by people , each thinking " I could do that".. There is interesting stuff on Youtube..and then there are a gazzillion people who copy it. Of course the original video makers could just host their videos themselves, but Google make it so easy..and no risks at all to those who post copies of what others have done before them.Some even post compendiums of other peoples videos, and they have millions of views, and get rich, by using without permission , other people's videos, Google does not care, they are too busy counting the money from the ads around it all.

That looks like stone..with settings made to match each stone. Are you sure that the settings are steel ?..a lot were done in silver ( easier , softer to work ) , are the settings open , even partially ( on the back ) or closed ? The straight edges ( not really straight ) say "home made" or "semi skilled", as do the serrated edge settings.. ( are they soldered on to the support? I can't tell from the photo )..A jeweller would have used something more like an "open claw" setting even for stones. They look more "craftsy" than "artisan", but, as the other concurrent thread re "craftsmen" shows. "Craftsman" and "artisan" , nowadays, can cover a multitude of skill levels, things, and sins.

I think the price of Croc per sq ft is variable with the width and to a degree the length*, ( which is I think what Brian is referring to ) ..the wider the skin, the bigger the Croc, the larger the pieces that one can use from the same skin, the larger the items that one can make, the more expensive the skin / piece. *IME most ( if not all ) "exotics" are priced higher per sq ft as the usable area of the skin / piece gets larger . Come to think of it, even in non exotics, the larger the usable area of the skin or the piece, the more expensive per sq ft it is..

Some one on here had rattler skins for sale a couple of months ago..and I think that chief filipino may have had some of various snake species, maybe still does , try searching for. site: leatherworker.net chief filipino snakeskin He was in most of the snakeskin threads that I remember having happened over the last couple of years, maybe some of those threads will lead you to some snake skins ? Inlaid ( genuine turquoise ) Buckles in the USA ? The people who supply the craft shops on tribal lands maybe ? Who those might be on the other hand, I don't know. I did buy Buckles ( some with turquoise inlays ) from someone in the USA about 20 years ago, but was buying 500 to 1000 at a time..minimums were about 10 per style..if their name comes back to me ( unlikely, age has taken it's toll on my memory, that and being alive and partying in the late 60s early seventies :)..I'll post it..don't hold your breath though, many rolodexen have been left behind in my past over the many decades :) Last time I was buying those buckles was pre-PC..Computers are so much easier to search than one's memory.

You do start fascinating threads for the tinkerers amongst us :) Somewhere here*, there are some threads on stepper motors, I think maybe Uwe once set a machine up with one..and a "jog"** button ( as is / are used on many industrial factory machines nowadays ), usually the "jog" switch(es) is / are near the needle, for ease of use..my Juki 490-4 has a reverse "paddle" ( very small ) just above the needle, a "forerunner" of this idea. *I found a few of those threads..put this next line , exactly like it is, including the site: part, into any search engine. site: leatherworker.net stepper motor jog button Then click the search button **Single stitch or even fraction of single cycle of motor rotation

An apostrophe with an s ..like so, "who's" ( contraction of "who has" ) would have done.. as in "Who's got the stuff?" = understandable, non cornfusing.. :) No video required..just grammatically correct English..which you can ( and often do ) use.. :) "Folksy" is sometimes "cute"..but frequently leaves folks ( those who ain't on your porch, 'longside o' yuh ) scratchin' their noggins, wundrin' jest whut y'all mean.. :) As to who stocks those items on your side of the Atlantic ?..I don't know.. Here, I know about 4 places.. I'm also thinking that anyone who has genuine turquoise inlaid buckles etc, and snake skins, is probably importing them from the far east, depending on what kind of snake you are looking for..If you are in no hurry, and not looking for just one of each, you might try Alibaba* ( not the Express part ) or Weibo ? Buying from the people that I know here in Europe, the shipping and duties would hurt you..China et al , tend to send postage free, or at least very low ( highly subsidized ) postal ( or DHL etc ) rates to worldwide..Europe ( particularly France, postal rates or DHL etc to worldwide are high ) .. That gives Chinese sellers a huge advantage, one of the reasons for the rise of Amazon, especially the rise of Chinese suppliers of anything on Amazon. *I can never remember how that is spelled / spelt in English..