Blackbirdhills Andy

OK; it was because of some old sticky oil... I cleaned everything, changed some stuff on the Motor etc and I have now a nice, slow running Singer! :-) Thanks a lot you guys! It helped me a lot and it's much apprecciated! Greetings from Switzerland... :-) Andy

Ok, first of all, thanks a lot to you guys!!! Yes, the foot was locked, and it came undone when I've loosened the screw you've mentioned Jimi... Yes; I do have a coupole of different feet, and I am now at the point where the machine is running and stitching quite fine, but: I need to finetune the walking foot... Any suggestions (it doesn't say anything in the manual)? Also; there's another thing: The foot isn't pressing all the way down; there's a gap of maybe 2mm under it when it's down. This makes sewing thin material impossible of course... Thanks a lot again!

Hello All, I picked up this Singer 45K89 today, and it has that Ring-Foot, which I haven't seen on a Machine yet... Also, the walking/jump-Foot seems to be locked (maybe because of the Ringe-Attachment?) Does anyone know what this thing is, and how I get the machine to work? Motor runs, she looks quite good in shape, I guess, it shouldn't be a huge thing to get her going? Thank you in advance!

Thinking about quitting while making it; and just before it's finished, thinking about the next ten... haha :-) I will do a smaller cutout the next time; a more "flowing" one would be nicer anyway I guess... Thank you!

Thanks a lot; yep, some of that stuff I was thinking of when I first wrote about some problems here and there :-) But I've learned a lot and I'm ready for my second saddle ;-) That Rigging is plugged btw :-) Thanks a lot for your answer; good, helpful points there...

Thank's a lot Thorsten! It is very much appreciated! :-)

Hello all, It's been a while since I have been here to show some of my stuff, but since I am now (almost) done with my very first saddle (stirrups and breast collar are waiting to be done), I wanted to post some pictures of it here... I have chosen DVDs and books as sources, I've made my own patterns, and since almost every saddle over here is more for recreational riders than the hard working cowboy, I have made some decisions considering weight etc... The Saddle is made for my wife, it is all handstitched, it's got a 16" Seat, Small Skirts, inskirt rigging, and features a rather simple border tooling :-)... I've had some problems here and there, but all in all, for my first saddle I am very proud... Alltough I am a little bit scared; feel free to critique whatever you may find odd or "special"... haha :-) Thanks, Andy

Hello Keith, First of all a big thank you for your posts, I enjoy reading them all and learning a lot from you! Question: Is it possible to post some pictures of the "Laser-Process?" And how do find your main reference points such as the center line? (If you have the laser attached to the stand, i suppose it's not guaranteed that the tree is in the right position for the laser? or do you have kind of a "locking-possibilty" on that stand, so every tree sits on it the same?) I am looking forward to your answer, regards, Andy

Thanks; I oiled it yesterday; no problem at all...

Hi there, I'm currently working on a pair of chinks with a two-tone (brown/Natural) carving. My question is: I'm done with everything, now I'm a bit scared of oiling, because the color could get smeared, right? Or am I safe with just lightly touching it up with some oil on a sponge? I use fiebings professional oil dye... After that, I was planning to use bag kote, but I can use a can of leather sheen too if thats safer... thanks a lot!

Hey Trox, No problem; your answer was very interesting and useful! Why did you delete it?! Thanks a lot anyway, Regards from switzerland Andy

Hello there! Well, if I look at my finished pieces, there's always one (or two ;-) little things I know I can do better on the next one, even if it's just me seeing it... And I guess that'll never change, right? :-) We are always learning and moving forward, and that's what I like about Leatherwork... There's so much to learn and know about, and I don't think it'll fit all in one lifetime? And if we ever come to a point where we stop learning, we'll probably lose- or allready have lost- the love for our craft... BTW: I'm definitly planning to do a nr. 3 and 4 and 5 etc, but first of all, I need a decent nr 1 and 2! haha :-) Andy

Hello Randy, Thanks for your suggestion! Yeah, there's always something to do while the glue is drying, right? ;-) In fact, even my mentor, who's a master saddle maker, does only work on one saddle at the time... I will order two trees at once, because I live in switzerland and shipping etc is expensive. But when it comes to building the saddles; I'll take my time! So one at a time will be my choice too... Have a nice day/evening, Andy

Thanks a lot, I think I get what you mean now! :-) Anyway, my goal was not to separate them in the first place, so I'll stick with the combined solution for now... I will continue to draw and I have an old, broken "cheapo" saddle here where I can check all the stuff I'm working on... And someday, I'm gonna order that tree! ;-) Thanks a lot again, it's good to know that there's people out there willing to help! :-) Andy

Hello there, Thanks for your feedback! I was sketching and drawing today, did you by any chance mean something like this? :-) Nice Saddles that you build!

Adam, That's exactly my thinking too! ;-) I have looked at that same picture a couple of times before, and another member sent it to me as well. It's interesting, and I think I'm gonna contact the maker to get a little more information on it... However, I'm still wrapping my head around the version I did, since my saddle(s) would be covered with a back jockey, I think it would be easier to have a smoother look, 'cause the way it is on the picture, there's 3 layers of leather, and they would cross underneath the jockeys, so that would be a bulky story I guess... Thanks from switzerland, Andy

Hi Adam, First of all thank you for your answer! I think maybe I'll have to draw the thing proper; it's just a rough sketch, so the rear rigging position is not exact and thought trough yet, it's just there to show that the rigging is gonna have a rear one too... Anyway, good points you mentioned there! Sorry for not being more exact! :-) Thanks, Andy

Hello everyone here, First of all, I'd like to thank you all for the great tips and topics here! I'm doing Leatherwork since 2 Years now, and with a new work-shop coming in our new home, I'll be ready to take the next step and make my very first saddle. I've been reading, and watching everything about saddles I could in the last half a year, and I visited courses and schools about horses, saddles and their physiology.... I'm planning to build my first one (maybe 2 simultaneously, one for my lady, one for me) on a wade tree (if everything goes well on one of rod nikkels). And I am thinking and sketching now the parts of my first saddles. I'm a huge old-time fan, so I came up with this sketch of an old timey sam stagg-style front rigging, connected with the back rigging. Now all of you professionals out there, your opinion is very important to me! I wanna learn from the best and keep up the good work and tradition! :-) Is there any point on this (rough) sketch you wouldn't recommend me to try? Thanks a lot in advance! Greetings from switzerland, Andy

Hello there, Yes you are right, those are too small for my project, but thanks a lot anyway! Regards, Andy

Hi there, Well, anyone who's willing to sell and ship to switzerland... :-) I would prefer rather larger treesizes (i think yours are larger than LL's, right) cause I think it's easier to handle... Thanks!

Hi there and greetings from switzerland! I love your mini-saddles, they look great! Since I am getting into Saddle-Making, I am considering doing miniature versions of my planned Saddles to display them in my shop... Would you consider selling some of your trees? :-) Regards, Andy

Hi Screed, Is it still available? What would be your absolute best price? And would you send them over to switzerland? Kind regards, Andy

Hi Elwood, are these still available? What would be your absolute best price, and would you send them over to switzerland? :-) greetings, Andy

Hi Colt, Interesting! I'll try this the next time! Thanks a lot!!!

Hi Michelle, Thanks for the advice, this is actually how I did it, except from the oiling... :-) The Leather is very high quality, and yes I know about Hermann Oak, and I've had it in my hands before. The Leather I am working with currently is very close in quality, handling etc I'd say... I choose every hide by myself and that's how I get the consistency over here...