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JNewkirkct

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Posts posted by JNewkirkct

  1. Posted · Report reply

    1 hour ago, Wizcrafts said:

    You won't regret this decision. I make a lot of money sewing things and my CB4500 is the only machine in the shop that sews holsters, sheathes and other thick items with heavy bonded thread. The cylinder arm proves to be very useful, or mandatory, about half the time.

    Since you will probably sew a wide range of thicknesses and materials, get packs of needles in all available sizes, from #19 up, and thread sizes to match (#92 through 346 or 415).

    Bob Kovar (Cowboy Bob) might know a company that finances the (Cowboy and other) machines he sells. Ask him!

    All you guys on this blog are great, thanks for all the help

  2. Posted · Report reply

    17 hours ago, Wizcrafts said:

    I have owned many 29 series "patchers" including the pesky -4 models. I currently use two Singer patchers. One is a 29k71 and the other is a 29k172. I am only going to address your question as to whether they can sew 16 to 18 ounces together and how well they can do it.

    On both of my current 29 series machines and all the others I have had, including a couple of 29-4, the absolute maximum uncompressed thickness I have been able to get the machines to feed/sew is a tish over a quarter inch; let's call it 18 ounces. This assumes a machine that can sew at factory specs. Since the 29-4 machines are all over a hundred years old, you will be asking a lot out of the foot lifting mechanism and adjusters. If the presser foot lift parts cannot go any higher than 18 or 19 ounces, the teeth on the foot will claw up the top grain as the are pushed forward for the next stitch.

    Let's assume the machine you are looking at can actually lift the foot high enough to sew 18 ounces together and move it along for the next stitches without clawing up the grain. The length of those stitches may not be what you were hoping for ;-( 

    The patcher type machines have a rotating foot mechanism that turns 360° inside a hollowed out ring inside the head. There is a metal appendage on one end of the feed mechanism that slides inside the hollow ring. As that "puck" wears down, slack sets into the feed motion crank and the stitches get shorter and shorter. You can actually feel this slack by pushing and pulling on the raised presser foot. Due to the way the feed is designed, the stitches already tend to get shorter as you approach 1/4 inch thickness. 

    A pristine or rebuilt Singer patcher can sew as long as 5 stitches per inch. A worn out feed motion crank and lifting parts can lower this to 8, 10 or 12 stitches per inch, maximum.

    I would take some leather with when you go to see the machine. Glue two pieces together on some to see how it does with 16 to 18 ounces combined. If it can clear the two pieces  without gouging the top and can sew at least 6 or 7 stitches per inch into the stack,  it is a good deal. But, if it has trouble feeding the two pieces, or can only sew tiny stitches, you're looking a a complicated repair job to bring it back to usable specs.

    Another matter of concern is the timing mechanism. It the machine skips stitches, those parts are probably well worn as well.

    I've decided to pass on it, I'm going to look into a cowboy 4500 new in box where I hopefully won't have to worry about problems for a long while.  I recently retired from the fire service and what seemed like overnight my hobby exploded into a business, so I'm going to need something reliable and strong, can anyone help me out with financing a new cowboy 4500?

  5. Posted · Report reply

    9 minutes ago, matthewb137 said:

    So far I have a couple orders for each thing. Suspenders, straps and holders, shields. All of the fire related stuff. I'd love to turn it into a business but I can't rely on the guys I know. But then again, you said you're retiring, correct? Or recently retired? It can't hurt to turn it into a bit of a business. 

    Yeah I retired two weeks ago from injury, where are you from? Maybe we can make something happen.  I'd prefer to work from home now anyway, I got turned down from two jobs already because of the injury, not the body I used to have, fd, plumbing business, and tree removals, but I could sit at my bench all day and work.  Message me sometime, let's talk.

     

     

  6. Posted · Report reply

    1 hour ago, matthewb137 said:

    Do you sell your straps (shields, helmet bands, glove keepers if you do them?) online or to people you actually know?

    I made my first radio pouch for someone recently, I've also done suspenders on request, and some hippie bags,  I do charge for the time and materials.  Anyway, I've gotten four orders in a day for the pouches, and possibly 30 more for an EMS service.  There is a fire dept muster coming up in September near me, I'm looking to get rid of some gear, boots, helmets, and memorabilia at their flea market, I'm toying with the idea of making some more pouches, keepers, even key fobs to see how they sell.

  7. Posted · Report reply

    17 hours ago, Engine1 said:

    I found that if you do get paint in the grove on a black leather you can dab a bit of black paint on it and it is not noticeable... that radio case looks nicer than mine and I've made a crowd of them

    Thanks man it means a lot to me.  I've recently retired from the fd and I'm on the fence about turning this from hobby to business but I'm weary about it.

  9. Posted · Report reply

    59 minutes ago, matthewb137 said:

    Looks good. I've yet to see one where the buckle isn't around the chest area. It's definitely a different thing to see. 

    With 60 lbs of gear and scba a buckle digging in your chest is the last thing you need, thanks for the compliment, I posted pics on Facebook and now I have four more orders for them, I bought a side of 9 oz veg tan today to start filling them.

  10. Posted · Report reply

    13 minutes ago, JerseyFirefighter said:

    When I used to paint my straps by brush I would do the outline, then brush the letter fill in second. Any bleeds into the embossment can be touched up later. I have since switched to needle tip bottle applicators and have found them to work 100x better than hand brushing. 

    Thanks, where can I find needle tip bottle applicators?  That's funny you said that, I thought of taking some 1cc syringes from the firehouse with a small catheter and try that

  13. Posted · Report reply

    On 7/23/2017 at 6:54 PM, JerseyFirefighter said:

    Looks great! Judging by the stamp it is likely awlivers. If memory serves he/she is an ebay dealer for Studio-N here on the forum.   My opinion is that the radio holster pattern development is the greatest hurdle a fire leather business must overcome. Everything else is just learning by repetition. 

    Thanks, it was indeed awlivers I have to order some more from him as a matter of fact thanks for reminding me of his name!

  14. Posted · Report reply

    On 7/24/2017 at 11:16 PM, Halitech said:

    Nice work and design. 2 things I noticed though. 1, the mic strap should be up higher to the shoulder so they don't need to unclip it to talk and 2. When doing the name, you pressed too hard on the arbour press handle because you can see the square from around the letter.

    It was my first.... I did notice the square marks, I get so nervous of screwing it up that I over emboss it, secondly, through experience, the radio straps we are issued have the mic clip too high, when packaging patients or donning gear we tend to hit the mic with our chin and transmit and our dispatchers hate us for that.  It lands just about "nipple" height for the user.  I need to work on centering the names on the strap, he was very happy with it, so I am happy for that!

    Just now, JNewkirkct said:

    It was my first.... I did notice the square marks, I get so nervous of screwing it up that I over emboss it, secondly, through experience, the radio straps we are issued have the mic clip too high, when packaging patients or donning gear we tend to hit the mic with our chin and transmit and our dispatchers hate us for that.  It lands just about "nipple" height for the user.  I need to work on centering the names on the strap, he was very happy with it, so I am happy for that!

    Also, when we enter a fire most guys habitually unclip the mic and draw it out through our collar and let it hang free, as long as the radio is protected under our gear.

  16. Posted · Report reply

    1 hour ago, Fire88 said:

    Nice work! Did you make the pattern for the radio pouch?

    Thanks, I loosely followed the design that we carry on the job but my buddy didn't like the black, it's also larger than what we carry because he works for a private ambulance service and they use much larger portable radios

    1 hour ago, Fire88 said:

    Nice work! Did you make the pattern for the radio pouch?

    Fire88,

    i can send you a scaled pattern if you're interested 

  24. Posted · Report reply

    Hi guys and gals, 

    I'm from Ct, I've been a career firefighter for 15 years and am retiring tomorrow due to repeated surgeries on my shoulder.  I've been toiling with leather for approximately 2 years, I got interested in leather craft after buying knives with crappy sheaths and uncomfortable holsters.  I rely mostly on YouTube videos and books for tips and tricks, my interests are sheaths, holsters, wallets, and fire department items (suspenders, radio holsters, and tool pouches). If anyone is in the new haven Ct area I'd love to hear from you, and possibly learn a few things from the seasoned veterans.  Thanks!

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