TinkerTailor

The difference between a beginner and an experienced craftsman is that a craftsman has learned how to hide his mistakes. A master craftsman has learned how to make mistakes a design feature.

I'm going to try that to my useless blanket foot. Thanks Uwe edit: just looked, my blanket foot wont work.

One of the problems with posting the same question in three places is it makes it difficult for those who answer the questions to follow whats going on. Having the answer and the question together in one place also helps the next guy searching for the same question ...Sometimes the volunteer experts on here take a few days or a week to get to it. Keep in mind while waiting for a response that around here you get WAY more than you pay for......

In the other thread, Cowboy bob says no, there is machining involved.

I got a big old bucket of spit in my basement saved up for edges. Joking aside bikermutt07 is totally correct. Get the bare minimum tools you need for the project at hand and go from there. Always look for the same tool outside of leather stores. Why buy a 60 dollar "leatherworking mallet" when a 10 dollar dead blow from the hardware store does just as good. Rivet and snap setters are frequently available for cheaper in farm or sailing supply stores included in "repair kits". I found a grommet set for 2 bux in a camping store. Scraps of hardwood molding from the hardware store can be whittled and sanded into slickers, burnishers and all sorts of things with a pocket knife. A granite countertop place has a bin full of sink cut-outs that can be had for beer as a tooling surface instead of giving tandy money for a rock. Rulers-hareware store. Contact cement-hardware store. Rubber gloves-drug store. Sponges and applicators-dollar store. Dividers-stationary section. Detail cutting knives-wood carvers supply. The only thing on the list bikermutt listed you need from a leather place is the needles, thread, and beveler. Abbey england is another source for better stuff than tandy. Creativity and ingenuity are free and will save you money and time For best results staring out, only use veg tan if you want nice edges. Use pre-finished leather like bridle or some drum dyed leathers if you can. Pre finished leather eliminates a place to fail when you are just starting out. Look around at a few "first projects" on this site, many were ruined by bad finishing and the person is devastated they ruined all their hard work right at the end. Nice edges on chrome tan are a whole technique themselves. Construction and dying and finishing are two different topics and can be learned separately. This sets you up for success. Another tip, forks and combs can be used to mark stitches. You can also remove the thread from a home sewing machine and pre-punch the holes on thinner projects like wallets, handwheeling it. My two cardinal rules for beginners are: 1:) Do not EVER experiment on a project. Test every technique first on a scrap, twice. 2:) Buy bandaids and crazy glue. Put them in a couple places. Leather knives cut fingers better than leather and blood stains the project. You WILL cut yourself. The crazy glue is for big cuts. Ask a chef what the crazy glue in the first aid kit is for.

I still don't understand why you would go to all the trouble to convert the machine when you said it was not the one you bought in the first place. The seller should make right or at least pay for a shop to convert it for you. In case you are a novice, this is the kind of task that is probably left for someone who has worked on and timed a few industrial machines already,. According to the parts list the hook opener, opener arm and various bushings are also different part numbers between the 562/63. You may be able to convert the machine but it probably will entail more than just changing the hook. They have some screws different and they lubricate slightly differently. http://southstarsupply.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/JUKI-LU-562LU-563.pdf http://dunlapsunbrand.com/flipbook/juki/LU-562,_LU-563_INSTRUCTION_MANUAL_DSI1.00_AMG_042814/files/assets/basic-html/toc.html

Ever seen an old pair of boots that has stitching so worn that instead of a line, there are just dots at each hole and they are still holding together?? Like worn until the outside loops are gone? Hard wax on the thread is part of what is holding it together, along with wax applied during use. It has glued the loops together in the hole and tightened it up as it cooled, locking it in permanently. I think the benefits of hot wax are overlooked these days. They had oils and things they could use as thread lube back then too. I have pdf textbooks and journals of 1800s leather treatment and lubricant recipes to prove it. They new quite well how to mix waxes oils and solvents to formulate products in different consistencies for almost any use. Especially after the 1880s, recipes and research get to be a lot more chemistry and a lot less alchemy. If they wanted liquid thread lube they would have used it. These old machines commonly came with heated wax pots for a reason, and I don't believe for a minute it was because the factories and shops could be cold. Had a talk about this with the old guys at Dayton Boots here in Vancouver. They have been making what have been regarded as the best logger and biker boots around since 1946. They have several puritan machines to do the work, as well as many other classics. Also, I know they are in Canada, but these guys have several types of linen, poly, and nylon stitcher thread in both twists, wax, needles and other things for stitchers. I have been there buying other things and when I asked if they sold thread, he immediately said only for stitchers.....Had to explain that my 441 will sew up to 6 cord before he would talk to me about it. Prices are pretty good, they are wholesale and have qualifications and minimums for an account, but i get the idea that he will support anybody with one of these old machines out of sympathy cause he knows he is one of the last suppliers left in North America. http://www.labellesupply.com/

You have no idea how many of the users on here bought something that was crap, and decided they could do better themselves. Don't buy another, buy some leather and make your own. We will help. Oh, and welcome to the site btw.

Are you giving out a sewing tutorial or calling a square dance?...

The deal with the 4 machines could be old clapped out factory machines, but they may be a great deal. The second and third both look like very low use machines. Here is a thread with info on the juki 563 and what it will do and wont: http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/30140-need-your-opinion-on-juki-lu-563/

The mach 3 machine on leightons site is basically the same machine as the cobra 4 or the techsew5100. They all run 3-4 thousand CAD minimum. They are all chinese clones of the juki441. I have a 5100 and love it. I was just using it today for sewing a bag with multiple layers of leather, wool, and stitched on hardware both inside and out. Could not have done it on a flatbed. This is a heavy weight machine good for up to around an inch of leather and is a cylinder arm for clearance making bags and saddles and things. It may be way more machine than you need. If you are sewing mostly lighter weights under 1/2 inch thick and do not need the clearance of a cylinder arm, the list of models of walking foot flat bed grows a lot and the price comes down. A good flatbed and table should not cost more than 1500 bux outfitted with a servo and all. Good leather machines used do not come up very often i have found, Alberta sold its leather industry off long ago and their remains but a few stalwarts... As to flatbed machines, here are a few deals, the one with 4 juki 563 for 800 each sounds good. http://www.kijiji.ca/v-buy-sell-other/calgary/industrial-sewing-machines/1204248335?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true http://www.kijiji.ca/v-hobbies-craft/calgary/juki-industrial-sewing-machine/1210850890?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true http://www.kijiji.ca/v-business-industrial/edmonton/juki-lu-563-heavy-duty-walking-foot-leather-sewing-machine/1211963058?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true http://www.kijiji.ca/v-hobbies-craft/grande-prairie/heavy-duty-leather-sewing-machine/1212820241?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

FYI, Bob had an email problem for a month or so and did not get any emails until last week. He may not have got it. I would re-send just in case.

They are both basically the same machine with different paint. I would phone both and see who you like to talk to on the phone better. Its also not a bad idea to choose the closest. Both will stand behind their machines and can provide all the things you need. Both have a really good reputation. Toledo will also tailor the package to what you need if there is an accessory included in the cobra package that you want. Do not pass over the cowboy machine just cause it is listed with less feet. Both Cowboy Bob and Cobra Steve are known to work with people and get them the machine they need.

Here is a video with most of the basics:

I wonder if the whole problem with the clones is that the casting on the front where the stitch length adjuster plate mounts may not be to spec and differs from machine to machine. This leads to inconsistency in the stitch length between two machines adjusted to the same spec. Also explains why the spi numbers don't mean anything on a clone, but do on a juki(or so i have heard)

As to your first question, the tysew motor appears to be a rebranded chinese motor based on the rest of their offerings. These rebranded motors can be either good and bad. Never heard of the tysew brand in particular, so i can not comment. I do know many on here have used the jack servo motors from College-Sewing.co.uk They can be a great resource to people who work on their own machines, as they have a ton of parts and accessories that can be hard to find. They have been used by others here with success. They also have efka motors, which are really pricey but apparently like switching from driving a trabant to a tesla. The other thing I should meantion is the info in this particular thread is almost 10 tears old, while it is mostly correct, there is quite a bit of newer info on the motors on the market today floating around here. There are also several threads on custom motor and table setups people have built.

Get ahold of the seller and get the machine you actually purchased. If I read this right, you bought a 563 and it showed up a 562. Ebay has good protection for the buyer in product switch cases. Contact them first, it is far better for them to deal with this in person than for ebay to get involved. Do not hesitate because there is a time limit on the ebay purchase protection.

I believe this is what you are looking for, I have not done it, I got mine working perfect with the shim method, so i am going to leave it. If i ever do a big re-adjustment i will try it. I am fairly certain that doing this adjustment requires re-timing other things after, so approach with caution. This is actually from the juki engineer manual: 441 reverse-forward balance.pdf

How long has it dried? I have had what i thought was dye bleed through from the backside just turn out to be the unevaporated alcohol. Leave it for a day or two and see if it evens out by itself. If you have an airbrush, you can fade that edge in nicely. Or you can just hit the front with another coat to even it out.

I bet that the sellers of clone machines are not allowed to include the original manual for the juki or adler or whatever was cloned for copyright reasons, so they include the next best thing, the wear noodles version. Any reputable dealer will certainly tell you which manual will work for your machine and where to download it over the phone after the sale. Incidentally i found a manual that is identical page for page to my techsew 5100 manual from a chinese site except that it had a whole nuther page of adjustments dealing with stitch length matching in forward and reverse that is not in the manual that came with my machine, or in any of the other resellers manuals..... (an "value added" selling feature some of the clone people use to sell their machines)

Develop a pre-form system. First step is basically form a bubble in the top leather, you want it higher than the finished thickness with sloping sides. If you pattern well, and pre-cut the top bigger than the bottom with the right profile to give you the extra leather you need to mold the final shape you can skip this wet molding step. Just carefully glue the edges with the top all bowed out then stitch. You also want your pre-form to have sloped sides to provide machine clearance. You then stitch it. After stitching, re-wet the leather and force the finished mold shape into the pouch. Be careful to keep the backside dry so it stays flat. The bubble of leather you left in the middle during the pre-form will end up being the material you move into the corners. I make formed business card cases that fit 40 or so business cards this way in 4-5oz, as well as molded cases for abus bordo bike locks out if 12 oz. This pattern is a little loose by design as the prototype was difficult to get the cards in and out. The clearance allows you to open it some to see what you are grabbing), however you could push that vertical to right beside the stitch line if you want it tighter.

Metric/imperial had nothing to do with it. The problem with the Tay bridge was they left the tape measures in their pockets. The major determining factors of the crash were poor fitting bolt holes, casting shift, poor and lack of machining, and impurities in the materials. The foundry both "burnt in" patches in the cast iron parts but also put putty consisting of beeswax and iron filings under the paint. Many of the columns had porosity and impurities in one side from bad casting practices, poor metal and horizontal casting techniques. In addition they found nuts that held down the columns that had burrs of .05" on them from the poor face machining which would have equated to 10+ inches of movement at the top of the pole. The cross braces had a design which used slots and gibs to put them under tension, many of which came loose the first year and were tightened up by hammering them in or replacing with bigger gibs. The inspector who "fixed" the braces was a mason with little metal experience. This may have forced the bridge into an incorrect, stressed geometry. In addition, trains would frequently exceed the 25mph limit in one direction and cause oscillations in the bridge. This could not happen the other way due to slope and curve. Their was inconclusive evidence that the train may have derailed just before the accident and hit the bridge, starting a cascade. There was argument as to whether the oscillation or speed caused it. It was basically determined that if the bridge had been built to the proper material standards with inspection, and was used in the way designed, It would have stood. It was noted that it was under designed compared to other similar earlier bridges and also noted that it was re-designed on the fly to reduce weight and number of columns cause the bedrock ended up being way deeper. The onus went solely on the designer because he was responsible to sign off on all of the materials as well as the design. As such, even when the suppliers hid flaws from him actively, it was his responsibility. If they only had used ANY measurement system, those people may not have died. I often wonder if we really learned from our mistakes? We now have good designs poorly made in China, with the bare minimum quality control (if any) to allow things to work and sell. That is how we end up with thomas the train wooden toys for toddlers with lead based paint in toysauRus.......infant formula and pet food with melamine in it. And cell phone batteries bringing down airplanes.

Not if the stitch has as much stretch or more as the webbing, both due to tension and similar materials. Nylon thread in nylon webbing should stretch close to the same.

Only time in the oilfield i ever saw one fail at the stitching, they were winching a truck out of the ditch off of a couple of trees. They connected the loop to two trees at the same time with two chains in a Y configuration, because they thought one tree was not strong enough. The stitch failed right away, because the chains were pulling it apart. Thing is, all they needed was a shackle or a steel ring to hook the chains to and take the side load off the strap loops.