TinkerTailor

Ok, I'll bite, How DO they sew the sleeves on a wetsuit anyways?

Is the thread snapped into the second tensioner? It looks like it may be riding around the outside. Give it a firm tug and make sure it is all the way between the discs. Second, the thread looks a little tighter coming out of the thread lube pot than it is going in, its it catching up in there? What happens if you sew without the lube pot in the path, does it still act up?

Just a thought, are you sure the bobbin is turning the right direction? And there is no thread in there hanging the bobbin up? I have had a similar problem due to this, flipping the bobbin around fixed it. Worth a try.

Bandaids and superglue. Buy a few boxes of bandaids and a pack of those mini-bottles of super glue. Put one bottle in each box and place them around the shop. Bandaids for small cuts and awl holes, super glue for the leakers.....Ask any commercial chef how to use the super glue to stop a leak. You WILL cut/stab/maim yourself. You do not want to get blood on the leather, the further you gotta walk to the bandaids, the more blood you will drip around. Keep bandaids close.

Being from a non-pistol carryin country I am a little lost here, Can you elaborate on the added danger of carrying this way?

You can be sued by anyone anytime. They could be totally out to lunch and their lawsuit gets thrown out of court, you still gotta take the time to deal with it. Even in the unlikely event you get legal fees awarded to you in the judgement, you can not replace the time. Also keep in mind, people with money usually won't file a lawsuit they can't win, whereas people with no money and nothing to lose will sue you a hail mary play. If you are awarded legal fees and damages from these people, good luck collecting. Again, the collecting is your time, which is irreplaceable. As a rule, if you are concerned enough to question whether it is right to do something, it is not right. Do not do it. Listen to your instincts.

Every hand is different as well. The handle shape can make a big difference, I have big hands and good grip strength and i prefer a larger, more ball shaped handle. I basically hold it with a thumb and 2 fingers. The wifey has small delicate hands and has to hold the awl with her whole fist to get the strength, so she uses a slender longer handle. If you can find a place to go and hold or use a few different handle shapes, it may help your selection process. I have many stitching awls in my collection, quite a few antiques. One thing I have found i do not like is a heavy awl. I am not a fan of the interchangable blade awls because the ferrule adds too much weight. Also, all of my regularly used awls have a flat on one side of the handle, and so do most of the antiques. This is not just to keep it from rolling off tables, it is to tell your hand the orientation of the tip without looking so as to keep the angle of the holes the same. Try to put all of your awls so the flat and the blade are aligned the same. Only exception to this lefty tools that you set up to do the angle the other way. I like to have a flat or a little notch right where my thumb goes near the ferrule. Make one where you feel it will work for your hand. Modify your tools to suit you. Do not be afraid. Its just wood and metal.

They are listed in this german catalog:http://www.kappey.de/Katalog/Katalog_en.pdf http://www.kappey.de/Katalog/Katalog.html Perhaps they still have them.

Look into Chicago screws with thread locker to keep them from coming undone. These guys have some nice ones: https://www.usbind.com/collections/screw-post-sets

The constant beeping/squeeling is due to the fact that the same motor and controller is being used on both north american 60hz power as well as the 50hz power of the UK and many other countries. Motors and their controllers are particularly susceptible to frequency differences. What you are hearing is the electronics operating at a frequency they were not designed for. Cheap motor controllers have a 110/220 voltage switch but may not have an ability adapt to the different frequency of power. It is not that the north american motors are any better, they just work on 60hz fairly well. Use an american motor in Britain and it might squeal like Harry Rogers motor.... Better motors will have circuitry inside to compensate and eliminate the problems with both voltage and frequency of power.

Or do the cheating way, and pick the foot up, back up 4 stitches, put it down and sew forward to the end. Doesn't look as nice but locks it in just fine. I only turn around to backstitch visible seams when i don't have reverse. Reminds me of a story from my past when I got pulled over by the police. I somehow managed to talk my way out of any tickets. When they let me go I had to tell them that due to the fact that my trucks transmission had broken that morning, (no longer shifting into reverse) and they had me pull into a spot I had to back out of (slightly uphill), I could not go unless I got a push or a tow. The two of them then pushed me backwards uphill so I could leave...........

Get 2 hunks of rope and hold them up to bag. Mark right spot and measure.

Should you call it a fudge-cake holster? Depends.......

One thing I have found while searching is to look at threads with fewer posts. Quite often the thread is short because the answer has been given, and everyone moved on. Threads with multiple pages likely have devolved into a long winded, over focussed, borderline OCD discussion on the thread pitch angles of early singer machine screws.

Or probably a lot of the time, grandpa bought all the good toys/tools for himself for a retirement hobby after the kids flew the koop, and then kicked the bucket with a garage full.

I much prefer a smokey single malt as well. I was talking about NEW hobbies.....Old whiskey Is an old hobby.

The head of a bolt will work for a test.

candle/pencil torch and a craftool......not many supplies needed to test and see if it can be done.

I have to go to the dollar store tomorrow. I'm gonna buy some chinese pipe cleaners and some straws and see if i can get oil to wick up a straw. Then i am going to take up pipe smoking and drinking boat drinks. I always wanted a new hobby.

Ever thought of hot-stamping the hardened leather?

Play around, there is no perfect recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Different tempers and different thicknesses of leather will require you to adjust your technique. For instance soft bellies can be creased quite easily, and sometimes the edge can be rounded over without beveling, whereas a stiff, hard piece of back leather would require a bevel to get started. It is more difficult to accurately follow the edge with any tool after beveling so I like to complete as many operations as possible before I get out the edger. Most creasers like to follow a square edge, some won't follow a beveled edge. In most cases I have found that this method works for me: First, crease once, guiding off the square edge of the leather to establish the line, then bevel the edge. Now go in again with the creaser, using the original crease as a guide, and more pressure, to define the roundover part. Doing it this way gives me the best definition, while keeping me from driving cooked..... Every scrap is a test piece. Tonight, grab a handful of scraps and a few tools and do some creasing on a cutting board on your lap in front of the tv during commercials. Figure out what gives you the effect you want. And keep your tools sharp and polished. A little light touch up with a felt buffer on a dremel will do wonders to even new tools. Unpolished tools glide crappy and make it really difficult to get consistent results.

Patty cake.

The size of the edger makes a big difference to the roundover. I have a number 1,2 and 3. The number one will only take off the sharp edge. The number 3 will do a 1/8"+ round over on heavy hides. (numbering systems vary greatly between manufacturers and models. Just know that the #1 is smaller than the #2 in a given maker and style. Same goes for creasers. Bruce Johnson has a write-up on sizing on his site. I think you have your beveling and creasing backwards. The barry king creaser (beader?) is basically for putting a stripe along the edge of the leather, and smoothing the roundover of over the edge after bevelling. If you use the proper sized beveller, this tool will glide along the bevel putting a slight crease beside it to accentuate it. Depending on the style of border crease, the tandy edge tool, swivel knife and creaser may be more steps than needed to get the effect. Do you have pics of the style you want? Also, Are you asking this also as a list of tools to buy, or are you trying to work with what you have? If you have not bought them yet, May I suggest vintage tools? They are cheaper (sometimes 1/2 the price or less) and will work and last just as good. Check it out: http://brucejohnsonleather.com/leather-tools-sale/single-line-creasing-tools-sale/