DrmCa

Stay away from used machines coming through Lithuania. They are clapped out and cheaply repaired, just like Audi-80 and 100 used to be, back in the 90s. Do not worry about the pulley. Get a servo motor instead. It will save you lots of leather and nerve energy. Upholstery shops rarely use cylinder arm machines. Normally all the work is done on a flat bed. But if you can get a decent cylinder arm machine for a good price, consider it as well because you can put a flat bed attachment on and do both kinds of work.

One can probably sink ships, by firing these shuttles at them.

I was always tempted to try this design but felt skeptical about the usability factor, due to the user having to pull the mag out with the same hand as the one holding the gun. The rig being flexible along the seam between the gun and mag also turned me off because I was weary of it flexing and bulging out.

One of the best rose carvings I've seen.

Nice and simple. They also look soft. Do they break well?

I must admit that this Kijiji ad is for a well-preserved Singer but one would be crazy to pay that amount of $$$. It does not do much more than a brand-spanking-new $299 plastic Singer from Walmart or a $25 cast-iron Singer from Value Village. Yes, some accessories are included but they are not worth more than $50 on their own.

I would say, post pictures. It's hard to go out on a limb to figure out by only staring into a crystal ball.

The addition of small quantities of ferrous sulfate to the brew produces intense chocolate color.

Does it do it all across the blade or at a certain spot only? Is your knife sharp, smooth, and properly aligned?

Post pictures of the machine and the problem.

For me, $500 sounds $100-150 too pricey. On the positive side, it comes with a small pulley on the motor. That's about it.

If you've gone through putting a new needle in, checking the thread path for burrs and missed through holes, ensuring the correct tension top and bottom, then the thread is the only thing left to blame. We use the thread like yours for topstitching jeans, and all of the poly or nylon leather threads that I have has about 2x slower twist. This is all that jumps out on me.

Just look at that thread in your pictures. It has a very fast twist unlike threads you normally buy for leather machines. The purpose of this thread is probably to sew modern stretchy denim.

It's got a fast twist for sure. I wonder if it affects the stitching because this thread is so stretchy.

The ears say it's happy.

Looks 100% reliable and economical at the same time.

Cool but dangerous.

I think the OP meant that the single to double needle conversion could be reversed. It should be reversible. But this machine is far from ideal for leather work. It is meant to sew to fiberboard, plywood or plastic. This is why it does not even have a mid-arm wheel.

Out of curiosity: what could be the reason for using un-waxed?

What sort of thread should be used for holsters, sheaths and scabbards hand-sewn of 11oz veg-tan?

Thanks! 6-40 and 1/8-40 screws are virtually indistinguishable. Could be either of them. I only need to chase the threads that have some spray paint in them and to make custom thumbscrews, so need to decide which tap and die to buy.

Needing to make custom screws for my Mitsubishi. My thread gauge shows that it is 1/8-40 thread. Does anybody know if it is US60 or Whitworth thread?

An indication that you did something right, JLS!

I did not view it as a lot of effort, and the raw material is free, so I end up paying for the water and electricity only. Compared to buying other supplies, it costs me close to nothing.

Did anyone experiment with them? I had a quantity that I grinded in a coffee grinder to fine meal or coarse flour. Then I boiled it 3 times and collected all the 3 infusions that I then boiled down to 1/3 of its volume. Attached it the picture of a piece of scrap leather that I submerged in the infusion for 10 min, without any prep whatsoever, after it has dried up. BIC pen is for comparison. The black discoloration in the middle of the bottom side is pre-existing. The left side is died, the right side is original. Does this look promising?