dikman

It certainly looks ok, let us know how it works in practice.

As kgg said the model they're selling now has the motor mounted on the top of the table and fitting a speed reducer is going to take a fair bit of work!

Just curious why you've started another thread about the same subject some of us have already answered?

Just get the 441, Cowboy or Cobra, either will be fine for what you want to sew. Two of the members on here make a modified needle plate/feed dog replacement which significantly increases the versatility of the machine if you want to sew lighter material (within reason, of course). It's a worthwhile addition.

I've used KH too, excellent quality.

I haven't got anything to add regarding your stitch length problem (sorry) but I wanted to congratulate you on the paint job, it's quite stunning! It gives the gold lettering real depth.

Making your own wax concoction is a whole new rabbit hole to go down!

I've bought a few feet from different (Chinese) vendors and they've been fine.

I think there may be a bit of confusion here, Handstitched is talking about a 441 heavy duty harness stitcher, SteveOz has a Singer 4411 domestic machine. I started out using a Singer 104K domestic machine (no thread) to punch the holes which I then used an awl on to saddlestitch the item. This gave me uniform spacing and was pretty quick. Your machine should work fine for doing that on the thin leather you're talking about.

Wepster, your professor is very astute - and correct! Klara, do I see a Tortie watching you? We've had a couple of tortoiseshell cats and there's something inherently cheeky about them. TomE, don't feel jealous - I just need a bigger shed (not going to happen, unfortunately).

If you're talking about using knives then a quick wipe with oil is as good as anything. As they're used any coating will soon wear off and oil is a quick way to re-coat them again. If you're talking about preserving blades then a wax coating would be better. As Bruce said if you search for wax coatings you will find almost as many recipes as there are blades! Johnson's Paste Wax (not available here in Australia) appears to be a popular choice for almost everything that needs waxing!

Great idea - unfortunately, not only have I run out of wall space but floor space too!

It might work, I guess, for lightweight stuff, but in my opinion you'd be better off using an arbor press with an adapter for the chisel. Or using a full size drill press.

An interesting concept by Pietta. That revolver has a LOT of engraving, and yes, the holster looks great, simple but with just a touch of embellishment (and period-correct).

Second photo, towards the bottom at the join-stitch line, it looks like a cloth-weave pattern? So could be vinyl?

Adds a new dimension to "accessorising". I love it.

Surgical tubing?

Nice, you'd never know it had a pistol inside.

I agree, it looks classy. Great bit of recycling.

That is very neat, great idea.

The obvious thing, as you mentioned, is not burnishing the edges, but other than that I reckon it looks bloody good!

It's pretty easy to make a carbon steel blade hard, just quench it and don't temper it. In general, very hard blades are not practical as while they will hold an edge for a long time the difficulty in putting that edge back once it's blunt can be a problem for many people. One reason butcher's liked Victorinox butcher knives, plain carbon steel that was easy for them to keep sharp. Same with chefs. It would be an interesting experiment to try tempering one of those W Rose knives, or re-heat, quench and temper to see what effect it has. Not going to happen, of course, as anyone who has one is unlikely to want to try it.

Presumably a result of "the Troubles" I think it was called? Do you know anyone in the rest of Ireland that could get them for you and then just pick them up?

Ahh, yes, now you mention it all of my cutter blades like that have locating notches, not holes so wouldn't fit.

Knives that are that hard often tend to be brittle as well (there is always a trade-off somewhere) and can chip easily if dropped onto a hard surface. I wonder what the Rockwell hardness of the blade is? Any ideas, Bruce?