dikman

A typical upholstery-class walking foot machine can make quite a bit of mechanical noise when driven full-bore, but when used at the slower speeds many of us use for leatherwork it shouldn't cause a problem for the neighbours (less of an issue than having a tv on, or playing music).

The Sika adhesive I use lists naptha solvent, toluene and acetone! Guess I've got a choice.

Looks very nice, Forester.

I use Sika glue (from Bunnings) as it's a bit thinner than some of the others and works well. Like the op I only buy small tins. I don't know what the thinning agent is that they use but I found that adding xylene seems to work ok. I'm going to try a bit of automotive paint thinner, as it "should" work and is cheaper. It's also better to add the stuff before it starts thickening too much.

In other words they can be a handy machine to have, but not as your main machine.

NO! Nothing wrong with them, for what they are, but I doubt if it will be suitable for what you want to do. It's not intended to be a production machine, its main use is as a repair/patcher.

Head only - most of the machines I mentioned (and the Pfaff 335) are heavy but can be lifted by the average person. You're not going to carry them too far, but they are manageable. Shipping can be an issue, as if you're buying privately you want to be sure they are packed well, sewing machine heads generally don't take kindly to being dropped or bounced around! Most people don't know how to securely pack a head unit.

Well, I can't argue with that.

Basically, you're looking at an upholstery-class walking foot machine, most typically have 3/8" clearance under the feet and will use #69 thread and may be able to run #138. A cylinder arm will certainly be more versatile but if you can't find one then a flatbed should still work. The usual suspects (used) are Singer 111/211 class, Consew, Seiko STH-8 series, Juki 563 - there are others, of course, but these tend to be the fairly common ones. If you buy used you'll need to factor in a servo motor if it doesn't come with one.

Thanks guys, that explains why I couldn't find it - basically, long gone. The extra couple of posts in Latigo's latest link are a bit more explanatory, they're using tallow, mixed with lard. The tallow is fine but I'm not sure about adding lard as it could tend to turn rancid over time. I think a blend of tallow and neatsfoot oil may be a better option.

My bad, I was referring to the forum you mentioned (APWA), it doesn't seem to exist. I wanted to look at the other recipes.

Mike, I think you're right about the Oakwood. I don't normally use it on anything I make as I bought it for my car seats (I actually hate leather seats in a car, hot in simmer and cold in winter!) and it is pretty thin. Air duster nozzle is a good enough description, souflette sounds like something you'd bake in an oven . I've got a few ideas to work with, just need to do some experimenting (sometime). Latigo, that link doesn't work, the site doesn't appear to exist?

Mike, I normally use a beeswax/tallow mix that I made but I was in a bit of a hurry and grabbed some Oakwood leather dressing. Chris, I didn't try brushing it first because I had no idea this was going to happen. I'll have to experiment a bit and maybe try an old toothbrush first. Latigo, again it may be worth a try, thanks for that link I intend to have a look at it later. Locating pure ivory soap may be an issue here so I'll see what other recipes are on there.

My latest effort was engraved/burned onto veg which was left natural (no dying). I gave it a coat of neatsfoot oil and then a couple of days later applied some leather dressing. This caused the dark burned residue to smear and leave dark stains (fortunately most of it wiped off). Anyone else had this problem and if so how do you stop it from happening again?

What was the solution? Just for anyone who searches and finds this thread.

If you want to replicate that look the best bet is to try and find something equally old and beatup that you can re-purpose. Don't use chrome tan as the chemicals used are likely to react with the gun if left in the holster. If you can get some pre-dyed veg it may stay supple.

I use a 2" belt sander (originally built for metalwork/knifemaking) and yes, it is very messy sanding leather!!! You need a light touch, however, or you will remove too much leather and too much pressure can burn the edge of the leather. But it's a very useful tool.

I forgot to get back to you about the cap, sorry about that. I ran the machine, no funny sounds or signs of scraping so I guess it fits ok.

Attaching photos is pretty easy, the main thing is to make sure they're not too big or the site will not allow you to post them. About 100 kb. is a good size.

I used to meet Morrie every year at the Adelaide Knife show, real good bloke. Shouldn't be too hard to find another knifemaker to work with, there's always plenty from Qld at the shows, and I suspect many would love to work with someone who can do the sort of stuff you do Brian.

Got kids? Raid their Lego set. There should be all sorts of things in hardware stores that might work with a bit of tinkering, just got to think outside the box, so to speak. You should even be able to find bearings that will slip over the rod, if you want to get hi-tech. As I said, the rod is a great idea as it gives you the flexibility to try different ideas.

Looks good. Your idea of the horizontal threaded rod with the discs sandwiched between nuts and washers is nice, simple but effective and easily adjustable for odd size spools. Much simpler to make than my effort requiring bearings and welding (I tend to over-think and over-engineer things a bit!).

Unfortunately my son-in-law has my router (along with a few other tools ).

Well done cd, you probably saved it from certain demise.

Regarding those hobby cutting mats that you can buy - Aldi have some A4 mats at a good price so I bought four with the intention of gluing them to a board to create a large square mat. To do this I had to cut off one end of each mat to square it up. I figured a few passes with a sharp knife should do it. Nope. The knife was hard work and required sharpening as I went, a round blade craft knife was no better and I ended up using a fine tooth blade in a Dremel to cut through!! The mat is not particularly thick and consists of the outer layers and a thicker inner layer between. I don't know what the inner layer is made of but it's tough!