dikman

It works ok for me, I turned a burnisher on the lathe and forced it onto the grinder shaft to cut the threads so it screws on. I use the same grinder motor for buffing and wire wheels. You could also fit a drum sander to one side to sand the leather. I haven't bothered doing that as I have a couple of belt grinders, but be aware sanding leather with a machine makes a LOT of mess!! I'm not sure how effective a canvas sleeve would be as I think it might just act as a burnisher too?

Regarding Chuck (g'day mate ) I wouldn't take offense at what he said as I'm sure he didn't mean any. His comments are based on his experiences, as he explained, and he can only go by what you (or anyone) writes. As you're no doubt aware the written word is often misinterpreted and causes issues on forums as it doesn't necessarily convey what the person is like (or what their abilities/capabilities are). I'm sure he is only thinking of your well-being. Now, back to the subject matter, you can get a nice matte finish on steel by using fine grade wet and dry paper, used wet, and you can also get a nice blackened finish by heating it and dropping in oil (Linseed oil, olive oil, vegetable oil all work). Obviously heating a knife blade is not a good idea as you could destroy its temper. Another way is to use a blueing mix, as used for cold blueing firearms, no heat required (although warming the metal might help it to work better).

Bob, that is a very intriguing idea, it won't work on mine (straight sides) but if I ever make another one.......

They look good. The bag in particular is quite elaborate, obviously a lot of work went into it.

That pretty well sums it up Chuck. I have grinders, belt grinders, mills, lathes, welders, hand operated power tools, air tools etc etc and the one thing that makes me jittery when using it is the loose layered buffing wheel!

Going cross-eyed is an understatement! There's a lot of very fine short cuts in that, you did a great job. And so did your daughter.

That's one thing about leatherwork, I don't think there are too many hard and fast rules. It's a matter of trying something out and see what happens, I wanted to see how it would work out. I'm not sure if I'll do it again, though, as it's a lot more work and I don't think, in the case of holsters, that it's necessary.

Good on you SUP, all power tools have their dangers, some more than others, it's all about learning and understanding what they are. Buffers and grinders are particularly useful to leatherworkers and can be fitted with a burnishing wheel for, well, burnishing edges. The wheels on the grinder in the picture look like stitched sisal wheels, relatively safe as they don't grab the work, but can be aggressive so not used for final polishing. I forgot to mention that when I clamp the polisher to the bench the wheel is overhanging the edge of the table so if anything catches it is flung down into the dirt. Also, if using such a polisher make sure you have a very firm grip on the item, a loose grip guarantees it will be ripped from your hands. And NEVER use the top of the wheel if it is turning towards you, this applies to buffing wheels, wire wheels and grinding wheels. I also have a grinder set up with paper wheels for sharpening knives (they do an excellent job) and like Bruce has done I reversed the direction so I can sharpen on the top of the wheel and it turns away from me. The seller of the wheels recommended doing this and it's a bloody good idea! There is much to learn about using power equipment, and many of us have been using them since Adam was a boy so tend to forget (or don't comprehend) how much there is to learn for someone who hasn't been exposed to their use. Don't be afraid to ask, better than doing yourself an injury by not asking.

That looks great! Should get a nice patina once you start spilling tea and coffee on it!

Anything less than a machine that is designed to sew leather will be problematic. Some sellers like to advertise that their machines are "heavy duty" or "semi-industrial" but at the end of the day if they are a domestic machine then they won't stand up to the rigours of sewing leather. Sad but true.

Wiz's sticky that Chuck linked to is THE starting point. There's a lot to digest in there so you will likely have to read it several times (I had to!). As Dwight said we also need to know what you want to sew/make as that helps determine the most suitable machine for your needs. One piece of advice, you may come across mention of the Chinese shoe patcher in various posts and on youtube. These are inexpensive and will sew leather BUT in your situation don't buy one, they are not for the inexperienced (or for the faint-of-heart).

High-speed buffing wheels are considered by many to be extremely dangerous to use, and with good reason. The loose muslin wheels are the most dangerous, unfortunately they're the ones that give the nice polish. I mount my buffers on an outside table with nothing behind them so when things get caught they get flung into the ground. I used them inside a shed initially, with a metal wall behind but after a couple of things got grabbed by the wheel and hit the wall I moved to outside use. Those tools you have don't look too be too difficult to use on a buffing wheel as they don't have sharp thin edges, just keep the tangs well away from the wheel as they are exactly what can get caught.

I guess it depends on how tight the bends on the wet molding are. I did this one where the carving extends all the way around on the back of the holster, the wet molding to curve the holster didn't affect the carving much but it's not a really tight curve. I would think tight/sharp molding could cause issues with carved designs.

Looks pretty good to me. All those videos showing tooling leaves make it look easy - until you try it!!

The best way to polish is with an electric buffer, you can easily get a mirror finish on steel. Just be very careful with anything that has a sharp edge as they can easily catch on the buffing wheel and the results can range from spectacular to scary! If you want to do it by hand then work through various grits of sandpaper, using water with the finer grits which will give a very smooth finish and then use metal polish.

I tried that cutting technique but just couldn't get the hang of it (probably just me ).

It's the AWL, toxo, the AWL that does the damage (blunt awls don't work so well). You're probably speed-reading again.

You need to at least give the model number so we know which one you're talking about, but in general if it's a domestic machine (even if they say something like "heavy duty") then it's unlikely to be suitable for sewing leather.

Yeah, that will work. I was thinking more about the metal, not wood. I would guess warm water should do it?

I doubt if there's an "ideal" design for a stitching pony, like many things they can be made to suit specific needs. As a general purpose one I think yours looks about right, with the design of the jaws allowing for holding different shapes. Mine is roughly the size of yours and I've made several western-style holsters on it (they can be tricky to clamp) and associated gunbelts. For the gunbelts longer jaws would have been nice but then they might have been a nuisance on other projects. As for clamping pressure, that will vary depending on the project, which is why the adjustable locking lever is good, just tighten or loosen as required. And when stitching long runs the thread WILL get caught on the locking lever!!!!

Another "environmentally-friendly" way is to soak the metal parts in molasses, it's an olde-school method for removing rust (and probably paint too). It's a slow process, but at least you're not working with hazardous products.

Looks much better than my effort! I would have put the clamp screw a bit higher, to exert more pressure when it's operated and put a spring around the screw between the uprights, then when you release the clamp it pushes the jaws apart. At least, that's what I did on mine.

Somehow I knew you would say that!

I have a pair of parallel-jaw pliers that I used when I worked as a technician, they are excellent for grabbing the needle when hand-sewing and don't mark/damage the needle.

In answer to your last question, I think it's safe to say that most on here have learned sewing machine maintenance the hard way - by finding a manual where possible, watching youtube videos and asking questions on here. And, of course, by just tinkering with them.