Sheilajeanne

The leather may be beyond saving, but neatsfoot oil is my go-to remedy for restoring dried out leather. It will darken the leather, though. I'd apply it on both the flesh and grain side to get good penetration.

That's some mighty fine work by Kate! Thanks for the link!

Wow! So, just plain beeswax for finishing edges, and giving the case a final protective coating? [Notices bandage on the finger of the guy cutting out the holes... ]

Here's what horses can do to blankets: https://www.wideopenpets.com/14-blanket-destroying-horses-play-little-rough/

I see the point about liability, but it doesn't take a lot of knowledge about horses to understand what parts of the tack are going to take a lot of stress. Lead shank breaks - you either remove the broken bit, and reposition the snap on undamaged leather, or cut a brand new shank. You do NOT try to splice in a new piece, not when you are trying to control a 1500 lb. animal! Also, anyone who has been stitching leather for any length of time knows what sort of thread and stitching to use on something that is going to be exposed to sweat, dirt and the elements. If they don't, it's easy to look up. Same goes for the type of leather: it's called BRIDLE leather for a reason! Latigo will do as well. Most halters and bridles can be repaired by comparing the broken bits with the unbroken bits, and copying how they've been done: stitching, type of leather, amount of skiving on buckle ends, etc. Well, maybe I'm overestimating how much common sense there is out there...

Yes, olive oil is a very heavy oil, and tends to go solid at room temperature, so would not absorb into the leather well. Neatsfoot or a neatsfoot blend intended for tack is the way to go!

Yup, horse blankets get VERY dirty! Horses like to roll while wearing them, so you will be dealing with both mud and horse poop. If you are planning to machine sew horse tack, you will likely need something that can handle at least 10 to 11 oz. leather. I did a search on the forums here, and some posts even talk of leather up to 15 oz. Don't forget, tack items are frequently lined to prevent the grain side from absorbing sweat, so that increases the thickness you are sewing.

Some horses are very tough on blankets, so you will likely be patching a lot of holes, rips and tears in heavyweight nylon. Blankets can also be made of cotton, canvas or wool. Some are lined with artificial fleece for warmth or may have a quilted lining. Most blankets these days do not have leather straps. The straps will be tough nylon webbing, and will sometimes need buckles re-sewn or torn straps mended. I don't yet know enough about sewing machines to say what type of machine will be up to the task, but I think a patcher would likely do the trick. As for tack, you will be mending a LOT of straps: halters, bridles, lead shanks, stirrup leathers. You'll need a good skiver and strap cutter for sure!

What are those screws called? I'm familiar with Chicago screws, but have never seen them with recessed heads before. Very nice work!

My thoughts are the fact he's repairing and selling some of the machines doesn't mean he's NOT a hoarder. When I saw his 'showroom' I thought no one who's seriously interested in selling machines would let someone/anyone sit down and sew with them. Treadle machines take a fair bit of skill and practice to sew with, and you can mess them up pretty badly if you don't know what you're doing! (Yeah, speaking from experience here... ) Also, he mentions the show room isn't open yet. Um, he's been doing this for over 2 years, and the show room isn't open?? He can't be very serious about selling the machines, if that's the case!

If you listen to the video, he talks about it taking two or three machines to repair one. He also said the Singers with the 'nice de-cals' (never heard it pronounced THAT way!) were sold. So, he's more than just a hoarder.

Doesn't hurt to experiment! But here is Hidepounder's method (Bob Parks). He makes some VERRRY nice stuff!

Hidepounder says gum trag prevents dye and edge coat from penetrating the edge, so he uses glycerine saddle soap instead and follows with a final coat of paraffin after dyeing. The gum trag could be what's causing the problem. And yeah, I am finding the same thing about the leather quality. Now working on my second bag, which is a much better quality leather than the first, and the edges burnish super easily with just a little rubbing!

I am planning to bind the edge of my current WIP. I am also going to line the bag with fabric, which means I'm going to need a needle with both a sharp point and a large eye to sew the binding in place. Where can I find such a needle, and what would it be called? I have also thought of trying to sharpen a couple of handstitching needles. I have quite a few from the Tandy kits I've worked on!

I had to read that more than once, but I think I understand. You use the cloth to burnish the edge. The leather does not move, but stays flat on the slab. Be careful to only rub the edge of the leather and not the whole piece. Burnishing thin pieces of leather is tricky. This is an interesting way of doing it, one I've never heard of before. Definitely worth trying! And yes, I will say it again: You are very talented!

Okay, so the edge of the pockets is just cut and burnished, right? How do you finish your edges? (I'm planning to put card pockets in my most recent project, that's why I'm asking all these questions!) :D The edge is not turned over. I'm not strong in this yet Really?? Could have fooled me! You are VERY talented!

You do gorgeous work! Even the interior of the wallet is first rate! And the cougar is so lifelike, you can almost hear it purr! One thing I don't get is how to get that edge on the card pockets. Is it turned over to get that line just below the edge?

LOL! I think that's pretty universal for English speakers everywhere!

what can I do with a gifted singer 66? Become its agent and put it on stage? (Sorry!) You don't get given a straight line like that very often on these forums...] I, too, got a domestic machine when my mom died, though a modern one, not an antique. I am going to be using it to sew bag lining (fabric) and very lightweight lining leather.

fredk, my mom used to listen to a radio progam called "Calling All Britons'. Its host was a Cockney broadcaster named Ray Sonin, and he'd always sign off with "Until next time, this is your old China, Ray Sonin, saying TTFN - Ta-ta for now!" That's why I thought the expression might be of Cockney origin! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Sonin He was the first North American broadcaster to play the Beatles' songs on N. America radio. My friends laughed at me when I told them I'd heard the songs before they did. Guess they thought I was making it up! Glad to have that memory justified after all these years! We now return you to our regular programming...

IIRC = If I recall correctly WTF?? = well, I don't think I need to explain that one! :D Describes a lot of things going on in politics south of the border ATM! Most of these have come into common use as a result of the internet, and people texting on their cell phones. BRB - be right back TTYL - talk to you later TTFN - an old British expression (think it's Cockney) - ta-ta for now! YMMV - your mileage may vary, meaning you may have had a different experience with this, or different opinion WYSIWYG - what you see is what you get. An old computer term, meaning what's on the screen right now is going to be what you get when you press 'post', or are finished entering your data. Not heard so much these days. IAW [person's name] = I agree with [person] As for leather thickness, I prefer to use either millimeters or inches. Most Canadians of my generation are bilingual when it comes to metric vs. the imperial system, as the switch-over happened while we were in school! But I still prefer to use pounds for my weight and inches for my height, and think of zero degrees as being REALLY cold, and not just the freezing point of water!

Maybe an inch or so.

Plinkercases, yeah, that's exactly the book I looked at too, and the diagram that made me realize the handle was too long for me. I guess I just lack the confidence to do it... There's no tang or anything I have to worry about, is there?

Just wondering - I know there are some people on this board that do. I recently bought a round knife, but the handle is too long for my lady's hand. Would like some help in cutting it to the proper length! You can PM me if you wish!

Mike, thanks SO much for that video! I just got a round knife, so this was very useful to me!