Dwight

Riley, . . . thanks, girl, . . . you made me go out and get my machine cranked up, . . . I'd been putting it off. My Singer 111W155 had to have a new motor, . . . and some "tender loving care", . . . and if you hadn't asked the question, . . . it still would be sitting out there rusting. But what I did was go out and scrounge up some scrap leather strips, . . . contact cemented them all together, . . . then sewed them together. I started out with size 108 thread, . . . and it did not work too well. Both of the outside tracks of sewing are the 108. The center track is the 138 pre-lubed I just bought a couple days ago, . . . and it looks a whole lot nicer. Now the overall thickness of the three pieces was .312 inches which rolls out just over 7.9 mm thick, . . . which is plenty for what you were talking about doing. If you get a machine, . . . make sure you get one with a servo motor on it, . . . or some type of gear reduction that makes it go slow enough for you to sew 15 stitches per minute. You will never really need it that slow, . . . but it gives you the slow speed needed to negotiate corners, etc. My original motor would slow down to about 150 stitches per minute, . . . and no more, . . . so I had to come up with a servo motor, . . . which thankfully I could get just 200 KM away, . . . drove up and back the same day. There are many other machines that are actually clones of the 111W155 from what I'm told, . . . and here in the states, . . . machine / motor / table and all can be had for a few hundred bucks. AND, . . . yes, . . . you really should get a walking foot machine. Do a youtube search on it, . . . somebody will have an example for you to view, . . . it is THE leather worker's tool. Good luck in your search, . . . may God bless, Dwight

Uhhh, . . . that was almost a year ago, . . . when we traversed the "shop" from the house to the actual shop built for that purpose. That is actually the first belt I did out there laying on the table at the sewing machine. And, . . . well, . . . it looks "different" now But thank you for your kind words, . . . there is enough "Destroyer Navy" influence out there that it is at least organized, . . . though maybe not painted and the deck swabbed. May God bless, Dwight

Riley, . . . First, . . . where are you located, . . . we may be able to point you to someone close. Second, . . . you mentioned at least 4mm thick, . . . the most important thickness is the other end, . . . the thickest. I have three machines, . . . one will barely sew 2mm, . . . another will do about 8mm, . . . and the big boy will do about 18 mm. The middle one is a Singer 111W155, . . . and is an old war horse of a machine, . . . but it works. May God bless, Dwight

When I get this, . . . it is 9 tiimes out of 10 the leather, . . . or something on/in the leather. Good luck, . . . This is one of the few things I detest about leather work, . . . just every now and then you get a piece all done, . . . anticipating a beautiful finished product, . . . and the leather itself lets you down. May God bless, Dwight

Go on line, . . . get the 40 or 50% coupon for JoAnn fabric, . . . go to the store, . . . their 36 x 50 is in the neighborhood of $55 before you use the coupon. I have one on my table, . . . has been there only a little over a year, . . . but I love it, . . . like BDAZ said, . . . the lines help immensely. I put mine down on a plywood top with double faced tape, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Well, . . . you didn't say if it was a double stack 50 cal semi auto, . . . or a 17 double barrel derringer, . . . so it's hard to say for sure. But, . . . I've made several in my wood shop, . . . make the general shape, . . . take it to the sander, . . . knock off the rough edges, . . . do a little judicious chisel and carving work, . . . it'll do for holsters. Most challenging was a S&W model 29, . . . And, . . . yes, . . . they're pretty much all out of southern yellow pine or white pine 1 by,.............. May God bless, Dwight

Popeye would be proud of you,.................. And I'm sure the bos'n will enjoy all the ribbing he'll get with it. May God bless, Dwight

My first instinct would be that you "hung" it after you sprayed it, . . . I always lay my holsters down flat after dying, . . . otherwise I get exactly what you got, . . . light on the top, . . . dark on the bottom where the stain migrated. I learned about that several years ago, . . . made a bunch of belts, . . . all the same day, . . . had my brain dis-engaged, . . . only the black ones were up to par. All the brown ones were very dark at the buckle end, . . . light at the tongue end, . . . cause that was the way I hung them when I drug em through the dye tank. I'd just dye it black, . . . put a coat of Resolene on it and sell it, . . . it should look real good then. May God bless, Dwight

Most of the time I used the 1/16" bit. The shaft of the bits on my machine were all 1/8, . . . but the cutting end was a different size, . . . and the 1/16 was the one I'm pretty sure I used. For leather, . . . it has to be sharp, . . . and you have to go slow. May God bless, Dwight

I almost made one once, . . . and had decided if I did, . . . the mag would go along the sight track, . . . up front. Then I talked myself out of it, . . . had forgotten the whole deal until now. But then again, . . . if the customer wants a purple holster with 8 inch yellow fringe, . . . he ought to be able to get it, . . . somewhere. May God bless, Dwight

From what I can see, . . . it looks like a steel stamp set. They are used for stamping metal mostly, . . . but I've used them on leather, . . . mine don't look perfectly like that, . . . but close. It could also be an engraver. I used to have one, . . . it used a bit something like a little drill bit, . . . very high speed, . . . did a beautiful job on leather, wood, plastics. My machine was similar to this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Hermes-IM-3-GM-3-Operating-Instructions-Manual-11pages-/251794664682?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3aa021acea It would duplicate that perfectly. May God bless, Dwight

You are very welcome, . . . happy leather working. May God bless, Dwight

Although limited, my experience with drum dyed veg tan is that it definitely is harder to work. You have to be a little creative in dealing with it. It does not want to bend, fold, stamp, and tool as well in my experience. HOWEVER, . . . if you take the time with it, . . . it does turn out nice. I quit using it, . . . preferring to dye my own, . . . cutting down on the inventory needs of different weights of different colors, etc. May God bless, Dwight

Jenn, . . . I do holsters, belts, knife sheaths, chaps, chinks, . . . and assorted & sundry other leather "stuff". If you want to avoid the hassle, . . . buy pre-dyed leather, . . . many folks do that, . . . they do not have "dye" problems for 99% of the time. I don't like being limited as to my color choices, . . . so I dye my own projects. I use Feibings oil dye, . . . generally cut 50/50 with their reducer, . . . and I "dip" dye, . . . meaning I submerge my product for several seconds in the dye, . . . none of that dauber / brush / mop, . . . etc, . . . dunk it and dye it is my motto. I then let it dry a full 24 hours, . . . lay it flat, . . . flesh side down if you can. Avoid hanging up large or long projects, . . . the dye will migrate to the bottom, giving you a light color on top, . . . darker on the bottom, . . . I then get a wash cloth type rag, . . . and buff the item until no more pigment comes off it. It will also shine a bit when I'm done. I use white paper towels to make sure there is no more rub off. Depending on the product, . . . Resolene (50/50 with water) or Bag Kote (80/20 with water) or Aussie Wax, . . . depending on the effect and the finish I want. Resolene is a hard, acrylic finish, . . . also sun proof. I like it best. Bag Kote is a softer finish, . . . not sun proof, . . . aggravating sometimes to work with, . . . produces a softer finish. Aussie Wax is a soft finish, . . . nice feel. NONE are water proof, . . . you want vinyl, nylon, rayon, or aluminum for that, . . . leather cannot be water PROOFED. A good dye job, properly rubbed down, . . . and at the least, a coat of neetsfoot oil and another rubbing, . . . there should be no problem with dye rubbing off. Acrylic paints do add a nice color to projects. My personal opinion of water based dyes is not very good, . . . but then again I have a process i like and works for me, . . . so I don't have to re-invent the wheel. As far as the colors lasting, . . . staying brilliant and beautiful, . . . put it in a showcase, lock it, it'll stay that way. Take a piece of leather out and use it, . . . it won't. May God bless, Dwight

Have you thought of going to Goodwill and / or Salvation Army store? You can usually find several there, . . . get the one that fits you for less than $5, . . . take it home, . . . dissect it with a razor knife, . . . iron the pieces flat, . . . you have your pattern. AND, . . . if you buy the right one, . . . throw away the outside, . . . use the liner on your leather vest. May God bless, Dwight PS: What part of cheese land do you call home???

Speaking from both experience and practicality, danfordman, I would just put that holster up somewhere and get a new one for the KelTec. 1: Someone, somewhere, someday, . . . may want that old Ted Blocker Holster (try selling it on Ebay), . . . as they have a "prize" pistol that would look wonderful in it. 2: You will NOT be able to re-work it to give you the satisfaction of a virgin piece of leather will give when made into a proper holster. The KelTec is "similar in size and shape", . . . but a 1911, a Beretta 92, and a Ruger P85 are all "similar in size and shape", . . . and the only thing you can carry them all three in successfully would be a plastic bag from Walmart. 3: THE single most important work of the holster is to keep your weapon secure, which means snug and tight, . . . which will not happen with used leather, . . . unless you put a flap, thumb break, or suicide strap on it. So all in all, . . . put it away and start fresh would be my advice. May God bless, Dwight

Didja offer him one of them new fangled plastic Walmart bags, . . . tip it just right, . . . you can get 30 degrees on it. May God bless, Dwight

Another option, . . . if you only want to do single layer belts, . . . watch for a Tandy flyer or sale, . . . buy their belt blanks. Already cut, ready to tool. May God bless, Dwight

Whatever you do to the holster needs to be done to the belt if you want them to match. At least that is my theory and practice. May God bless, Dwight

Even better if you can do it, . . . cut the wood 1/8 or 1/4 of an inch thinner than needed, . . . then lay a piece of steel the right thickness under your leather. You might wrap it in saran wrap so that the steel doesn't discolor the leather inside. The steel makes a much better surface on which to tool than does wood. I have little plates of steel just for this purpose, . . . and for doing rivets inside a pouch or bag. Works great. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, everyone, for your advice. I'm going to attempt to take it up to 207, . . . but I won't jump froggy if it revolts on me. Got plenty of other stuff to do with it that will not need that heavy of thread. May God bless, Dwight

I have made several holsters using suede lining, . . . after a digital conversation with a very famous holster maker who assured me that suede was safe. I have never had any problems with any that I made, . . . and I kinda think the chrome story has been blown out of proportion, . . . IMHO. Back on track, . . . yes, . . . glue the two together (I use contact cement), . . . then treat it as one piece of leather. Cut it, . . . mold it, . . . sew it, . . . shape it, . . . stamp it, . . . whatever you desire. None of mine ever caused a problem. I would, . . . just on the safe side, . . . make a test piece and see if there IS any bleeding of the dye. In all reality, . . . there should not be, . . . but red's are funny. Best wishes and may God bless, Dwight

From the title, . . . I was looking for something with planets, . . . moons, . . . etc. But that is really neat. It'll be a pain to sew, . . . but should look real good when finished. Would you care to post a picture showing all the pieces, . . . some of them were cut off in that one. And I really do like the characters, . . . good job. I think I can see a light tan one maybe, . . . with Darth Vader and one of the white warriors on it. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, TwinOaks, . . . Would you believe, . . . I got to kicking around in some old threads on here, . . . found an old military "how to" handbook on that very machine. Apparently they were used by parachute riggers, . . . I printed it and made a booklet out of it, . . . now I got to do some serious reading. Table is all bowed too, . . . will need to put a new table on it, . . . but that's a spring project, . . . gotta get myself up to speed on it first. Just one quick final question, . . . should I use pre-lubed or waxed thread with this machine? I use a waxed thread on my Tippmann, and it works real well, . . . just wondering about this one. Again, thanks, may God bless, Dwight

A friend sold me his Singer 111W155 sewing machine over the weekend. Looking on Ebay, I got a pretty good deal. BUT, . . . all I've ever used is my Tippmann Boss, . . . and a household type Singer machine. Just looking for some "pointers" from anyone there who can push me past making silly mistakes with the machine. I'm looking to mainly use it for belts, spur straps, and chaps. Any wisdom you would care to share is more than welcome. I'm particularly interested in the maximum needle size and maximum thread size it will do. Thanks, may God bless, Dwight