Webicons

Not sure but it seems that it would be easier to take the components out of the 3S and fit them into the frame of the 50? Since micro adjustments are necessary for proper skiving I am concerned that the arm placement would be off.

I had purchased Haas Epsom leather in black from The Etsu vendor: “Fine Leather Club” in the UK. It was a bit under $10/sqft at 6sqft. The Etsy vendor “MadeOnJupiter” has some type of Epsom for sale. Vendor located in NY. May be worth an email.

Etsy has some vendors that carry Epsom. Pretty pricy stuff, especially when buying by the square foot. I would purchase or request some swatches before committing.

Make sure that the thread is waxed throughly (paraffin is good for this) and leave a few inches of “sacrificial” thread to pickup any residual dye that will be cut off when you finish.

I have a Japanese boat type plane from Okada tools (wicked sharp blade out of the box). What’s nice about it is that you can control the angle by rocking the plane. I have successfully skived chrome leather with some success but it’s traditionally used to square off or bevel corners. The most I would try to skive are small pieces like card pockets. Larger pieces come out too uneven.

Well that’s something you don’t hear everyday! It’s always interesting to hear everyone’s other hobbies/skills. Looking forward to seeing that bowl with some carved bears.

I’ve heard of people using nesting Tupperware bowls as forms. Or perhaps a more traditional method; mounting a bowl onto a board and then using a wood circle cutout on top to clamp the leather down. Unless you have a lathe I reckon that making the form seem in the video would be difficult.

Nice work. I think Dogfisher was looking for some pointers on how you made the leather bowl.

Sorry, can’t help you out there. I’m no good at dyeing. Gave up on it early and just buy what colors I need though I have used Fiebings with some success. Hopefully someone knowledgeable can chime in.

Your process sounds good. Cant wait to see the results!

Very cool stuff. Looks like he uses a lasting plier to pull the leather down. To have one bowl fit into the other I would think that the diameter of the wood form would need to be sized accordingly. Once dried the leather will hold its form well but I think he sealed it with some Resolene or similar.

Photo of Tandy Carriage thread and Amy Roke Linen thread. If I had a length of each in the same color (white) I could run them through a IR spectrophotometer to see if there are any differences/similarities.

I heard a rumor that the Tandy Carriage thread is OEMed through Amy Roke. Several Redditors swear that the Tandy Hemp Carriage is exactly the same as Amy Roke Linen down to the bobbin and wrapper. But you know what they say about rumors.

I find inspiration on Instagram and try to come up with my own take on it. That’s how I pretty much learn. When learning Adobe Illustrator I just tried to copy things I like and learn step by step on how to accomplish it. Don’t forget the importance of templates and prototypes when making anything of complexity. Make them out of paper, cardboard, fabric and glue them up. It’s so easy to try to wing it but taking time to work through the design saves more in the long run.

That all depends on what you like and what you’re going to make. Alran for Chèvre is an easy one. Horween is great and the swatches are free (if you’re nice). Wickett&Craig has monthly sales and is what I learned with. Then you get into some pretty expensive stuff like Badalassi, Shinki and Haas (Barenia). The list is endless but I do recommend name brand stuff for projects. Many dealers won’t tell you the tannery and relabel. You definitely want to be able to get the same stuff if you like the leather.

I haven’t restored a sewing table per se but quite a few tables in general. My piece of advise is to use good quality castors that fold away, have screw jacks or have heavy duty locking mechanisms. The locks on the cheap castors don’t work well and the table will creep away from you at the most in opportune time.

It all depends on your style and your current skill set. I think everyone has a hard time selecting the proper leather at first. I found it very helpful to purchase swatch books from different tanneries. This way you can see and feel, which goes a long way. The books range from 10-20 bucks. I also cut a reference piece from what I order and staple them to a book with the name, vendor, sqft cost, etc. you can also purchase thread charts that include the different color and thickness. Have fun and post what you make!

FYI. These items are not available anymore. U/edmundH is a incredibly nice guy. He wouldn’t accept any money and helped me load everything into my truck. I cannot thank him enough for his generosity.

If this is still available I can pick up this weekend.

A sheath is a good project to start with. I’m sure that you’ll find a lot of instructional videos and tutorials on YouTube and on this forum. I am into both knifemaking and leatherworking. They are two very complementary hobbies. That’s a very nice looking damascus blank. How’s the quality and where did you find it? I think you’ll find leatherworking a fun and rewarding hobby that’s easy to get started with but difficult to master. The rabbit hole goes very deep from here. Welcome to the forum.

I purchased a new blade for my American Splitter from Pilgrim Shoe. Beautiful blade, scary sharp and ready to use out of the box. Not sure if those folks are still around though. Anyone?

I have some experience with this. Epoxy isn’t flexible so if applied directly to leather it will start to peel around the edges over time (leather being porous will want to shift and shrink). Would try wood or acrylic as suggested.

That’s a beautiful head knife. I’m sure that it will do a great job on strait and curved cuts. For skiving, though, I prefer a zero flat grind with no secondary bevels. Please update this thread when you get the chance to give them a shot. Very curious to know how different knife designs perform. I’ve been meaning to make a head knife.

What style of knife do you usually use? What are you looking to achieve by switching to the head knife. I've tried several head knives but always returned to my Japanese knives. Maybe if I had started off with the head knives then I would have invested more time into them. Unless they are ready to use out of the box, the initial sharpening on a head knife is a bitch. Maintenance not too bad though.

Tokonole does a nice job finishing the flesh side of leather. Just apply with a spatula and burnish with a flat square.