Silverd

Well your work is exceptional. I picked up a Landis 16 recently, have a 441, a Claes 30 and a little Singer MK2. The 441 is the most versatile by far. Silverd

Such impressive work. Absolutely beautiful. Silverd

Im certainly listening to your advise. Excellent common sensical feedback. I thank you. We will be advancing the product into the market but as you suggest, we need to pull our act together with finalizing our previsional patent application and non disclosure documentation. I've had a few supplier responses to my original inquiry through leatherworker.net that appear promising and will take up with them again once our afares are in order. Silverd

Great information. The product size is compatible with the smaller press dims you presented. My partner is concerned with publishing images at this time unfortunately. I'm respectful of his reluctance at this time but will take up supplier vetting once we have resolve. Silverd

Hi I'm looking to have production quantities of a simple pattern die stamped or laser cut. Start-up qty would run 500 pcs. This is ether a clicker press or laser job. I have not made a clicker die at this point. Leather for the project is 10-12 oz HO bridle in three finishes. There are additional operations also needed. Some stitching, edge finishing, possible decorative stamping, hardware installation and packaging. Contact me if you are interested in subcontracting this type of work for me. Thanks! Silverd Don 805-701-3990

Up-Date: The front facing channel of the cam in my Landis 16 was badly worn. Working with Eli Schlabach of Landis International I devised a refurbishment method that I thought might be of interest to some of the members. This particular cam is really the only cam in the 16, according the Eli, that has a high degree of wear. The cam roller that rides in the channel moves the presser foot and has to push against the presser foot spring which is why it wears at a faster rate than the other two cams in this machine. Eli had a dozen worn-out cams that he wanted to have refurbished and I had one out of the machine I recently purchased. The rework process started out by taking a scan of the cam and creating a Solid Works CAD file. Using this file the cam channel path was defined and from there a CNC machine G-code program was generated. Each cam was mounted into a simple clocking fixture in the CNC mill. Running the G-Code program the CNC cutter followed the established cutter path exactly centered in the cam channel without touching the inner walls until a feature called Cutter Compensation was initiated. This feature allows the CNC control to move the cutter off center incrementally until it started removing material from the channel walls. The process continued until both sides of the channel were completely cleaned up. This process resulted in a cam channel that is wider than the original so the old cam roller can no longer be used. Each cam was them measured to determine the new diameter of the roller. Rollers were made -0.001" smaller than the cam channel. Each cam now has a custom roller which when used together are completely backwards compatible with the OEM cam and roller. I'm planning to complete the refurbishment work to my machine after I reassemble it with the rebuilt cam and roller for testing. I'll post my progress going forward if there is interest. Folks that own a Landis 16 and are interested in replacing the lift cam can contact Eli Schlabach for details and counsel on how to do this work. Let me know if you need his contact information. Silverd

Did you replace any cams?

Hi Where did you obtain the parts you speak of. And what parts have you replaced. Recently bought a 1952 16 and am in the process of refurbishment. Silverd

I paid a visit to the HITS horse show in Thermal CA this past weekend. Spend the better part of 2hours talking with the show saddler and tack maker Brad who travels with the HITS and other major shows around the country 45 weeks a year in a self contained trailer that includes his leather shop. He repairs tack and saddles for the show contestants and was reasonably busy from what I could tell. He had just finished replacing a seat in one saddle which to my eyes looked as good as new. He also makes and sells a complete line of English tack. Most impressive was his shop which contained only minimal tools and equipment as well as limited space. My shop is much better equipped for what good that does for me! Brad has been working in the English horse world for 35years and scoffed at my idea of making knee roll and billet repairs by only partially dismantling the saddle. His method is to disassemble the saddles completely thereby allowing the rolls to be worked on the bench including machine sewing the pockets closed and to gain complete access to the Billets. He also suggested that he will typically find other issues with the saddle that he can address. I came back from the visit having a better understanding of the business and the challenge someone like me will face making new equipment for sale. Without a very through understanding of horsemanship and or traditional tack making methods, I don't really stand a chance. Saddle fitting included. Brad indicated that the saddle reassembly process goes quickly once understood. I visited your site and was very impressed by the images of your work. Very nice products and very professional presentation. My work pales in comparison. Silverd

May I ask what you typically charge for this work? Silverd

I align the needle holes using small brads that are removed as the machine stitching commences. I also grind the point off the needle I'm using so it is more likely to find the existing hole instead of making a fresh one. Lastly I wear prescription spectacles designed for me to view the action at 10 inches distance. Every stitch is carefully placed and depending on the spacing may require lifting the presser foot and adjusting the work location under the needle. Key is being able to control the machine speed down to a creep when needed. Silverd

Hitting the previous needle holes when making repairs: 100% is the goal. For repair work I'm currently use a Claes 30 patcher and a 441 (Clone) both with speed reducers and Bob Kovar motors and controllers or I hand stitch. I tossed out the motor and controller that came with the 441 (Clone from TECHSEW as the system did not function correctly and was largely unsupported by their customer service folks). Do I sound like a difficult customer?...I likely am because I know what is possible when it comes to motor control systems being that I have worked in the CNC machine tool industry for 20+ years. That said I'm new to the leather community and to the Equestrian world. The reason I mention this is because hitting the old holes requires a tremendous amount of machine control, good lighting and for me vision aids as you likely know. If one cannot machine sew and hit all of the existing needle holes then hand stitch the work. in my opinion. 1/2" Latex: I bought 3/4" Plastazote Foam 45KG / cubic Meter density but I can see where 1/2" may serve as well. I think as long as the foam density is correct the type of foam may not be completely important aside from it being of a closed cell type so it does not absorb water. The Stubben customer belongs to a local ranch that I desire to have good word of mouth reporting of my services so I went with Abbey England's recommendation. Is the Latex foam you use an economical alternative to the Plastazote? Lastly: Turning Work Away: Indeed. I agree completely with this notion. One must work within our skill set / equipment & knowledge abilities as opposed to our financial plans. Silverd

Hi Jcuk Appreciate your candor. In the tack room at this ranch hang hundreds of examples of tack in a range of condition. The saddles however are the best example of neglect and in your words, questionable safety and certainly questionable creature comfort I suspect. I'm not ready to take on panel replacement with my limited experience at this point and she's not willing to pay for a qualified saddler for the reasons you state. It's dissapointing to me to witness a pro level owner, manager display such a high level of disrespect for the tools of her trade and to the students of this community not to mention the animals. I'm waiting for a shipment from Abbey England that should include the big head pommel nails. I need to replace one on the Argentina saddle, then pop stitch it all back. ...Then I'll take on the Stubbed repair. One thing at a time. Photo of the Argentine saddle and the repaired knee insert sewn back on the flap using my 441 (clone). Silverd

Same issue that I have been experiencing. Silverd