goingconcernMA
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Everything posted by goingconcernMA
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Thanks much - that's very kind of you to say!
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Appreciate the kind words. For something similar to the most recent "fully loaded" models I posted (i.e., inclusive of the tension knob, the adjustable-height foot, and alternate free-standing base), my asking price is $650. I'd encourage you to build your own if you are already going down that route - I know I found it to be a rewarding and certainly a learning experience
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Thanks all, appreciate the compliments. The stand was a custom request to make the piece optionally function similar to the bi-lim floor model. I quite like it myself so will probably continue to add that as a feature. I am offering up for sale as I go (these two are spoken for), but as I'm pretty slow with progress I don't really have a site / inventory to speak of BTW I had to look up what a "roach clip" is, but I chuckled at the reference when I did
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Dredging up my old thread to share some recent clams (#'s 6 and 7), both of which have some new "extras" - notably an adjustable-height leg with non-slip rubber foot, a tension knob, and an alternate "free standing" base. Hard to believe it's been almost two years since my first build #6 (Sapele & Walnut) (Imgur Album: https://imgur.com/a/dPllZtc) #7 (Walnut & Padauk) (Imgur Album: https://imgur.com/a/bcn7fW1)
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Hi All - Up for sale are several stitching clams I recently constructed. These clams were handmade from a variety of hardwoods. Each has been signed, numbered, and dated. Due to the steam bending / lamination process and the use of different hardwood species, each clam is slightly different in its construction. Unless otherwise noted, each clam features the following: Profiled jaws, padded with whiskey Buttero leather Retaining strap for storage Contrasting wedged dowel reinforcements at joints Hidden needle magnets Mortised brass hinges Clam #2 (Ash / Sapele construction) - $500 (Sale Pending) Clam #4 (Walnut / Sapele construction) - $525 Clam #5 (Sapele / Walnut construction) - $525 Prices include domestic shipping. If you are looking to ship internationally, please message me for details on the additional shipping cost. Additional details (along with additional pictures) for each individual piece can be found in my etsy listing here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/784930167/leather-stitching-clam-saddlers-clam
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Happy to share - thanks for the kind words
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Version 2 of the clam complete! A few more pics in the album here: https://imgur.com/a/8W1pqUq
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Stitching two thinner pieces of leather together to arrive at your desired thickness is a perfectly acceptable solution The topic you linked to discusses modifying a spokeshave for purposes of splitting panels of leather. I've not tried this but I can imagine it is a quite advanced technique and would require significant fine tuning to produce (likely) uneven results. As a beginner, I'd suggest ordering your leather split to the intended thicknesses of your projects instead. Several suppliers offer splitting services free or at a small cost when you purchase leather (Rocky Mountain Leather offers it free, District Leather offers for a small fee, Wickett & Craig offers free)
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I couldn't agree more that the hinge was a poor choice. Rather than reset the pin, I'll probably just replace it at some point with a mortised brass hinge with tighter tolerances. I'm actually building a new model at the moment where I'm doing just that. I should have it finished up soon and will post pics here when done, but here's a quick shot of the new hinge construction:
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I took the opportunity this weekend to pad the jaws and take the clam for a test drive: All in all, it worked great! Still need to get used to the new stitching angle and find the optimal height to sit at, but happy that I'm able to get a fairly consistent stitch in the first go with a different setup. A definite area for improvement is getting the jaws to come together with a larger surface area, but it didn't take too much pressure from my legs to hold the leather securely while I stitched. I think an "extension" piece that sits inside the jaws may also be good to mock up for more delicate work. I can see myself running into difficulty trying to stitch something like a thin strap in here
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This is beautiful work! I can imagine this took a fair bit of time. If I may ask a few questions: How thin is this leather split to? Looks fairly thin - is it 0.5mm? It looks like you have partially lined card slots - is it difficult to get the fold to the same depth for each slot? Your skiving seems is crazy exact - any tips on getting to that level of consistency? Thanks for sharing -
Thanks! You know, I told my wife I wanted to hang it up, but I don't think she liked that idea all too much... I've thought about adding a few of the other odds-and-ends that Fred's models have. I'm either going to add the little triangular "guides" on the inside of the jaws to help mitigate some of the lateral play that the hinges have, or I'm going to add an internal locking mechanism (not featured on the one you posted, but on several others he has done), though it's been incredibly hard for me to figure out which hardware to use for that. I would really like to do the leg guides, but I also see that as one of most difficult features since you've got to join it to a very curved section of the wood
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Thank you - not at all a stupid question. This style clam is designed to rest at a slight angle on your left leg (assuming you stitch right-handed), while your right leg applies pressure to keep the jaws closed. Now with that said, the "proof is in the pudding," so to speak, and I've not yet had the time to work up a project using this. It's a consideration that will be top of mind when I do so In case it's causing any confusion, the strap on the inside is purely there for storage purposes
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Oh boy, I remember trying the boil-in-a-bag approach one time. Sadly I did not have the foresight to think how heavy 5+ pounds of grain becomes once soaked - that brew ended up a hot mess. All grain is nice, but I found it to be an all day affair - lots of cleanup on both ends. I tend to prefer the flexibility that leather offers - I can sit down for 15 minutes and work one step of a long project if I don't have a ton of time (which all too often I don't)
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Thanks all! I got some really great feedback about improving the hinges, so if for no other reason I may do a "version 2" just to clean up that part of the project at some point Yes, it's a pretty sweet homebrew setup. I've done some brewing myself, but basically just working with a large aluminum stockpot and a 10-gallon cooler converted to mash-tun.
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Get it done! As a plus, if you make something nice you can always have an excuse to leave it around the house ("but it's a conversation piece!")
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Hi all - I’m sure many on here have seen (and like me, drooled over) the Fred Moreau clams that a few lucky souls were able to get their hands on. For my part, I’m still working with a very inadequate Tandy stitching pony, while continuously promising myself that I’d one day get around to building something bigger and better. That day finally came when I visited home for the Christmas holidays and I convinced my dad to donate his skills and equipment as a woodworker to help me in my endeavor. My goal was simple – create something as close to the Moreau clam as possible. Anything else just seemed inferior. For the wood I used zebrawood for the jaws (each jaw is a laminate of 4 pieces at about 1/8” thickness each, bent into shape with a custom form), walnut for the base, maple for the “lips”, and a combination of walnut / ash for the wedged dowels. Overall, the piece is 100 cm from tip to base, and has a little over 20 inches of space to work with on larger format projects. The one improvement for next time (if there is one), is to add some sort of internal “guide rails” on the jaws to keep things aligned well. The hinge has a little bit of play, so there’s some lateral movement that I’d like to get rid of. I’ve tried to chronicle the build process in the imgur album blelow (I’ll apologize in advance for my pictures – I’m slowly being convinced to spend money on a nice camera). This hasn’t been put into action just yet, but am looking forward to tossing the old tandy stitching pony, and actually being able to stitch bigger things like bags without holding them in my legs BUILD ALBUM: https://imgur.com/gallery/7C6NI1t
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In the triangle area near Chapel Hill - I've actually ordered a few of your deals on the reddit sub, when you've had an excess of quality hides (thanks for offering those, btw). I remember looking up how far your location was at the time and it would have been ~2.5 hour drive one way
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Hi all - Not new to the craft, but was surprised to learn I had yet to set up an account here, given that I've lurked quite often in the past. I've been doing this as a hobby now for about two years and mostly enjoy briefcases (solid brass key locks might be one of my favorite things), though lately I've focused on some small-format goods (a few card wallets, bifolds, and a clutch) to learn some new skills. I won't have a tone of time to hobby in the near future due to work heating up, but I'm hoping to wrap up my current project (a stitching clam) before that happens. Mat