Yankee63

Why would you give a "junk" machine to those who bought high dollar machine? Sounds like you would be shooting yourself in the foot for future sales. Nobody is trying to lose sales for you by not buying a high dollar machine when basic stitching is all you need for leather. Were the china machines so crappy when you supposedly "gave" them away? Did you tell your customers they were basically just junk ? It don't make sense. Doug

All I had to do was adjust the thread tension. I padded the foot to remove presser foot trails and adjusted the tension on the foot. Simple, basic stuff. Doug

My chinese patcher puts a good stitch through very thick leather. The stitching looks only as good as you have it adjusted for. Yes, you have to adjust tension big deal. The only down side to the machine is the stand it comes with. So if my patcher can sew a nice stitch then that is all I need it for. I do not need a big name brand leather sewing machine, I just need a leather sewing machine. I am quite happy with mine, that is all that matters. I could have spent my money on just a sewing machine, but instead I bought a nice knife grinder and polisher and a cut off saw/ vertical band saw AND a sewing machine that will do the job. Sewing leather is not what I wish to be limited to. Doug

I have spent enough time reading of how the "pig" can sew. It may take a few adjustments, or improvements but I am handy so I will work through it. Thanks for the pointers SilverForgeStudio. Doug

I cannot show a picture with the size allocation to show the spare parts Oh well. Have fun all Doug

here's what I got

Its the regular size. My wife used it to sew through 3 layers of dry horse hide. Granted I need to work on my foot pressure and sharp points, but it is easily capable of 3 layers of 5-7oz. Once I get a few minor bugs out of it, I do believe I can easily sew 2 layers for a holster. It will also allow to spin the leather around and follow the original stitch holes to double up the thread. Worked nice for a basic set up and run. I will snap a picture of it. Just the regular ol cobbler machine. I think a table around the needle would suit it better to do more than just patches. Proof is in the pudding. When I get it set up as I want it, I will show ya all the results. Doug

Sure thing, I understand. I will take my time at it because I kinda like the crank...lol I need to just spend time on the machine and get used to it first. Doug

Good, I figure at original gearing it would make a scooter move forward. It should be enough for starting a sewing machine. It will only cost a few hours and the $15 dollar controller that comes with the On/Off switch and separate dial for speed. Give me a couple months to put it all together and I will display a few pictures. I move slowly..first a drawing then gather materials and assemble. Thanks for your input. Doug

Could I get a idea of what wattage motor you guys run on your different machines? My wifes machine only has a 35 watt motor and I see replacement motors rated at only 90 watts. Just trying to get a guesstimate of how powerful a motor I may need.... Thanks all Doug

So, I bought a HU-JI, looks like model 43-6. My painted casting has no sharp edges, the machine was completely pre threaded so I could just tie off new thread and pull it through. This patcher came with 12 spare bobbins, a new crank rod looking replacement part and it came with a shiny new take up lever for the top front of the machine. It came with a spool of thread, a pack of needles and even a new bobbin carrier spare part. Top that off it had 2 layers of leather sewn and needle holding it in place to show that the machine worked prior to shipping. The stand for it is completely useless, but I attached it to a chunk of wood to hold it securely. I will build a stand for it with a removable table to make flat surface around the needle area. Here are my questions. 1) Can I run 207 thread with a 22 needle? or am I at max thread size with 138? 2) Are there alterations I can make to use larger thread? Other than those questions I do have it up and running fairly smooth for breaking in a hand cranking machine that does go through 3 layers of tough horse hide. I have a major helper as my wife used to work for Boy Scouts sewing and making patches. Her knowledge of sewing machines has really helped me. So, if I can get some help on thread sizing by people who use these machines it would be greatly appreciated. The more experienced people with these machine may know a way or trick to use nice thick thread for my holster sewing. Thanks Doug

OK, too technical for a leather forum. I will adapt and test. Doug

I have had a idea using parts I already have. The motor and sprocket from a scooter. The motor is rated 300 watts at 24v DC 16.4 amp. 11 tooth sprocket and 65 tooth for wheel I can get a variable speed controller for this motor for about $15 Is 300 watts enough at 5.9 to 1 ratio? It is kind of a hair brained idea but I do have 2 12v marine batteries laying around. And, I do have a 24 volt DC circuit already installed to inside my house to run inverters so I could easily install a charging station to recharge my batteries. (they are old but I think still good) It seems it should work in my mind. Ideas from others welcomed. Doug

I just bought one ($110), it should be here in a couple weeks. I have searched through this site and I have all the information (and a great video) for set up and adjustment. I only need it for small projects but it will be a great time saver for me. Thanks for all the great information here, everybody. Doug

Try Zack White retail shop... Their shipping was greatly reduced. I only suggest what I use, I have no connection with the company. Great service, great product for me as a small quantity buyer. Doug

Sounds like I'm gonna look at amazon to see if they sell it. At least Amazon will stand behind what they sell. Thanks, it will be a fun toy to tinker with. Doug

Hi there, you call it a patcher. Can I ask why? Brand name? I have looked at those machines on ebay. Do they stitch well? I like the motor conversion. I hand sew all my projects and have been looking for a machine to speed up my sewing. What is your opinion of that machine? Will it last? Thanks for the help. Doug

One last thing I need to add, To save on shipping make sure you go to their new retail store. They have 2 stores online but the one you want is The ZackWhiteleather. https://zackwhiteleatherco.com/

I keep it easy and have the owner outline his pistol on a piece of paper. I use that to make my own patterns. Then I go visit them to tool the leather to their gun. The next day I go pick up dried holster and take it back home to finish it. It may not be cost effective but for what I make on it, public relations and the word of mouth keeps me as busy as I want to be. Then I keep my own pattern for repeat gun type holster orders. Works for me. Hope it may help. Doug

JLSleather, let me know what you think of it. I just ordered another hide. Doug

Thanks, I will be in the background searching and reading. great information! Doug

Hello all, I thought I should introduce myself. I started playing with the idea of leather working about 10 years ago. Most of what I started with was holsters. I learned the process of allowing extra material to patterns to accommodate the pistol thickness and picked up bits and pieces of learning as I went. Stamps are my weakness, there are so many patterns to pick from. I only have the basics now but I'm always looking at more. I work primarily with horse hide, just my preference of leather. My side interests are solar systems and wind generators. Of course there's hunting, fishing and just a good day at the range with my wife. There is a lot of information I can learn from this forum so I'm glad to find you all. Doug

I'm happy with their shipping cost changes. It makes a difference when the shipping is almost the same as the hide. Horse butt used to be $18.50 then $16 for shipping. I went ahead and purchased from them again and again simply because of the quality. The one time I did have a problem with a hide, I called them and they shipped out a free replacement. I have spoke to them a few times on the phone and they were always friendly and wanting to resolve any problems. "Just trying to lighten it up a bit round here. Got any pics of the horse hide? Or did they irritate you enough you don't want to give them a "plug"? " They did not irritate me, they actually fixed the problem within just a few days of me sending them the email. I am actually shocked as I have complained about the shipping in the years past. Nor am I trying to irritate anyone here, or step on toes. It was exciting news to me and my friends, so I thought I would share the news with the forum that also has a "Beware of Zack White leather" thread. I have a couple holsters I made a few years back from horse hide to show...I guess I can only show one.. Have a great day all. Doug

I can only speak for myself but I have received nice hides from Zack White leather. It was only the shipping that stopped me from ordering from them more. They have the best veg tanned horse butt I can find. It is what I enjoy working with and it's tough with a nice natural coloring. I'm sure every supplier has had unhappy customers here and there. Bound to happen. This was just about Zack White shipping cost improvement. Thanks Doug