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John, Like you, "Minister of Propaganda", I also like looking at the macro world through the micro and coming up with working metaphors for how the world works. I am enjoying your posts. Ed

Look for plonge, though the thinnest I've seen is 1.5 oz. ed

The GA5-1 is a clone/adaptation of the Singer 45K. I believe is uses the same shuttle/hook and bobbins. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=htt...ficial%26sa%3DN MAny distributors in North America have this machine or a similar version, as well as distributors around the world. Some of them clean up and modify parts wen they receive them from China, others don't touch a thing. You can get a roller foot for these, but I'm not aware that raised needle plates are available as it is a lower-feed only. One think I did when I had my machine was to trim much of the needle plate that hangs over the edge of the shuttle hook, but then you have to be very careful not to get your fingers in the shuttle hook when manipulating your material. I was trying to find some way to put a basic cap or cover over the shuttle. I never got very far but I believe it is possible. ed

160/23, 180/24, 200/25, 230/26 ed

Dana does talk about the small time craftspersons as working against the grain of mass-produced "high-end." She still focuses on designers who have some exposure and who may no longer be involved in the construction of their goods . It would have been nice had she researched very small time operators. Back to the "80%" comment with which you disagreed with. When I go into a department store in Manhattan, or anywhere in the US, and see a handbag selling for $300 or less, the construction quality of that bag seems to be on par with what one can get for $20 to $50 on one of those NYC streets that have bags flowing over the tops of boxes marked "China". Perhaps the materials in the $300 bag are a bit better, but construction quality of the two seems very similar. Some of the bags in these shops look quite nice, and on more than one occasion I've had the thought to buy one for $20 to take apart and reconstruct with the best materials and construction methods. I also think that Louis Vuitton in the 1840's making his own luggage with his own hands is going to be different from his grandchildren and great grandchildren running the business with absolutely zero calluses on their hands (my conjecture). The individual craftspeson, I think, is driven by more than just a business model, though business and sales are still wanted and desired, and that drive is going to come out in the crafted goods. Maybe we should start a thread where we put our individually crafted goods up against mass-produced goods that are perceived as quality in the market place. For example, I'm always looking at bags by Ghurka, Swaine Addeney Brigg, and Mulholland Brothers. The first two I think are "High-End" and are exemplars of quality craftsmanship. You can take one look at Mulholland Brothers bags and notice things that just don't seem right: flimsy material, sagging corners, leather without body, etc. Even a good look at a Filson bag leaves much to be desired. ed

I have had good experience on lighter leathers by removing the spring in the bobbin case or cutting it down. ed

Hi John, I readily, willingly, and joyfully defer to your experience. Beautiful post in the way you juxtaposed factory- produced goods and single craftsperson-produced goods. By "80 percent of high-end goods" I meant 80 percent of name brand goods, many of which are perceived as high-end goods, "high-end" meaning quality in both construction and style. This was mostly my own perception (picking 80 percent as a general figure) and from what I had garnered from a few people in the fashion industry. But, again, I defer to your experience. I really like the way you laid out the difference between an item made by a single person and that made on an assembly line. When one person makes the item, she becomes intimate with the nuances of all the various sections and pieces and makes all sorts of necessary subtle adjustments that only familiarity with the material for that particular item can dictate. And then, as you say, there is the issue of personal investment in the construction of the item. ed

Doug, There's a certain bit of leverage on the needle when used with the stirrup plate. I've noticed much more deflection with 25 needles than with 26. Are you moving up to 25 needles from thinner needles or have you always been using 25 needles? I had been thinking for a while to move from 277/207 thread to 346/277 for most of my work. One thing that prompted me to commit to the decision was a conversation with Vernon Weaver, who spoke about less needle deflection with size 26 needles, which got me thinking more about the merits of 26 needles and 346/277 thread. I was also told that once that these 441 clones are setup at the factory to work best with 26 needles. They'll do 24 and 25 quite well, but the best with 26. I figure that with a standard setup, these machines have to work best with one particular needle, which I now think is 26. I'd like to get some shims or spacers so that when I use the other needle sizes, i can set them up to work more similarly to the 26, which slightly brushes against the hook in the needle's downward travel. It slightly brushes the hook and then flicks the loop out a bit which is then ready for when the hook makes its forward travel. ed

I just now measured the girth of Schmetz 24 (1.65mm), 25(1.82mm), and 26(2.12mm) needles. The 26 needle is .3mm thicker than the 25 needle, which is only .17mm thicker than the 24 needle. This means that 26 needles are substantially thicker than 25 needles, thus substantially less prone to needle deflection. I would have expected standard increments. ed

No problem. I like looking at those big splitters for some reason. Too big, too industrial, and they're not so interesting, just a big machine that should do what it's supposed to do. But big on the level of an individual operator , and they are a very interesting tool commensurate with the human imagination. ed

Hi Greg, Could you post pictures of your 18" International splitter? I'd love to see what it looks like. ed

I did a quick search. Are there only cartridge type grease guns? I'd like to be able to buy a small tub of grease and an applicator that would be good for twice a year applications, as I don't have anything else that requires greasing. perhaps something like this one, as long as it will take a nozzle that will screw into my reducer and can be manually filled with grease rather than requiring a full cartridge. http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=93486 Ed

I don't know why I was under the impression that maybe this was something I'd have to do once every five or so years, but I was. I think I've heard a similar rumbling. What exactly is needed to pump grease in there? Thanks, Ed

Well, I wasn't sure if that 1A fuse had blown because I inadvertently had let the circuit board rest against the metal hood of the lamp, so I quickly wired up another fuse to check. This one, too ,blew immediately. Something else must be shorting the electronic ballast, so now it appears the option of resuscitating the electronic ballast is completely out, which would have been the cheapest fix of all: either replacing one fuse or bridging the gap with no fuse (which probably is not a great idea). Ed

All I wanted was two lamps for my work table. Then the two died. I got a new one for a good deal on Ebay. and now I am bringing back from the original two from the grave. Everything else on these lamps is just so well made, i coudn't throw them out. Ed

Tony, How often do you pump grease into that reducer? I have never done this. Ed

What do you mean, buy a new one? I just fixed it. Now I just want to fix it better. Best price for a new one is $60 through Ebay. Not counting time, i have already invested in about $60 to fix these two lamps. It would have been only $15 if everything had run smoothly. If I'm buying a new lamp it will be the Verilux that Bree suggests, but right now I have four swing arm lamps. My workspace looks like the valley of the dinosaurs...just the way I like it. Ed

Yesterday, I found 22-watt circline adapters with magnetic ballasts and starter plug at home depot. The female plug from this adapter houses a starter plug. I took everything apart and used the female plug/starter plug with the plug-in ballast, and it worked, so I was missing a starter plug, which the plug-in ballast does indeed not contain. The only problem with this set up is that the plug-in ballast is enough to power only one 22-watt circline bulb and not to allow ample power for the two 110 v outlets at the base of the lamp, which are very handy for pluging in drills, dremels, soldering irons, what have you. With two of these lamps on the workbench there are four additional outlets very nearby. The only fix for this that I see is to use the magnetic ballasts, even though you warned me against this. I did find fully enclosed magnetic ballasts at Lowes yesteday. Though these were stamped 14, 15, 20 watts for liniear bulb, they do look to be the same size as the 22-watt ballast I took out of the adapter purchased at Home Depot. I'm wondering if these ballasts at Lowe's would still work even though they are stamped as rated to only 20 watts. Ed

I'd also like to try shimming the shuttle race so that all needles function more or less like a 230/26, which I think gives the best consistency. I started trying to cut out some shims from beer/soda cans, but never got very far. I'd much rather pay to get the next thicker size spacer ring for the 441 clones. in one manual somewhere, various thicknesses were available. I'm sure they are possible to get somewhere. I'll call Artisan. If I remember, I'll try a 26 needle and a 25 needle with the stirrup plate and test for consistency. I bet the 26 needle will yield better results, due to thicker girth of needle which forms the loop closer to the hook and also resists deflection due to a heavier, thicker needle. I think shimming is a serious consideration that hasn't been discussed much, especially if you are trying to make the 441 as versatile as possible. Ed

Well, I soldered a new fuse onto the circuit board for the electronic ballast. The 1 Amp fuse blew immediately. I'm beginning to wonder if 1 Amp is too small a fuse and should have never been in the original installation. Is it possible that these lamps could have worked from their new state for about three months and then start blowing 1 amp fuses, which would mean that after a break-in period,a 1 amp fuse is too small. Or might this mean that there is something wrong with the electronic ballast, something far, far beyond the aspirations of my tinkering? I've also learned that I need to get a better soldering iron. I've got a cheap 100 watt soldering gun. I watched a bunch of you tube tutorials on soldering, which all recommended something like a 30 watt to 60 watt soldering pencil. I'm off to radio shack again. I may go back to Plan A with the magnetic ballast (that has to be extracted from a 22-watt circline adapter that uses a magnetic ballast and not an electronic ballast) , which I actually found at The Home Depot the yesterday. I also found a magnetic ballast rated at 14 to 20 watts for linear fluorescent tube lights and was wondering if I could get away with using that for a 22 watt circline bulb or if i should heed the 20 watt max . As magnetic ballasts go,it looks to be the same size as athe magnetic ballast I extracted from the 22-watt circline adapter. I just want to get back to my leather, but these lamps keep pulling me back in...............Oh! The Humanity!. Ed

I'll be keeping an eye out for these to go back on sale. ed

$30 a quart!!!!!!! I guess it is Barge. I stocked up on Tandy contact cement a while back at about $8 a quart. The quart cans I received look similar but do not have Barge anywhere on the can. I guess they were getting rid of old non-barge stock. I guess I'll be going back to Duall 88 at around $12 a quart next time I need to stock up. ed

Is there such a thing as liquid solder (solderless solder?) for electronics? I'm able to solder what I need onto the circuit board, but am having problems soldering a small wire on each end of the barrel fuse (these wires will be soldered onto the circuit board to hold the fuse in place and for the current to pass through). The solder isn't holding. I may need to use a solder of a different composition. ed

A quick internet search turned up that "5G" refers to the type of fuse: 5mmx 20mm barrel fuse, so I'm good; I bought the correct fuses

here's one: http://cgi.ebay.com/Hobby-Art-Craft-Combin...1QQcmdZViewItem