CastleLeatherWorks

First thought: For that price i could buy 2 pairs of chucks and some air for 1s and be set for a year. Second thought: Soles look cheap and the colorway isn't appealing anddddddd you're not even making them.... maybe try Facebook marketplace or Instagram ads if you're trying to get some sales.

can someone post the pics in the forum ? work computer blocks the pop up =/

top notch work as always !! looking forward to the rest of this build

this is the way !!

Thank you !! I I kinda like it to..might have to get some more of this whiskey buttero

Back again with another wallet. This was for my customers fathers birthday. Wallet is constructed of 1.5/2oz whiskey color buttero from RockyMountain. Stitched with dark brown twist brand .45mm waxed poly thread spaced at 3.38mm... I used fiebings brown dye on the edges instead of paint and the edges are finished with tokenole and a wax buff. Also I machined a custom stamp with my clients fathers initials. I only do this for people I know because I don’t have a stamp set yet and have to machine all the stamps at work. ( don’t tell my boss ) lol Pretty satisfied with the cleanliness and final outcome but I can see a few glue lines I wish I could have got to disappear and one stitch that somehow got messed up... but overall I am happy and so was my client... what do you think ?

I would use dye preferably alcohol dye but you could get away with water based like eco flo from Tandy. Then use some sort of sealer. i think i bought some satin sheen once and it made the dye come off if i recall and never touched it after that... ive finished several hand dyed projects with just fiebings Aussie leather conditioner and haven't had any troubles with dye rubbing off, plus it conditions and waterproofs the leather. so win win right Ive also heard of people using mop n glow... As they say there's more than one way to skin a cat. At the end of the day you just have to see what works for you.

thank you @MsEdna i will have to check out vinymo. yes i to have found even when i use a light brown dye on my natural veg tan edges it does darken quite a bit. maybe edge paint is the answer if you want lighter edges.

That’s pretty interesting..it made me realise I’m pretty oblivious to alot of the other facets of leather work. I myself for into the in trade because I liked some designer wallets. Here I am 2 years later making wallets and selling them. Now I’m trying to venture into making bags, that’s the reason for the machine. now I just have to get it running lol appreciate your time wiz you’re a wealth of knowledge

WOW that thing is pretty epic looking. I take it that's the lockstitch machine you were talking about in the previous post..built to last several lifetimes from the looks of it lol is there a reason for that machine being so big or is there not a smaller machine that could do the same job?? how thick is that stack of leather youre going through?

yes i agree.. it was a steal so i jumped on it. i figure that if it doesnt work for what i want to make then i could probably resell it once its tuned up and sewing well. maybe even make a few bucks in the process ... im currently cutting the table down and moving the legs trying to decrease the footprint of the machine so it doesnt take up so much space in my workshop (spare bedroom) Ill take your word for it @Wizcrafts lol this is plenty heavy for me now and im a pretty big guy I am however very excited to get into the world of industrial sewing machines. Lots of stuff to learn. Bell skiver is next !!

Im kind of dealing with the same thing with my new to me industrial machine. i believe you're going to need a speed reducer to achieve the speeds you're looking for. Ive been looking online and they seem to run about $150 =/ I on the other hand have to buy a servo motor and speed reducer.... you can also buy a smaller pulley for the motor or a larger one for the machine end but it wont slow you down like the reducer will. Please keep us posted if you do get it sorted with just the servo. take care

Excellent work and design ! those side from Springfield are great.... that backpack should last forever !! post more pics if you can ! take care.

Ahh yes I'm not stoked on the lack of features as well mainly reverse but i figure i can do without it for a while or figure out a work around depending on what im sewing.. However i am going to install a servo motor and speed reducer so i can hopefully get it to crawl. the bobbin i guess ill just have to pick up some extras and have them ready if i have a large project. thats funny you say the machine is light. My first thought when i removed the machine head from the table was "wow this is much heavier than i thought it would be" or maybe it was because i got my butt kicked at the gym the day before.. lol anyways i appreciate your time. thanks again

thank you, i appreciate the help and the video, i havent seen that one!! and yes the price was really good at least i thought so. im hopeful i can get this machine running well so i can start making bags and aprons. sewing big projects by hand isnt very fun lol. Thanks for the link to the manual !! how was your experience with the machine and what kind of projects did you sew? also why are you selling it?

Also I don’t know how long it’s been sitting but is there some kind of lubricant I can use on the internals ? Or do I just use sewing machine oil in the designated ports. Also how much oil do I use ... like a few drops or is there a certain amount that’s required or recommended.

Hello everyone, Ive been looking for an industrial sewing machine and recently came across a used Consew cylinder arm machine on offer up. the machine wasn’t listed as a 223 the listing just said for sale and had a picture of the machine but I couldn’t see the model number.. so me being me I jumped the gun an bought it because I thought it was a 227 (walking foot) so now I have this consew 223 that I want to sew my leather goods with. Mainly bags as I still intend to sew my wallets by hand for the time being. I paid $280 for it and it just needed a belt. So I’m mainly here trying to figure out if this is worth keeping around. It is my first industrial and I would like to learn as much about the machine as possible. I did order a belt and everything seems to be functioning as far as I can tell. I haven’t put any thread on it yet to see if it actually sews because I’m trying to figure out what the best thread needle/combo would suit me best since I don’t work with thick leather or intend to...I figured I can get that sorted later or maybe pay to have some one set it up if it comes to that. I have seen some videos of guys sewing leather with this but my main concern is the speed at the moment. I’m planning on buying a servo motor and possible a speed reducer if Necessary. Does anyone have any info/tips or guidance for this machine ? Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks !!

i say go for it.. post the pictures when youre done. whats the worst that could happen....after all you are a leather worker right ?!

it really depends on the look you're going for. IF you want you can look back on some of my posts and check how my stitches and thread look. I use 3.38mm french style pricking irons from WUTA , i punch straight thru the leather and i don't use a stitching awl ( i dont work with leather over 4/5 oz so i feel safe pushing my pricking irons thru ) most of my projects are sewn with .45mm twist brand waxed linen/poly thread. i think the smaller stitch length and thinner thread have a finer higher end look as opposed to bigger stitch length and thread which i would use for saddle and tac or holsters and whatnot.. figuring all this stuff out takes time when you're first starting out and trying to figure out your own style. I have several spools of thread and other tools ill never need because i didn't really know what i was buying to be honest lol. research and ask as many questions as possible. Welcome and take care !

looks good ..but on first glance it looks like the edges could be burnished or cleaned up a little better. thanks for sharing.

good info... but some pictures would have been nice

I too bought a kit from amazon when i first started about 2 years ago. the only thing i still use is the block of beeswax and the wood burnisher lol. i still buy some tools from amazon just for the sheer convince. for my leather i go through rocky mountain leather supply, district leather supply and occasionally Springfield leather. you might want to look into a poundo (rubberized) board or even a thicker scrap piece of leather. instead of running your pricking irons into your cutting mat. so the 0.45mm i was referring to is the diameter of the thread and thats my most commonly used size for the goods i make.... theres a whole bunch of different diameters but you will find what works for you. i have several spools of thread i wont ever use because i didn't know what i was buying when i ordered it. pricking irons range from 2.7mm for small goods like watch straps all the way up to 6mm for bigger items and thats the distance between the holes it will make. then there's the different types of irons you can get diamond, french or round style are all popular. if you do a search on amazon you can see all the different types available.

Its really all personal preference. some people like a more rustic look while others want something that looks super refined and higher end. i dont know what size pricking irons you used but i would just suggest thinner thread for now untill you figure out what look you want. i use 0.45mm for most of my projects spaced at 3.38mm but with tighter stitch spacing like 3.0 or 2.7mm i think i might step it down 0.35mm. For being a new at leather work you're doing the right thing by constantly making things and asking a lot of questions. as for the leather youre using it looks like utility grade which is fine for prototyping. i went thru a whole side when i first started. it was split horribly with some parts being 2.0oz and the rest somewhere around 6/7oz. this is when i started looking into skiving and splitters. Also when i first started i bought a bunch of dyes thinking i was going to hand dye all my projects and soon found out that wasnt the best route for me. Now i buy single shoulders or panels of different colors already split down to the thickness i like which is around1.0/2.0oz. makes my life easier and i always get a consistent color and finish. you will find out what works for you the longer you're in the trade. take care =)

I like the design and i think with some refinements it could look great. the main thing i notice is the way the gusset comes together at the bottom. It looks like you used 3 pieces (left,right and bottom) or maybe im wrong. If that's the case i think it might look better if you were to integrate the bottom gusset into the main outside wall of the wallet and you would only need 2 side gussets so it wraps around if that makes since. Or if you do it your way maybe use some thinner leather and pre punch the panels so you can glue together and sew as opposed to trying to get inside the gusset with your pricking iron. Also i would recommend some thinner thread but thats just my personal preference. Keep it up !

Good job. That’s a good looking bag!!