Arturomex

Thanks. Appreciate the advice and feedback. Got a couple of springs on order and, oddly, was at the grinder when you were posting your reply. I'll let you know how it works out. Art

Gonna join the others, Tom. That's a tidy piece of work there. Art

I think most of these Chinese made bell skivers are pretty much the same. I bought an SK4 a few years ago and I'm happy with it. Good, sturdy table, good motor and everything works well. At that time it was the best deal I could find in Canada. But I had to pay for shipping across the country and that was pricey. Looking at the Atlas Levy site they list their AT801 at $1050.00 US for the head only with the option to add a table and servo for and extra $150.00, so $1200.00 US. I don't know if the free shipping also applies to the package with the table and motor but the little blue banner still flashed "Free Shipping" after adding the table and motor option so it looks like it does. Techsew has pricing in both US and CDN dollars and The Techsew SK4 is listed at $1495.00 US for a difference of $295.00 US but I think there would be shipping on top of that. I'd inquire about what else is included with the AT801 like presser feet etc. The SK4 ships with three feet, a stick to remove the burr after sharpening etc. If the AT801 includes those, it looks like a pretty good deal. Regards, Art

Thanks for getting back to me, Keith. Typo indeed. Should have read 0.6mm on the feed dog height. My problem is, I think, that there is just a little too much pressure on the walking foot. i) Yes the feet are properly set. ii) The nose is, indeed, the same size as the 1341. I could raise the feed dog 0.2mm but I don't think that would help reduce the impression from the walking foot. It's currently set to the height it shipped at. iii) The machine shipped with a smooth feed dog. iv) All my presser feet are smooth. v) Got the manual and the 1342 Parts List as well. Techsew has this video up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjW5ucfkDII It doesn't address the position of the walking bar spring when performing this but I'm wondering if I can take a tiny bit of pressure off the walking bar this way. What do you think? Art

I'm having an issue with my 4800 walking foot leaving marks on veg tan leather. This machine is, I think, a hybrid clone of the Juki LS 1342. I've loosened the pressure spring all the way and still have the problem. I believe that when I back off the pressure on the back foot the situation improves but I'm not certain about that. Are the pressure of the rear foot and walking foot interrelated? My feed dog is set to 6.0mm. The spec calls for 0.8mm +/- 0.1mm for the LS 1341 and 0.5mm +/- 0.1mm for the LS 1342. Lift height is to spec at 9.0mm with the hand lifter and 16.0mm with the knee lifter. I'd really appreciate any insights on how I can correct this situation. Thanks, Art

I also use a green compound stick but I oil very, very lightly before the first application. I think it helps me apply the compound better but it's the only time I oil. I think Bill might be right and the efficacy of my oil application might just be in my head. I'm going to make another strop without oiling and see how it works. Not to teach grandma to suck eggs but I use the thinnest veg tan I can get, (0.5 ~ 1.0 mm) wet it, let it dry thoroughly and then glue it to the board (2.5 X .75 in. oak). I'm looking for the hardest surface I can get with minimal give to minimize any profile distortion. I pretty much only use Japanese knives on veg tan these days and they love the strop.

Are you referring to the limiting pin that mounts in the handle? Referred to as the "stop pin" in the instruction manual? https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0063/5997/3970/files/PKG-21-003_TandyPro_Hand_Press_-_Instructions_NO_CROPS.pdf?v=1631115666

Gimmick or not, these are still "a thing." https://www.ivan.tw/products/craftplus-twist-lock-swivel-knife-dual-blade?_pos=1&_sid=d46786c0c&_ss=r&variant=43277895270636 https://www.ivan.tw/products/craftplus-twist-lock-swivel-knife?_pos=2&_sid=d46786c0c&_ss=r But it costs $150.00 US to get into it. Arturo

A friend of mine bought that Tandy knife and he wasn't very happy with it. I tried it a couple of times and it didn't blow my skirt up either. It was fine for just cutting but it didn't seem to skive well at all. I don't know why. I buy my knives here: https://leathercrafttools.com/tools/manufacture/knife/list/ I particularly like the Hidetsugu knives. You're getting a softer steel on top with, I think, Hitachi blue or something similar as the cutting edge. They come with unfinished handles and I put a couple of coats of water based Varathane on them. I sharpen starting with either 600 or 800 grit, work down to 2000 grit, strop with green compound and they're razor sharp. I'm pretty religious about stropping after every use and once these are in shape, they don't really need to see a stone again. These are very similar to the Weaver knife you show but the price is a lot better, even after shipping. (FedEx - about one week to Alberta.) Regards, Arturo

I thought the Cobra Class 26 was also a clone of the LS-341. In addition to the Cobra Class 26 and Cowboy CB 341, Techsew also offers an LS-341clone as the 2750.

Glad to know you've been successful. I'm not understanding the problem you've had with other bobbins. Are they not interchangeable between the 441 class machines? What seems to be the difference? Regards, Arturo

@AzShooter don't know your age or medical background but it might be worth seeing a doctor. Regards, Arturo

Well done. That's a nice piece of work. Merry Christmas to you. Arturo

Here's a link to an interesting little article about these boxes. "The Making Of An 18th Century British Army Cartridge Box." https://bantarleton.tumblr.com/post/155579468590/the-making-of-an-18th-century-british-army

Colorado Department of Agriculture: https://ag.colorado.gov/brands/livestock-brands

Uwe has a video on Youtube about the 205-370 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERgFQjsVG3s If you've already watched it, I apologize for the redundancy but pretty much everything he puts up there is worth watching... There was also some discussion here: https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/93361-adler-205-spacers/

In answer to your question about a list of feet for your new machine, (and someone please correct me if I'm wrong) I believe a Juki 1341 will take most any foot listed for Singer 111 machines. As Wiz noted, there's a lot of them out there. While shipping can take a bit of time, I've found that Cutex, on ebay, has a great selection at reasonable prices. Regards, Arturo

I have a Techsew 4800 machine that's been running very well for me. It's well maintained and well lubricated. Was sewing 92 on the top and 69 on the bottom yesterday when I noticed a sound that I believe is something rubbing on, well, something else and I can't find it. It seems to be happening on the upstroke and doesn't seem to be affecting the quality of the stitch. The sound is not there if I run the machine with the feet lifted and it's not there if I run it with the needle through leather without any thread in it. Opened the side cover and all seems to be OK there. Took the end cap off and can't find any problems with the feed dog. Hook? Any advice on what to look for next would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Art

Thanks @kgg. I bought a variable speed 5/8" shaft unit from Canadian Tire last year looking to do the same thing that you've done. The clerk assured me it was threaded SAE and the damn thing was threaded metric. Canadian Tire doesn't seem to like giving refunds even when it's their mistake. I finally got tired of messing around with it and them so I just use it as a buffer now. Your success and detailed description has inspired me to give it another shot. Regards, Arturo

That looks great! Is that shaft threaded in SAE or metric? Regards, Arturo

Thanks, fellas. Appreciate the input. I'm going to try both the Wawak and RML tapes. I'm up in TGWN and don't get the free shipping from RML but I'm pretty sure I can talk myself into a few other things from them to make it worthwhile. LOL Thanks again, Arturo

I've searched the site looking for references/recommendations for double sided tape and followed several links to the Wawak site that are now dead. I think one or two of them said that Wiz had recommended a certain tape (Victory?) from Wawak that they don't seem to sell anymore. I see they have Super-Strong Double Sided Vinyl/Leather Basting Tape listed under the Wawak brand name. I'm machine sewing and looking for something that isn't going to gum needles up. Is this a good replacement for the tape referenced in the dead links? I'm open to other suggestions but I'm going to place an order with Wawak for some other things this week and I'd like to save shipping from another supplier if I can. Thanks, Arturo

I have a Techsew SK-4 machine without the vacuum suction. I now wish I'd purchased the setup with the suction. Regards, Arturo

The Cowboy 6900 and Techsew 4800 are clones of the Juki LS1342. I have the Techsew and I'm very happy with it. Brian knows a lot more about these machines than I do and I'm sure he can tell you much more. Regards, Arturo

There was another discussion about this. Someone who was keeping track of his (I believe) retail sales posted this information: Belt Size Breakdown 30" - 10 0.9% 32" - 60 2.8% 34" - 115 10.1% 36" - 220 19.3% 38" - 220 19.3% 40" - 220 19.3% 42" - 215 18.9% 44"- 110 9.6% 46" - 60 5.3% 48" - 55 4.8% 50" - 25 2.2% 52" - 25 2.2% 54" - 25 2.2% 1,140 I think there might be a flaw with the numbers in that the poster used what appears to be a total number of 1,140 belts for the percentage calculations when the total number of belts added from the column is 220 more at 1,360. That throws the percentages off but, in this individuals experience selling belts, this is more or less how it shook out. Interesting that the biggest sellers were right around the middle. Regards, Arturo