CdK

I have been a player in the crapshoot that is online ordering of leather. I recently did a road trip and visited Makers Leather Supply and left there with a good feeling, loaded truck and lighter wallet. Being able to select your own hides/sides in the warehouse and the helpful, welcoming, knowledgeable and friendly attitude of the staff was refreshing. I went through a number of HO sides and all of them were way better than any veg tan I had ever seen at my local Tandy store. Their offerings of what they call Texas Oak is also very good. They stock a large variety of other types of hides as well. I live about 6 hours travel from their warehouse but I would do the trip again, if needed. If you are in need of any leather and cannot stop in yourself, call them and explain what you are looking for.

@James1Why I asked is that the 750SL & 750SH list the same specs on the website, maybe poor proofreading or maybe some other differences I missed? Other pages mention that the SL is intended for light-medium machines, not listing the 441class and SH for heavy duty machines listing the 441class. I will reach out to them to try and clarify on this. The page I found this on is this one: https://cowboysew.com/heavy-duty-sewing-servo-motor.htm

@James1Which model did you purchase? I am interested in having slow speed and NPS on my 441 but NPS does not play nice with the speed reducer installed so this may be the way to get there.

@MotiVery nice. Please report back on how well the binder attachment works as I am interested in doing this as well. I have a speed reducer and it made it possible for me to "get into the saddle" so to speak as the slow action is beneficial to me being new to these machines.

My prices are always inversely proportional to their attitude. The as***Le tax added can be very steep for the Mr&Mrs so they typically don't buy from me very often.

There is no specific need other than my curiosity but I have seen others do this and I like to learn and try things and then decide if it has any relevance to my workflow. I have started expanding my item range into things like wallets and smaller leather goods that use leather other than the heavier vegtan that I am familiar with. The smaller fiddly bits like the T-pieces for card pockets are too small for the weights that I have used for larger pieces and taping the patterns are a pita. I use my laser cutter to cut patterns from card stock and my thinking is that if I can tack them in place the cutting would be easier. I don't use a scratch awl and then cut the leather after marking as it introduces too much tolerance stacking so cut directly using the pattern, ruler and knife. Directly cutting the leather with the laser does work, but not always suitable. Am I missing a technique to do these steps that I have overlooked? I like that, simple and cost effective, I will keep this in mind.

I tried double sided tape but it was too aggressive and affected the vegtan surface to the extent that when dye was applied you could see where the tape was used. I have not tried rubber glue, I will need to find some and try it out. -added after I originally posted this. I found a high tack /low tack double sided tape on a sewing site but at $25/roll plus tax I don’t just want to buy it. I have experimented with post it notes and it did not affect the surface and dye was not influenced in any way. This is why I am looking to mimic it. I have not tried that yet. I will get some and try it out.

Good evening, I have watched a number of videos where when the artisan pulls the paper template from the leather it can be heard that there was adhesion between the pieces. No tape or any other adhesive was noticed and residue did not appear to be left behind. I searched for adhesive that would in effect work like a Post-It note and found glue sticks branded by Scotch that appears to be what I'm after. Anyone here have recommendations and/or experience with this? Carl

@HoltFamilyHardwoods Here are some pics of my build. PM me if you have any questions.

@toxo I'm no expert either but having the bell running at a speed independently from the feed speed appears to be preferred by many of the established fine leather & upholstery shops in Europe. Maybe someone other here with more experience than me can chime in. @RockyAussie what has been your experience?

Pedestal for cylinder arm machines, table for flat bed, is my preferred choice.

@jtweatherford PM incoming.

@Wheatley The head was off Temu $382, motors were from Amazon $145/each. My wife had ordered the head and it shipped from a warehouse in the US and it arrived intact and quick. I essentially rebuilt the head as it was just assembled, IMHO. I also modified the drive pulley for the feed to accept the M-size belts, widened the V-groove. Message me for more info, pics etc if interested, I am fortunate to have the equipment, time and ability to machine and fabricate things. This project was minor for myself but could be challenging for some. Farming the work out could be pricy and the outcome less than ideal. The commercial offerings available for turn key units are not out of line price wise. I spent about 20 hours building this BTW.

Wow! The workmanship of both knife and sheath are outstanding.

@Wheatley Don't know the supplier but I checked them out and to me here in Texas it is, including shipping, US$1,015. Not bad but I would not buy it. I put together a 801 skiver and the head cost delivered to me just over $400. I opted to go with dual motors @ $145/each and I built the stand myself from materials I had already. Total cost was about $750.

Very nice work!

Short answer, yes wood work stains can be used on vegtan with success, I used the spirits based ones. Long answer. When I started leather craft in 1979 I was a broke schoolboy on a different continent than where I find myself today. When I first visited the USA in '93 one of the first store to visit was Tandy. Fiebings was something mentioned in the few pieces of print that got me started down this path. A number of my long ago projects were retrieved from my mothers estate and they look about as good when I had stained them using carpenters stain, she used some of them regularly. I would think that 40+ years of good service is a confirmation that my choice of stain was lucky.

@TomE I feel you. I will be welding up the stand for my bell skiver tomorrow and my mig has not been used for a few years. Propbably take longer to clean and set up my welder than the project that needs to be done. @Southerngunner Nice sewing table you got put together there. The satisfaction of creating something from an idea to fulfill a need is priceless. I am spending way more time fabricating bits and pieces to support my leather craft than spend doing the craft in the first place!

@TomE Yes, the drive roller is removed. The drive shaft universal joint was seriously over packed with grease, so much so that about a teaspoon sized piece ended up on the sharpening stone. I needed to get in there and clean it out and doing so would mean that my hands would get too close to comfort to the bell blade. I will also at some point fit a metal drive roller that I have on hand and then this safety cover will get used again as at that point the blade would have been run through at least one sharpening cycle. I noticed in some older manuals that I found online that there is a rubber boot covering the universal joint that will retain any grease there. I'm looking to find such a part, or maybe need to design and print one using TPU or repurpose a boot from somewhere else... This journey in getting to know this machine is interesting to say the least. My mantra is that to get the most out of a machine is to understand it fully. YMMV

Good afternoon y'all My loving wife along with my conniving friend got together and ordered me a bell skiver head from an online resource. It arrived yesterday and, as usual, I got to know it better by examining and tinkering with it. I noticed that there was a glob of grease on top of the sharpening stone and started to take parts off to get to it. The sharp edge of the bell knife is obvious and it struck me that some kind of safety cover would be a smart thing to have in place. So, some measurements and off to my desk to do some CAD, then onto the trusty 3D printer and voila! In this machines instance the insert in the bell has a threaded area so the bolt from the ejector fitted and keeps it in place. The weird thread used on this machine precludes the use of off the shelf screws but the cover can be held in place by adhesive tape if needed. The included .STL file is what I used to feed the printer. Feel free to make your own. Below are some photos of the piece in place and screen captures of the CAD and sliced part. For those that may be interested I will be setting up the head with 2 Enduro motors and drive the knife and the feed independently of each other. I will take some photos as I go and will share if there is any interest. Regards Carl SkiverProtector.stl

Thank you to all that responded to this thread. I called the 3 major suppliers and lets just say that my sewing machine purchase will be brown. Shipping to anywhere in Texas is just under $400, which considering where I am located, not bad at all.

According to their website machines are not stock items and are drop-shipped with freight charges. I'll call them and confirm though. If you don't mind, how much was the home delivery?

Good evening, Choosing the machine class/type was tough enough, now who to purchase from? I'm looking at the combos the suppliers put together and would like the needle position system, aluminum flatbed attachment, drop-down sewing guide. I'm rambling.... The websites are not clear about availability, shipping costs, etc. I guess I need to work my phone tomorrow and get more information. I hate surprises that can significantly add to the sticker price and/or lead time... Any feedback, experiences, opinions, etc are most welcome. BTW, I am open to a road trip to pick up the machine if there would be some product training available. Carl

Very, very nice! I found their website, for some reason my google-fu has been weak lately.

Good afternoon, Could you please tell me more about the HE&P extreme plates? I am about to purchase a 4500 machine but don't know about the parts you mentioned. Regards Carl Edinburg, TX