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My Consew 206RB-2 with clutch motor seems to have too much play in the clutch before engaging. I'd like to shorten the movement required to engage the clutch, and I'm pretty sure that is something that is possible. I'm just not sure how to do it. I seem to remember reading something about just adjusting a bolt on the motor, and I even see a bolt below & to the left of the pulley that seems like a likely candidate. I'm just not sure though, and I don't want to mess something up if I'm wrong. Hopefully someone here could give me some help with this?

So I have a friend visiting and I need to figure out something I can make quickly that is still nice that she'll like. I come up with the idea of a small clutch or coin purse in the shape of a cat's face. I look around on the internet a bit for ideas and am not really seeing anything, so I do a few sketches and land on this one. Actually the sketch wound up being a frankenstein-like cat purse, but it seemed that everything was fighting me so I went simpler. For one thing, I couldn't find any rivets that were short enough for only one layer of leather. I'm not thrilled about the giant snap in the middle of the forehead, especially without the small rivets along the top to distract from it, but at least it's dark so it's not too noticeable from a distance. The lacing was another thing that gave me fits. I had gotten some of it completed when the lacing snapped, it was simply too old and had become brittle. I had already poked slits all around the edge though, so what can I do but lace? So I grab one of my longer pieces of Horween, a straight edge ruler, and a rotary cutter and try to make a consistent piece of lace and am moderately successful. It's much too thick to pull through the lacing slots though, and I'm not confident of my ability to skive the entire thing down. So I punch holes where the slits are and get lacing. You know something about thicker lace? It takes up more material. I was THREE HOLES SHORT. In retrospect, I probably could have pounded the lace to flatten it out more and add length before I started lacing, but hindsight and all that. So I cut a little more lace and splice it in. I think it turned out alright despite myself. Oh, and I probably should have used contrasting thread for the mouth, but I was really crunched for time at that point so shallow taps with the lacing nail and I called it acceptable.

Here are a few things I have created recently. There is a Hair on Laptop/messengers bag, with zippered front panel that allows access to internal pockets mounted to the front inner wall, and storage for briefs and papers built into the zippered front panel, the lid also has a hidden panel with glove snaps for additional storage of briefs and papers, there is an internal pocket for a laptop (17" laptops fit awesome in this) and a rear storage pocket for books, or notebooks, with a final pocket on the rear wall to allow additional papers or briefs to be stored. LOTS AND LOTS of room in this bag. The hair on cow hide is in purple and black, and the sides are made of laminated pieces of veg tanned that have been dyed to match the colors of the hair on hide. I laced the sides with premium calfskin lace and did it in an Australian double loop stitch. The pencil bag is made out of the selvage of the hair on hide, and is a wide mouth design. The clutch is likewise made out of the selvage from the same hide and pairs very nicely.

Hello all! I just bought a yamata FS-388z. It's great for the price! I didn't need any sort of "enthusiast" class machine, and this is perfectly fine. I was wondering about the modifications that can be done to it, though. I heard that the sailrite ls-1 was a clone of the fs-288. What about the 388z, and it's clone? I wanted to purchase a monster II clutch, and some other feet. What information do you guys have about compatible upgrades with the fs-388z? I'm looking for feet, dogs, clutch, motor, anything else you can think of. Thank you in advance!

Hey guys! I had some not so great scrap leather hanging around that wasn't quit good enough to use for something I'd sell, so I thought I'd prototype something new. It's a case for an iPad mini. It has one main compartment with a belt with a buckle that goes around the whole case. On the back, a notebook or papers could be stored under the strap. For the hardware, I just used an a buckle from an old belt my wife doesn't use anymore. Anyway, have a look and let me know what you think. -Nick

I don't specialize in purses at all (actually, I don't specialize in anything really), but a friend asked me to make some purses for his girls to save "College Money" in. He wanted them to have a coin purse, a bill slot (the bill slot is behind the coin purse), and a solid closure. Jordyn likes monkeys and Allison likes zebras. This is what I came up with, thanks for lookin'.

I whipped these up Saturday for an upcoming craft fair in the first of December. I'm so trying to make sure I don't run out of things to sell. Maybe I'm being too optimistic But I'd rather have 100 too many than not enough. Also any ideas anyone has on smaller things I can make will sure be appreciated. I'm making book marks and key chains too. Cheryl

I had a piece of hair on hide leather whose shape just lent itself to making this small purse. Comments welcome. Cheryl