Custom belt lengths after pre-stitching leather

[PAMuzzle]

I wanted to make some belts for a show.  I wanted to offer single and double stitched belts.  Is there any way to stitch a belt blank and then cut and punch holes for someone without making a bunch of premade lengths like in stores?  

I've been running it thru my mind but not real sure if it can be done.

Any help/ideas would be appreciated

Edited June 23, 2022 by PAMuzzle

[Dwight]

You can do it if you don't stitch the belt . . . fair hawkers do it all the time.

With the stitching . . . take his money . . . tell him to come back in 30 minutes . . . 

If I go to the fair this fall . . . that is what I will do.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Frodo]

I sell no stitched belts,  Cut and punch holes on the spot

[PAMuzzle]

That's what I thought.

So are you fellas selling only single layer belts?  If so what thickness works best for these shows?  

English Bridle or Veg Tan?

drum pre-dyed or dye them yourself?

Dwight...Do you have a Boss or Cowboy Outlaw to stitch belt in 30 minutes?

Edited June 24, 2022 by PAMuzzle

[Dwight]

39 minutes ago, PAMuzzle said:

That's what I thought.

So are you fellas selling only single layer belts?  If so what thickness works best for these shows?  

English Bridle or Veg Tan?

drum pre-dyed or dye them yourself?

Dwight...Do you have a Boss or Cowboy Outlaw to stitch belt in 30 minutes?

Now that you ask . . . yes, got a Boss . . . and yes I can do a belt in 30 minutes with it . . . but I'd much rather do it on my Cowboy 4500.

If you want to do that . . . pre dye your belts . . . glue em together . . .  fix the buckle end ready to go . . . 

For me . . . I would cut them a 56 inch long belt blank . . . the way I do it . . . that would give me a 47 inch belt blank.  My first hole for the buckle is 4 inches in from the end . . . and there are 7 holes following it . . . at 1 inch intervals.

If I were going to a fair or something like that using a Boss or Outlaw . . . I'd stitch the first 34 inches of the bottom side of each belt.  Tie off the stitches but don't double  them.

Then when your customer picks his belt . . . all you have to do is cut the end . . . punch the holes . . . finish sewing the bottom . . . make the turn . . . and sew the top side.  

With my boss . . . I can easily do that in a half hour.

And . . . your customer gets to see exactly what his/her belt will look like. 

AND . . . don't discount the curiosity folks . . . sometimes folks will stand there and watch you . . . just to see how it is done . . . then brag to their peers what they saw.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Lobo]

I did a lot of two-layer gun belts. Had a display set up to show the variations offered, all of them about 24" in length. Not long enough for anyone to buy (or steal), but enough to show the materials and workmanship. Mr. Customer could see them and handle them, place an order, and the belt would be put on the production schedule and delivered on completion.

Biggest issue on belts, in my experience, is sizing. Clothing manufacturers have used "vanity sizing" for so many years that very few people have any idea of their waist size. I wear a size 34 waist trouser, but my belts measure 37.5" from buckle attachment point to tongue hole in use. Longest belt I ever made was 67", required 77" strap length, shipped with a holster for a 6.5" Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum revolver (big dude, big gun).

I always asked customers to measure a belt they were presently using, and I absolutely refused to accept returns due to sizing errors. Every buckle has a different length of the engagement; choose your buckle when you select your belt, and if you change the buckle the result is your problem, not mine.

Event at that, when I retired and shut down the shop I had a couple dozen belts lying around that needed homes. I gave most away to friends and family.

[PAMuzzle]

Thanks guys.

Dwight:  I too have the Cowboy 4500.  But I do not have the Boss or Outlaw so stitching on sight would not be possible unless I finished by hand stitching.  Got to see if that can be a possibility.

Lobo:  Like your idea of short samples. 

[Dwight]

 

2 minutes ago, PAMuzzle said:

Thanks guys.

Dwight:  I too have the Cowboy 4500.  But I do not have the Boss or Outlaw so stitching on sight would not be possible unless I finished by hand stitching.  Got to see if that can be a possibility.

Lobo:  Like your idea of short samples. 

Well . . . you could stitch the top and bottom up to a certain point . . . in my case if I did it . . . most of my customers are in the 38 inch or bigger category . . . so I would stitch them up to maybe where the next to the end hole . . . and tie them off.  Then you only have to stitch the tongue area.  If you are careful in how you do it . . . saddle stitching with only one piece of thread . . . your knots would be on the bottom . . . mostly un-noticeable if you are careful . . . 

Secondary part is  . . . that is a very good way to do the tongue . . . you could also impress them with the extra effort you are putting in to their product.

But like Lobo said . . . no matter what we do . . .  we'll wind up with "extras" in the shop . . . I had to make one for a girl the other day . . . 3 times . . . and her sister ate a couple extra pizzas or something between fitting and delivery . . . hers was not as well fitting as the others.

But that is all part of the belt industry . . . 

Have fun . . . may God bless,

Dwight

 

[chuck123wapati]

i wonder, wouldn't it be faster and easier to finish the tongue end of the belt then all you would have to do is cut the belt to length and finish the buckle end ? I don't know but am asking if it would be inappropriate to cut the stitching at the buckle end? 

[Dwight]

15 minutes ago, chuck123wapati said:

i wonder, wouldn't it be faster and easier to finish the tongue end of the belt then all you would have to do is cut the belt to length and finish the buckle end ? I don't know but am asking if it would be inappropriate to cut the stitching at the buckle end? 

With a double layer belt . . . you have to cut both pieces . . . then cut the stitches . . . so you can slip something between the pieces so you can cut the under side piece . . . and then you cut it off square . . . so it looks dorky the rest of it's adult life . . . plus you will then also have to re stitch each end over top of the place you cut . . . so the threads don't come out.

All in all . . . I'm thinking the tongue end has to be faster unless you sew them up to say a 36 . . . and you get a guy coming in who wants that 47 . . . which means you have to hand sew about 61 inches of belt altogether.  

He would get his belt in the mail.

May God bless,

Dwight

[chuck123wapati]

2 hours ago, Dwight said:

With a double layer belt . . . you have to cut both pieces . . . then cut the stitches . . . so you can slip something between the pieces so you can cut the under side piece . . . and then you cut it off square . . . so it looks dorky the rest of it's adult life . . . plus you will then also have to re stitch each end over top of the place you cut . . . so the threads don't come out.

All in all . . . I'm thinking the tongue end has to be faster unless you sew them up to say a 36 . . . and you get a guy coming in who wants that 47 . . . which means you have to hand sew about 61 inches of belt altogether.  

He would get his belt in the mail.

May God bless,

Dwight

i knew you would have a good answer.

[Doc Reaper]

I’m reading this post and wonder why there are no pics of these belts, I might be picturing something completely different in my head

[Dwight]

3 hours ago, Doc Reaper said:

I’m reading this post and wonder why there are no pics of these belts, I might be picturing something completely different in my head

Here you are  . . . double layer belt . . . 

The next step would be to sew them . . . that is what the whole conversation has been about . . . 

May God bless,

Dwight

 

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by Dwight