Overwhelmed - Which industrial for leather bag making

[toxo]

3 hours ago, Novalee said:

@toxo Thanks very much for your helpful input. I definitely want to consider what I might do in the future. I don't see myself getting into saddles and such. At most, I might want to up the thickness of leather for more leather and bag/wallet options (i.e., 4-6 ounces). I do bags that stand now with the 2-3 ounce leather, but I use Decovil Heavy in certain places to achieve that look. I'm going to inquire about a Cowboy CB341 tomorrow (since I'm in the U.S.). It seems a solid option for my needs, but I'd love to hear if believe otherwise. Again, thanks for taking time to respond!

I use a 341 clone myself and am very happy with it. The only fault I'm finding is the size of the feed dog hole which may be problematical with very thin leather but I intend to address that. Another point to consider is a speed reducer with a servo motor will give more torque. On mine I can dial in the whole range of speeds from very slowly to quite fast enough thank you. The downside to speed reducers can be they don't always get on with needle positioners which I like very much but am having to live without for the time being. I am learning to do without though and it's not as bad as I feared.

You seem to be on a similar journey to my own and I hope I'm not teaching Granny to suck eggs but I'll offer some advice. Save the veg tan for special. Likewise the Decovil and other stiffeners. Look to Chrome tan for some inspiration. Some leatherworkers will spend months on a project for others to say "well done", I'm not one of em. I like working with leather and being constructive and if I can get a tiny bit back on the £1,000s I've spent I'm not gonna turn it away.

When I go to my leather shops I'm always looking for coloured Chrome tan of the right thickness/temper. Saves all that dying and gives me inspiration. I'm about to tackle piping in a proper way and if I can make the piping in a colour to contrast the bag it will give me an edge. Here's a pic of some keyrings that I did while messing with a new compressor and my skiver. All different weights, Made with what I could find amongst the leather.

 

[Novalee]

@DieselTech - Thanks for weighing in! I appreciate it. If I'm not mistaken, the Cobra class 26 is similar to the Cowboy CB341 and Techsew 2750. I think I got that right. LOL They all are clones of the Juki 341, correct? So much to learn and remember. I was thinking the Cowboy would be a little lighter on the old wallet. I definitely want to include the table attachment. I don't think I could function well without it. Try your hand at bag making. I think you'll enjoy the challenge. I love it (until I can't complete my project because I don't have the right machine). 

[DieselTech]

10 minutes ago, Novalee said:

@DieselTech - Thanks for weighing in! I appreciate it. If I'm not mistaken, the Cobra class 26 is similar to the Cowboy CB341 and Techsew 2750. I think I got that right. LOL They all are clones of the Juki 341, correct? So much to learn and remember. I was thinking the Cowboy would be a little lighter on the old wallet. I definitely want to include the table attachment. I don't think I could function well without it. Try your hand at bag making. I think you'll enjoy the challenge. I love it (until I can't complete my project because I don't have the right machine). 

Thanks. Yeah some say the cobra class 26 is a hybrid of a 341 type machine. 

Yeah I guess my biggest thing that has stopped me from making bags. Is I mainly got veg-tan & most of my bag patterns are for flip/inside out type bags. Meaning they are sewn inside out & then flipped. 

I need to invest in some chrome tanned type bag leathers. 

[AlZilla]

What about the CB3200? It  says it goes from V69 to v346. Seems like that would cover the whole range.  Might need to get a narrow feed dog and throat plate for the smaller stuff.

[Novalee]

1 hour ago, toxo said:

You seem to be on a similar journey to my own and I hope I'm not teaching Granny to suck eggs but I'll offer some advice. Save the veg tan for special. Likewise the Decovil and other stiffeners. Look to Chrome tan for some inspiration. Some leatherworkers will spend months on a project for others to say "well done", I'm not one of em. I like working with leather and being constructive and if I can get a tiny bit back on the £1,000s I've spent I'm not gonna turn it away.

Thank you! I really appreciate your input based on experience. First, by "granny," are you calling me old? LOL Just kidding, but it hurt a little. Seriously, I've only ever used chrome tan. I've never messed with veg tan. I'm relatively new to leather, so I'm still in the infancy stage. I say infancy stage because I believe we never should stop learning.

Your work is fantastic! I love the creativity and bold colors. Well done!

[Novalee]

@AlZilla - I intend to call Bob at Toledo Industrial tomorrow, so I will ask about the CB3200 as well. I'm told he knows his stuff. Thanks for the suggestion!

[Novalee]

52 minutes ago, DieselTech said:

Yeah I guess my biggest thing that has stopped me from making bags. Is I mainly got veg-tan & most of my bag patterns are for flip/inside out type bags. Meaning they are sewn inside out & then flipped. 

I need to invest in some chrome tanned type bag leathers.

@DieselTech - I've only used chrome tan for bag making so far. I mainly use linen with leather accents as lining. You might like patterns that call for drop in linings (or you can modify some patterns to accommodate drop in liners). I've done those and the ones where you flip or use what they call a "birthing hole." I sort of like the drop in method so you're not scrunching up the leather. Check out Simply Classic on YouTube. Chris has a lot of videos that show bag making from start to finish. I really enjoy her content and teaching (and she has nice supplies on her website). She has some nice patterns as well. Also, American Stitchers has some cool conceal carry patterns if you're into that sort of thing.  If you end up finding a good source for chrome leather, let me know! I'm a newbie, so I'm looking to learn.

[DieselTech]

6 minutes ago, Novalee said:

@DieselTech - I've only used chrome tan for bag making so far. I mainly use linen with leather accents as lining. You might like patterns that call for drop in linings (or you can modify some patterns to accommodate drop in liners). I've done those and the ones where you flip or use what they call a "birthing hole." I sort of like the drop in method so you're not scrunching up the leather. Check out Simply Classic on YouTube. Chris has a lot of videos that show bag making from start to finish. I really enjoy her content and teaching (and she has nice supplies on her website). She has some nice patterns as well. Also, American Stitchers has some cool conceal carry patterns if you're into that sort of thing.  If you end up finding a good source for chrome leather, let me know! I'm a newbie, so I'm looking to learn.

Thanks. Yeah I recently purchased some heavy waxed canvas. 18oz I believe. 

I want to make some tote bags with the body made from waxed canvas, then the bottom, straps & pockets from leather. 

I figured tote bags would be 1 of the easier bag constructions I could learn from. 

Plus I would rather waste canvas, than leather even thou the waxed canvas is still kinda pricey. 

[Novalee]

11 minutes ago, DieselTech said:

Thanks. Yeah I recently purchased some heavy waxed canvas. 18oz I believe. 

I want to make some tote bags with the body made from waxed canvas, then the bottom, straps & pockets from leather. 

I figured tote bags would be 1 of the easier bag constructions I could learn from. 

Plus I would rather waste canvas, than leather even thou the waxed canvas is still kinda pricey. 

I haven't used waxed canvas, but it's cool stuff (and a bit pricey). I think the canvas paired with leather would look great. I've seen that look on several bags and liked it. Originally, I thought I wanted to work with some cork until I priced it. You might like SewGnar on YouTube. She does some stuff in waxed canvas, but uses a lot of cork as well. 

[Deanr]

I've been making duffle bags from a combination of chrome tan and canvas. Sometimes I use waxed canvas which I make myself. The waxed canvas is pretty easy and not too expensive. I get factory seconds from big duck canvas. I do not line them so I use 92 thread for everything. I have a sailrite lsz which does good as long as I don't use veg tan. Maybe not the best machine but works good for this application.