Hand Stitch Or Machine Sew

[Steff]

Hi guys, Steff here. Most of my projects I have laced together usually with the double or triple loop and the occasional mexican round braid becase I like the look of it. Of course I have made some kits that came pre punched and stiched with waxed thread. On smaller projects the waxed thread looks too corse for the job so I am planning on starting to hand stitch some of my stuff. I'm also getting into a few projects (bowling ball bag & rifle case) that have long zippers. Not looking forward to hand stitching a 30" zipper! My lovely wife has been a seamstress for many years and long ago picked up an industrial Singer sewing machine (1936 vintage) that still works great. The thing weighs a ton and I am ususlly the poor slob that has to move it, untill recently I hated the thing! But now all of a sudden it looks like it could be usefull to me. My question is: How many of you guys hand sew everything or if you have a machine how much do you use it versus hand stitching? Is machine work looked down upon? Or is it a case of how well it is done weather hand or machine sewn? Thanks in advance for your imput and advice.

Steff

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

This is one of those questions where there is no right answer.

I believe it will come down to what the item is vs cost, and the customer.

You are not going to make any money selling hand stitched wallets for $20 unless you are working for free.

Now if you are selling that wallet for $200, and hand stitching is a selling point, and that is what the potential customers want, then it would be warranted.

The only time I would look down on machine stitching is if it is sloppy, or comes apart easily.

Hand stitching may be strong, but if not done right it can look pretty terrible.

[Dwight]

In a class I teach, . . . all of my students can answer your question:

"Hands are for hamburgers, . . . machines are for stitching"

That is what I teach them, . . . then I introduce them to my Tippmann, . . . and the race is on.

May God bless,

Dwight

[TwinOaks]

It will depend greatly on what type of sewing machine it is, if it still works correctly, etc., etc. If it's a machine that can handle the sewing (thread and needle type), you could always just hand turn it until you can get a suitable motor for it.

To directly answer the question, I both hand and machine sew. It depends on the item. Most of my hand sewing is on small items with close tolerances. My Tippmann comes to bear when I'm doing sheaths and holsters, long runs (belts), or other thick items. Since I seem to have one of the finicky ones that doesn't like to be repeatedly adjusted, I have set everything to my thicker thread and leave it at that. For small things, it just isn't worth the time to reset things.

[katsass]

Hi guys, Steff here. Most of my projects I have laced together usually with the double or triple loop and the occasional mexican round braid becase I like the look of it. Of course I have made some kits that came pre punched and stiched with waxed thread. On smaller projects the waxed thread looks too corse for the job so I am planning on starting to hand stitch some of my stuff. I'm also getting into a few projects (bowling ball bag & rifle case) that have long zippers. Not looking forward to hand stitching a 30" zipper! My lovely wife has been a seamstress for many years and long ago picked up an industrial Singer sewing machine (1936 vintage) that still works great. The thing weighs a ton and I am ususlly the poor slob that has to move it, untill recently I hated the thing! But now all of a sudden it looks like it could be usefull to me. My question is: How many of you guys hand sew everything or if you have a machine how much do you use it versus hand stitching? Is machine work looked down upon? Or is it a case of how well it is done weather hand or machine sewn? Thanks in advance for your imput and advice.

Steff

FWIW from the grumpy old guy; I hand stitch most everything. I primarily make holsters, but do make a few western rigs, and some smaller items for trap and skeet shooters. I feel that good hand stitching will set off an item as being a bit more on the custom side of things, and since all of my stuff is specifically designed and made to order, hand stitching is just part of the deal. Also, there are times that a machine just won't do as well as hand stitching, such as the welt on this holster. That welt is damned near an inch thick to stitch through .... 4 layers of 5/6 oz. and 5 layers of 8/9 equaling ...... something equalling around 60 oz. Mike

Edited October 26, 2011 by katsass

[Steff]

thanks Guys! Biggundoctor, Dwight, TwinOaks & katsass, your answers cover the gamut of leatherworking and I understand that it all depends on how well it's done and what level of quality is expected and paid for. It seems to me that unless you have some very high paying customers, its hard to make money at leathercraft. How many of us are selling the stuff we make just to afford to buy more leather to make more cool stuff just cause we love to make things that few others can do?

Thanks again, I hope to meet you guys some day

Steff

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Well if ya head into Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada for a vacation, say HI. I run into the big city quite often.