Stone Guy Turns To Wood, Then Leather....

[Rockhewer]

Hi there,

My name is Kevin, ... my brothers & sisters I ride with call me Rock, (cause of the sculpture I've done in stone)

I am an artist / artisan who has aways been able to find some measure of success or skill & quality in any craft having to do with making things by hand.

I used to be a granite & marble fabricator/installer.... kitchens and bath etc.....stone countertops, furniture etc...

Which is one industry where if your back isn't screwed up..... it's gonna be..... I did it for 20 years..... & guess what....

So I switched to woodworking...(wood's considerably lighter I am now building wood shutters and furniture.... but I can tell that given the condition of my back... it's only a matter of time until I am facing some level of disability.

I have always liked leather, but haven't taken the time nessessary to find very much proficiency in this field.... This is about to change... I am going to need something I can do in a relatively low impact, limited mobility setting....

I have aquired a sewing machine.... one that I hope will be sufficient for sewing things like saddle bags, holsters, motorcycle seats &..... I dunno.... mockassins? ....anything I feel like making, & stuff I could possibly sell.

It's a Nakajima 280L (I know it's old)... but seems like a really well built machine.... it's got a 1/2 horse motor, which hasn't had any problem plowing through anything I have tested it on.

I have a owners manual from the internet... (actually for a "Juki" model DNU241H ...I guess they changed the name or something?) Is that the right one?

The manual is good to have but I am learning more from stuff I have found online.

If anyone here can help me with any tips on the finer points of using a machine like this... I will certainly appreciate it.

I am also very interested in learning to tool leather.

I think I will be able to pick this up fairly quickly, as I am pretty good with my hands & have a artistic background... (what with being a stone carver & all)

Here is a pic of the first substantial piece I have done in leather...(this was before I got the sewing machine) the lacing is pretty simple.... I hope to learn more about that kind of thing as well.

I'll tell you what though.... in creating this bag... I aquired a whole new respect for those who do fine leatherwork.... and a realization that the prices the market will bare.... barely cover the labor involved!

My hat's off to you all...

[Pounder]

Welcome Kevin:

With your talent with stone, tooling leather should be very easy. I would recommend "Figure Carving Finesse" and "Pictorial Carving Finesse" by A. Stohlman, in my opinion these are the bibles of that that aspect of leather work. You are correct the labor involved is not conducive to what the market will bear but the love of the craft makes up for it. At least that is what I keep telling myself. Welcome to Leatherworker.net, again in my opinion, the best leather working site on the internet, where you will meet some of the best people in the world. I have tooled leather for 30 years and thought I knew a thing or two but after finding this site I quickly realized an old dog can learn new tricks. Everyone has been great offer suggestions, tips which would have costs several dollars to buy the book.

I will get off my soap box and let you decide for yourself, but again welcome and look forward to seeing more of your projects. The saddle bags are fantastic.

[electrathon]

Rock,

As I sit here reading what you wrote I am currently recovering from having my ankle fused. 30 years ago as a teen I was involved in a catastrophic motorcycle accident, crushing my left leg. I too am very talented in a wide range of areas and leather work is likely going to be what I will do as I continue to age and loose the ability to do physical labor. High quality leather can be a very good direction for talent to flow. I taught a class a few weeks back and the majority of the men that took the class were middle aged and older, almost every one made the comment they had to be able to move around, they all had experienced some sort of injury over the years that caused them to be in some sort of pain. Leather allows the creativity to flow in a quality and fulfilling manor.

I hope you do well. As a beginning project the bag is a great job.

Aaron

[Rockhewer]

thanks for the welcome.... the advise... the info....and everything else...

I'm glad to hear that this is a good forum.... these collections of like minded people are a most valuable resource indeed.

When I decided I was going to build my dream motorcycle myself, (having had no formal training in motorcycle mechanics) .... I was greatly blessed by being able to learn from the online community of clubchopper.com .

I know I wouldn't have done as good a job, without the help I got from those good folks... so willing to share their knowledge and experience.

This is the chopper I built:

My next project is going to be covering a seat I made for it, I got some cheap vinyl (faux leather) to do a prototype cover... basically to fine tune the pattern I will be creating. Then when it's right I'll do it in fine leather.

Here is the seat I made: (I needed something more comfortable for myself and my wife on longer trips.... this does the trick nicely...)

Edited December 18, 2011 by Rockhewer

[Leatherneck91]

Hey Rock,

Welcome to the site! I'm a fellow desert rat living out in the east valley as well (Gilbert/Queen Creek area). I'm just getting started in the trade myself, but if I can help out in anyway I'll do what I can. BTW, that's one badass chop you have. Building my own chopper is still on my bucket list... Hopefully a project in the near future.

Again welcome, and good luck on your journey!

-Leatherneck