Sewing Holsters With A Machine

[Sixer]

So I got my new shiny Cobra Class 4 about a week ago. Thought I'd hit the ground running... NOT QUITE.

Evidently I should have paid more attention in Home Ec. class I'm terrible at this!

At first I was having an issue with the bottom thread being pulled through the top of my stitch holes. With some patient help from Steve, we fixed that by using a smaller needle (size 24) with 277 thread on top and 207 on bottom. (Sewing 2 layers of 8 oz)

Now it sews a straight line great! I can sew a 90 degree angle just fine. But it seems to be sooo sensitive when sewing curves. When trying to sew the outline of the gun, it will drop stitches and end up jamming my bobbin thread. It also seems to be pulling the leather up with the needle on occasion.

I haven't messed with the tension or anything else really... I have the motor on a very low setting... I've watched the video a dozen times.

Just not sure where to turn, no pun intended. Don't get me wrong, Steve and David have been a tremendous help. The machine and service is top notch.

I just want to be certain that it's user error. It's really driving me nuts!

Any advice, tips, tricks would be helpful, whether on the machine itself... or just sewing holsters in general.

Thanks in advance!

sixer

[Luke Hatley]

Sixer...you ever get to Memphis?.. What you need is a Lot of first hand instructions.

we all can tell you how we sew our holsters..I honestly beleive a lot of folks learn more by watching.I M H O

[dickf]

I remember when I first got my machine, I felt like I just blew more than a grand on something that was going to be responsible for making me quit producing holsters!

My wonderful wife showed me some techniques used on a traditional sewing machine, and emphasized that I need to use some patience. She was right. What helped me the most was slowing everything down and taking it one step at a time. I made several holsters out of scrap belly just to stitch on them. Take the turns nice and slow, pivot when necessary, and don't be in any type of a rush. Practice, practice, practice...you'll get it.

[rickybobby]

I would tighten the foot presser tension some and see if that helps keep the leather "down", dropping the stitches on sewing curves may be from how you are executing the turn. If you are making "jerking" motions while moving the holster (and the needle is not on the up stroke) it may miss the bobbin hook (skipping the stitch).

Use some scrap leather and practice the curve. The machine works fine on straight lines so I would say it is something in your movements on the curves. A slow but deliberate movement in guiding your work is the best.

I say we all go over to Lukes house, I have never been to Memphis!

[troop]

sixer, everyone here is right. it is just going to take practice but will be well worth it in the long run. my stiching looked horrible and i couldn't get the cobra to act right. after some weeks of practice, i not only got to know my machine but now i get more compliments on my stitching than my holsters. just keep at it. with some experimentation you'll learn what needle and thread works best and what tensions work best and so on. youll soon be making turns without even slowing down.

Tony

Edited February 16, 2012 by troop

[KAYAK45]

Sllooowww wwaayyy ddoowwnn! Use your machine as if you're doing ONE STITCH AT A TIME.

When turning make sure you let your needle rise a little off bottom dead center to catch hook. Slow down, stop and do it. That will help keep you from skipping stitches.

Make sure you have LOTS of light on your work.

Slow down.

Remember to take your foot off the pedal whenever something doesn't look perfect. One stitch at a time with a machine is still a lot faster than hand sewing.

Practice with scrap leather or cardboard until you get it right.

You'll get it! Good stitches.

Kevin

[Art]

You're not a sissy if you draw or groove lines on your holster to follow. The machine will stitch the same stitch whether you are going fast or barely crawling.

Slow down and don't ever turn the handwheel backwards till you understand the machine. Then almost never. If you have to start by handwheeling the machine then so be it. You have to learn to turn curves when the feet are up. If you horse it and turn with the feet down, then a skipped stitch is often the byproduct.

Crawl, stand-up, walk, run.

Art

So I got my new shiny Cobra Class 4 about a week ago. Thought I'd hit the ground running... NOT QUITE.

Evidently I should have paid more attention in Home Ec. class I'm terrible at this!

At first I was having an issue with the bottom thread being pulled through the top of my stitch holes. With some patient help from Steve, we fixed that by using a smaller needle (size 24) with 277 thread on top and 207 on bottom. (Sewing 2 layers of 8 oz)

Now it sews a straight line great! I can sew a 90 degree angle just fine. But it seems to be sooo sensitive when sewing curves. When trying to sew the outline of the gun, it will drop stitches and end up jamming my bobbin thread. It also seems to be pulling the leather up with the needle on occasion.

I haven't messed with the tension or anything else really... I have the motor on a very low setting... I've watched the video a dozen times.

Just not sure where to turn, no pun intended. Don't get me wrong, Steve and David have been a tremendous help. The machine and service is top notch.

I just want to be certain that it's user error. It's really driving me nuts!

Any advice, tips, tricks would be helpful, whether on the machine itself... or just sewing holsters in general.

Thanks in advance!

sixer

[Sixer]

Sixer...you ever get to Memphis?.. What you need is a Lot of first hand instructions.

we all can tell you how we sew our holsters..I honestly beleive a lot of folks learn more by watching.I M H O

Thanks guys... honestly, I feel better already!

Luke, never been to Memphis but I might be due for a road trip, haha... I am a visual learner and I think you're absolutely correct.

I remember when I first got my machine, I felt like I just blew more than a grand on something that was going to be responsible for making me quit producing holsters!

Haha... dickf, you just read my mind! My first thought was to panic and find a new hobby

I really appreciate the words of wisdom and encouragement.

While we're on the topic, just a few more questions...

-Steve had metioned something about casing the leather before sewing... does anyone actually do that?

-Ho do you guys get your stitches so close to the outer edge of your holsters?

-IF at some point I have a dropped stitch on a project... is there any way to fix it? Or is it just scrap at that point?

-I don't really have anyone locally that can give me "hands on" instruction, so are there any good resources online that would help?

I'm sure I'll have plenty of future questions, but you guys have put my mind at ease for the time being, and I certainly appreciate it! Thanks so much

[rickybobby]

Thanks guys... honestly, I feel better already!

-I don't really have anyone locally that can give me "hands on" instruction, so are there any good resources online that would help?

I'm sure I'll have plenty of future questions, but you guys have put my mind at ease for the time being, and I certainly appreciate it! Thanks so much

Sixer,

You might check this thread out. there are some online videos by Ronnie at Techsew. I have not seen them yet but you might check them out

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=37805&st=0

Rick

[malabar]

If you drop a stitch, you can cut the thread a few stitches before it and a few stitches after it, melt the ends of the threads, and then overstitch.

I think casing before you stitch would cause a mess -- the presser foot would chew up the surface of the leather.

Stitching close to the edge is easy with a little practice. Cut or press a line along the edge and SLOWLY stitch the groove. The trick is to keep tracking where the NEXT stitch will go. After a couple of dozen, things will start to move faster.

tk

[Sixer]

If you drop a stitch, you can cut the thread a few stitches before it and a few stitches after it, melt the ends of the threads, and then overstitch.

I think casing before you stitch would cause a mess -- the presser foot would chew up the surface of the leather.

Stitching close to the edge is easy with a little practice. Cut or press a line along the edge and SLOWLY stitch the groove. The trick is to keep tracking where the NEXT stitch will go. After a couple of dozen, things will start to move faster.

tk

So no guides other than what you mark!? Sounds tricky

tk, I thought the same thing about the casing... but who knows...

Rick, thanks for the link! I will check it out.

Man... I can NOT wait for the day that I look back on this thread and laugh at how little I knew and how much it worried me. I'll be making beautiful stitches with my eyes closed, thinking to myself... "those guys on LW.net are the BEST" haha

Keep it coming! Great stuff!

Thanks again... MUCH appreciated

[Lobo]

When I started my assistant on the stitcher I had her watch me do several pieces, discussing each step such as curves and changes in direction, stopping the machine at the proper time to avoid skips, etc. Then I assembled dozens of practice pieces from scrap and let her spend a couple of hours per day for several days just practicing on the stitcher. Her work improved steadily and very quickly. The key is practice, practice, practice, making mistake after mistake, and learning to avoid mistakes, then learning to correct (some) mistakes. At the same time you will get familiar with bobbin changes, the occasional bent or broken needle, and everything else involved.

You have already gotten past the really big hurdle by selecting Leather Machine Company. Lots of other sources, but none of them are run by Cobra Steve and none of them can compare for service after the sale.

[malabar]

When I started my assistant on the stitcher I had her watch me do several pieces, discussing each step such as curves and changes in direction, stopping the machine at the proper time to avoid skips, etc. Then I assembled dozens of practice pieces from scrap and let her spend a couple of hours per day for several days just practicing on the stitcher. Her work improved steadily and very quickly. The key is practice, practice, practice, making mistake after mistake, and learning to avoid mistakes, then learning to correct (some) mistakes. At the same time you will get familiar with bobbin changes, the occasional bent or broken needle, and everything else involved.

You have already gotten past the really big hurdle by selecting Leather Machine Company. Lots of other sources, but none of them are run by Cobra Steve and none of them can compare for service after the sale.

Amen on all counts. When I got my Class 4, I thought I would immediately start cranking out great stitch lines. But it didn't happen that way. So I got my wife, who is a skilled seamstress, and loves sewing machines, and told her to stitch the darn things. She didn't fare much better. Stitching heavy leather isn't much like other sewing. And practice makes perfect -- and I'm far from perfect.

Back when I was doing a lot of woodworking, I used to go to trade shows. They would always have folks there doing demos with tablesaws and and bandsaws that were like magic. To make a long story short, these guys impressed on me that a huge amount of the magic involved knowing the machine inside and out, and having it tweaked until it ran like a Swiss watch. I think leather stitchers are the same. And that takes time (or a great mentor).

tk

[starving artist]

Thanks guys... honestly, I feel better already!

Luke, never been to Memphis but I might be due for a road trip, haha... I am a visual learner and I think you're absolutely correct.

Haha... dickf, you just read my mind! My first thought was to panic and find a new hobby

I really appreciate the words of wisdom and encouragement.

While we're on the topic, just a few more questions...

-Steve had metioned something about casing the leather before sewing... does anyone actually do that?

-Ho do you guys get your stitches so close to the outer edge of your holsters?

-IF at some point I have a dropped stitch on a project... is there any way to fix it? Or is it just scrap at that point?

-I don't really have anyone locally that can give me "hands on" instruction, so are there any good resources online that would help?

I'm sure I'll have plenty of future questions, but you guys have put my mind at ease for the time being, and I certainly appreciate it! Thanks so much

I too have just received my class 4, what a machine. but yes alot to learn on the do's and don'ts I am having a buddy of mine come show me the ropes on leather sewing machines, to comment on your question about stitching so close to the edge. a good way to cheat while your learning is to leave your pattern large, sew your edge then cut off excess next to stitching ( BUT not too close, that's holding your piece together ) , bevel, burnish, and finish your edges... plus this gives your edges that one piece of leather look waaaay easier than trying to stitch close to the edge and risk running off and junking up your artwork. good luck to you and practice practice practice.

[Sixer]

I too have just received my class 4, what a machine. but yes alot to learn on the do's and don'ts I am having a buddy of mine come show me the ropes on leather sewing machines, to comment on your question about stitching so close to the edge. a good way to cheat while your learning is to leave your pattern large, sew your edge then cut off excess next to stitching ( BUT not too close, that's holding your piece together ) , bevel, burnish, and finish your edges... plus this gives your edges that one piece of leather look waaaay easier than trying to stitch close to the edge and risk running off and junking up your artwork. good luck to you and practice practice practice.

All great advice guys! Anyone interested in doing a little video tutorial on sewing holsters!?

Seriously, I'll pay you