Cheap? splitter,skiver and sander

[RockyAussie]

This is just a very handy tool I have come up with that I mostly use for quick removal of thickness when I do my Crocodile backstrap belts. I have found by putting in place a steady at the front it can be rotated back to act as a thicknesser. I have sandwiched a coarse sandpaper between the rotating guide/steady, and this works well to hold firmly in place wherever I set the steady to.The steady can rotate right out of the way to allow free hand sanding or right in to touching.See the pics. The newer model I am working on will have a foot pedal to allow it to be opened and come back to an adjustable stopper which will improve the input of materials.Although I have bandknife splitters and skivers this machine would get used between 1 and 2 full days per week and I have another similar 2" version which gets at least 1 day per week. Hope this can be of help to anyone starting off. Note it takes a bit of practice if sanding down soft chrome leathers to a thickness.

[Fat Dog Leather]

Rocky,

great pics and super idea. I too have a skiver and band knife splitter. But to be honest I sometimes have issues reducing my alligator material and my skiver is sometimes finicky and will for no reason grab the material and scalp it..... But only on costly leather - never the less expensive. The splitter is a cobra brand and is also sometimes too aggressive for alligator. So this sanding idea is a great alternative! Thanks for the info. 

[bruce johnson]

Is that a MultiTool attachment that you are using for the sanding? If so, where did you get the wider width model at? Thanks! - Bruce

[RockyAussie]

Hi Fat Dog Leather again I just found this post. Splitting on glaze skin will often be difficult and Still leaves the skin stiff and curly. I have to do a stack of bangles at the moment and I prefur to run them through the sander as it tends to break the tension and leave it in the end more flexible and able to conform to shapes better. I'll do a few pics of and send some tomorrow. Coming to skiving on edges - once it has been sanded and the tension broken you will find the skiving better. Do you have a roller foot on the skiver? I believe it is essential when working with glaze. With regards to the Cobra splitter I haven't seen or heard of one that is a band knife splitter. Have you got a picture of it you could post? Regards for now Brian.

[RockyAussie]

6 minutes ago, bruce johnson said:

Is that a MultiTool attachment that you are using for the sanding? If so, where did you get the wider width model at? Thanks! - Bruce

Yes it is please see the link and if you check it should lead to where in the US it can be bought. You would need to lathe back the back drive wheel outer rim in order to make the belt removal possible if you want to shroud it as I have done. http://www.multitoolaustralia.com/products.html

Regards Brian

[bruce johnson]

Thank you! I have had the 2x36 for a few years. It gets used daily and a great tool. There are times where a 4" wide would be good to have. I will check with the US supplier. I like the shroud and dust collector you have on yours - I'd still be masking up but shop cleanup would be a lot simpler. Several good ideas in your post and I sure want to thank you! - Bruce

[RockyAussie]

Bangle sanding pics as promised. 1st pic stiff and not sanded - 2nd pic setting for thickness-3rd sanding the croc - 4th results after sanding - 5th check for size - 6+7th stitched up - 8 ready to be glued up. Thankfully the matt ones I can split ok and they are twice as fast to fold and glue down.

That's all for now I still gotta do another 50 or so yet. Regards Brian

[Fat Dog Leather]

Hi Brian, I must have misspoke ....as what I have is a cobra splitter - 14 " blade;  that can be too aggressive on the gator ( see pic).  The skiver I have  is a consew and has the standard slightly curved foot. But I am going to go for the roller foot as you noted. Any advice on reducing the gator material on the two types of machines would be much appreciated. Thanks again on the above  sanding demo; I recently used it with great success! Also will incorporate the dust collection system. Thanks Jeanne

[RockyAussie]

Re the splitter. I had one like your's once and I was most happy when some one payed me half of what I paid for it. Don,t get me wrong as for saddlery type of operations they can be good but for bag work and such they are IMOP a waste of space. A Comoga or Albiko band knife splitter are both good machines and I would urge you to try and get one. With croc or aligator work mostly you could do a fair amount without one but for wallets and purses if you want to do the insides you would need one for sure. A splitter here with 5 people in total runs between 1 and 2 days a week. Can I see a pic of your consew and the presser feet as I only have a FAV and a Fortuna at present. Doe's it have waste suction on it?

[Fat Dog Leather]

Sad news on the cobra splitter for soft leather and exotics. The band knife splitter you note is a Big Chunk of Change....$12000. +.  Too rich for my blood right now. I also called cobra to see if there is any further adjustment on the  unit..... and no such luck! 

Here is my consew bottom feed skiver....No suction on it. The waste being cut off is always an issue unless physically removed from the bell knife area. Pls. Let me know your thoughts on the roller foot attachment for the alligator material . Thanks again!! Jeanne