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Personally I do not use a thimble or even one of those gloves, I just wrap my fingers in tape normally the kind that you use for wraping wounds, or once in a hwile a little duct tape if I am in a hurry helps protect the fingers from thread burn from pulling as tight as I do. Now I flat refuse to use an awl (again have shoved that evil over grown ice pick of death under my thumb nail enough times to know its not for me) but what I will use from time to time is a fig, especially if you are having trouble getting the needle though and a good pair of teethless pliers make it a lot easier to pull the needle though the other side a breeze, saves the fingers, though you really want to make sure you buy more than one or two needles (I buy  mine by the 100) as you will end up breaking a few here and there. as for making sure that my holes line up if I am going though two thick layers, I tend to lay each side by side, drive the punch though one set, then switch over to the other lining up as perfect as I can really helps make sure that both sides are all the way punched though and makes it a lot easier to stitch.

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Posted
  On 7/22/2017 at 2:16 PM, 480volt said:

Do you mean "fid", the rope splicing tool?

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Yep stupid phone was having a fit lol

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Posted

Thanks for all of the insight and helpful advice! Sorry for the delayed reply, I was out of town this last week. After reading through the replies, I am going to work on the following aspects and see if they culminate into faster stitching speeds. I read on an old forum post that folks were able to perform 6" runs of stitching in 12 minutes. If I am able to work my way to such a rate, I will be quite content!

  • Use a dull awl in conjunction with the stitching chisels to widen holes temporarily. 
  • Use smaller harness needles. John James #2 is where I'll begin.
  • Wear sewing palms to help push needles through.

 

Thanks again. I will try and follow up with any progress that I make.

 

  On 7/21/2017 at 8:51 PM, Dun said:

4v10gry.jpg

 

if I'm seeing it correctly, if not, feel free to ignore
any inner corners(90* or more acute angles) should be made with a sharp round punch. I'll look for a pic to demonstrate.

 

 

edit: here is a tandy example 2e46e7a415191d96148c582c513c950a--leathe

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Dun,

Can you elaborate on where this inside corner punch should be used on my bag? I am intrigued, but I don't quite understand. Thanks

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Posted
  On 7/20/2017 at 3:00 AM, Tugadude said:

You are correct but I think the OP is using stitching chisels which are diamond shaped but not tapered and are designed to punch all the way through.  The newer irons are making decent looking stitching attainable more quickly than pure awl work.  I do both, but when I can get by with a chisel, I do.  YMMV.

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Yes, I am using stitching chisels

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Posted
  On 7/20/2017 at 2:57 AM, Tugadude said:

I think your work looks great.  A couple points to consider.  First, I like that you are using red Loctite on the brass fasteners, but personally, I think you are overdoing them.  I mean I think some are unnecessary, such as the ones on the pencil pouches.  Stitching alone is incredibly strong if done correctly.  1.0mm Tiger thread is very strong.  

You might try smaller needles.  Maybe a John James #2.  The ones you are using are bound to get hung up and hard to press through.  I see no problem with using the Seiwa chisels and you can do each layer individually so long as you take pains to ensure the holes line up.  Nigel Armitage has videos where he discusses the process.  But even if you are using the chisels, you could use an awl to expand the holes just prior to stitching.  Don't use a sharp awl as you don't want to cut the holes bigger, just stretch them temporarily.

I've seen tool pouches made of leather and canvas and leather and nylon, but yours are something that will really become special to the owner.

Good work!

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Many thanks for the advice! Indeed, the chicago screws are a bit of any overkill. For the pencil pouches, it is part bulletproofing and part aesthetics. I am not worried about the time to install them though. Compared to the stitching time, it is quite minimal. 

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Posted

Below is a brief breakdown of the linear runs of stitching required to make the bag. I thought that y'all might enjoy these measurements for points of comparison and review.
 

  • Main Pouch - 70 Linear Inches
  • Front Bag - 40.5 Linear Inches
  • Pencil Pouch 20 Linear Inches
  • Total - 130.5 Linear Inches

Working on such a stitch intensive bag (at least to me) means that refining the stitching process yields huge saving in terms of time and effort. I am grateful for your collective thoughts and replies, for I have much to learn.

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Posted (edited)

Once you have everything in place (holes made, needles threaded, leather in clam or stitching pony), and with some practice, it is possible to stitch 8 stitches per minute or so.  If you are using 6spi chisels this works out to about 1.25 inches per minute.

Certainly that is not the fastest out there, but it is certainly not the slowest (some people stitch 2 stitches per minute).

In anything hand-sewn, the sewing portion will take the lions share of the project-making time, so careful planning and preparation--and plenty of time refining your sewing technique--will pay off big dividends in time savings.

Edited by johnv474
Website's spellcheck caused typos
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Posted

I just saw this 90* angle on the edging and wanted to mention it, just in case you have any inside or in a load bearing spot. With your inside-out pocket design you are probably covered.

unnamed.jpg

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Posted
  On 7/28/2017 at 5:06 PM, Dun said:
  On 7/28/2017 at 5:06 PM, Dun said:

I just saw this 90* angle on the edging and wanted to mention it, just in case you have any inside or in a load bearing spot. With your inside-out pocket design you are probably covered.

unnamed.jpg

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Dun,

Ah, I see now! Thanks for the excellent recommendation! I will begin approaching those corner cuts as you have recommended. It makes a good deal of sense.

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