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55 minutes ago, Count Muppet said:

It’s a shame you didn’t find this forum 10 or more years ago. Hughcandoit would have been talking to you for hours a day about shoes 

Was it 10 years? I thought about 5. The old days were good. Chat room shenanigins. Wonder what happened to Andy?

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4 hours ago, Foreverlearning said:

I would love to know if I can change my machine to run on polyester... is there something that needs modification or it it just a straight swap? 
 

I have nothing against the wax thread other than the price and  the fact it’s often not in stock so it would be nice if there were options! 
 

very kind of you to offer the wax and thread but with the wax wells disconnected by what I can assume was an axe wielding plumber I don’t think it’s going to be a straight forward reinstatement ha ha 

You would need to adjust the thread lock to run polyester thread and of course adjust the tension in your bobbin case.

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32 minutes ago, keithm said:

You would need to adjust the thread lock to run polyester thread and of course adjust the tension in your bobbin case.

Righty then, I will see what info I can find regarding an appropriate thread to buy. No need to give up any information if you don’t want too guys..... I reckon (without getting the callipers out) 2mm round thread? Maybe just a nudge in the right direction.....

I welted one boot this evening... my pinkies are hurting as I left my leather finger covers in the workshop ha ha ha I can however agree that the end result is very satisfying! 
 

10 years ago I would only just be finishing college! 
 

can I ask what happened to hughcandoit? 
 

 

 

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11 minutes ago, elfman said:

there is or are machines for rewelting but they are big and unless you are doing a lot of rewelting on a daily basis i would not buy one ,rewelting is simple enough to do by hand ,depending on how you stitch ,are you using a lockstitch, chainstitch

Was lock stitching last night, thinking I may try chain stitching later as I genuinely hate the short needles I have for the auto awl. 
I tried using hook awls but after snapping the tip off two I stopped (pretty sure it due to redwing using metal staples to hold the upper to the gemming) every now and then I must be slightly twisting against one... I can just sharpen them and use two longer needles + a sharpened awl to do chain stitching.

I know chain stitching is known as superior so hopefully the pros out way the cons (time) 

 

 

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I guess I could see if any of my longer needles will fit the “speedy stitcher” / auto awl..... it’s my only real beef, I find the needle isn’t long enough so when pulling back to create the loop I only get a tiny loop and it’s fiddly to get the other end of the thread through it. 
 

will report back with my new racing method later ha ha 

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3 hours ago, elfman said:

if you have something like the myres hand sewing all there are 2 needle lengths available 

Well well well I think I am onto a winner!! 
at the back of my needle draw was one of those very cheap brass looking “leather stitching” setups from eBay.... in there is one shocking hook awl, one regular big sewing needle and one Long auto awl style needle.... too big for the awl I have so instead ground it to a point at the other end and pushed it into a wooden handle.... now we are cooking! 
so with a sharpened good quality awl and a long flimsy cheap needle in a nice handle I was flying along! Ha ha ha Edward scissor hands style...you could barely see my hands they were moving so fast! 
Make 5 holes, stitch five holes....repeat! 
 

as if this wasn’t making my day enough....... remember that sole groover I wanted to make? the router turned up but ran the wrong way, not sure whether to swap the wires over (for fear of toasting my new router) I decided to turn the cutter around and just tack weld it onto the shaft.......... on my way to the welder I thought “maybe I should just try” 

blow me the left handed screw that holds the heel cutter on my sanding / burnishing/ brush machine is the same flippin thread!!! 1940’s machine and a 2023 part just went together like they were made for each other!!! 

anyone had a better day than that? Ha ha ha 

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  • 2 weeks later...

For anyone that is following this... 

I opened my shop on Monday! 
 

Had a real variety of jobs come in! Sharpening, zips, patching, shoe repair and a couple of orders for carpentry and cabinetry! 

I did have to turn one job away.... Ice skate sharpening!

is there anywhere I could recommend that does that? Ha ha 

hope everyone had a good couple of days. 
 

regards 

mat 

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3 hours ago, Foreverlearning said:

For anyone that is following this... 

I opened my shop on Monday! 
 

Had a real variety of jobs come in! Sharpening, zips, patching, shoe repair and a couple of orders for carpentry and cabinetry! 

I did have to turn one job away.... Ice skate sharpening!

is there anywhere I could recommend that does that? Ha ha 

hope everyone had a good couple of days. 
 

regards 

mat 

Local Ice rink.

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On 2/15/2023 at 9:52 AM, Foreverlearning said:

For anyone that is following this... 

I opened my shop on Monday! 
 

Had a real variety of jobs come in! Sharpening, zips, patching, shoe repair and a couple of orders for carpentry and cabinetry! 

I did have to turn one job away.... Ice skate sharpening!

is there anywhere I could recommend that does that? Ha ha 

hope everyone had a good couple of days. 
 

regards 

mat 

Very well done I think shoe repairing is the best job ever because its not just shoe repairs its every thing that comes through the door makes every day different and one of the best things is the genuine thanks you get from the grateful customers and they are grateful 

Well done

Good Luck

 

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Will pass those details on when I see her! 
 

Very interesting video, I guessed it was done on a grinder but I imagined the skate being locked in place then the grinding wheel passing over..... 

think I will pass on this potential business idea... I love a rare skill but ice skate sharpening in my village probably won’t be a money spinner ha ha ha 

 

and yes.... every day being different is what keeps me happy! 
 

and being your own boss means you get back what you put in! 

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Another good thing about having your own business is that you can surround yourself with quality products for example i put my shoe collection on shoe nicely polished and on designer shelfing and good lighting 

Now Im getting into quality watches for sale and i will be displaying them behind locked cabinets 

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6 hours ago, Fast Fix Elgin said:

Another good thing about having your own business is that you can surround yourself with quality products for example i put my shoe collection on shoe nicely polished and on designer shelfing and good lighting 

Now Im getting into quality watches for sale and i will be displaying them behind locked cabinets 

I have around 25 pairs of redwings, Chippewa and wolverine 1000 miles on display on old carpenters benches :grin:

while I do like good watches and have spent a good few hours “watching” ;-) people rebuild them online.........

I can’t have a nice watch!

I weld, grind and submerge my hands in all sorts of stuff trying to keep all my old machines and vehicles going ha ha 

I love the super simple Casio! They last me around 2 years and I never ever take it off. The time will barely be visible by the end and eventually the strap lets go. Used to cost £8.00 but the flippin hipsters pushed the price up :roll:

can’t complain as It’s mostly them wearing redwings ha ha 

 

where abouts are you based? 

 

 

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16 hours ago, Foreverlearning said:

I have around 25 pairs of redwings, Chippewa and wolverine 1000 miles on display on old carpenters benches :grin:

while I do like good watches and have spent a good few hours “watching” ;-) people rebuild them online.........

I can’t have a nice watch!

I weld, grind and submerge my hands in all sorts of stuff trying to keep all my old machines and vehicles going ha ha 

I love the super simple Casio! They last me around 2 years and I never ever take it off. The time will barely be visible by the end and eventually the strap lets go. Used to cost £8.00 but the flippin hipsters pushed the price up :roll:

can’t complain as It’s mostly them wearing redwings ha ha 

 

where abouts are you based? 

 

 

I am based in the beautiful Scottish highlands a town called Elgin 

You have a open invitation to come up and play around with the top Rolls Royce of shoe repair machines   

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That is very kind of you indeed and I very much appreciate it! 

if I had the time I most certainly would but it’s a 10h drive.... also my very pregnant partner may think I could finish the baby room in the time it takes just to drive there ha ha ha 

 

happy wife..... happy life! 
 

hope everyone is having a good weekend!

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