Sewing machine attacment??

[Slowhand Bob]

Guys, I have been looking at the idea of getting the French box attachment for my machine and thought I would ask for some feedback.  Toe plugs, all sewn corner seams, such as bags or butt covers, is what I am looking for.  These items are pretty pricey BUT would be worth their weight in gold (almost the going price) if handy and dependable.  I am in bad need of a new foot style right now and was thinking about ordering the two accessories together.   The foot is a short double outside toe and should help the Toro get up close to decorative spots, a job I was using an old Tippmann for.  Any advice or experience with the box attachment would be appreciated.

[Slowhand Bob]

French edge stitching by hand has always been a nemesis for me and 'I HATE TOE PLUGS' of all types, even the big uns.  A good friend asked me to give a try at doing a couple of butt covers for his and the wifes '97s.  Well I had not done one in years and the ones I had made in the past just didnt make me happy.  Well I attacked it at a different angle this time but it required the hated French hand stitching.  The pattern turned out beautiful, a perfect fit, and in the end I think the first proto looks better than I had expected BUT as can be seen the dreaded plug at the but has done me in.  Ruff finish and no dye but it doesnt look bad at this angle from a distance in this photo.

[Slowhand Bob]

The first photo here shows the problem, though it tends to be subtle from the side, notice the swell at the butt.  This is not due to an oversize plug as might first be thought, look for the slight inward pucker beneath the stitches.  My sewing angle was bad and actually was hitting right inside the plug base corner and thus pulling inwards on the outside wall all the way around.  I must admit that it was unifor though and no stitch corners can be seen on the inside, even with stretching.

The second photo really lets you see the problem, gapped open, and it is obvious from the drunken stitch rows, no stitch lines were laid.  No doubt glue and proper stitch grooves would have helped but in the end they would only have been hiding a problem.  My plans call for a fitted softwood plug to inserted to support the sewing work, use a finer awl and attack these corners from a sharper angle.  But in the end I really would like to think this is something that can be achieved with a sewing machine and will probably order the attachment on welfare payday.  Always open to comments and Duke Nukem is entitled to one ugerly poke at me.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

  Howdy Bob

        You might want to try this method, I learned this one from Johnny McCrae, and it works great, here are some pictures, it is self explanatory, you just wet mold the leather to your rifle butt, in my case I prefer a shotgun style butt, which in most cases is 90 degrees center line to bore. I change this angle by adding cushioning, which is high density rubber, after wet molding you stitch from the outside which will give you a nice fit and great looking butt cover.

         tEN wOLVES  

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

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[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

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[Don Nix]

I'm not trying to be critical but how thick was the plug?
It appears to me that your plug was a little thin. Its just my way of doing things but I try to make the plug thicker by glueing about three or four layers together to make the plug. Make it about 1/2" thick or so then glue it in and let it set. then  use a groove to cut your stitch lines about 1/4" away from the edges. I sometimes then take a swivel knife and set it at a 45 degree angle and go around the  groove casusing an undercut. This way the stitches are hidden and can be completely covered with a burnishing stick . It makes a neat hidden stitch.
 But its not for all jobs.
If you will use a little thicker plug  it will  support the edges and keep it from pckering.
I actually like to sew in plugs ,once you get the hang of it they are easy to do  and the finished look is  neat and tidy.
the picture i'll try to attach is plug being sewn into a telescope case, this is the angle you should shoot for.

[JD Alan]

Bob, I should sew so poorly!

10  Wolves, very nice work.

Don, you're scary good!

[Slowhand Bob]

WOW, you have done a great job there TW and you know you are playing on my favorite color schemes there!  Your efforts have paid off with a truly good looking and functional butt wrap with pad.  Don, you are very right about the plug thickness.  Though this is a heavy weight piece of leather, it should have been doubled to yield around 24oz thickness.  As you can tell my angle had to be much sharper than yours, not only due to the thinner plug but I wanted to keep my stitching close to the corners.  Before getting a machine I had a tendency to put to much tension on my stitches and I think this also added to the stew on this project. 

Unless I get some really negative feedback on the French box sewing attachments I definitely plan to order one soon but I may try one more of these by hand.  I would like to get it just right before moving on to something else BUT after many days my hands will still be suffering from this bout of hand stitching.  The pattern is good with a snug but not tight fit and the lines are very simple while the leather lays flat with plenty of room for custom carving or stamping.  Perhaps I can work on it again early next week?

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Thanks for the great pics, TW. That makes a tutorial in itself. Outstanding result.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

 
Thanks All

      I hope this helps a little, and Bob, I use two thick pieces of leather glued together when doing a toe plug or plug in general, the plug is much easier to work with this way, reading Dons post it looks like we do it the same way.

                  This is a good topic

                    tEN wOLVES 

[Reverend]

Ten Wolves,

  When will the video come out on how to make these. I want to be the first to order.


Rev


Hi Bob

[Slowhand Bob]

Reverend I did try to respond to your message twice over on the SASS board but but it just would not let me for some reason.  Lots of luck on your upcoming acquisition and feel free to call on me any time.  I think you will do well.