JH837

@Cattleman First of all you did an AMAZING JOB Tooling and making this Purse!!!! I just bought this pattern pack from DG and I’m about to start making it for my wife for our anniversary as a gift but I will be hand sewing it as I don’t have a sewing machine. Tandy manager told me I can always bring a project in and she will be happy to let me use the demo machine but I just feel like bettering my hand stitching as I enjoy it and will not be able to afford a machine for a long time anyways so I may as well keep focusing on bettering my saddle stitch technique so I’m consistent with the results. What weight did you use for the main body panels 9/10oz? I have some 9/10 and also some 6/7 and plan on using 10 for the rear panel with flap and front panel and then I was going to use the 6/7 on pocket sections and I have some nice 5/6 pebbled grain chrome tan dark brown with a lighter brown pull up that’s somewhat waxy I was thinking I’d use for the gusset. It looks like you used veg tan for gusset as well am I correct? Your build turned out so so nice and it will definitely last many many decades when cared for and I’m sure the customers wife will absolutely treasure that purse !! I really hope i can accomplish results even half as nice as you did. My main concern is having the proper moisture content when I start cutting my lines in. I wet the leather grain and flesh side until water doesn’t absorb very fast on grain side then I let it sit until color starts to get back to somewhat original color then put in a sealed bag in the fridge overnight and then take it out and let it sit until it’s fully back to its normal color and put it up to my cheek and when it is dry to the touch but cold from the moisture inside I start working on it but still my cuts at first look like it’s too wet so I’m kind of nervous about the casing but the tooling not so much just going to do the best I can and be happy with the results yet strive to keep getting better each time I carve.

Great job so far! Tooling looks great and it’s going to turn out amazing just like the knife display case. Have a great night and thank you for your service!!!

Good job repairing your dividers! Looks better than new

Yeah the cheap plant stamp does look out of place so I used my f120 I think it was and added some tall grass around it and it blends better and I also added a carved pine tree in the foreground to add more depth to the scene and now I plan on using the new figure carving stamps to add more background pine trees so they fill the valley floor in the back right side.

Thank you I apologize and appreciate the help!!!

Did you ever get this pic tooled? If so I would love to see your rendition of it.

Yea it’s a coaster 3 3/4” round. I am going to stop by Tandy and get some cheap basic figure carving bevelers I think so I can use the time making stamps to make the pine tree stamps and a couple different variations of foliage stamps and then a checkered pine tree triangle stamp to make the background shaded in the trees and keep practicing and when I have the extra money I plan on taking some online classes of Britt Nance’s and Bob Beards to get a grasp on technique and see how that helps me in my tooling journey. Thank you I appreciate the kind words they motivate me to keep trying to better my skills !!!

I find figure and pictorial carving really amazing and wanted to tinker around and try to learn a bit about it. My work is far far from good but I will keep practicing and I’m gong to work on making some pine tree stamps like 912-913 sets out of stainless bolts and foliage like the 934 and also a triangle beveler and lined triangle I believe it was 902 I can’t remember and see if I can’t actually get good at carving with enough time and practice. Been working on. Just beveling some areas and cutting others and beveling and playing around with the effects and also trying to get better at using the cheap Tandy modeling spoon and then I’ll probably make some spoons as well once I figure out making stamps a bit better.

Stunning work you did I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post seeing it all come together so wonderfully! Great job this is an Amazing case! I love your knives as well!!!!!

Now I am going to try a size 2 or 3 thumbprint and if I like it then I’ll wait to get a 70 line per inch checkering file and make a vertical lined thumbprint then horizontal and a center shader would be nice instead of using a thumbprint for in its place. I really want to try my hand at making some figure carving/ pictorial carving stamps for the fun of it. I really like the pine tree stamps and grass/bush stamp that Barry kind produces but those stamps would require a ton of time to make each one as the filing is extensive and they are pretty detailed to take a shot at making one of them. I’ll keep posting stamps when I finish some more.

So I awhile back about 6 -7 months ago maybe more, I was itching to make some stamps and went and picked up el cheapo harbor freight 1x30/5” belt disc sander combo to give it a shot. Never got around to it as I was working 60 hours a week year round. Well finally got the time to try it out and decided to try to free hand a extra steep lifter to match my Barry king extra steep lifter but wanted a size down from the #2 I have now to fit in the leaves and small flower petals a bit better. I grabbed a bolt and started sanding on the belt with the 80 grit belt and kept dipping the bolt in cold water to keep from over heating the metal and work hardening it. I stupidly didn’t use a sharpie to mark the angle of the grind I wanted to have and size of the lifter so it was all free hand and going slow. Surprisingly I got pretty close to matching the BK lifter without even looking at it to compare until I had already done all the grinding and shaping on it. I have around a 40-45 degree angle on the lifter and now I just have to sand or file down the toe of the lifter to thin it out just a touch and then match the back profile to the BK version so it lifts the same as I really like how Barry Kings lifters work, then get to polishing the entire thing so it looks the part like the king tools also. I’m far from done but just thought I’d show that it’s not hard at all and if you’re on the fence or think you can’t do it, you can. If I can do it ANYONE CAN LOL !!!

I know this is an old topic but don Gonzales suggest always using a #40 or #45 I believe as he says they are much easier to run and if you run the smaller ones they are much harder to make things look good and take much more precise work to put out a good looking background. Just thought this may help anyone if they come across this thread with the same question and are looking for some help.

If you don’t mind me asking what knives do you enjoy using the most? I run a craftool pro 1/2 barrel with a Barry king 1/4” thin blade and I really enjoy that set up. I haven’t used a 3/8 barrel knife yet the cheap swivel knife I got with leather work kit was also 1/2 barrel so I’m wondering if it’s a big difference in feel for cutting tighter corners or if it makes much difference at all. Keep up the good work!!!!!

Amazing Work? Your swivel knife work is crisp and clean and concise. Your friend got a very nice looking wallet and I bet he was very pleased with it! You really did a great job tooling the bass and the lettering turned out great as well and the added touch of the center geometric stamping tied it all together. I hope to keep practicing and Getting better with my S.K.. just shipped the wallet I finished for my father in law and I’m excited to see what he thinks about it when he receives it in a few days. He’s always making awesome knives and gifting them to me so it made me happy to do something in return handmade for him. I enjoy leather working for many reasons but really enjoy it for the simple fact that each piece is different and a lot of thought and care goes into finishing something and making sure it looks as good as it can when it’s all said and done. Again , Great work you did a very nice job !!!