kevinhopkins

Hi Jed, For what it's worth, Hermann Oak, and Wickett both tan really good leather. Those hides are tanned in pits. And the tanner doesn't know what grade of leather that he has, until he takes the hide out of the pits, dries them, and inspects them. In other words, Grade A leather and grade XX (Bad) are exactly the same leather. the grading factors are surface blemishes, and butcher cuts, and grain damage. You can pay a lot of money for a grade A hide, and you should get a hide that is pretty much blemish free. But on the other hand, you might pay 1/2 as much for a D, or C grade hide, and only have to deal with a few small surface defects. If you're a holster maker, you probably can cut around a scratch or two and still not have any excess waste. Of course, if you're a belt maker, and theres a 2 ft vertical open scar in the hide, that might make a difference. But the leather is still actually the same quality. You're sort of paying for cleanliness! Just thought you might like to know! Kevin Hopkins

Hello Art, It kind of depends on personal taste it seems, but most folks buy 9-10, or 8-9 from us. Kevin@springfieldleather.com

Y'know, this stupid tab key doesn't do the same thing that it does with all my other typing applications!!! Sometimes I think my fingers are faster than my brain! And thanks so much for the kind words! Happy Sewing!!

Hi Shirley, Art has some really good thoughts there... For what it's worth, we do some really high dollar bags here, and we use an Artisan 4618 post machine. Other posts are good as well, but this one has a gear driven top roller as well as bottom roller. For what it's worth, Bo Riddle swears by it, and the work he does on it is incredible. Either a post or a cylinder arm will do much better than a flat bed. But no matter what you buy, you'll want to keep in mind that if you get a machine with a roller foot, it will have a little trouble going up over really thick places. The advantage of it, is that you could probably put a decorative stitch on a gnat's wing! Kevin Hopkins

Hi Shirley,

Hi Shirley,

Actually, Osborne makes a couple that really do a pretty good job. Any osborne distributor will have them, and they actually are quite inexpensive for an osborne tool. I think that's what hidecrafter sells, but I'm not sure. At any rate, if they don't have them, give me a call Kevin@springfieldleather.com

You might want to give Roy Peakes a call. If he doesn't have one, I'd just about bet a road apple to a donut that he knows where one is. 1-508-769-8899. Tell him that Kevin at Springfield Leather sent you. Kevin

Hi Randy, Basically, veg leather will work pretty well, pretty much all the time if the operator has is ducks in a row. And it looks really good. But if you ever decide that you need to do some lasering on chrome tanned leather, you'd certainly want to make sure that some one did a trial pc first. Not all finishes are happy under the laser! Kevin

Hello, For what it's worth, I have it for 4.79 ft at the moment. It won't be #1 at that price, but it's pretty good for the money I think. That makes a 22 ft side around 105.00. pretty much any weight. We sell a ton of it! Kevin@springfieldleather.com

Must not be the Steve that I know..... Kevin Hopkins

Hi... I just wanted to endorse what Twinoaks said.... If at all possible, buy a new one. One with a servo motor and a speed reducer. I've sold more new machines to people that had bought a used one on ebay, than I can count. Just make sure you're comfortable with the person that you buy it from, because they will be your lifeline. Happy sewing! Kevin

Hi...this is really nice of you to do! I think we all might approach our carving in slightly different ways, and perhaps with a slightly different order in which we use the tools. But what really matters when all is said and done, is whether or not it makes us happy, and how it looks. The person that helped me to learn how to teach western floral carving years ago, told me to remember a simple little rhyme: Cut, cam, shade, and bevel. Then vein it, seed it, and background like the devil! I've found that over the years, students seem to be able to remember it... thanks again, Kevin

Hi... If you don't have an accountant, find a friend that thinks they have a good one, and try to ask them. The tax laws in this country are changing so fast that you might find that you've got a huge advantage with your circumstances. You've really got a lot to gain here, and nothing to lose. Best wishes, Kevin Hopkins

Hi...I appreciate the kind words from you guys, and I certainly do have a good selection of leather. But I wanted to let you know that Art is giving you a good reference, because Ron at Hidecrafter has been a personal friend of mind for about 30 yrs, and you'll never find a nicer guy. He and I both have access to all of Thouroughbred and Demers, and quite a few other folks, and he'll treat you right. Like the guys said, let whoever you buy leather from know as much about what you're doing, and even if you do have a problem from time to time, suppliers like us will get it worked out so that you have access to the best vendors possible. Having vendors that you can trust is one of the most important things you can accumulate. Happy Hammering! Kevin

Since I run a leather business, we have to deal with this on a constant basis. Of course, it depends on what avenues that you ave available to you, but I've learned one thing over the years that might help: Dead Merchandise is like dead fish...they both stink. Think about this: If you could sell 4 of those units for 1/4th of what you'd like, what could you buy with the money? Could you buy a side of leather...or a half side? And if you could, how much money could you generate from that pc of leather, and how long would it take you to do it? A little pile of money is better than a big pile of....well....a big pile of.....(you can fill in the blank) Best wishes! Kevin Hopkins

Actually, what you need is acetone. I think it runs about 7 bucks a qt at lowes or Home Depot or wherever, and that's about all Deglazer is. And you get a qt instead of 4 oz for too much money. It would be good thing to condition your leather after you get it stripped tho. Best wishes! Kevin Hopkins

Hi...I agree...One pair is the only pair I needed to make in order to realize that there is a reason for professional glove manufacturers. I'd buy em! Kevin

Hi Rickey, It takes a pretty special leather to make good lace. Usually, a very tight grained calf skin is the best. It also helps if you have a way to bevel it, and possibly split it. Normally, leather like that will (under normal circumstances) run anywhere from 3.50 to 6.00 per sq ft, depending on what it is, and who you get it from. Right now I've got some calf that would work pretty well, but the color might not be something that you can live with. I've got a midnite blue, for 2.00 per ft, and it could be made black pretty easily, but you'd have it to do. It came from Charles Hardtke, and was originally a 4.00 per ft leather. I've probably got some others around the place as well, but I'd have to scrounge a bit. But, that's what my wife says I'm best at! If you try to make it out of anything other than calf, it might work fine, but it would depend on what you're doing with it. I think since you're doing seats, (nice ones, I might add) I'd simply stick to the best and pay the money. Your customers will pay for quality if you sell it correctly. Happy Lacing! Kevin Hopkins

I used Duall for a while, but just didn't care for it all that much. Actually I've gravitated to a product called Van Grip, by Midwest chemical. But I think that most folks have their own favorites, and their own way of using them. We go thru so much glue, that the Van Grip is very practical from a cost standpoint as well as holding power. But you really can't buy it in anything other than 5 gallon pails for it to be cost effective. We sell tons of Masters, tons of Barge. I don't really know why we couldn't seem to sell the duall. It's good glue. Kevin

Hello Lui, Any help I can be, let me know.... Kevin/springfield leather.

I know its a little hard to tell, but you can actually stick a pencil under those leaves! They actually stick up 1/2" from the surface. A customer brought it in to us because we did him a favor a few years back. just thought you'd like to see. Wish I knew how to take better pix! Kevin Hi... it's the same one. I didn't know anyone had taken photos... Kevin

Hi... I've got a customer here in Missouri that does something similar to what you're doing. Lately, he's been using a lot of printed leather, anything from reptile to just plain crazy stuff, and he's selling that loafer about as fast as he can put them together. He added a cigarette case on the side for some customers, and put a center zipper pocket inside along with a back pocket. Because he uses printed leather, he's cut his time down. Just yesterday he brought in one done with fake alligator that he was delivering to a lady for 200$. And here in our store, printed leather has really gotten to be a big deal! A number of our handbag makers have discovered that good quality printed leather will increase their sales. Anyway, for whatever that's worth to you! Kevin

I ran across a pistol case that's pretty unique...

Nice style, great tooling! Kevin