Spinner

Make that 3 for Carving Casey...you'll have my app and deposit by the end of the week. (Busy with Christmas orders until then! ) Chris

Hey JJ, Drop me a PM with your address and when I get some extra cash I'll send my surplus learning lace over to you. I bought rolls of the stuff to practice with and experiment with a few years ago and now I have no use for it aside from it taking up space. C

I agree but there are also advantages to better tools. The tools can make a difference in quality (Bob Beard tools versus Tandy for example) and a good tool can speed up the process & make it more enjoyable (due to less problems, down time, fatigue, etc). I can definitely tell the difference between my HF, my Badger and my Iwata airbrushes when I use them for various tasks. And while they both have lifetime warranties, I've never needed to use it for my Snap-On ratchets but have replaced my Craftsman three times.

Emails away!

Thanks Scary Jerry, I'm swamped with holiday orders right now, sorry if I missed your email. I'll be responding to everyone that emailed in the last two days tomorrow on how to order and timelines. Cheers, Chris

Sounds like you're well on your way already. The Paasche is a good intermediate brush so it should last you a good while. While you're practicing, play with the air settings also to get familiar with them. Little tricks like cutting the air by half and such will produce some nice effects (cutting the air by half will give you a spatter/stippling effect) as well as adjusting the distance of the airbrush nozzle to the surface. Your airbrushes with the 3 set up & held close to the surface will go down to a 1/32" width line and while you may not use it that way very often, being able to can be handy. Where in So Cal are you? I'm in San Gabriel, about 15 min. east of downtown LA.

Side note: gravity feed (fixed cup on the top) airbrushes only require about 1/2-3/4 the psi that siphon feeds to. Adjust accordingly to what you end up using.

Hey Jose, For basic one color or two color fades the Badger 150/200 series airbrushes and their clones (sold at Harbor Freight) work just fine. They tend to have a medium taper needle (.5mm) & noozle which will spray from about pencil line thickness to a 2"-3" cone when held away. Those are a dual action siphon feed type airbrush which means you can attach larger bottles to them for longer spraying sessions. As for PSI, siphon feed generally need around 20-22 psi for thin liquid like water/spirit based dye as a starting point for a heavy coat and for top coat, generaly coverage 30 or so is good. No more than 40 psi or so for thin stuff or you'll get a ton of overspray. If you plan to spray stains & top coats you'll want to either thin it (generally 50/50 is a good ratio, you're looking for the consistency of regular milk) and you may need to up the psi 2-5 depending on how it sprays, atomizes, your movement speed, etc. I generally recommmend a dual action airbrush versus a single simply because you have more control. Shooting basic, single colors & a top coat, single action works fine. But when you want to add two color fades, stippling, background for distressed items, etc. a single action doesn't cut it as well. if you're just getting started, the HF airbrush (Badger clone) will run about $15. As you get more into and decide to try more things there are airbrushes from $15 to $300 depending on what you want to do. If you stick with the basics but want to run a set-up that is easier to maintain, pick up a couple of the HF airbrushes; one for dyes, one for top coats. They are much easier to clean that way especially if the solvents needed to clean are different (alcohol vs water vs paint thinner) as if you use the wrong one, some paints and top coats turn into globby messes and then take an extra hour to pull apart and clean completely. Speaking of cleaning, pick up a set of airbrush cleaning brushes in various sizes. They are basically teeny-tiny pipe cleaners for getting the nozzle and needle channel really clean. Keep in mind, on the cheaper airbrushes the bushings that keep the material from blowing back can vary. Some are not rated for heavy solvents so you'll likely be limited to water & alcohol based products. Higher end airbrushes have tephlon paxking o-rings for higher solvent resistance and polished stainless steel needles for fine detail spraying. Another good source for a starter set is Airbrush Depot & TCP Global on Amazon. They have a knock-off of the Iwata airbrush with a basic air compressor for $75 right now: http://www.amazon.co...=pd_sim_sbs_t_3 Similar to the set you can get at HF but with a slightly better designed airbrush. Hope this helps, Chris

Hey JJ, Not too shabby of a job there, the pocket looks nice & sturdy and good look to it, especially the top of the body with the finished seams & such. Here's a couple of suggestions for the next ones to take them a step up: 1) Make the flap of the pocket slightly wider (1/4" or so) so that it overlaps the sides when closed. Being on the big island, you get a lot of rain and the open space where the side roll out and peek around the flap can allow some of the rain in. 2) on the bib edges, use a straight edge (yard stick or something) to get yourself a nice smooth line. This is especially important when laying out spots, etc. as any deviation from a straight line (or a smooth flowing curve) will show up in the spot placement. It will also effect how your lacing looks once you get into braided edges. 3) Speaking of edges, this is just my preference, but it would seem the edge needs something to finish it off. Either a braided/laced edge (double or triple loop or mexican round braid are the most common) or beveled & burnished or welting. 4) Last but not least, on the spots look into the domed rivets instead of the tabbed spots. The domed rivets stay on just as well but due to the design they don't create the dimples on each side like the tabbed ones do. The tabbed ones are cheaper and faster to install but the rivets provide a cleaner look. Hope all this helps, you're coming along quickly! What kind of bike is this one for? Cheers, Chris

If you plan to do enough stingray work to justify another tool, get a good pair of trimmers instead of shears or scissors. While they look identical, trimmers tend to have heavier & sharper blades and require less sharpening. I use my Gingher trimmers to cut stingray with no fuss, they just slice right through the pebbles and hide. They'll be an investment versus other types of scissors (they run about $45 for a 10" pair) but Joann's usually sends out 50% coupons regularly so if yuo watch for it you can get them for $22+/-. I use it as an underlayment as Nate mentioned and cut it 3/8" larger on all sides. Once cut, I use a dremel with a 100 grit sanding barrel to sand the the pebbles down to the hide in that extra 3/8" which makes sewing a breeze. A little more prep work makes the sewing much easier. Once sewn, trim any excess if necessary.

Thanks Denise, good to know. Funny how the process is the exact opposite on packages going to England. I'm going to have to make a chart for all of these shipping notes! Too bad that's the case though, UPS shipping to Canada right now is only 1 day slower but 10-20% cheaper ($26 vs. $35) than the post office and I have to pay the post office up front whereas I have a UPS net+30 account.

They don't carry the needles but this place has a great selection of thread colors and types including fire retardant and kevlar: http://www.thethreadexchange.com/miva/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=TTE

+1 to everything said so far. One thing to add to all of that is regarding shipping internationally. If a client needs something with rush shipping and faster customs clearing, USPS offers a service in conjunction with FedEx called "Global Express Guaranteed". The way it works is USPS handles the package within the US and then at the port of departure, FedEx picks up the package and handles customs & delivery abroad. It is usually only 1 day slower than going to FedEx or UPS directly (1-3 days average delivery time quoted) but averages half to two-thirds the cost. The main benefit to using UPS or FedEx related services is you know who the end delivery company is. Many countries don't have an international postal service and instead use contracting companies to deliver inbound international packages. England has 5 different companies that I know of that pickup and deliver the international mail depending on the locale. These companies also charge a "delivery fee" on top of the VAT and any other fees charged by the governments. I shipped a package to England that was fairly large sent via USPS Priority Mail with two $160 tank bibs in it. The box sat in customs for 16 days after taking 4 days to get across the ocean. After the 16 days, customs returned the package as unclaimed even though the mail contractor charged the client the $15 delivery fee and showed it as in process on their website and the client had called to confirm this. Another 7 days to get back to me and $35 wasted as USPS won't refund money on undelivered packages if they fulfill their end of the contract, which is simply to deliver to customs in the receiving country. I repackage the items into a fresh box and sent via the Global Express Guaranteed service for another $88 and it was received in good order by the client in 4 days with no additional 'delivery fee'. The same package was quoted by UPS and FedEx directly for the same time frame at around $125. Just something to keep in mind for the rush shipments. Chris

Hey Bob, The cutter should have come "sharp" out of the package. At the end of the black bar it's bent 90* and the tip has a small hole drilled in it and the tip below the hole has been ground to leave the lowest edge of the hole with a cutting edge. What the books and tool package don't tell you is that on this particular model you need to lean the tool back a bit in order to get that hole edge to hit the leather. It is kind of a pain to get it right but that edge can be stropped so get it a bit sharper. So just to be clear, the tool should be arranged so the 90* bend is to the left of the leather's edge, tilt the tool handle back (towards the cutting direction) about 30* and then pull bag with just a touch of pressure. If everything goes right, you should see a string of leather come out of the little hole and keep going as you run around the edge of the piece. As far as quality goes, this is the most basic groover there is and it's definitely a get what you pay for tool. Tandy does offer a better version for about $5 more that makes a lot more sense. The cutter is at the end of the handle and the edge guide is the adjustable with bar. It gives you more control and the tips are more easily replaceable. It also comes with a creaser tip as well. Althernatively, there is a freehand stitch groover that is simply a pen sized shaft with a grrove style cutter formed at the tip. Due to the lack of guide bar, it allows you to groove a stitch anywhere on the piece and you manually guide it with templates, freehand or along the edge of a ruler. Cheers, Chris

Email sent about the Glock 17 mag, thanks

Sorry, I meant what are you trying to do with it? Edge coat, coloring a tooled area, etc?

The fiebing's white dye is more of a hybrid between a dye and an acrylic paint. It's really weird stuff. That being said, I've achieved my best results airbrushing it on in 2-3 light coats. It doesn't like being brushed on, doesn't cut with water, alcohol or thinner so it can't be properly thinned and sponge/rag application is a mess. What's the application?

I'd definitely drop him a note, things have likely changed. When I asked about the weight he didn't mention not making them or it being special so I imagine he'd make another.

Always glad to help, let me know if you need anything else.

Not a problem Tina. On the dressing, if you can't find it, let me know. I believe customs is a bit cheaper on "gifts". As for the flesh side, I use an airbrush to dye all of the edges and openings about an inch in. I don't dye the entire underside just to safeguard against bleed should it really get soaked with fuel or something that could pull any color out. I then spray a coat of sealer on the flesh side to keep it from being able to soak up too much water. I use an airbrush for this step as I have found that using an aerosol can spray finish on the flesh side can cause the color to soak in further towards the grain side making the flesh side look greyed out. Odd thing, not sure why it does that. Anyway, once the underside is edge dyed and sealed, I use 3M 90 spray adhesive to attach a soft felt to the back. Cut the felt oversized and make sure the glue gets right up to the edge of the lacing/edge of the piece. Smooth out the felt backing and let the glue dry for an hour or so. I then sew a quick stitch on my little sewing machine along any openings that will be covered like the dash opening. The stitching will keep the felt attached later on down the road if the glue fails due to moisture/heat. Once all glued and stitched, I trim the felt using very sharp shears held at an angle to undercut the sides. This allows me to get the felt under the laced edges but it doesn't show when mounted. The paint is 100% protected from the abrasive leather and the felt acts as a buffer to moisture. The felt breathes easier than leather and therefore will dry faster and having the 1/16" of material between the tank and leather keeps the backside of the leather from getting as wet. Should the bib get really wet, it is recommended that the owner remove it and allow it to dry. Should they have concerns about mold/mildew due to constant moisture or if they get something smelly on it like gasoline, a spritz of 50/50 solution of vinegar & water will keep the nasties at bay. Just take the bib off, spray the backside felt, not the leather!, and let dry. The vinegar smell disappears in a day or so and vinegar is a natural killer of mold and mildew. Hope this helps! Chris Here are some pics of a fender bib I just finished so you can see how the front and back look with the felt & all sewn in.

Thanks Sam, even after a couple of days I still sit back and just look at it for a few minutes before starting tooling. Almost makes me want to turn the other, larger blocks of Amboyna Burl I have lying around the shop but then I remember I have burnishers to turn first. LOL There's probably close to $1000 worth of it scattered around my shop but I loathe to sell any as it's getting harder to find in good qualities.