Deno

That's very, very, nice. And very unique. Well done. My best to you, Dennis.

A friend of mine was out riding this summer and ran into an old gent along the road and stopped to see if he needed any help. He was fine, just taking a break. If you take a good look at his bike you might understand why. Old timer from up north, member of a Christan riding group, let him take a pic of his bike. Lots of leather, especially the SADDLE. Only a true Cow Boy could ride that thing for long distances. Just had to share this.

Very nice Tim, thanks for sharing. My Best, Dennis.

Dave, glad to have you here. Have fun and get started. We would love to see anything you work on. My best, Dennis.

Well Tim, I would say it at least Tooled up very nice for you. You did an excellent job on it. Very nice. My best to you, Dennis.

Hello all, made something just for me to go with my HEMI Quad Cab Ram Truck. Laid it out in CAD. If anyone likes it, PM me and I can send you a PDF of the pattern.

Thanks for the info Marlon. Please let Peter know we thank him for his wisdom. Please also tell him his way of casing, mounting to Crescent board, and covering with glass, is exactly how my father, Gene Noland, always did his portraits. Getting a piece of glass the same size as my tooling block was the first thing I did when I started back into leather a few months ago. I've let projects sit for days sometimes with out much lost of moisture. One other thing I would like to add to what Peter has said, My dad could not always sit and tool a hole portrait at one time, cause of his day job, he would also take a towel larger then the area of the glass and soak it in water and ring it out so it was still moist but not heavy wet, then lay it over the glass and cover the sides. This would allow the water to evaporate from the towel first before the leather could lose moisture. Again, please thank Peter for us all. My best to you and Peter, Dennis.

Sorry everyone for the long delay on this. Haven't had much time lately and I'm been working on some other stuff. I will be back at this sometime and will complete it. My best to everyone.

Last one of the series, No:4 FUTURE This AMERICAN EAGLE – The first American to reach outer space and orbit the earth three times. His courage and faith made it possible for all future space ventures that are to come by proving man could live in outer space. On February 20, 1962 he set forth in his Mercury capsule "Friendship 7". His name – COLONEL JOHN H. GLENN

No: 3 Caption reads: TODAY This AMERICAN EAGLE – A member of the United States Air Force, fought during the Korean War and is now fighting in Viet Nam. He has to have the intelligence and reflex of a computer machine with the heart of a lion. His McDonnell F-101 Voo Doo set a world speed record in 1960. Though new planes have been introduced, his ability to fly them is still just as complex. His name – MAYBE YOUR FATHER, HUSBAND OR SON

NO: 2 Caption reads: WWII This AMERICAN EAGLE – A Pennsylvanian, gave his life November 30, 1944 like many Americans. Another American Ace, leader of Marine Squadron VMF-214 flew the Chance Vought F4U-1 Corsair, called "Whistling Death" by the Japanese. He had 28 victories to his credit before his capture in January 1944. Later released, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross. His name – COLONEL GREGORY "PAPPY" BOYINGTON

AMERICAN EAGLE'S SERIES No:1 Contest Winner Front Cover, The Craftsman Magazine, Volume XIII, Number 5, July-August 1969 Caption reads: WWI This AMERICAN EAGLE – One of the first to fly in World War I. He saw service with the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe, and was the leader of the 14th "Hat In Ring" Aero Squadron. Flying his SPAD in many battles gave to him the highest score for an American Ace of World War I. With 26 victories, His name – CAPTAIN EDDIE RICKENBACKER

Craftsman Portrait contests: For each of the Portrait contests that my father entered there were a series of portraits entered. Some years he did not win and some he did. What most people have not seen are the other portraits in those series. I would like to share with everyone those that have not been seen. From time to time I will post these portraits from the various series to share with you.

One thing I've been doing lately is printing or scanning a pattern on regular copy paper. Then I spray both sides with at least 2 coats of clear acrylic. Cut it out, tape it down, and get a couple of traces then though it away. If I ever want to do it again I just repeat the process. My best, Dennis.

How are you making out with your strop?

You can use honing oil, or just some WD40. Apply a heavy coat or spray first and let it soak into the leather. Do this a few times until it looks like it is not soaking in very fast anymore. Then rub the polishing compound numerous times and work it into the fibbers. You don't want so much oil that it squishes out when you strop. Apply the compound every now and then when you see it takes to long to polish the blade. My best, Dennis.

I'd say that your strop needs more oil. You can see that the rouge is spotty. Let it soak in more oil for a bit then try again. Have not used fabulustre before, but your not getting an even rub in on your strop. My best, Dennis.

Great job on both both King's, my best to you, Dennis.

Can you take any pictures of the kits?

Here is, as far as we know, the earliest work that we have that my father did. It is a Hymnal that was my mothers she received from her church when she was a young lady. After they got married in 1955 my father made the front and back covers. The front is of Jesus and is plugged from the back to make his face stand out. The back is of a rose and has the pedals undercut. He then glued them to the original leather binder and laced them right onto it. It remains to this day on a stand right next to her chair.

Sorry for the long time between posts. Up next is another Doodle page series. Called: "No Game in Sight", series 1D pages 5,6,7,8. A picture of the Doodle Pages and a picture that my father took of the original portrait. I believe that this and the earlier one I shown "Season's End" are both on display at the Al Stohlman museum.

OK, finally got around to lacing this up and finishing it. Hope you all like it. Needs work, but I'm pleased with it being it's been a very long time since I have done this. I used to help my father lace things up a lot when I was a young man. Brings back a lot of memories. King's, as to seeing traits of my father in there you are correct. First I'm trying to follow his style and second I'm using his tools. I only have the basic tools that he left me, he sold most of his tools back in the early 90's as he couldn't do it anymore cause of his hands. He did leave me with his favorite basic set of tools that he used extensively on most of his work. And I must say, they are so easy to work with compared to the other tools I have cause they are very, very broken in. My best to everyone.

In the March 1984 Make it With Leather magazine there was a story on the Stohlman Benches. There was even 2 layouts with dimensions on how to build them. Fred, PM me with your email address, I have something to send you. My best, Dennis.

It's Charles E. Heschke, Series 9D, Page 03, Title: Blue Jay Realistic Carving.

I would say they are probably from the late 40's to very early 60's if there is no letter code on them. And yes they will be of much better quality then what is made today. The early tools were machine made, meaning that they were turned and milled on machines. However, they were also hand ground to get the patterns on the tips. The new ones that are sold today are cast completely and not as good when it comes to the patterns on the tips. I was going to point this out on a thread about tool quality some time. I was very lucky when I was a kid when my father worked for Tandy, got to go through the manufacturing plant in the early 70's when they still made tools that way. My best.