dirtclod

You can strop or sharpen those blades when they get dull.

I'm not sure when you say box cutter if you mean you mean one with a saftey razor blade or not. If you don't want to get a head / round knife right now a sheet rock / utility knife will work. At least you can sharpen a blade if it gets dull and new blades don't cost that much.

Hi Clay, your shop is looking great. I do have a question about the drill press lathe combo. What brand is it and does the drill press head swing out of the way so you can turn a bigger piece on the lathe ? I never seen one like that. Your tracing paper rack is neat to. Oh you have some real nice work on your site to. John

Nice job !

I use a table mounted belt sander 4x36 inch. One thing on the table mounted sanders you will need to flip the belt part a 180 degrees. It runs the wrong way for leather work. As it comes the belt goes away from you and it needs to come toward you. Or i think does anyway. I only use the end for my sanding. Or you get the drums that paper fits on and use them in a drill that's in a vice. For burnishing i use a piece of deer antler and finish up with a piece of ceral or cracker box " use the non printed backside " .

I can't get the picture to open.

A person can never how to much storage space, be it shelves or drawers. You could put cleats on side of the drawers and build a set of legs in the middle then your shelves are shorter and will hold more weight without bending out of shape. Plus you could get adjustable shelf tracks and clips then you can move the shelves where ever you want them. That's what i did on the wall cabinets i built in my shop. I would run a 2x4 across the front and back at the bottom to tie the legs togeather and it will make your whole bench more stable. Your going to have a fine set up in your shop. John

Hi Richard, I wouldn't buy a zigzag machine for my first machine. Because it's going to just what the name says zigzag. For most of the last 25 years i have been doing leather work full time and one time i needed a zigzag machine. Granted i don't know what you want to make or what type leather you want to sew. But i belive you will be money ahead getting a straight stich machine.

All i can say Luke is i didn't start it...LOL It was on the new content page when i seen it. Not sure how or why it was there. Plus i never lok at the dates.

hi Clay, i really like the ideal of having the cut out in the front. I think if i was you i would bring the 2x4's that hold your slab out even with the front of the cut out. Particle board isn't the most stable thing to build out of. That way it would keep the front piece from cracking over time. It may not crack but why take a chance. Just my thoughts. Be sure and post pictures when you the rest built. It's always great to see some else's ideals and set up. John

You can sharpen you punches with a regular whet stone in a few minutes.

Nice website and work. But i would have the pages open in to another window. Because your banner / bar across the top and the box that everything is in limits being able to see the picture when your reading. I guess what i'm trying to say is when i was reading your description of the holster i tried to see what you were talking about and had to scroll up and then back down and find my place again to read. Might not be a biggie to anybody else i though it was a pain to have do that on ever picture and description. The roll over thing didn't work to good for me either. Maybe i need to get a bigger screen I have a 17 inch. When i did the roll over the picture stayed to right where i couldn't see the whole holster and when i tried to drag it back it was gone. I really like your opening picture and the rest are great to. John

Hi Rose, i got fleas in my shop one summer " they were really bad ever where " anyway i set off a couple bug bombs. No more bugs or spiders. John

Nice job !!

Hi Klarr, nice looking bench. You have alot better set than i did when i started. My stamping stone was the front porch with a 5 gallon bucket to set on and my bench was a card table. When i got one side of a 10 by 12 foot shed i was in Hog Heaven..LOL. About 5 years ago i built a 24x 36 foot shop to work in. It's like the old saying "ten thousand mile walk begins with the first step" and you have took the first step. You on your way now. John

Patchman sewing with a machine like you isn't that hard you just need to pratice some. The first time i ever used one i was told to use my toe and heel to rock the petal. It's strange at first but if you will try it's not to hard to learn to do. What it amounts to is your starting and stopping the machine fast. Pratice on some scrap.

I had a Aerostich and i didn't like it. You can't sew very far and the compressor kicks on and will stay running after you get done sewing. It takes alot of air to run one around 90 lbs i think it is. A 20 gallon compressor will sew maybe 12 to 15 inches before it kicks on. Now if you have a 100 gallon tank i guess it would do better. But i would get a electric motor machine. I really belive you will be alot happier in the long run and have something that easier to sell if you ever decide to.

I think it looks real nice. It's intresting seeing how you make your mask. Wish the fonts were bigger so it would easier to read. One other thing whats with having to have a account to post ? That's kind of a PITA so i didn't leave a comment.

It's still the same font on my computer. Tiny.

I have used Lexol conditioner in the wax pot in a pinch and it worked fine. I'm guessing liquid saddle soap would work ok to. Plus their something you probley already have in your shop.

Your web site looks nice. The pictures are big enough so that a person can see what their buying. On the down side the fonts your using are so tiny that i gave up on reading what you had to say. I'm sure their are others like me that won't read your decriptions and move on.

Regular yellow Barge is all i have ever used to glue sheepskin to the skirt before i sew them. Never had a problem getting the old ones off afterwards. I did use some car headliner spay glue one time when i was out of Barge and it worked fine to.

Nice holster. I dye the thread all the time red and blue espically and as far as i know it's never been a problem. Sense i have never seen red or blue thread in a 207 277 size.

I get chrome or nickle over brass double cap rivets from http://springfieldleather.com/store/ . They don't rust.

Both are very nice Kate. I really like the first one where it needs to looked at a distance to see her face.