Gremlin

Opps - my mistake. Yes, what you have is a mexican basket weave which is the same as the edge braid (depending on who you talk to). I didn't look close enough to your pics. So, instead of lacing the pieces side by side put them edge to edge and lace them flat. Don't let the top go over the bottom piece. Give that a try on a couple pieces of scrap first and see it that will work for you.

If you are comfortable doing an edgebraid rather than a double or triple loop, you can still butt the edges together and lace it. It will take the suctioncup type lip away and leave it a lot flatter making it more comfortable for the passenger as well as possibly giving you the size you need. Google mexican edge braid and you'll come up with the instructions. I'd post them but I'm at work right now and don't have access the the image file. Good luck. Looks like you've spent a lot of time stamping and it would be a shame to have to start over.

Pick up one of Ron Edwards whip braiding books. Very well written and illustrated. This one is excellent: http://www.amazon.ca/How-Make-Whips-Ron-Ed...s/dp/0870335138

Quality is excellent but Packer Leather shipping charges are outrageous. Check out Murphy Whips for colored kangaroo lace. Also in Australia but a whole lot less expensive shipping charges.

LOL!! Hey Beav!! Nahh ... we've been basking in temps of -1 to 2 above. Top (black) leather used is 4 - 5 oz tooling and bottom (white) is 2 - 3 oz white garment leather.

Just finished these crossbelts for a local military pipe and drum band. I felt honored to have been asked to do these for them.

Bingo!! We have a winner!! Thanks gearsmithy. Exactly where I've been headed as well. You've saved me a few steps in the experimentation. Nothing else seemed to work to my satisfaction. Since I want to use 9mm casings, I'm going to get the metal shop at work to make me a punch for the right size (If I don't already have one somewhere). As for cutting the tube, I am using a mini pipe cutter from Home Depot. Works like a charm. BTW, the bag you show here is one of the items I saw that got me interested in trying this. Nicely done. Think I saw that CC.

Thanks Luke and Greg. Luke, I thought of that but am concerned about discoloration and weakening of the post from the heat. Greg, I will contact Standard and Timco to find out. I'll post what I find here. Thanks again guys.

Thanks Luke but that's not what meant. My bad tho, I wasn't clear on what I wanted to do. The only part of the casing that shows is the bottom. It's almost like a spot, concho, or rivet that lays flat on the leather with the primer, caliber, and company name on it.

I have seen some saddlebags and tank bibs with spent (empty/used) brass shell casings attached but didn't get the chance to see how they were attached. The casings I saw were .45s but I suspect the method would be the same for any reasonable size shell. Has anyone here done this and how is it done? Thanks folks.

One more tip for any type of lace cutter - always, always, always use sharp blades. My fav lace cutter is the thumb held aussie lace cutter. It allows you to start the lace wide and narrow it as you cut. Excellent for cutting the lace to braid whips.

David Morgan - www.davidmorgan.com - in Seattle, Washington or Murphy Whips - www.murphywhips.com - down under I order from both and the product is excellent. David Morgan delivers to my door (in Canada no less) within 5 days. Murphy Whips is less expensive but takes 3.5 weeks. You can't go wrong with either of them.

Hey Beeza and Beaverslayer, small world this internet isn't it? OK, as for my question, some research has lead me to the book by David W. Morgan titled "Braiding Fine Leather". In the book on page 17, Mr. Morgan states "For course braided work, Latigo (or redhide as it is known in Australia) is generally satisfactory ......" Seems I had the answer right under my nose all along. Thanks for the responses.

Clay and Noel, thanks for responding. Noel, you hit the same info that I did. I'm going to try to dig up some info on the tanning process for both and see how they compare.

Hi everyone. Handle is Gremlin and I live in Winnipeg, Canada. I have a queston that I have tried to get a straight answer to but cannot seem to find it. If there are some of the down-under folks here, maybe they can answer it. The Aussie leather folks use something they call "redhide". Is this the same (or similar) as what we in North America call latigo?