RobDude30

I have been working my way through designing and making a wallet and have been using a regular cotton/poly blend fabric. I know from researching the topic that some use heavier upholstery fabric. I opted for the thin stuff in an attempt to keep the finished product from getting too thick. I have found that the 3M spray glues work pretty well for attaching fabric to leather. I am currently using 77, but have seen where others use the 90. I haven't had any bleed through. I would imagine that if you were to spray it on heavy enough on thin fabric that it would bleed. I tried the Duro brand made by the same folks that make Locktite, and found that it stays tacky. I threw it away. The 3M spray seems to dry completely and does not remain tacky. Hope this helps a little!

I'm leaning in the same direction as you are doing. All of my sewing is by hand. I just ordered several sizes of linen cord to try out. I've tried some other threads but keep coming back to the linen. To me it just fits the look I am trying to achieve better.

For those of you that don't get the email flier from Tandy, there is a free download from the Stohlman case book showing how to form a basic knife sheath. It can be found here: http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/media/downloads/FoldingKnifeCase.pdf

Thanks for the info!

Check out the KK Tutorial pinned at the top of the "How do I do that" section. He is making a wallet, but might give you some ideas you can use.

I'm trying my hand at making a wallet and am wondering what type of thread you all use on the wallet interiors? I'm looking for something that is tough and durable, yet small diameter for the fine sewing work on the pockets (pigskin lining and cloth backing). Should I look for a nylon or maybe a cotton/polyester blend?

I've got the bad close vision thing going on, too, so I understand your dilemma. Getting a good overstitcher will help, but I'll share a little trick that helps me find the marks, even when stitching in sub par light while watching TV. I typically stitch moving away from me (not what the Stohlman book says but works for me). When I am ready to find the next mark for my awl, I will lay the awl in the stitching groove about an inch in front of the last stitch and lightly drag the awl toward me. I can feel each little bump that way even if they aren't very visible to the eye. When I reach the closest bump I line up the awl, push it through, and stitch. This method may slow the process down a tiny little bit, but then again I'm not on a production line. Hope this helps!

Very nice work! It's amazing what can be done with an ugly hide and a little artistry. The manager at my local Tandy store told me one time that they don't charge extra for the bad spots. LOL!

Here's another 1 1/2" belt that I finished up in the last couple of days. Nothing fancy -- figured I'd wear it to work cause my old work belt is about worn out. It is made from the last scrap of a 7/8 Tandy side I bought at the after Christmas sale last year. It is dyed with a very thinned down Feibings light brown and I purposely tried to get the color light and uneven in the stamped area. Edges done in Feibings USMC black. Finished with a couple light coats of Resolene. All hand stitched with waxed linen thread. I didn't keep the back as clean as I would have liked and I think I could have made the stamped area look a little better by "pointing" the ends instead of squaring them off. Any input is appreciated!

You guys weren't lying. I finally got around to vinegarooning some scraps to test my mixture and all I can say is WOW! That is the smoothest and blackest black I have ever been able to get on any of the leather I've played around with. I followed Chuck's recipe pretty much. I added 2 pieces of fine steel wool to 64 ounces of apple cider vinegar. Let it cook in the sun for about 2 weeks until all the steel wool was dissolved, and filtered it through a coffee filter into plastic bottles. I also made some strong tea and put it in another bottle. I applied the tea to the leather scrap, let it soak in for a few minutes, applied the vinegaroon with a dauber and let it soak in for a few minutes, then rinsed with baking soda and then clear water. Worked like a charm! Thanks again Chuck!

I use a very small area in the corner of my bonus room for my workspace. The room has light colored carpet. I bought one of those clear plastic chair mats (rectangle-shaped - about 4'x6') from the local office store and have it under my bench. Serves two purposes -- allows my chair to roll easily and lets me contain any spills or splatters. I dust and vacuum occasionally to get up the leather dust.

Thanks Chuck. Planning to try it out tonight on a belt.

I've got a batch of vinegaroon that has been cooking for a couple of weeks and should be about ready. I've got a couple of questions for you guys that have been successfully working with it if I may. It looks like 'rooning after molding is the general consensus. Does the 'rooning process change the color of natural thread? Should I sew before or after I apply the vinegaroon? For the 'rooning process, how do you apply it? Dip the item, dauber it on, brush it on, etc? Could the vinegaroon be kept in a spray bottle and sprayed on the item? Thanks! Rob

Here's the first avenger style holster that I have made. First time playing around with some star basket stamping as well. The holster wears great, but is not so great at hiding the fact that I am carrying. Let me know what you all think.

That shouldn't be a problem here in Georgia!

Thanks for the tips. Very informative! Now off to find some rosin...

Hello All, How do I go about waxing my own thread? Is it as simple as taking my cake of wax and rubbing it along the length of thread? Thanks!

I wet a sponge and wring it out well. Hold the sponge over the top of the bottle and shake once to get a very small amount on the sponge. Apply a very light coat to the item, rubbing the Resolene in and getting rid of any bubbles, then let dry. Repeat until you are happy with the look. I usually do three coats. Using this manner, I can get a good seal without getting a "plastic" look to the leather. The key (in my little bit of experience) is to apply multiple very light coats and let dry well in between.

I use several very light coats of Resolene on all of my holsters with good results. It seems to seal the leather very well. I haven't been doing leather work very long, but am carrying daily a holster that I made several months ago and it still looks as good as it did the day I made it. I have only worked with regular veg tanned leather. Never tried it on drum dyed, so I don't know if that would make a difference.

Thanks! I used Barge's to glue the belt together. I have tried the Chicago screws as well and do like them.

If you do the Resolene in very, very light coats you won't get the tacky feel. It really takes very little to seal the leather.

To get a nice even finish with Resolene, apply it with a damp sponge in multiple very light coats. I take a sponge, wet it, and wring it out. Hold the bottle of Resolene upright with the sponge over the opening, and shake it upward one quick time. This method gets very little Resolene on the sponge. Wipe over your project with the sponge making sure to get an even cover. If you see a milky appearance, wipe over that area again to smooth it out. You want the application to be so light that you can hardly tell you applied it, both by look and feel. Let that dry for a while and repeat until you are happy with the appearance. I make mostly belts and holsters and usually apply 3 coats. As a side note to the above, I started off using Eco-Flo dies and had a terrible problem with the die rubbing off during the finishing process. I switched over to Fiebings alcohol dies and they have been much easier to work with using my method. On the first coat of Resolene, I usually get a tiny amount of die rub-off on the sponge. Just enough to see a little color on the sponge. On subsequent applications I get no rub-off. The 3 coats of Resolene have given me the colorfastness that I have been looking for in my finished work. Hope this make sense and helps!

HaHa! That's a good one. I gotta get my holster built before I do any Robbin', dude. The tooling is coming along slowly. I've been practicing on some scraps. Not yet ready for prime time.

Yeah, the keeper loop is too far out. It is due to my using line 24 snaps (too big) I think and having the first one too far from the buckle. I think the tongue of the belt should have been a little longer as well. All needed adjustments before I do the next one. Thanks for the advice!

This is basically my first complete belt. The first one that actually ended up functioning and looking (mostly) decent. It is made from double 7-8. All hand stitched with, believe it or not, nearly 30 feet of thread. Dyed with Fiebing's alcohol-based Mahogany and finished with 3 light coats of Resolene. Edges done with Edge Kote. Next time I plan to dye the edges instead. The camera flash brings out all the blemishes, so I can already see most of what I did wrong. I can tell it needs buffing a little more to smooth the appearance. Let me know what you all think.