terrymac

Looks like it. Terry

Welcome to the club. There is a reason this stuff has been around for so long, and why so many of the old time saddle makers, and many of today's masters,continue to use it. Terry

Any of the contact cements will thicken and dry over time. I would suggest if you are going to get the larger sizes, buy some thinner also. That way you can get the consistency right. If you are talking about the Eco Flo antique gels, I personally will not use them. I prefer the Fiebing's Antique Paste. A lot of the work you see here where they are dying the background and then antiquing are applying a "resist" to the leather after dying. By resist, I am referring to Neatlac, now called Clearlac or Wyosheen. This stops the antique from coloring everything, but rather highlighting the cuts and impressions. If you are going to go with black, why not just dye black and be done with it. I do't know if you want to antique in black. Hope this helps Terry

My experience has been that 3M packing tape is the only one that will not a residue on the back of the leather. Other brands that I have tried seem to leave "sticky" on the leather. If possible, I put on the packing tape and then rubber cement the tape and stick on plexiglass. You really don't get any distortion doing it this way, just doesn't work on belts. Hope this helps, Terry

Light oil simply means applying a light coat of oil to the leather. The type of oil depends on the effect you want. If you are looking for a darker tone, then neatsfoot oil would be the one to use. If you want to retain the natural color, I use Bee's Natural Saddle Oil, but a lot a people use extra virgin olive oil. All leather is going to get that weathered look when exposed to the elements over a period of time. Just depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Hope this helps Terry

I use my drill press all the time to do just what you discussing. I bought a Tandy awl handle and pulled the chuck out of the handle and insert the 1/4" round shaft in the drill press. It works great. The only trick I have learned is to turn on the drill press to make sure the chuck is positioned correctly. If it isn't, you will see a woobly spinning. Use a prickling wheel, mark your hole layout and go to punching holes. You want your awl blade angled, just watch it to make sure it stays in the same alignment as it can move. Can't answer your question concerning the wood glue, but a lot of members on this forum use Wood Weld and seem happy. I use Tandy contact cement with no problems. Hope this helps. Terry

You might try some "Quick Slik" from Sheridan Leather. I have not tried it on that kind of leather, but it is an amazing product. Terry

I apply lightly, rubbing it into the leather. You want to make sure You work it into all the cuts and impression. Let dry, and if needed, come back with a second coat. The only time when I ever had a problem, I "gooped" it on. I do not use the spray version. Terry

My experience has been it takes overnight to get the final color. Patience!!! The dye will come off your fingers, eventually, welcome to the world of dying leather. Terry

Scroll down about four posts below this one, and you can see my post concerning Quick Slik. As you can tell, I am a big fan, Terry

Mike, My guess is bridle leather has a fair amount of oil in it, and I would question its ability to do much tooling on. Why not just use veg tan? I am just finishing up a headstall that I have tooled with a stingray inlay. I used 8 to 9 oz. veg tan, and then lined it with 4 to 5 oz veg tan. Total weight somewhere around 12 ozs. After tooling I applied Bee's Natural Saddle oil and finsihed with antique paste and good old fashioned Neatlac. I can't believe this headstall won't last for a long time, and it is stout enough I wouldn't be afraid to use it as bronc halter. That stingray is some tough stuff and when sewn in between the layers of vegtan, makes it awfully strong. Hope this helps, just an idea. Terry

I'll bet you are right concerning the contact cement's ability to bond if placed over a film of rubber cement. Anytime I glue with rubber cement to a temporary backing, I first cover the back side of the leather with 3M packing tape, and then apply the rubber cement to the tape. The tape does not leave a residue, at least the 3M doesn't. I inadverently used another brand of tape recently and found out not all tapes are created equal. This stuff left a sticky residue on the leather. Live and learn. Terry

The pieces I have worked have shown no discoloration to the grain side of the leather. These pieces had already been finished with a sealer applied before I ever began edging and any Quick Slick that got on the face of the leather while burnishing was simply wiped off with a dry rag. It saves a step in that you don't have to burnish twice, once after the glycerin and again after the saddle soap, and the amount of time required in burnishing is reduced. If the goal is to obtain a Hidepounder type edge, it takes a lot of burnishing with the glycerine/saddle soap process. This just seems to reduce that time, along with only dying the edge once with spirit dye. Terry

Based primarily on Bob Park's comments, I ordered some Quick Slik from Sheridan Leather. I just want everyone to know the stuff is for real and works as advertised. You still have to prepare your leather correctly, Ie. sanding, etc, but when it comes to putting on an edge, this product is great. I have been using glycerine and saddle soap, and this is so much faster, as it eliminates a step. What is really impressive is the way it accepts dye. When using the old method, I always had to apply at least two coats of dye, and sometimes three to get complete coverage. With Quick Slik, one coat did it. Apply a little parafin and a light coat of Neat Lac, and it really shines. As quickly as this stuff works, hand rubbing is a viable option. Hope this helps those looking for a really good edge. Terry

If you are satisfied with the color, apply a light coat of Neatlac, rubbed in well. Let dry, and repeat a second light coat. Should be good to go. Terry

If you want the leather to retain its natural color, I would be using (and do use) Bee's Natural Saddle oil. It will not darken the leather as neatsfoot and olive oil to a lesser extent. For a finish I use good old fashioned Neatlac, and not the spray version. It has been used on all kinds of leather for a long time including saddles. It can be purchased as "Clearlac" from Springfield Leather or Panhandle Leather in Amarillo, Texas. You will hear people complain about it cracking or being too shiny, but it is just because it isn't being rubbed in well, and applied too thick. I don't think you will get moisture protection from Tan Kote. Hope this helps. Terry

When I say "unprofessional", I am referring to being able to see the holes after stitching. If you look at some of the work on this website by people that are truly masters of handsewing, the leather appears to swallow the thread with no visible sign of the hole. There may be some European or Japanese manufactures that sell a "thin" bladed chiesel, but if you are using one of the ones Tandy sells, you can see the hole. I have one. It is simply a matter of personal preference. I just don't want something going out with my name on it that looks like a pre-punched Tandy kit. No offense to those that use those kits, as they serve a very useful purpose for beginners. As one of the members of this forum states: "Make it look handmade, not homemade" Terry

3M packing tape works well also. Just cover back completely. Made the mistake recently of using another brand of tape, and it left a sticky residue which the 3M doesn't. Terry

Using a four prong chiesel leaves holes large enough to drive a truck thru, just doen't look very professional. Using an awl blade in conjuntion with a drill press assures straight holes. Works great for me. Terry

If you want to retain the natural look, I would recommend Bee's Natural Saddle oil. It will not darken the leather as Neatsfoot or olive oil tend to do. At least that is my experience. According to his website, he is finishing with beeswax. Hope this helps. Terry

Ricky, On the Barry King website is a suggested size list. I am using #27 for belts and anything else I am doing. Size would depend on size of areas to be tooled. Wouldn't trade mine. Terry

One of the benefits of oiling prior to finishing to even out the leather, and have a more uniform foundation upon which you can apply a finish. If you would use Bee's Natural Saddle Oil, there is no darkening, and if anything, the leather has a golden hue to it. I used to use Neatsfoot oil, but I didn't like the way it darkened the leather. After tooling, your leather is really dry and needs something in it. I am betting you are stuck with what you have. Hope this helps. Terry

O.K., I see what I was missing. I have a prickling tool also that makes holes large enough to put a rope through the. What I was referring to is using an overstitch wheel to simply mark the hole position, and using only the diamond awl to make the actual holes. I personally won't use one of the tools you are trying as the prongs are not only wide, but the thickness causes really large holes that the thread will not fill completely. Terry

It appears from the pictures you posted, you are wanting to do an old fashioned saddle stitch. I really don't think you will have a problem hiding your points unless I am missing something. Your prickling point should be only marking the points where the diamond awl is to penetrate the leather and make the actual hole. Diamond aws should penetrate the leather at a diagonal pattern, and your thread will cover up any marks. I have an old Osborn that marks 12 per inch, and the key to using it is awl blade size and thread diameter. If I used my normal diamond awl blade, the holes would be so large as to cut into each because they would be too close to each other. If I am missing something, please repond back. Hope this helps Terry