JLSleather

For a guy making some spending money between classes, and enjoying leather crafting, might also check on custommade.com Just one more I've heard of. FWIW.pdf

There's some truth to what Conrad says. But I personally think that's what's wrong with much of the "handmade" products.... for some reason, people think that quality and business are somehow not compatible with each other. Truth is, a lot of 'poo' gets bought and sold through fakebook, which is [supposedly] not a market site. Despite much of this site discussing Tandy being the 'low-end' material, fact is they sell a LOT of it. Fakebook isn't about quality (at ALL) but about ... well, I don't really know the reason for that And Tandy sells piles, quite simply because the NAME is KNOWN. But, that's long winded, so let me stick that in another attachment and get back to this feller's question ... In the end, you should be charging what YOU think is correct. That's what "mine" means -- the owner can do whatever he wants with it. This is why I said before that $150 is decent for a belt IF you didn't spend hours and hours on it. If you can make one a day, then you might think that's good FOR YOU (only you can decide what is acceptable for you) Some didn't apparently feel comfortable with the welfare example, so here's another one. This little girl started a job. She makes about $1000 / week, So, a little over $50k / year. Taxes and soc sec and all that, plus health insurance plans. Still, $750(ish) per week. She's a good kid. But she walked into that job knowing nothing. Bringing nothing but different boots. She doesn't accept orders. She don't mail packages. She doesn't sharpen tools - or even HAVE any. Never orders materials (or even check to see if she needs any). No marketing. No web site or store to set up and maintain. And after 3:00 pm, none of it is her problem. I could go on... but IF the leather craft is about money for you, then seems logical it should be making you more than the little girl who puts in 7:00 - 3:00 and goes home. Having said that, without being too detailed, I don't mind saying that leather did NOT make me $50k last year, and I think I know a thing or two about leather That guy at the store, selling cheap trinkets and kits to those who don't have a better understanding of it, likely made more than I did. And for me, there's the line. I like to make (and sell) items that I would personally buy. If I wouldn't buy it, then I won't sell it. Back when, I used to have people digging projects out of the trash. I had pitched them, they weren't up to my standard for MY work, but others thought they were great. For a while, if I had a belt I wasn't satisfied with, I had to cut it up before throwing it out, or it would show up. Down side of that--- there's one person NOT going to buy a belt (since he has a free one). Well, I already talked about when it's mine I can do what I want with it, so enough about that... As for etsy specifically, a search this morning for "tooled leather belt" brought up prices from $24 (with free shipping) to $1100 (try it). But Etsy itself is BILLIONS of dollars. Not including any investments or agreements they have, their income is largely 20¢ at a time. One listing, 20¢ each. Multiply that times 1.4 million shops, each with multiple listings..... you get the idea. Business is not necessarily quality.... More perspective? THIS ONE sold over there at $225 and THIS ONE did not.

Starting to get some files uploaded and (sorta) organized. Who knows.. does this go in the how do i do it, the gunleather section, or the pattern area? Ah... there's the issue. TOO many links to other links, videos that eat 15 minutes of your life without merit, and endless droning by people who are more interested in SEO than in leather. Seriously, can't take any more sensitive fellas telling me 'come look at my FUN video... ' . Here's a tip: if it doesn't show me what it said it would, it aint 'fun'! Files are free -- download or save, no matter. More coming as I have time (and no eye strain). HOLSTER DIY

Pancake style holster for the new (ish) single stack 9mm. Tight little thing, looks a bit like a cross between the G27 and the S/W shield.

This leather measure just under 9 oz. Nothin' fancy, just some warm water ana bone tool ...

Tha's downright purdeee. But, what -- no matchin' boots ?@#!$!@#!!

Exactly. I rest my case.

I've seen some of those videos for various reasons in the past. As a rule, I don't recommend u-tub for instruction. Browse those when you have hours to kill for no legitimate reason. Disagree? Try this... Decide what you want to know, what you'd like to see, whatever. When you see a video, write down what you know, that you didn't know before the video. I could go on, but do this and you'll soon figure it out yourself.

This. Up my way, I don't think insurance would be much use (even in a flood, you'd need to have specific flood insurance). But the neighbor's actions (or lack of action) could certainly be grounds for 'relief'. But it would require civil action. Around here, for amounts under $1000, just wouldn't be worth a civil case (unless it was habitual)

What about a manual? Any of them come with one? Or, are you comfortable having someone explain setting the timing over the phone -- no pictures? These things might cause a guy to think about a machine from someone in the area you will have and use it. If you are unsure of the machine you need, stew on it a bit more. Ask the opinions of someone NOT trying to sell you one. Art has offered some pretty good advice. Only thing I might add -- if you aren't sure you'll need to sew more than 1/2", then it helps to decide. But if you KNOW that 1/2" is the limit for what you sew, then buying 'more' machine is not a good idea. I mean, say I'm outta milk and need to get to the store. I could go buy a Porsche, which would do the job, but I'd be spending far more than I need to - unnecessary. Well, maybe that's not quite the example. Perhaps the cowboy and artisan are more like Chevy, and the "Porsche" would say Adler?

It's possible you've missed my point. Perhaps it's more accurate (or at least more 'social') to say that I've failed to answer your original question. Well, it happens .....

Oh, about the social muck ... opened the fridge one day, first thing i see is the CHEESE says 'follow us on faqbook'. Anybody can tell me WHY I might wanna do that?$@#FG@!$!

Truth is, I don't know why some things sell well, while others not so much. Neither does anyone else, if they're honest. You mention Etsy, which I hadn't even heard of until I saw it here. By simple searches, I have seen some things sold for good money that I wouldn't take if they were free. Go figger... It's not a quality issue - I see shoddy materials assembled poorly selling everywhere. People use "walmart quality" and "made in China" as if they were "bad" - almost with contempt. But Walmart and China - as we think of them - sell a HUGE amount of goods (more $'s than I could list). Not a question of unique, either. Those "minimalist" wallets are sold by thousands of people. They'll harp about "hand made" or go on about the 'type' of leather used, but in the end they're pretty much the same. Doesn't even need to be a useful product, or an attractive one. Pet rocks sold by the MILLIONS. Then there were "imitation" pet rocks copying them. A few years went by, and there was a "re-release" of the "original" pet rock. Remember those? It was a rock. Put in a box. With "air holes" in the box so the rock could breathe. Not enough example? How about the 'mood ring'. Spongebob. The Kardashians (yes, they're cute, but so are a couple BILLION other girls). Shifting gears a bit.. here's my personal take on goods in general. When I see someone making a point of "hand made" or "hand crafted", then I expect to see something that required so skill. Or at very least some attention to detail. It USED TO BE that "handmade" meant it was more expensive, but people are figuring out that if the product isn't BETTER than I get at walmart (crap, did i use that analogy) the WHY PAY MORE? Looking for example at your first page belts.. I dont see anything I couldn't teach someone to do in under half an hour. Machines will cut an entire hide into belt strips in seconds. And seriously.. if it's the same leather, what does anybody care HOW it was cut? Which brings us to the "social" thing people are on about (and on and on). It's ridiculous to call it "social", when it's clearly just one more avenue of marketing refuse. My wife uses it to talk with her family on the other side of the planet - THAT is social. Many people using it - quite simply - because they are terrified of NOT doing what (they perceive) 'everybody" is doing. Personally, 'minimalist' says to me 'look how little i did'. This does not cause me to admire it or want one. But, I'm just one person, so maybe doesn't matter what I think.

Yep, that's what I'm talking about. Sometimes happens right on the spool -- and usually with the darker color threads. I had one spool of black -- I ended up just ordered a new spool. Pulled thread off the spool a few feet at a time as needed until the new batch arrived, then pitched the other. $20 spool of thread just not worth aggravation. Just a side note ... not all threads and needles are equal. We might both have a "24", but the hole for the thread is different. Or the thread is not the same brand (yes, it can make a difference). And to further complicate (maybe) I use nylon. The same size thread in a poly may measure the same size, but act differently. Not better or worse, necessarily, just different. Pattern? What pattern?

A 25 needle sounds purdy big fer a 207 thread (i like a 23) and What yu descrybe, I'd first check that the thread is coming off the spool freely. I've seen that when everything is set "jus fine" and the top thread binds (if only fer a secind er two) causing.. well.. what you said Might try pulling thread off the spool, let it 'hang' from yer thread stand. Just maybe a few feet (so it comes down 18" and back up). Keep an eye on it, and when it's about back to getting ready to pull from the spool (slack is used up) then pull some more and let it hang. It may be that your problem is gone, and then you know it's a 'sticky' in the spool. Sounds very simple, but I've seen it -- and it can be irritating.

That's a simple rifle sling, done with two shades of brown and an airbrush. Glad you like it, but honestly -- not that difficult

I would agree that a site where anyone can post any opinion about a given subject would be redundant. You need not search many posts to see that a simple question can result in 20 answers ... 2 right, 5 not even ballpark, 5 that have basically nothing to do with the original question, and 10 of those that basically conclude "yeah, what he said" Oh, and dont' forget 1.5 that are outright BS, by someone who wants to appear to know "topic x". Now, that's a light-hearted look at it, but the underlying idea is true. I knew leather BEFORE I found this site. But I could certainly see where the true "newby" could be genuinely confused by conflicting opinions, misinformation, with some outright BS mixed in. Yes, I know it's not politically correct to say... but fact is there are many people who are more interested in APPEARING right than actually BEING right. I'll be adding free informational downloads to my site as I'm able to get them up. There won't be any "discussion" pages, burying the information. Anyone who cares to can view or save these files - free of charge. Anyone else is welcome not to -- each his own. The only purpose for - and difference in - these files is 1). No charge - they aren't designed to sell you anything, and 2.) see #1

True that COULD be done with an airbrush (or a paint brush, for that matter). Still, takes a good while to get much effect, but handy if you just need ONE (not a whole side of it).

'Pulled the trigger' too late to pick up the LC9, but marking the thread to check again.

There certainly are many options for semi-auto pistols. For revolvers, I sometimes also check with Duncan's (aluminun molds) and Bunkhouse tools (some kind of composite plastic). I'll put the links below, so whoever that was going on about a reference "pinned" for the newcomer can copy them easily. duncansoutdoor.com www.shop.bunkhousetools.com

It's done with a machine. On the entire hide. Very much like silk screening t-shirts. When I say 'printed', I did not say embossed. That leather is printed, much like a newspaper is "printed". Apparently leather "suppliers" (standard retail people) have convinced LW folks that "printed" means "3-D) ...

There are a number of ways this could be done, but I think that one is a [relatively cheap] printed leather.

Keep in mind that if you run one speed all the time, the larger end will create more friction and heat than the smaller speed - though the "speed" is the same. No long speech -- try it, you'll see what I mean.

If the copier is good at it, offer him a job. If not, no worry ...