JLSleather

Recommendation on holster mold for this one? 4" .357

You'll get a lot of different answers for this one. My best .. depends on the size of the book cover. For a small, say 5 x 8", 4/5 oz leather is heavy enough. For a covering on a hard cover book (the book itself is a 'stiffener", then teh 6/7 is fine. For a 8 x 11", no hard cover inside it, I like a TOTAL weight of about 8 or 9 oz, but since i like them lined i generally would use a 6/7 with a 2 oz lining. No skiving, but on the heavier ones I do gouge the fold lines.

I bought ONE of those "top grade" tooling sides a long time ago. Never again. Nor will I ever pay for a "craftsman' side (even if it says HO on it). The "B" grade HO is much better than that, though I have seen some HO that's a bit 'spongey' from time to time. As a rule, foks (including SLC) sell the hide closest to what you asked for. Just a little math for the new (ish) folks ... whether to buy a side, a back, a bend, etc. The sides ...............................................around 25 feet, .........................@ $8.19 / ft ............. = $205 Backs (side without the belly) ................around 17 feet...........................@ $8.69 / ft ............... = $148 Bends (side without belly or shoulder)....around 12 feet ..........................@ $130 / ea ............... = $130 This pricing is SLC wholesale price for HO "B" grade (just for example). I don't buy sides, except in 2/3 or 3/4, because i know i won't use up the belly of the heavier weights. The bends work out at about $12 / ft when you add shipping - while this is the 'cream of the crop' part of the hide, that still seems excessive. So, I generally get backs. For an extra $50, I could get 6-8 feet of belly, but no point just to cut it off. A better approach is to first determine what you'll use it for. Backs, I think, are prime for holster boys (an girls), since you can make belts from the bend section and make the holsters from the (less rectangular) shoulder area of the same hide. As one who enjoys making belts, I let them pick sometimes. If they have a side long enough to cut two belts from one strip, that's fine. If not, then I might just take the bend, as this is certainly the best leather for carving. I have found useable leather at Tandy on occasion, though I just go pick it out myself. SLC gets some attention because they will cut you a piece if you ask (expect a charge for this). They skived a couple of long pieces down to 3/4 oz for me once - when I had a bunch of 3/4 but not a piece long enough for the current issue. So, in one case, didn't wantt to buy a side of what I already had quite a bit of. I paid WELL for those two little pieces, and wouldn't do it that way again, but that's there if you like ....

These are sold.

Oh, hey, Dwight .. sorry, din't see your response. Couple folks was askin, so I took one quick picture. I'll give 'em a bit to respond, who already did, then I'll throw up a price. There's a bit more than this, but this is the 'top shelf'. Oh, that piece the square is layin on is 3/4 oz, the one under it (and most of this) is 8 oz

Cleaning out the shop, plus I seriously hate inventory. Somebody can get some decent leather at a bargain, and I get the place cleared, everybody's happy. All H.O. "B" grade. SLC has the strips for $12 (wholesale price), here you git em for half that. Everything cut from 7/8 or 8/9 HO leather. Good news and bad news. The price is great, but I'm not piecing it out. Since the point is to clean the shop, then it only makes sense if it all goes. I'll get some pics as I get organizing, but I know I have , at least half a dozen strips, 8 oz, mostly 1 1/2" wide, one about 47" and the rest are 50" or more. a couple that are longer, and quite a few shorter (20-40", so still good for collars/wristbands/billets/etc). a few cut out 'cobra' style rifle slings, 8 oz tooling leather Any interest in some clean "B" grade leather, send me a message and I'll add to this as I clean shelves ...

Great texture -- this is nice!

That's lookin like pretty quick learnin's Your first one has some VERY choppy bevel marks, but in the second you can see you're already eliminating much of that. Knife cuts look pretty smooth (as opposed to start/stop, jagged, drag marks). By way of suggestions ... for the type of design you're doing, you might look up a bit about matting. No time to find it at the moment, but I remember a good while back there was a (quite good) example and discussion on matting figures by yaklady (member name). You might try the search bar either for matting, or for her 'content'. No point re-inventing the wheel, I remember her discussion was quite good and so were the pictures...

Agreed. And tha's true of leathercraft in general, I think. So much crap out there, the new guy might actually think it's SUPPOSED to look like that. I think i met that guy, doesn't care to improve anything. After all, somebody bought some of his stuff - maybe even more than twice - so why make it better? I figure - each his own. Only irritates me occasionally when I see someone who doesn't know a "G" chord from a "C", trying to teach music (just to borrow your analogy for a minute).

Actually, I've seen yours. I think I'll just stop there.

Pretty sure that's what I said. AND, Aaron's correct -- the craftools currently for sale 'over-the-counter' are not the same ones available years back. AND, you're correct -- I sometimes say things my own way. You don't really need to spend all that energy suckin' up if people know the leather will be done right. I leave the long-winded facebook/tweetybird/pinholer stuff to people who talk better than they carve.

Yeah, it aint always in the right pile, that's true. That .155 "should" be in the 9/10 pile, but it doesn't hurt to check. Of all the complainin' about Tandy, I actually LIKE their 'Royal Meadow' leather, but I know ahead of time that the 3/4 is actually going to measure more like 4.5 oz. Long as I know that it's fine. For myself, I prefer a belt in the 10-12 oz range (7/8 or 8/9 backed with a 3/4).

Thanks, Aaron .. and those stars are stamped (yep, cheap crap, Tandy Z-something) Oh, and jus fer fun, here's the rest of that design. I think these are hard. NO part of the design is original, except the size and shape of the binder. With an original design, you can do whatever shape you think of, and you can make it any color you want to. With this, and a few others, some Coast Guard boys went nuts needing these for some kind of rank thing. The design had to adhere to the original and the colors had to be at least quite close. The anchor design is standard USCG 'stuff', and the grey (which was a bit difficult to match) is some kind of job classification (hydraulic guy, I think). So, the emblem and classification courtesy of the USCG boys, the banner mine, and the color belongs to a little chubby girl. Still, I kinda liked it.

Oh, and all these belts made with the same useless 'junk' (some by me, some by that chubby girl). Crap - I should just throw those old tools away, maybe ... (I admit it seems a bit rediklus to use a compressed file to talk about detail )

That sounds heavy for double - 8/9. I've made them about .240-ish, but that doesn't like some belt loops. Lately, seems folks have been wanting them 3/16-ish", which is about double-6/7oz, and skive the inside so it goes all the way through to the end. And, 1.5" wide is definitely most popular.

It depends on what you call "small" and "detail". I bought that B197 a LONG time ago, still use it. There's always some monkey wanting to talk you into buying some more stuff around the leather shop. YOU decide if you need it, or it's just someone repeating something they heard from someone who heard from someone .... If you want to spend more money, get the best grade of leather available. learn the proper moisture content, and have fun. These were done with those "cheap" craftools (including the 197) with chubby little fingers ... (oh, yeah, the anchor picture actual size is 6" circle, chain links are about 1/4" long x 1/8" wide).

Lookin' good Musta took like over a ower ta lace that thing ....

Buy the side. It's going to be less expensive. Beyond that - define 'useable'. Ordinarily with a side, it's all useable, less i cut a bit off of the neck / outer shoulder area (whre it joins the belly) to use for testing colors / setting sewing machine tensions, wiping my feet at the entry, etc. And the bellly is generally noticeably "looser" grained, really not for tooling. Still, it lines belts just fine. If you're making billfolds, I'd go with a 3/4 oz (some prefer a bit on either side of that) and get the side. Depending on where you shop, you may get away with 1/2 side (but expect a cutting charge). As a rule, figure about 3.5 billfolds per square foot. This will depend on the style wallet you make, obviously. Short version, I like to buy backs most of the time, whicih is a side with the belly removed (for the reasons already stated).

I usualy get Barge by the gallon, but ran out early a while back so I picked up a qt of the "Tanners Bond" stuff at Tandy I was passing by. VERY strong grip, but also VERY strong chemical. I used it all, and it works just fine, but you really need to have a ventilated area to use it in.

Thats a teeny picture, so ...some guesswork. If it's actualy skippin the stitch, make sure you go all the way down and start to come back up before pivoting. If it's not skipping, but actually pulling the bottom thread up and over (which is how it looks in that little pic) then yes, tension issue. But, keep in mind that tension can be altered a bit by the needle size (bigger hole, easier to pull up). If it appears fine elsewhere, and issue is at the corners - I would check to see that I'm not pulling (distorting) the hole or pulling on the top thread when the leather turns. Doesn't take much to cause that with the foot up. I might try the same material with a size smaller needle (or maybe a fresh, sharp one the same size) before altering everything else. I'm certainly no 'pro' behind the wheel of these things, and if Wiz chimes in and tells you I'm wrong, then the smart money says go with what HE tells you But, I do thinnk this is worth a shot ...

Try to keep in mind the POINT for the tools you're using. I certainly WOULD reverse the vein tool as suggested. The idea is not 'cause it's in some pattern' so much as the idea is to give the illusion of roundness and shape to the leaf. This seems common for new guys, and long as you are aware of it you likely won't fall prey to it. Don't think about placing a tool that looks like veins -- think about making a leaf. And, if you don't have one already, I would suggest picking up a modeling spoon. A few minutes at the end rounding those hard bevel lines will make a world of difference in the final look. Keep it up.

As a rule, I don't know why people use that antique stuff. Looks a bit like someone puked on perfectly good leather Here, Bob (Klenda) has used it to make a VERY simple design (not intricate or time consuming) look VERY nice. Now, that could be an antique PASTE, or a GEL, or even an antique DYE (and one old boy used to put Fiebing's dye in Tan-Kote for a nice effect). Best bet, if you really want to know, I'd send a message to Bob -- he just might have the time to tell you what he used.

Other way around. Carve it FIRST, do any coloring you want, THEN stick n stitch. Much better defiinition in the carving. You 'could' tool it after it's one piece - much as you could emboss layers - but it's easier to tool first. One exception, a fella might stitch it together before coloring if you are planning to dip dye both sides. Also, pretty popular to put white (or natural) thread on brown or black leather. This can only be done by coloring FIRST, then stitching (go ahead, somone paint in between stitches to prove thats wrong )

Welted construction, contrasting welts and straps, full length zippers, ... I'd say your "fail" is off to a great start! TWO things to note about this bag. 1.) The wrinkles and 'fuzzy' flesh side makes this bag look like the leather may not be the top-o-the-line. Looks dry, actually. 2.) I've never been a fan of pre-punched holes, for stitching or otherwise. 3.) I obviously can't count, and since the bag is yours then my opinion is only worth "so much" anyway. Great start!

That zipper is stitched to vegetable tanned leather "gussets", which are then attached to the case. Not sure the reason for "multi-directional" on a case this small. I think the 'norm' with this type of case is a zippper running the length with a hole in the pull large enough to fit a lock, and a "dee" or sqare ring on the end that the lock attaches to when it's closed. As for the actual constructing of the gussets, absolutely check out Stohlmans book on leather cases. The cases shown are largely outdated now, but the principles are still used. The style you are looking for are clearly outlined in the book cover, notebook, and briefcase (variations at each). Purchase at store or download here.