Matt S

It's surprising and a little unnerving the filth that gets into a saddle after just a little use. I use an old sweatflap as a knee apron for rolling threads a such. You do not want to know how much cleaning that took to get it to an acceptable level.

I just use methylated spirits, which is our local version of denatured alcohol.

Lighter or match flame. Not too much, just enough to scorch the leather.

Skip the spirit and just get fiebings pro if you can. Life is too short and there are plenty of things to learn without fighting crap dye. I don't know why they call it oil, there is no oil in it. But it is better than their regular spirit dyes.

I do this but with a Sharpie. Less messy and does faster.

Of course, remember that hides from old dairy heifers are stretchy and scarred.

Contact JT Bachelor of Islington. No online shop but they buy an awful lot of English-cast brass. Solid is an understatement! Very reasonable prices too.

Why is foam rubber needed Tree Reaper? Something to mould over, a scrap of wood and a few tacks ought to do.

Tandy hardware is cheap but expensive; costs them little but they charge a lot of it. Tandy all over really.

Stohlman talks about how to bend awls and needles to whatever curve you wish in his book on Hand Sewing.

You only need to bevel around the hole. Stohlman suggestsusing a French edger, hiking one "horn" info The punched hole and running it round.

I've been looking at picking up a set of movable type from eBay; fonts are better and a ralck can make spacing names etc much neater.

Lisa, I know nothing about sewing machines but a little about hand stitching. There are many ways to improve the speed and quality of our work if you are interested. First I would say to use the pricking iron only, not a combination of the wheel and the iron. As you say, they do not always quite match. If you could provide more details (pictures would be great) on your issues with sewing/stitching I'm sure the resident experts will be more than happy to help. Hand sewing can be quite fast -- I've clocked myself doing better than 3 stitches per minute at 10SPI. No idea if this is 'good', but seems like it's faster than a lot on here are achieving. Not as fast as a good machinist, but then the investment cost is much lower

66 views and no comments! If I have asked a commonly addressed question please point me in the right direction, the search function for once did not yield what I wanted.

You only need a small amount. Most hardware stores sell small 1oz blocks

Hi guys, I have known at least one very fine belt maker to cut all of his straps across double (bridle) shoulders. Certainly cheaper doing it that way than cutting them along a butt, and less waste/spare. However this is completely contrary to 'correct' practice, the result being much 'stretchier'. Now considering that I'm not cutting trace straps or power belts, does this really matter? How much of a factor is the quality of the leather?

Could the black section (with spots) be a separate piece, glued on after the stitching is done? Notice how the stitch line seems to go just under a few spots. Doesn't explain the marks on the back though.

Where are you located, Zip? One of us may be able to recommend a place local to you. I prefer to see leather in person before buying it.

The issue here is not "prime" but "compound'; pure is 100 percent neetsfoot oil whereas the compound is"some neetsfoot plus other stuff". I have been told the other stuff includes mineral oil and other adulterants designed to reduce cost at possible expense to your leather. At a quart for £10 I decided the price of the pure was cheap enough for me.

At one pair of moulds for every hat size and crown shape you wanted to make, that would be an awful lot of moulds to invest in.

My understanding is that Tandy's awl blades are nasty. I have an Osborne no42, works fine.

Ignore what Tandy implies, you can make a lot of the tools to get by with stuff you have lying around the home or can obtain inexpensively. Cut the point off a 6" nail and shape the head with files: stamp for pennies. Stanley knife from the garage: strop a blade and you have a very adequate cutting-out knife. Dividers are handy and versatile tools (get em from a tool shop not a leather shop for a better price). Don't buy the huge needles Tandy sells. Use wet&dry paper to sharpen and polish tools. Make a strop from a piece of card and add any fine abrasive you have handy -- car polish, metal polish even toothpaste work, if sometimes a bit slow. Strop 'disposable' blades and never need to buy any more. Chunk of 2x4 or debarked tree branch makes a non-metal mallet. Don't be afraid to ask questions, make mistakes or accept constructive criticism. Above all have fun.

Down the "that'll do" road lies bonded leather, sloppy fit and raggedy edges. Nothing is perfect, certainly not me or my creations -- and they never will be.

I have a full set of straight-back Ivan edge bevellers, but I'm finding that the edge bevel is coming out slightly concave. Makes rounding and burnishing a nightmare. I'm considering investing in hollow edgers and Abbey is selling some by Hoopers for several quid cheaper than Dixons.

Use the"scary sharp" method; wet & dry sandpaper in various grits. Not ideal but world's and about as cheap as you can get.