Jason Austin

I have had good luck using chicago screws on armor joints. They usually don't tighten enough to hold the joint tightly unless you are using really thick leather. If you add a drop of locktight when you install them you don't have to worry about them coming loose and they are still loose enough to allow the joint to move. Jason

Hey Urshag, Regarding the crockpot method. I find it works great but I don't try melting the wax in it. It takes about 7-8 lbs to fill my crockpot and I estimate that would take about 2 days to melt on high! So I use a camp stove with an old pot to melt the wax in small batches and fill the crockpot. With the crock on high it keeps the wax at a nice temp. Too hot to handle when removed but not boiling. Makes the mugs nice and stiff. After your wax has solidified in your crock you can actually turn the whole thing upside down and turn it on for a while. The wax will melt around the outside and the whole giant thing will fall out. Then you can chop that up for remelting later. Good Luck, Jason

Hey Big Steve, Did you seal your mugs with the wax/pitch mixture or something else? It looks really clear in the pics. Jason

Hi Guys, I have been working on these mugs as well but I don't have anything to show yet. I am having trouble with the lining/sealer. In my opinion, the inside is a little too sticky (your lips stick to the rim). I am using a 50/50 mix, by weight, of pitch to wax. The pitch seems to be the sticky element here so I was wondering if increasing the wax and lowering the pitch would remove the stickiness. Have either of you had similar issues? Can you suggest a better ratio? Any help is appreciated. Jason

I put this in this section because I intend to use it at Ren Faires. Now I can have my wine glass in one hand and my wench in the other!

Hey, Thank you all for the replies. I never thought of them as "conchos" so I didn't search for those. Now that I have, I see them all over the place. I was really hoping for some sterling ones instead of "silver finish". So far I have found some silver-plated ones at www.sdtradingco.com but I am still looking. Again, thanks for the help. Jason

I have done some searching here and online with no luck. I am looking for those carved silver letters people put on western belts instead of stamping the letters. I found a place that sells them on belts but not just the letters. Anyone know of a place? Thanks, Jason

Boy that's a tough one. I'm into armor making but that is definitely not a breast plate. It is more like scale maile. I suppose you could make it from leather scales and attach them to a thin leather "shawl" type thing. But i think if it were me I would want to make it from metal scales. Jason

Has anybody ever tried gilding leather? Like with the sheets of gold foil you can get. I think it might look nice in background areas.

Hey thanks for that info!

I suppose this is as good a place as any to ask this question. Where does a person get one o' them fancy maker's mark stamps? Thanks