Bob Blea

I've had lots of problems where I work with Blackberry's running down because the cases they were in were too tight and it was pushing buttons. At times we had to disable the side buttons for the camera to get them to stop. I would definitely recommend a looser case. Bob

Boy, that is a tough one. I have problems with that too. Chuck is absolutely correct that it takes practice, as much as anything we do when carving leather. The shading from the thumb print does make it harder because that leather is compressed and much denser than the unshaded leather next to it. I don't think I would recommend much re-wetting if you don't have to. Re-wetting will take a little of the burnish out of your thumb print or shading, and a lot of extra moisture could cause you to loose some of the relief you have carved. In order to make good decorative cuts I have to warm up first. I need to practice whatever the cut is going to look like first on some scrap. The first couple usually don't look that great. Also, make sure your swivel knife is very sharp and well stropped before you start. Having a sharp swivel knife makes all the difference in the world. Hope that helps, Bob

Hi Jaysouth, and welcome to the forum. I'm actually wanting to make a tool roll something like what you have made. That's a very traditional way of storing stamps. Yours looks pretty functional, and that's probably what is most important. Good job! Bob

Wish I could go but just a little too far away... Bob

You are also seeing a lot of the traditional western floral toolers migrate towards the scroll work used by engravers. They have used scrolls similar to the vive work in western floral, for many years, and it does create some very different effects. Bob

Hello Nicklas, If you have an airbrush you could use that to put your first coat of resolene down. After that is applied it should be sealed enough to hold the antique in place. Bob

To answer the original question, it is paint. They even say that in the item description. I would use acrylics and then seal it with resolene. Bob

Very nice work incorporating all that. Well done!

Thank you Bob, for posting this article. It makes me want to find some type and try doing this. Bob

I think it looks great. Nice job! Bob

I've got a Shih Tzu that will do the same thing. She always thinks she should be right in the middle of whatever your doing. That is a great looking bag. Bob

Great work! I like the idea of the magnetic closure and the way you used it. I may have to come up with a project to use that idea on. Bob

Great looking cases. Do you hand sew them? Bob

The belly part of a hide is very stretchy, and is easier to work with for this type of application than a back, which is much firmer and doesn't stretch much. Parts of the cow that naturally moved and stretched a lot during it's life will make stretchier and easier to form leather for molding. Bob

What are you using to strike your tools? If it's a metal hammer that will ruin the tools and cause metal flaking like your describing. Bob

Hello Jj5685, Was your leather dry when the spots appeared? In my experience I've only had mold spots (and what you describe does sound like mold) when the leather has still been wet. Once it's dried out again I haven't experienced mold showing up on it, but I live in a very dry climate. If you live in a humid climate maybe that could be a problem. I have had specs like that show up from a reation to steel that leather naturally has when it's wet, and lemon juice does make those disappear too. It could be possible your specs showed up because something got on the leather. Lemon juice does a pretty good job taking off small specs of mold. I've had luck with denatured alcohol too, but I think my favorite for really cleaning is oxalic acid. You can probably find this under a brand name of 'bar keeper's friend' at your local hardware store. It is also called wood bleach. It's a strong cleaner and is traditionally used by leather workers, just remember that both oxalic acid and alcohol dry out the leather a lot and you will need to add conditioners (neatsfoot oil or whatever you normally use) afterward. I believe that once you clean a project with the oxalic acid, the mold won't come back, but that's just my opinion. I've only been doing this for a few years so I could be wrong. Bob

Thanks for posting, this was really good info. Bob

Pretty cool Chief! Is that the instrument you are playing in your avatar pic? Bob

Wezgo, you might be interested in these Border blades from Barry King: http://www.barrykingtools.com/swivelknives.htm. The border blades are near the bottom of the page. The long part of the blade travels around the outer edge of your leather and the shorter inner part cuts the edge. bob

A suggestion for those of you who do take orders over the phone or in person: write up the details as you discussed it with the customer and then email it to them asking for confirmation. That way you have a written authorization from your customer stating what you are supposed to make. If there was any misunderstanding it can be ironed out before the project starts, not when you are delivering it. Also, it gives you a record if there is any disagreement when the item is delivered. Bob

Lauren, If you have a Tandy close enought to you to visit it in person, you can probably pick out some good leather at a good price. Just look for a nice smooth grain surface that is big enough for the project you are making. You might also want some scraps to practice tooling on before starting on your bridle. All of the leather tools take some practice to get decent results from. Bob

Also, there is a link on this site to a tutorial on how to do this: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=43384. I thought I had seen this somewhere here, just took a bit to find it. Bob

Hi artycpt, try getting this book from Tandy: http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/61906-00.aspx I believe it has a description of how to do two toned lacing. Tandy has a similar pamphlet that also covers lacing and I might be thinking of that one, but from the cover image on this one I think it's the one with the two tone lace description. Bob

I would recommend something more like this: http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/department/tools/punches/chisels/88041-533.aspx It makes a angled slit instead of the round holes of the punch you referenced above. I just prefer the slits to the round holes, but it is a matter of preference. IMO the angled slits look cleaner. Bob