Ferg

This may not hit a note with you Deno. Printed work is not doing well these days with a few exceptions. That said, I would consider a Digital version. There are several websites with downloads as well as DVD's for sale. I would do a lot of soul searching as well as shaking a lot of doors real hard. Printed books are expensive to publish even if you self publish. I think you have a noble idea for the book but I wouldn't count on a lot of money to disburse. That is a tough one. ferg

Acrylics used for painting on canvas etc. would be "iffy" when thinned too much. The Cova colors are nothing more than acrylics with maybe a slightly different formulation. I thinned some extremely, such as a few drops of the Cova in maybe a fluid ounce of water with no problem. Use the extremely thinned product for a wash. We found that a wash of white made other colors "stand out" when used over the white wash. Allow the applications to dry completely before you re-coat. ferg

I thought of that also, I don't think they are compatible. We have glued up thousands of feet of laminate with contact cement and it is a breed all it's own. Thanks, ferg

I have always cased my leather before doing anything else. I wet it thoroughly both sides, most of the time I simply place it in a pan of warm water until the bubbles stop. I then role it loosely with an old T shirt on both sides and leave over night. When I am ready to cut with the swivel knife I uncover it, flatten it out, let it dry until it is just about it's original color. If you can allow the leather to dry in an air conditioned area I think it is best. Your swivel knife should "glide" through the leather with little effort making the cuts look really smooth. If the knife drags or feels choppy to you, your knife is dull or not polished enough on the strop, or your leather was not properly conditioned. A NOTE: Some folks never case their leather if they are just carving and stamping. If this is you, try my way just once and see how you like it ferg

I think you done a great job on the wood grain. You need to double up on the corners with your lace. That is: Make the corner slot just a little larger than the others so you can lace more than one time in the corner hole. Makes the corner filled in. Also: I believe you should have either hand stitched the liner or sewn on a sewing machine. The lacing inside makes the wallet a little bulky. Overall you done a nice job. ferg

I had thought of the packing tape but it would not stick to the leather. I had to apply two coats of rubber cement to get it to even think about sticking to the plastic. BTW: I had waited until the leather was ready to carve before doing any of these so it was not excessively wet. It doesn't want to rub off. My past experience with applying any liner with rubber cement has been a total disaster. I also thought abut applying the glue to the plastic but I would need to make a mark around the piece to keep glue from getting every where else. A marker would probably be needed and that could get on the face of the leather. I am going to try a small amount of the cement over what is there and see what happens but I doubt it will loosen the stuff. Thanks for all suggestions. Will post what happens. ferg

As I said before, I was simply interested to know what your inspiration for the rendering was. Thank you for your explanation, that is all I was looking for. My original vocation was a building contractor. I drew my own plans. They were renderings done from what I felt and understood what buildings should look like. Many folks are enjoying those homes to this day. Everyone should be so lucky as to have the full life I have enjoyed for almost seventy seven years. ferg

Okay..... I applied rubber cement to the back of the piece of leather I am/was tooling and stuck it to a piece of 1/4" plexiglass, never again. How in tarnation do I get that glue off the back of the leather so I can glue a liner to it. Don't tell me to use rubber cement for that because it is not a good idea. The plexiglass shrunk up into a concave, not a lot but enough that it won't lay down on the granite to carve on. I n all the years I have tooled leather I never done any of the suggested methods to keep the leather from stretching. I simply never had a problem. Believe me, I will go back to the way I always done it from now on. I still need to get that blasted rubber cement off the back ferg

From what i know about horse hides, I don't think you are going to have much luck with this. ferg

I visited Peter Main's site several times lately, do not see any modeler for sale. Does he still have the "Best Modeling tool" available? Where can I get one? ferg

My following comments are in no way trying to be picky or chastising in any way, please do not take offense. My youngest daughter, she is 25 years young, likes the skulls, dragons, extreme art, etc. I am an old codger and I simply do not get it. Can anyone tell me what is going through your mind when you design this sort of thing? When I was a kid growing up we would have been locked up if we even drew these images on a piece of paper I am honestly interested in where the inspiration comes from. I try to understand almost everything in this world of ours, politicians excepted. ferg

Kathy, I too have transferred images onto leather and most everything else I find the easiest to use is OEM Laser Printer on to transfer paper and then onto leather. I also have used white Doe Skin, Tandy carries it. The images on the Doeskin are fabulous. ferg

Anyone tried/used 32 OZ. FIEBING WAX BURNISHING INK? Description would indicate a good product for edges. LCi only sells their products through distributors. They gave me a list of several but only the phone numbers. So far I haven't found any that carry the edge ink etc. ferg

My thought was concerning the stitch line being so close to the fold line, that was the only concern I had. If the cover is opened and closed often that stitch line could cause a problem. ferg

Looks nice but I cannot see it very well, photos are too small ferg

I am guessing here so...... I believe you may need to grind the edge into it's original shape. If you do not have a set-up for a grinder that you can do this, please take it to a sharpening shop and tell them exactly what you want. When that is done use a strop every time you are going to cut some leather/"used thread." ferg

I am replying to my original post, well you know how it is with old folks I bought a pricking iron. One I received is for stitches a lot wider than I like. Decided to stitch a notebook cover using the marking wheel that Tandy sells. I had practiced some with holding the awl at the correct angle or to the angle providing the look I wanted. Stitched the entire cover without the pricking iron, probably will never use the cotton pickin thing. ferg

Nice work Tim. I have one possible concern with your method of construction. Seems you have a "wear" area at the fold with stitching. That may present a problem down the road. An inside photo or explanation for your construction may be helpful. ferg

I know nothing of "Mule Hide" but I tend to agree completely with Steven. That said: I am using some "Horse Butts" From Steven that tool like butter and have a very tight grain. I used to use the shells for wallets etc. but they are too pricey these days for my pocket. I have not dyed any of the Horse Hide I have as yet, I really hate to do that since it has so much character. I am sure your Dad would be more than pleased with this leather. The Horse Butts are long enough to cut belts. Good cost factor also. ferg

I have made three note book covers in recent days and have been quite dissatisfied with all of them. Didn't like the way they folded etc. In a passive mood I sent Bob Park a note asking him what methods he used for making his covers, I am sure he won't object to my placing this information on the site for everyone to peruse. hidepounder said: ====================================================================== Ferg, I usually use 6/7 oz leather for the leaves and 4/5 oz for the binding. I then build the binding up with one or two pieces of 6/7 oz to make it stiff. The build up is tapered at about 45 degrees away from the fold. So if I have a 1-1/2" ring binder, my build up will start at about 2" wide and taper in to about 1-3/4". Additionally I add a 4 mil to 6 mil stiffener to the binding (between the build up) and the leaves before covering everything with the 2/3 oz lining. I hold back the stiffeners and the built up portion of the binding so that there is a good 1/4" area to create the fold. I find I get a much better result by building up the 4/5 oz binding rather than grooving 6/7 oz or heavier leather, however it does require more work. I just cannot get a groove to be as smooth and uniform in depth and width as I can by building up the 4/5 oz binding. Additionally I skive the overlap (where the binding and leaf overlaps) so that there is a smooth transition through the fold for the lining to lay in. That must be done prior to sewing the binding to the leaves and prior to installing teh lining. The lining goes in as one piece with the pockets and loops, etc., all sewn to it. I have tried gluing all the way through the fold and leaving the fold unglued and I still get some wrinkling at the fold so I'm not sure which way is best. Bobby

Nice work. You done well on your horses. ferg

i cannot say enough about your work. Any fine lady would love that purse, would always be displayed where everyone could see it. ferg

I have a significant number of these key rings I wish to sell, no minimum. Gold/brass finish on heavy cast metal with a 28mm round indention for glueing a piece of leather that has 3D impression, makers mark, your own design. I am sure most everyone could think of many designs/stampings for the leather disc. Overall length is 3", diameter of ring for keys is 1 - 7/16". Outside diameter of display pad is 1 - 3/16". These would make a great handout for shows or just to give to special customers. Price per item not including the leather disc - $1.50 to members on LEATHERWORKER.NET. I do not own a "Clicker". I would prefer to not supply the leather discs but that may depend on interest for this item. I can supply small quantities of leather discs to fit this piece.

The design is not my cup of tea but I can and do admire excellent work. Thanks for sharing. ferg

Peter, You may tire of folks saying nice things about your work I sit in admiration of your dedication to your craft. ferg