BIGGUNDOCTOR

I see it as, do you want a one of a kind, or a mass produced item? There will be people that do not want something that eveyone else could buy off the shelf.

A Kepi is a style of hat, most recognizable as the ones used during the Civil War. I don't drink beer, but I still found the Busch tour interesting. When I had my machine and fab shop I did a lot of work for the small wineries. Forgot to mention that Thompson chocolate is just down the road from JB. The JB tour was ranked the best in the country by Readers Digest magazine. I was 4 months old when Dad got stationed at Travis Air Force Base, and he retired in 1967. He ended up getting a job at at Mare Island naval shipyard, so we ended up staying in Fairfield. I like the area, lots to do, but they kept restricting my main hobbies-shooting, and cars, so I bailed out after my parents passed away.

Curious as to how much flex you have making the handle "flat" as opposed to "on edge"? Most of the mugs I have see the handle was laminated, and on edge for stiffness.

You can also check on the knife / blade forums, but yea that is pretty much it. I would compress the washers some as I glue them up. I have seen a lot of dried leather grips where the washers are separating. As for shaping most guys seem to use their belt sanders,as that is what they have. A lathe tool will have to be very sharp, and polished , so it doesn't just tear the leather.

KatieG, My oldest brother lived in Richmond-the good part up in the hills. I know a cop in Richmond, and he has told me that in some areas down by the bay the partner is unholstered as soon as they drive into the neighborhood-pretty rough. Unfortunately, this is the case with a lot of large Metro areas. Since you are new there, here are some neat things to check out. The Exploratorium in SF ( I remember when it was just a warehouse, and operated on donations), Pier 39 (where my brother worked) There used to be a leather shop on the pier called the Sandal Makers. I bought a Kepi there in 1979, and still wear it. Up the road in Fairfield is the Jelly Belly Candy Co. (where I worked), and the Anheuser Busch brewery. For outdoor stuff Mt Tamalpias, Pt Reyes Nat Seashore, Muir Woods, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium for starters. Lots of great things to do in that half of the state. Unfortunately for me I couldn' t take the politics anymore. My advice; stay for the job, save your money, then go somewhere else----unless the politicians get reigned in. It certainly isn't the state I remember growing up in. The only things I miss from CA are the trees, and fresh produce. One thing that you will find out is Mark Twain was right when he said 'The coldest winter I ever spent, was a summer in San Francisco."

All I can tell ya is that some of the smiths in OZ post pretty strange on the blacksmithing forum. Seems a lot of work down there gets paid for with tinnies My folks had some friends in Perth. Would love to get down there some day.

A ruler. That is about as simple as it gets.

The epoxy looks like it may contain the BPA's that are coming under scrutiny by the FDA. The problem I see with soda bottles are that they are for cold liquids. I use various bottles for water in the car-it's what you do in the desert. I have noticed that when a plastic bottle gets warm the water has a real strong chemical taste. If it was me I would look for a thin metal liner to build around, or use a ceramic mug instead.

I'll check what I have. My Mom made one, and she kept all of her patterns / instructions. Not sure how to go about getting it translated to Aussie though

I have a couple here that are similar, as well as blanks that have been clicked out if you want to make your own. Gotta run off to work, pictures when I get home.

This isn't something that I have even worried about, but this is what I believe those who do may be questioning. Chrome tanning- hazards of the chemicals used, no EPA standards in other countries where the tanning is done resulting in pollution, and possible effects in regards to health. Veg tanning-where are the tannins coming from, possible deforestation in other countries, and is it sustainable. I saw a picture in Shop Talk of stacks, an stacks of logs that were used to make the tannins at on tannery. It actually made me think about the whole process some, just seeing that picture. Trees do not grow that fast, and they were decent sized trees. I figure the only true eco-friendly method would be brain tanning; no chemicals, and all natural. Tha animal itself provides the tanning agents.

KAtieG, I grew up in Fairfield CA, just down the road from you. I never attended them, but I understand there is a huge Highland games event in Santa Rosa. Budd, do you have any local Highland groups that you can contact?

END GRAIN WOOD would be my suggestion. With end grain the punch easily separates the wood fibers,, and makes a nice clean cut. This is what I use for punching gaskets, You can make your own by taking scrap pieces of wood, and glueing them together. Most of the time I just use a chunk of 2x4, or 4x4 that I have laying around. With plastic, or edge grain wood, the stamp has to compress the material to cut clean, and it takes a lot more effort to do so. End Grain easy peasy..

You just need to get yourselves down to Las Vegas, so damn hot and dry here it will fry them beasties right out of you. We are still hitting triple digits, although the nights are finally under the 80's.

Not all duallies have 4:10's, I have driven 2 that had 3:55, and I believe 3:73 gears. I noticed that they turned a lot less RPM at freeway speeds, and checked the build tag. I almost went with the 3:55's for mileage, but elected to get the 4:10's instead. Glad I did. As to VP44 pumps, your mileage will vary in terms of how long it lasts. My LP went 210,000, my brother's went 30,000. I am still on my original VP44 @ 216,000 miles. I miss quoted earlier on my lift pump, it wasn't 110,000 when it went out, it was 210,000 which was during this past winter. The problem with the VP44's is that it is an electronic pump that relies on fuel pressure , and flow to lube it, and keep it cool. That is why you sometimes lose the IP when the LP goes out. So far mine seems to be fine, and I do not run any additives. The main complaint I have is with the APPS sensor that gives a dead pedal at times. One of the TDR members has a replacement that has good reviews. Here in the desert I have yet to drain any water out of my fuel bowl. On oil filters DO NOT USE FRAM FILTERS. Geno's Garage has some pretty good deals on Cummins stuff.

Too bad you were not talking about sewing machines, the largest Singer plant was in Scotland. You didn't say how long of a talk you need to give. Hopefully one of the members from Scotland can help you out some. Depending on how far back you go, leather's role in history will change greatly. Look at the US for example. There are a lot more items made today with synthetics that used to be leather; shoes, boots, purses, packs, etc. A lot of the old military equipment was leather, but no now. Leather workers were probably like blacksmiths in that they made everyday, mundane items for general consumption. Shoes, boots, horse tack, straps, buggy seats, cases, etc.. Some of these would be done by leather specialists like cobblers for one. I am sure that there were apprenticeships, and guilds too. Depending on the age of the group, and the length of talk, you may not need that much detailed info.

I find it funny that here the knife gets a sentence, and he sheath gets 2 paragraphs. In my blacksmithing group it is just the opposite, with paragraphs on how the knife was made,and is finished with " I made a sheath to go with it"

Nice Man of the Woods Leatheroo. Can you explain where these masks are used, or are they just decoration? I could see maybe Halloween, but outside of that not really sure.

Hey Noah, I am interested in what you have. I see that you also do blacksmithing. Is there anything that you are looking for? I do some smithing myself. Would you possibly be interested in a trade?

A fuel pressure gage will tell you the status of the lift pump. That will be one of my next purchases. The Injector pump has a non self priming pump built in. The way I found out my lift pump was toast was after a fuel filter change. Once I broke the seal, the injector pump lost its prime, and the truck wouldn't start. I didn't go with the FASS system, just their HPFP since I don't have the problems that the FASS is supposed to cure. I strongly recommend looking at TDR1.com if you decide on a Dodge.

The quick answer to your question is all of the above. Some projects are glued, some are sewn, some use both methods. A lot will depend on the leather that you are using, and the final shape. There are several glues out there, each has it's advantages, and disadvantages. You may try a search of the forums for --- glue. Rubber cement, contact cement, Barge cement, it goes on and on. Stitches can be hidden by doing a welt then flipping the item inside out, or stitching under a slit that is then folded back over the thread. There are a few way to do it, these are just a couple. Do these masks get painted in any way? If so threads could be molded in,and painted over.

Skald, could this be a business opportunity for you? Maybe start a small leather supply company? Remember, it wasn't the miners who made the money during the 49'er gold rush in California, it was the merchants that sold the supplies to the miners.

A lot of times I get a confused look when I tell people what I do for a living. What's a machinist? I tell them that I run lathes, milling machines, surface grinders etc. If that doesn't do it, I pick up any object at hand ,and tell them " At some point a machinist was involved in making this. Either making it directly, or by making the the molds, tools , or even the machines that were use to make it. It is kind of like oil, in that machining is involved in just about every part of our lives, but we don't see it directly. By my handle you would get an idea as to what else I am interested in. I am careful about who I discuss firearms with, as that is how I was brought up. My Dad never advertised that we had guns in the house in order to help prevent a burglary. There were no glass fronted gun cases, no mounts on the walls, and nothing overly obvious to point out that we owned firearms. Even carrying them in , and out of the house was done in such a way as to not draw attention. A tip for you folks that have a gun safe. Bolt it to the floor, or wall. I had a friend whose daughter had some less than desirable friends. He came home one day to find his entire 800#-1,000# safe gone. The came in with a dolly, and wheeled the whole thing out to a Ryder truck, and off they went. Guns , important papers, documents, everything gone. Last time I talked to him, nothing had been recovered. I know my neighbors have firearms, and on some weekends I hear machine guns being shot down in the washes. This is a semi rural area with a pop around 7,200 in the valley. Lots of hunters, and shooters. Our ACE hardware store has a better selection of firearms than most of the gun stores in Las Vegas. Luckily our crime rate here is almost nonexistent, for now. With an increase in population that could all change. As for leather, I have a friend who became a vegetarian around 12 years ago. She grew up in Canada, and used to raise their own chickens, and pigs to eat. After coming to the States she just didn't like the taste of the beef here, and had concerns about the use of hormones, and other things to increase output, so she became a vegetarian. I have heard this from other folks who have immigrated here, they mention how the meat here in the U.S. tastes very different from what they grew up with. One thing that seems to be common is that their animals were free range. I asked my friend if she had a problem with leather, and she said "No, because it is used to make beautiful shoes." She loves her shoes, and has trimmed her collection down to around 150 from 300+. She confessed one time that she could have worn a different pair every day of the year, and not run out.

I am a machinist, so if you can't find one let me know. I have one of the Tandy wood ones, and I can quote what it would take to make an aluminum one. How about just replacing the broken part with a metal one?

Thanks.