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Hope you have a great one, Clay! Alex

Good gracious. I checked out your web site, and you certainly are a man of all media. I especially liked those wood carvings. Alex

Wow. Yet another masterpiece! That's one heck of a fine sheath... Don't stop posting! We want more!

Very nice! Are you keeping this one or shipping it off to a customer?

Really nice! Thanks for posting! Alex

Yes, but you see Corter's cut away the majority of the liner, and there's only a 1/4" sliver on the top and bottom near the stitching. This small area is going to compress easily as the wallet is folded, whereas a full liner wouldn't... My recommendation is to make a mock-up. Take a piece of unusable leather (one that has range marks, scars, etc.) and try building a quick wallet liner like Corter's. Just glue, don't stitch, don't finish -- the idea is to make something quickly to test out an idea. You'll save yourself a lot of cussin' by messing up and modifying a test piece, instead of the final one...

Khoiphan, I can't speak for Corter, but I think it's entirely possible that his inside piece is shorter than his outside one. It's sometimes hard to see these subtle differences in dimensions when the project is completely assembled. For what it's worth, I make my exterior piece 1 cm longer than my interior piece and that seems to work for my wallets. You may need to play with the dimensions a bit to find some that work well for your design. I hope this information helps, and please be sure to post pics of your completed project. Looks great so far! Regards, Alex

Good to have you here, Chris. We're lucky to have a number of really talented sheathmakers on this forum, so if you have any questions (or any pics of your new projects), please feel free to post them! Alex

That's a helluva nice first seat -- Looks great. Congrats! Alex

No question -- it's an absolute MASTERPIECE. Congratulations! Alex

"Gun not included" -- he, he... :D Next time I post a wallet, I'll have to add the caption, "Money not included"...

That's some fine work there, Scouter. I don't know about you, but I'd rather take my time to produce something nice than rush it to turn a quick buck. I feel like I'm going 1,000 mph at my day job, rushing from this task to another. When I get home and pick up my handtools, I like to take my time and not think of unpleasantries like profit and production. Pop the top of a cool beer, kick back and actually enjoy something for a change, right? This is why I've relegated myself to the title of eternal hobbyist... I'm too slow to do this for money! Nice work! -Alex

Great to have you here, Dave! Best, -Alex

Hilly, regarding your first question, I've noticed the same thing when using pre-waxed nylon thread. My guess is that a really tight stitch allows the leather below to be seen through the thread. I've been able to restore that pristine white color by running an overstitching wheel over my stitching. It seems to loosen things up a little and restore the right tension... Maybe that would help you, too?

Ummm... What's wrong with sizing/cutting belts on the street? Seems pretty simple... Just punch a few holes, trim the excess strap, bevel and then edge dye. I've seen leatherworkers do this at craft fairs, and customers don't seem to mind...

That's one fine piece of leatherwork. I love the stamping and the especially the color of the leather. I assume the leather came in that color (ie, it's not dyed)... If so, do you mind if I ask who the supplier was? Congrats! -Alex

Man, that's nice! Fantastic job.

Beautiful work, as always, Ed!

Eric, two coats of Satin Shene will do the trick. Eco-Flo is fine for minor water contact, like rain, etc. But it's not my first choice for outdoor gear that might really get wet... (And thanks for the kudos -- much appreciated!)

To expand a bit on what Scouter is saying, it's true that the older spirit-based dyes consist of pigment particles suspended in alcohol. The failure of some of these particles to be absorbed into the leather causes rub-off. Now, the new water-based dyes, like Eco-Flo, contain liquid pigment. The result is no rub-off, but the trade-off is that this dye is more sensitive to water exposure. It's my opinion that your holster is probably fine just the way it is. Most of your dye probably absorbed and Leather Balm's waxy finish will provide some measure of water resistance. Anytime I've ever tried to "re-do" a finish, I've always screwed it up and made it worse, so proceed with caution! :excl: In the future, you're probably going to want to use Super Shene or Satin Shene, as Scouter suggests. It's a good acrylic finish that is water-resistant, but allows absorption of conditioners. Alex

Eric, The streaking you're talking about is the main reason I don't use spirit-based dyes anymore. For me at least, they always went on much too dark and the dauber streaks were clear as day. Kate's advice is good, and here are some additional options for you to try: 1. Switch to Eco-Flo dyes. The water-based formula absorbs slower and goes on very even, even with a dauber. 2. Mix your dyes with Lexol conditioner to slow absorption and provide lighter, more even colors. Apply with a piece of white T-shirt. (Experiment on scrap to find the right mix for your tastes.) 3. Use an airbrush to apply your dyes. This will provide more even coverage than sloggin' it on with a dauber. I tried #2 above with good results, but ultimately switched to Eco-Flo because I consider myself dye-challenged and found it's the easiest stuff to use. Good luck!! -Alex

Before you go through the trouble of stripping your top coat, why don't you try buffing the surface now? Use a piece of white T-shirt and see if you're getting any rub-off. If you used any color other than black, you probably don't have a problem and can leave it as-is. But if you are getting rub-off, the only fix is to do as Tracy suggests and deglaze.

That's your first project? (Just kidding, of course!) :D Dude, my first leather project hit the kitchen garbage can, along with the second and third! I think I still have maybe the fourth thing I ever did, but there's no way anyone else is seeing it! I consider myself a slooooow starter -- especially looking at Freak's first project.

I think it depends on an intermediate step between dyeing and top-coating. Did you vigorously rub the surface of your holster prior to adding the top coat? Sometimes, pigment particles sit on top of the leather after dyeing and can bleed through a top coat to clothing, etc. Assuming you did buff your project prior to adding the final finish, you should be good to go with Leather Balm. Alex

Before I got into leatherwork, I used to buy my belts from an old fella in the Smoky Mountains. He charged $30 or so per belt, and they were all run through one of those cranked embossing machines (but the designs were crisp and very clean). I was really happy with the quality vs. price. One tactic he used was that he always had a Wal-Mart belt on hand which was cut in half. He'd take it out and explain to customers how his belts were leather all the way through, not some vinyl composite that's sewn to a synthetic interior strip. He'd talk to you about how his belts would last a lifetime with proper care. Looking at a store-bought belt side-by-side with his handmade stuff was pretty convincing to me. I'd charge at least $20 if I were you, and I'd be ready to explain to potential customers why your belts are worth every penny. Alex