Alan Bell

It would work better with leather than with rawhide but the main problem is the difference in thickness especially in a full hide. They also dry cut them with a scroll saw or a band saw and then you true them up later. That is how it comes from Hereford Bi products. Or you can order a vacuum packed whole hide from them. I don't like string that is cry cut and it is just as much work trying to fix it! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Revolution

Hey Rob, Great job. I looks pretty good. I thought I'd mention that if you check the TCAA website. Leland Hensley and Nate Wald will be giving a Bosal Making clinic next Sept. at the Cowboy Museum! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - So Much Trouble

Greenville, Tx. Near Dallas

I have a used Boss Stitcher for sale. It is for sale as is! the bolt to the handle sheared off and would have to be tapped out. It worked great for me the first year and then I had to make repairs including replacing the gear rack to the handle and a piece in the head (the AR-27 Knuckle needle Bar #1) that Tippmann said required an upgraded piece but they wanted $100 for the new piece or I could put the old piece back in but it might break again! I put the old piece in but I could not get the settings right to sew with it and never had anyone come and help me either. If some one is familiar with the Boss they may have no problem with this machine, I don't know but I've bought an electric machine now any way. I am asking $600 for it as is. (903 455 1908) Vaya Con Dios Alan bell Bob Marley - Natural Mystic

I don't know if this has been mentioned before and I don't have any books on hand stitching but does any one know the pros or cons of drawing your awl across wax to ease in piercing the leather. On my Cheyenne rolls where there are so many layers to piers of fairly thick leather I started drawing my awl across the wax every other hole or so and it goes in a lot easier. I also will stab my punches and roll the sides on the wax when punching thick leather and it punches clean and comes right out! I doubt I'm the first to do this but I had never herd of anyone else doing it so I hope I'm not messing something up but it works great! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - 3 o'clock Road Block

I forgot to mention the humidifier! But it is also dependent on your local humidity. It works a lot better for folks in a arid region then for someone in say south Florida! And yes, Bryan Neubert is one heck of a nice fellow. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - One Drop

Perfect moisture content in rawhide is relative. It all depends on the thickness and width of the strand with thickness taking a greater portion. If it is too wet for the thickness then it will stretch when braiding AND shrink when drying leaving gaps. Also there is th chance that when smoothing the braid you might scrunch things up a bit. For a reata type string setting in water for a few minutes and then casing in a sack for a few hours may be in order. For a strand of 3/32 or less then the moisture from your mouth might be enough to braid your project. Saddle soap and/or rawhide cream help regulate the moisture while braiding. I'd have to say if there is just enough moisture to easily braid the project then that is just right. with just enough moisture you will probably have to re-wet as you go along and a spray bottle is OK for that and then some more soap or cream to even out the moisture. When spraying there is a "time" in there to allow the moisture to soak in a bit. Sometimes it is merely 2 sec. Experience teaches. On fine strings sometimes you can wet the project by licking the strands or running them through your mouth (been done that way for thousands of years) Saliva seems to penetrate more evenly and quicker and works much better than water. If you tend to have dry hands factor that in. So I guess the "perfect" amount of moisture has the string where it is flexible enough to bend but not flexible enough to stretch! Hope this helps! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Natty Dread

Rgerbitz, it is good that you are conscientious enough to tear it up and start over but don't get caught up in 'analysis paralysis' Rawhide can't be re braided and it is a lot to throw away! You can try the spiral technique although I have not really had much luck with it others have and they turn out some really nice gear. I have also had the same issue that you are having and I have seen work out there by others that spiraled too so we are not alone. One thing you can try is to turn all your ends at once. Lets say you do six strands over one, under one all the way down. Make sure you start with a marked core so you have a reference to line everything up by. Make sure you have 1/3 of the string on one side and 2/3 of the string on the other before you start to braid. After you've done the six strand braid you have twelve strands at the other end because you are using both ends of the string. You start back up with six of those strings (the long ones). If you started with and over you end with and under and turn your turn back. Only, go maybe three moves with each string and get them all turned. Now look and see if everything is still lined up straight! If not make adjustments NOW! Even if you have to try and twist the whole kit and kaboodle a quarter turn opposite the twist so that as you tighten it straightens things back up. And Voila! C'est Manifique! Or Errr something like that! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - One Drop

Funny to hear folks are ordering 95 degree bars now. I though all my horses were 93 degree horses until I put a weight tape to them! I had one mare that is barely 14.2 hh that I couldn't even get the tape around! Easily packing around an extra 300 lbs or so mostly in fat pockets on her withers. Underneath all that there is the 90 degree horse that I satrted out with. I've corralled all my pasture horses and have started them on Whinny Craig! LOL! Look for the commercial on RFD (Retards, Fools, and Dummies) Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Midnight Ravers

CW, if it was easy...... You know the rest! But, take heart! There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Once you get tired of messing up so much string you will get better! Honestly, if you just started braiding and you are already cutting your own string your way ahead in the game and it will get easier. There are no 'shortcuts' just keep doing it! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Simmer Down

Heather, you can flatten out a 24 strand if you want to it will be hollow but that shouldn't matter in a headstall. As far as the string width it is really a matter of taste. 24- 3/32" strands will give you a flat braid approximately 1" wide. There are flat braids that you can do but they can get pretty complicated. I think the largest I have instructions for is 21 strands and it starts with 11 strands n the left and 10 strands on the right. Left moves first over five then under five. Right moves under five then over five. NOW left moves under five then over five and right moves over five then under five. Continue. At the transition to the round braid you can either add strands to make 2 twelve strand bounds or remove strands to make 2 eight strand rounds. If you add make sure that one of the strings you add in is actually double length and you are using both ends in the braid (one on each side) so there are fewer loose ends at the transition. This makes a really nice looking flat braid! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Simmer Down

If all your holes are evenly spaced at 10 per inch then you might be able to run a 5 stitching wheel over the finished sewing to sort of dress things up. Of course you would have to do it twice to hit the holes you missed! I do this on hand stitching that I have marked with the wheel after I am done stitching. Just a thought that might help! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Crisis

I use a Hansen. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Buffalo Soldier

Very Nice!! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - What You Want

Heather, Are you cutting your own lace? Do you do any rawhide braiding? I like the work. Very nice indeed. On the working set sometimes less is more but that is just my opinion others may want that many knots but I would call something with that many knots "fancy". As far as function goes all the links would also take it off what I would call a working set. Not putting your work down just trying to offer helpful criticism. Maybe a better fill of the space would be longer knots with out so many ring knots to add variation. Definitely, keep on braiding. Things really took a change for me when i started making my ow lace and selling items, not just making them to keep. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Caution

Ryan, Please tell Mr Shoup that many are praying for him and to take heart! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Put It On

Tandy has a craft aid that explains this very well. Basically each size basket weave has an ideal angle. To find each stamps ideal angle; scribe a line, place three impressions below the line, place two impressions above the line, place one impression above the two. Scribe a line that intersects the original line AND touches the top left corner of each of the three rows of impressions. The angle created by the two lines is the angle for that basket weave stamp. To use it on a belt you would rotate it so that the intersecting line is the border line of your belt. This way you will not end up with any half impressions! I'm away from home (as usual) so I can't scan in the craft aid. I took a piece of scrap leather and did this for all of my basket weave stamps and then wrote down the angle for each stamp on the angle. Hope his makes sense and is helpful. Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Belly Full

To know what you actually ended up with we would need to know if when you added strands did you change from over one, under one to an over two, under two? Did your new strands exit the previous braid and then re-enter? Did the new strand cross under a previous X in order to continue the spiral around the braid? You could look at the first 4 strand braid as a "casa" or house for the rest of the braiding then it would make the rest of the braiding an interweave. Hope this helps. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Natural Mystic

Mike, the reason to NOT use clippers or to shave is that with boiling and with lime you are opening the hair folicle so that the whole hair shaft "slips" out and there is nothing left. With shaving you are cutting the hair off at the surface and once the hide has dried there will be little black specks all over it unless you scrape it and then you are removing a layer of the epidermis which leaves the hide white-ish looking and not as pretty as with the other methods. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Slave Driver

Excellent! A great feeling of accomplishment for BOTH of you! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Hammer

Nice clean work! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Hammer

Greg, Absolutely Fantastic!! I can't think of anything else to say that would do justice! Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - Natty Dread

Andy, What are we supposed to be feeling "from the inside of the thigh right down to the stirrup"? Not 'TRYING' to be cynical but...You state that most close contact saddles are a "ploy" As a horseman and as Bruce mentioned it seems to me even when I have ridden in an English saddle that what matters to me AND the horse is what we feel from the knee down. I truly want to make sure I know where my horses feet are and want to control where the horse places its feet and I can do that in a heavy working saddle OR a light weight English saddle. I can yield my horses barrel in a Wade with heavy leather and a drop late rigging under my thigh so I'm failing to see what benefit reducing the leather of the skirt has besides lightening the saddle. And, isn't it a bad compromise to eliminate the plugging because you are creating pressure spots since the leather is uneven? I thought that was the whole idea behind plugging the skirts. Am I missing something? If it makes for closer contact and better communication then why wouldn't you do it on a working hands saddle? Does it somehow weaken the saddle if you eliminate the plugs and cut up the edge of the skirt? I understand how lighter weight leather overall would make a weaker saddle but couldn't you still make a "close contact saddle" (if possible) but with heavier leather and then working hands could ride with closer contact too? Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley - I Shot The Sheriff

Denise, I am away from the home front now and was envisioning the illustration you provided from memory. My mistake. I thought you were measuring from the point where the cantle touches the bars and then back to the cantle gullet rather than across the cantle at a height even with the cantle gullet. So much for my memory cells! Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell Bob Marley

Denise said - Does doing this affect the amount of dish and if so how and why? (I'm thinking we are measuring dish from the bottom point of the cantle to the cantle gullett. Vaya Con Dios, Alan Bell