Alan Bell

NICE!!! Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

You might also try 'floral tape' I get mine from the Wal-mart. I sticks to itself and doesn't have heavy glue like electric tape. Also you can shape it a bit to get it nice and round! Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

Hey Mike, that is great improvement over your first practice! Congratulations! Now I will mention something that does not really apply to how well you braided the knot but to simple aesthetics, The braided handle is now too large for the knife. You have changed the balance of the handle to the blade so much that the form and function of what you are creating seems to be lost. In other words you would need much smaller strings for this project. A knife, any knife should have a balance to it and the knife maker goes through the steps required to create and maintain this balance. As braiders of cowboy gear I feel it is important to always consider the form and function of the gear we are trying to create. I just cut off a nose band because I felt that it came out too large for the balance of the bosal I was creating. My base was too large so I had to cut off the braided cover AND the base to start over. That being said you could use your knife for a while and continue to practice braiding and improving but at some point (you know what I'm gonna say.....) cut that knot off and start over! Remember, to keep any knot you cut off to show future aspiring braiders the kind of commitment that is required to improve. My box of cut off knots is getting pretty full I may need to get a shoe box!!! Vaya con Dios, Alan

Jon and Troy I really enjoyed getting to meet and hang with you and the others I have only missed a couple of years in the last 9! It is a great event and there is always something to gain from the event. Hopefully others will follow our advice Jon and plan on attending next year. Vaya con Dios, Alan

I had this real nice (OK not so much) response all typed up but didn't post it. I had others read my post to see if I was coming across in a negative way. Granted they are all my friends but I hope they would be my friends and tell me honestly if I was wrong. This thread moved from a questions about techniques to one of character assessment and I helped steer it in that direction though I was trying not to. I guess it depends on how one views "short cuts" and who gets to decide who is the "Best". I will offer this one more notice to Ted; if everybody sees things one way but you see it differently, maybe just maybe, you might at some point consider that you may in some small fraction of a way be wrong! There I said it and I know it is off topic. On topic we all agree that a good seat is a good seat tin or all leather! And off topic to Ted I would still enjoy visiting with you anytime to discuss "the finer points"of saddle making. Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

Ted, I haven't commented on this post just watched it progress. I have to say that your post sound a bit condescending and I am not sure if that is your intent. I have met a few of the saddle makers on here and I know a few of their reputations. Quite a few of them have spent considerable time with Dale and Steve and Chuck and Chas and Jeremiah etc. not just a couple of days or weeks. Unless I am mistaken you were the receipent of the TCAA scholarship and spent a week with Steve. Not to belittle your time with Steve, I personally know Steve and I know the quality of his work first hand but to state that you learned "the finer points of saddlemaking in Steve Mecum's shop" in a week, merely shows how much you have to learn. And using the metal strainer IS actually a short cut that saves you cutting another piece of leather and takes a little less time. That does not make it a BAD thing just a different thing. And you are wrong not all the saddle makers in the TCAA use metal strainers. I have posted mis information on these forums and have had to correct myself before and have been corrected by others on here. I have also received personal messages from some telling me how my stance was coming across. There is so much to learn about saddle making and I make an honest effort at letting my ego go and not feeling defensive about my position because it closes me off to being receptive to suggestions. I know that you state on your website that you want to continue to learn and grow as a saddle maker but your post on this topic seem to contradict that. I have never made an all leather ground seat but I am willing to try just to see if I like it better as a maker AND to expand my knowledge and craft. I really respect the saddle makers in the TCAA and will be attending a carving seminar by Rick Bean and Chuck Stormes this Feb to try and improve in that area. Maybe I will see you at that and we can visit about things there too. I also try and make it to the exhibition and sale every year so we may meet at that. This year some saddle makers got together to visit about trees and David Morgan (Dennis Lane's System) was there as was Jon Watsabaugh and Troy West from this forum. Nice discussions and Jon had some trees he's made to look at and critique. I hope you take this in the spirit it was written in and someday we may get together to visit too. Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

I don't know if this is necessary but I wanted to mention that Rawhide1 said he was crowning when in fact he was wall and crowning. They call it that because it flows off the tongue better but you actually crown then wall in order for the strands to come out going up. To crown you are crossing over the each adjacent strand and to wall you are going up between the cross you made in crowning. Vaya con Dios, Alan

I'll be in San Diego from the 5th thru the 9th and may have some time to visit folks. Vaya con Dios, Alan

Hey Lilpep, sorry for the delayed response and as a matter of returned curtesy let me thank you for your service to this country!. I don't really know all the ins and outs of the naming of all the different types of knots although I should! But if I am not wrong the foundation is a 'casa' or house which houses the interweave. So the pineapple is an interweave pattern I did weaving into the 6 bite casa. The pineapple is a herringbone pattern with nested interweaves meaning I didn't exit the casa (making a new bite) at each end rather I went under how ever many strings to start the next direction. I hope this makes sense (and is correct) and if it isn't correct then it should be! LOL Let me know! Vaya con Dios, Alan

The other thing (I think I show this on the tutorial) is to have a grid to braid over. I will make 4 lines the length of the braid dividing into 4 quadrants and 3 lines around the dowel or noseband or whatever (for long knots) one center and one each side equidistance. The braid will cover the lines up and you can use them to line up the x's. Looking at your first pic as you start the back braid let's look at the strands going upper left to lower right in the first pass and look to see where they cross over a strand. That is where your spiral started! Your foundation was crooked to begin with. (bad Mikey, bad Mikey) Having lines underneath will aid in keeping this from happening. Then once you start your turn back you have to be extra careful because as you pull each strand you will be turning the foundation little by little but don't feel too bad I still battle this and I've seen bosals by Louis Ortega that spiral at one end! You have to check and re check each time you turn a strand back. Vaya con Dios, Alan

Maeve, Depending on what you ordered the hides will come vacuum sealed and frozen. They will be a bit of a mess. The hides will vary in thickness over the hip is thicker than the belly the back is sometimes thick but a cow that walked under a flybag will have ruined its back for making lace the neck is thicker too. The hides thicken from the belly towards the spine and from the middle out to both ends basically. You will want to cut circles of relatively uniform thickness to make it easier to have your strings come out with the least amount of prep work. Some stretch the string from cowhide to remove any future stretch from the string prior to braiding with it. I have found that the very act of making the lace usually stretches it quite a bit and that is generally enough. For what it is worth I know that Nate does it this way as he is basically my mentor with braiding. Nate has also reversed/flipped his lace through the splitter and skived off the hair layer (as opposed to skiving off the flesh) and made thin lace out of cow that way. I have not tried that method yet. The other option you could have used in you area would to go to a meat processing plant like Rob described and following his instructions. When I started out I used Confer's rawhide too, EVERY braider I met told me that my work would improve if I started making my own rawhide! They were right, so I'm passing on this thought to you. One or two plastic trash cans, a 2x12x8, 2 saw horses, a sharp knife or two, a bag of lime and a frame of some sort (either a hoop -best- or a square) and you are in the rawhide making business! Hopefully you have a backyard to do this in as apartment owners frown on this sort of thing in the parking lot! On the plus side though no one in your apartment complex will tease you (to your face!) once they see you fleshing a cowhide! Vaya con Dios, Alan

Terry, Although I've never done it I would imagine that you could do a raffle as suggested for $100 a ticket and make out pretty good. I use to buy $10 tickets from an Argentine knife maker that would only sell as many tickets as his original asking price and then draw the winner. In your case you would set a time limit, get say a few hundred tickets to sell, get family and friends to sell say 10 each, (spread them out so it is not too much of a burden on any one person) and set a time limit for the drawing. Do a 'need not be present to win' type of deal and maybe have the childs parents do the actual drawing. Sometimes the winner will even re-donate the item to be raffled again! Good luck and we will keep the boy in our families prayers! Vaya con Dios, Alan

The TCAA catalog for this year is now online! I'll be heading there this weekend to hang out and visit with the makers and see their gear firsthand. If any of you are considering going there look me up and say Hi. Vaya con Dios, Alan

I'll be heading there next weekend to visit with everybody. These guys are truly amazing and seeing the work in person really adds to the experience and appreciation of what they are accomplishing! The little details that you don't see on the computer screen are worth the trip! If any of you are going to be there say Hi! Vaya con Dios, Alan

Actually, I think you saw a rope braided out of 2 strands middled and then the braid is made of the 4 ends. Take 2 strands twice as long and middle them then cross the middles on over the other. Now you have made your 2 strands into 4. Braid on from there and at the other end you can take the 4 ends and crown each one over the other (like those plastic lanyards and key chains from grade school) and the wall them or go up under the "x"'s made from crowning so all 4 strands come out of the top of your new knot. This will terminate the end (hence the mane 'terminal knot') and if you wanted you could cover that terminal knot with a prettier knot. Hope this helps. Vaya con Dios, Alan

Hey KAW, long time no post! Glad to see more of your stuff here! Great looking knife and sheath! As usual! Vaya con Dios, Alan

Thanks Everyone, Vaya con Dios, Alan

Gosh Dang Rob, no wonder you can't make it to my party!!! Your hands must be plum braided off!!! Nice work! Really impressed! Vaya con Dios, Alan

Any of you going to be in the Dallas/Ft Worth area on Sept 5th are welcome to come by for my HI WYEE 50 B Day party! We're roasting a pig, drinking, having a jam session, drinking, riding horses, fishing, and ohh yeah there may be a little drinking for those so inclined! There are hotels for the weak hearts or you can camp on the ranch! We'll make a pallet for anyone. Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

Any of you going to be in the Dallas/Ft Worth area on Sept 5th are welcome to come by for my HI WYEE 50 B Day party! We're roasting a pig, drinking, having a jam session, drinking, riding horses, fishing, and ohh yeah there may be a little drinking for those so inclined! There are hotels for the weak hearts or you can camp on the ranch! We'll make a pallet for anyone. Vaya con Dios, Alan Bell

Nice post Rob! Thanks for taking the time to post this! Vaya Con Dios, Alan

WOW Robb that reata looks nice. Do you get a lot of questions when you use it in the branding pen?? Folks around here ask me why I'm riding a Mexican saddle (Wade) and using so much rope!!! I have only made basic using reatas and I guess one day I'll have to go ahead and make a nice fancy one too! My first one is now the core to several bosals!! What aren't you happy with? I think you are doing a good a job as I've seen? Once you get that one broken in I bet it will be just fine! Does Mike do much reata roping? I'd like to visit you some time and we can work on some loops. I can never get enough reata roping!!! Here's a pic of a horse I raised and trained, a saddle I made, a reata I made and a bosal I made. Kinda like a nice calling card. Vaya con Dios, Alan

Hey Robb, Good to hear from you! I'm sure we had to have met. How are Mike and Cindy doing? The last time I don't think Cindy came just Mike and his daughter. I try and go to OKC for the auction every year. Hopefully I'll make it this year too. The class never actually happened and I was trying to think up something that could be started and finished by most folks over a weekend. I know Mike and Cindy give classes and have folks usually build a quirt. With Nate and Leland you usually just show up and work on what ever you are interested in making not really a formal class type setting. I'd really like to help folks get started or to refine what they do and I would sure like to visit with you and share things! You can also send me a private email through this board in case I don't get around to checking the board it will give me an alert in my regular email. Vaya con Dios, Alan

Russ, there is nothing that says you can't thin the shape of the needle if it is pushing the strings to far apart for your liking. Get out a file and shape it the way you like it. If you screw it up they are cheap enough to get another. I also put a little bend in them so they go under and up and they come out easier without moving the strings so much AND make sure you try and re position any moved strings as you go along. It is much easier to do it right after they have been moved than later. I guess it's like Kirk reprogramming the computer to defeat the Kobayashi Maru test at Star Fleet Academy! Live Long and Prosper, Alan

Good job, Ben. I'll let others with more experience help you with the stirrup slots but it looks like you pulled your plugs out to soon when fitting the seat? Vaya Con Dios, Alan