Art

Hi Ed, I have the Pres-n-Snap (actually I have two). Check out the Sailrite video here: http://www.sailrite.com/Pres-N-Snap-Fastener-Tool;jsessionid=0a01074d1f430d8b9dff886b4dc89291d50e408f2ae3.e3eTaxaQbxmTe34Pa38Ta38Qa3r0 Buy it somewhere else, they charge way too much for it, I paid $80 or $90 a few years ago. Art

Please don't forget a can of Masters Thinner. Art

Hi Bruce, A cease and desist demand is about all it is worth. If you really want to pull his chain, file it in your local district court. Art

Hi CW, Sometimes just putting it in the sun will darken it up a shade, assuming you haven't put anything together yet. Art

Hi Mash, Radius your corners, especially straps, but in general a square corner is a place to hang-up, poke you, or just generally not "flow" anywhere. Groove your stitch lines and use a stitch marker, or a sewing machine. Six spi is a good place to start. Use the overstitch wheel after stitching to purdy things up. However, it is a good functional design and for the first sheath it looks a heck of a lot better than mine did. Art

Hi Rob, Bob Kovar is over in Toledo Ohio, Steve Tayrien is out in California. I know that machine pretty well, and Steve, Bob (and little Bob) have been working on them for years. We're all right here. Steve is The Leather Machine Company http://leathermachineco.com/ and Bob is Toledo Sewing Machine S/S. Don't know if Bob has an ad here, but he's in the book. Art

It is a great medium weight machine, should handle up to 20oz easily. What motor does it have?, if it is a fast one, you might want to change it out to a servo. See if you can get smooth feet and dog from Superior or maybe Ferdco. It will be a good chap machine, breast collars and spur straps too when you slow it down. Art

The answer is somewhere here on the board. We have covered it before. However, to get your questions answered, call Steve Tayrien at 1-866-962-9880. Art

Not a waste of time, just the OTB catalog is a little hard to find things in. The stuff I order all the time I know exactly, but if I am looking for something specific, it can be a page by page affair, and it is easy to miss it. They did have the short ones though. Art

Hi again Michi, You can also make your own C&Ds whatever length you want, just get 5/8 SS strap and 5/8 Dees (again from Weaver) and make them , just take a small set of end nippers or a punch and crimp them, then drill the hole. Art

What Page? Art

Hi Michi, Weaver 273 Clip & Dee 5/8 by 3.5" long SS, now the bad news, you have to drill your own hole. We've discussed this before on here, buy a quality drill bit to do this. Cost about $1.50 to $2.00 US. Art

It is most probably a surface plate, used for machinery setups. At least mine is. Even grade C is way flatter than you'll ever need for leatherwork, however, even grade "B" surface plates are relatively cheap, except the shipping. Art

Hi Heather, Bellies should go to the Boy Scouts. For an answer, look to commercial operations. Take Jeffries for instance. I don't remember seeing a belly in the place, mostly Sedgwick backs. So now you have enough bellies, start buying backs till you run out of bellies, which may be never. I would venture that the producers use better leather (cosmetically) then their sides so they can get higher prices. But the difference is only .95/foot, it's almost a no brainer. Art

They take care of cleanup at the distributor. Put the oil in and you are good to go. Call Steve about the threading, It is Sewing Machine 101, but he is a patient guy. Art

Well, I can't be "aside", so most of the double shoulders I buy are 50/50 6-7oz and 7-8oz. Now forgetting that I ever made a holster, 6oz is kind of a universal type thing and maybe on the 5-6oz side of that. If you have a splitter then you can make whatever out of a 7-8oz hide (small stuff). If you can't make up your mind, call Springfield leather and get them to cut you what you want. Sure it costs a little more, but until you know what you need, getting some of this and some of that in small sizes is way less painful than buying some of this and some of that in sides or shoulders. When they cut leather, you also get a pretty much blemish free piece. Art

Hi Max, Usually, I don't oil before only after dyeing, but on very dry leather I oil before then let it sit for a few days, then deglaze and dye. Art

Of course, leave it to Chuck to NOT mention about the best knife sheath tutorial out there, so I'll do it for him. http://www.centercross.com/cciv/Custom_Knife_Sheaths_with_Chuck_Burrows.htm Art

oil only if hide needs it 2 days before dying. Deglaze right before dying. Art

Sometimes hides just dry out a little (or a lot). For whatever reason, they need to be oiled and set aside for a few days, then maybe even repeat the process if necessary. If you start with a dry hide and then use spirit (oil dye is a spirit dye not an oil dye) or water based dyes, the uptake will be good, but after drying the hide will be dryer. I use neatsfoot, #1 Saddle Oil, Montana Pitchblend Oil (not the paste) or Pecards. They all have seemed to work if allowed to work their way into the hide. Art

Yes, except with credit cards. Card gets through but usually gets charged back 30 or more days later. They always want you to wire money to the shipper. This is a scam that is currently in vogue, and they get their victims from your website. If you bite once, they will generally follow-up with another very quickly, usually for a larger amount. Any time they want you to send any money anywhere, it is a scam. They don't want your merchandise (which can be traced through shipping), they want your money (if it is cash, wire, or western union the trail run cold fast). Always make sure Names, Addresses, and cc numbers match, call the cc company to match names on cc. For big tickets they will use multiple cc, sometimes with consecutive numbers. The bottom line is that if they know you won't play, they cross you off their list. Art

Back in the day, when HO cut shoulders, I used them. They don't do that anymore, so I use sides. I felt that I got the best yield from Double Shoulders for gunbelts and holsters (Cowboy). For CC holsters and belts, you might get better yield from sides. Art

The GC 128-B machines that are made by Highlead are a nice little boot top machine that won't break the bank. They are generally provided with a roller foot, servo motor and a speed reducer. By the time you get all that on a 31-15 the costs are getting real close. They are also sold as a 5550B. http://www.leathermachineco.com/catalog.php?item=28 Art

Whatever you buy, you will need something that sews SLOW. This kind of lets out the used machines. Most are from industrial shops where they sew fast, real fast. Also, don't ever buy anything without the Table/stand, there are just too many variations, particularly the holes and the hinges. Take Steve's advice and call and talk to him, there aren't many dealers out there, but Steve can give you the names of most of them, if he can't, I will, just PM me. Service is extremely important and you want a dealer who can and will hold your hand over the phone to work through any problems. Art