whinewine

Joe, if you do a search through the posts, you will find many, many references to the black spirit dyes crocking (rubbing off). Black is notorious for this, and it doesn't matter the maker of that spirit dye, be it under the Tandy label (when they carried spirit dyes), the Fiebings label or the old Omega dyes. (I have never used Fiebings oil dyes, so I can't comment about that product.) But a short version of the multitude of posts is: black CROCKS. You've got to rub & rub & rub with a cloth to remove as much as possible before sealing. Most people would lay down a coat of dark blue or green or brown to prepare the surface, let dry, then apply black, let dry, then buff, buff, buff, buff, buff & buff till no more comes off on a cloth. Then seal. I have used eco flo black and I do like it, because it doesn't need a pre-coating of another dark dye before application, and it doesn't crock to any great extent. While it doesn't crock like the spirit black, the color is not quite as rich as a spirit black, but relatively close. What I don't like about it is that is is water-based, which means that, unless well sealed (on ALL sides) it will bleed under moist conditions (rain, perspiration, etc). Then there's always vinegaroon. russ

Their website http://www.wickett-craig.com will give you a history of their operations for 140 years. At some point I will make the trip there & purchase some really good leather. russ

Did you use a metal hammer? If so, this is why. NO leathertools are made to be struck with a metal hammer. None. russ

Luke & Jim are absolutely correct. The speedy stitcher is ONLY good for a temporary, on the spot repair. The stitches aren't locked, so if you pull one of the threads, it'll all (awl -lol ) unravel. Learn to use 2 needles. If you only have 1 needle, do a running stitch, then go back when you've hit the end- that is STILL a lot better than the speedy stitcher (or any of the clones- myers, etc). russ

And she is phenomenal - great prices, fast turnaround- my son & I each have a maker's stamp she made for us! russ

It's over... let's put it in the past & NOT dwell on it & lets get on with things that really matter- as Johanna said, "LEATHERWORK"

CK, assuming that the leather will accept the dye evenly & at the same rate, either dip OR spray. Never daub for a large area. Others may disagree with me, but I've never had great success with a dauber. By the time I get an even coverage, I've wasted what I consider a great deal of dye. My own preference is to spray (but i'll use a dauber for the edges, though). Better quality leathers tend to accept the dye much more evenly, inexpensive... well, maybe yes, maybe no. russ

I'm not sure that any ever made it to production, or were released to the public. After the big advertising fanfare, that fiasco died a quiet death. I was told there were some MAJOR copyright infringements. (And looking at the pics, anyone would say 'well, yeah, duh!').

For those who DO have extra both fine & coarse hair blades, you can drill out a medium exacto knife handle on both ends & put one in each end. Drill slightly larger than the shaft diameters & you can hold them in place with a strip of very thin leather. I did that with mine & now I have 2 swivel knife barrels that hold 2 different Henleys; and now I have my choice of either coarse or fine blade in 1 tool.

Just a speculation: because Super Shene is water-based, perhaps the humidity in the air could be causing it to re-hydrate (or not even dry fully) & stick to stuff. I've had that happen on occasion- another reason I use it ONLY when a lacquer finish isn't compatible. As far as the stuck paper, I think if you re-wet (or soak) that project, the paper will come off. But do it evenly, so you don't leave watermarks. russ

I did finally purchase a Barnsley awl (the 2" diamond awl) from Hale & Co. I have to say, it is a very decent tool- good steel & for $9 + minimal shipping, it is a great buy for the little bit of handsewing in thin leather I do. russ

Not to hijack this thread, but I looked to see where you were from: Houston area. We have friends who moved to The Woodlands from here & they said that the water was terrible from the tap. On a visit, I had to taste it , and yes, I can see why the bottled water industry is thriving! (Now- if only I would have had the foresight - oh well- this is why some people are wealthy & some are not.) russ

Something sticks in my mind that this was used in smoothing/finishing the leather before leaving the factory, like a platen of some sort- ironing the leather?? (of course, there are lots of things in my head, not all of which are real, so take this with a grain of salt...)

Wow! I loved it. It's a phenomenal movie! The only bitch I have about it is the name of the magical substance: 'unobtanium'... to me that cheapens the effect a touch, but overall, a great escape from a bleak & rainy/icy landscape outside. (I wonder if if they'll make a dvd in 3d? [or if that's even possible?- does it need to be specially projected? hmmm?] That would be great- & I still have the glasses.) russ

Gorgeous, Josh, absolutely gorgeous! russ

Hello, I would, just to be safe, use 1] an initial alcohol wipe-down, 2] oxalic acid wash (OA is a bleach mostly used in woodworking & is commonly known as 'wood bleach'), and 3] deglazer to remove oils & oily stains that would screw up absorption of dyes. 4] Conditioner (lexol, Bick 4 or your choice -whatever...) If the leather is heavily cracked, however, I'd say it's toast. russ

Merry Christmas to all, Good Holidays and all that! Last order is shipped & should have been delivered yesterday (or today, at the latest), 1 more day of work, then off till after new years day! Yea! On the 30th, a pilgrimage to the Yuengling Brewery to meet up with the brother-in-law & family coming in from Boston & maybe a trip to Cabelas= double-triple Yeas!

One of the popular and inexpensive items we sell at shows are 4-packs of coasters. It's funny, but people who've bought coasters from us the previous year will often stop by & say that they won't let anyone use them because they like them so much they don't want them to get wet or dirty... go figure... russ

Brad, there was a previous post about them, & I dissed them (& was corrected on the quality); I was informed that they are decent tools & I actually ordered some from Siegel's when I was purchasing some leather from them. They are some of the same brand Japanese tools that Hidecrafters sells. They are not listed as 'crown', they are 'craft Japan' brand & perhaps another manufacturer (?). The quality is generally higher than some of the newer 'craftools' (although their quality IS improving over what was produced a year ago...) & the impressions tend to be much crisper. So, in spite of what I originally said about them, for $5/tool, they're a decent buy, and I stand corrected. russ

Photo shops, sometimes outlet/clearance stores [like Ollies, for instance,] (often you can buy an entire album & remove the pages from the useless covers very cheaply)... you can also order online from various supply houses, but it's probably too late to get in time for Christmas.

Actualy, the seller is out of the picture, at this point (assuming that q***i is NOT the seller- and ebay is pretty firm about this type of behavior). It is merely y***i & q***i fighting (bidding) it out. Btw, I have a bunch of $5 items that I'd like to get these individuals (y***i, o***o & q***i)really interested in.

Again, check out the bid history... one of the same tweedledums, y***i, is now duking it out with a new doofus, q***i & there are still over 4 hours to go in this auction... Oh, who will win THIS bargain??? (And at WHAT price?)[...hand across forehead...swoon...] This is a leathercrafters' soap opera! russ

Lars, Tandy has (had?) a craftaid for laying out grids & one for laying out bling/spots. Your nearest tandy should be able to help you & maybe show you how if you're close enough to stop. russ

If you check the bid history, you will notice the two main doofuses, o***o & y***i , consistently fought to the death once the bid hit $25 . Once they started the 'gottahaveit/gottahaveit/gotta/gotta/gotta/nomatterwhat', the stupidity dam broke over these two and tweedledumb & tweedledumber drowned. russ

Also, Bo: something to be aware of... I don't know how long ago you got the purple dye (Tandy eco-flo?), but I believe it was last year that Tandy removed ALL their purple dye because it would turn to grey. It had to be reformulated so it wouldn't deteriorate. The local tandy store was selling theirs for about 50 cents or $1 a bottle just to get rid of it & telling their customers why. Btw, since eco flo IS water based, water applied with a sponge should help smooth out/weaken the color, so you can then use a preval sprayer as Luke says. I don't really know how effective deglazer is with water based stuff. You might use oxalic acid to bleach it lighter before use of the preval sprayer (or, like some people here say, use lemon juice?) russ