whinewine

Ed: I have exactly the same press & it does a great job. I use it to set rivets with the dies that are included; plus you get the original anvil that comes with it. It also uses the Tandy dies, too. I purchased tandy's dies for line 20 & line 24 snaps. The only thing I don't like is with only 1000lbs of pressure, if you try to use it as a machine to impress images (like with the 3-D stamps), you don't get a deep impression (in all fairness, I haven't bolted it down & used an extension handle for more leverage, so it might be possible after all- I need to try that once I clear off part of my woodworking work bench) (One word of caution- tandy's domed cap component to the line 20 dies (the rounded part that the domed cap sits in) isn't machined properly, so in all probability, you'll get your caps stuck- as in big-time-wedged-super-tight- in the die & you'll need to use side cutters or pliers to get them out= which means you've ruined the cap. I use the cap component for the line 24 snap die in conjunction with the rest of the line 20 components. That's the only way they'll work properly. BTW, if you have access to a machine shop, they can machine out the cap component so that the caps don't get stuck & wedge in there.)

Binder clips, bulldog clips or Acco clips.

I'm working on a sporran that my son wants to be in black. We tried a scrap of eco coal black last night & this morning with 2 coats is was VERY black- and almost NO CROCKING. I ordered a quart & will pick up Saturday. I'm (so far, anyway) impressed but I won't know until I dye the whole sporran to determine how well the dye saturates. BTW, eco coal black is the only eco dye that tandy recommends NOT be sprayed.

Happy Birthday, Johanna Russ

They also have another book "The Great Book of Celtic Patterns" with about 190 pages. Good book!

For those of you who have the tool called the Jerry Stripper, you all know that replacement blades can be difficult to find. The standard, commonly available blades (like Stanley) are all too long to fit the tool. AC Moore carries Xacto blades (#X292) which are shorter, and are exactly the right size for the Jerry Stripper. Their cost is $3.49 per 5-pack, but if you register at WWW.ACMOORE.COM , they will email you weekly coupons of 40% (usually) or 50% (often) off any one regular priced item, so your final cost can be as low as $1.75 per pack. It's a lot easier than searching the web & paying inflated shipping charges on top of the cost of the blades. Btw, AC Moore does also sell some Tandy stuff, too, sometimes at closeout prices.

Yes. The dyes are penetrating into the leather, whereas Cova is really a paint and sits on the surface. If you try to apply penetrating dye over the Cova it'll really muck up the Cova.

I can relate- been there, done that- scary as hell when the dremel is twisting up the leg of your pants :horse: way, way too close to 'the good ole boys', (so to speak).

Definitely neat! I like it! Russ

I'm curious about the quality of Weaver Leather Company's Master Series of tools, especially of their round knife. How does the quality of that knife compare to, say, a Danny Marlin knife (or, at the other extreme, an Osborne knife{a new one}, or, at the very worst, one of the Pakistani made knives offered on ebay)? If I spend money on a round knife, I want to get decent one, NOT a piece of junk that'll look good in a hand made sheath but never gets used because it's impossible to keep sharpened. Their tools look so nice in the catalog, and there are currently a number of punches being offered on ebay.

Has anyone used, or can compare the quality of, WEAVER LEATHER COMPANY'S Master Series Round Knife to say, a Danny Marlin round knife, or, at the other extreme, an Osborne round knife? I'd really like to know before I invest in a round or head knife. Thank you in advance.

Thanks. Russ

It's weird, but occasionally you see offered on ebay, pattern sheets on how to make things like sword frogs & other medieval items ... & these are Tandy (or The Leather Factory) tear-off sheets from at least several years ago. Why they do not continue these now (now that renfaire stuff is so big) is totally beyond my comprehension (maybe it is part of that 'brilliant' strategy that closed the Tandy stores some time back..."hey - if we close all the stores, we can save tons of money by not having to pay managers & assistants & keep inventory in all those different stores- everyone can order everything on line, 'cause all leather is totally uniform & consistent in quality, right???" ).

Johanna: can he sharpen head/round knives? That is a specialty very few people know how to do correctly. (I noticed that there is no mention of that service, so I'm just wondering if he does that.)

Thank you. The edge was pretty simple to do. I just used a strip of leather, glued on, and with upholstery tacks for decoration. The edge design itself was enhanced with Tandy's new eco-flo highlighter, "gold frost".

Holly: here is my first attempt at making a bodhran. Just finished it. Thanks for all your aid & assistance. (And yes, you were right about the difficulty of tracing the design on to the rawhide.) Russ

In all probability you might need to contact a manufacturer to die-punch the needed blank out of sheet steel. Tandy's 'buckle back ring & hook', #1803-00, is the closest I could find, but it has only a single prong. Actually, it might just work, if the ring is removed & the part of it that the ring rotates in is flattened out. Sew in the blank as on the original- the only difference is that you'll have only a single, rather than a double prong. (I don't know if it is absolutely necessary to have a double prong, especially if your keeper loop is sufficiently snug).

i think it sometimes has a lot to do with the threads used. on stuff that i've found that comes apart, a drop of superglue tends to hold it in place

Hide Crafter has 2 sizes listed (#1308-00 & #1309-00= small & large) for about 6.95 each

Before I retired from the Department of Corrections, I used to say " Ah, gee, I just got outta jail a coupla hours ago & I did some stuff & I think I'm gonna hafta go back maybe tomorrow. But whatcha offerin' me? I'm innerested, fer sure!" Tended to stop the conversation pretty quickly...

Thank you. I appreciate this. Russ

Holly: How did you apply the design to the bodhran? Did you trace it (and how?) & paint it, and what type of paint (or dye) did you use? I really like it. I'm in the process of making my first bodhran & I'd like to decorate it. Thank you. Russ

This would be a variation on a center-finding ruler that can be purchased at any store that sells supplies for cutting mats for photographic prints. This, however, would be a center-finding T-square & have added advantages over the c-f ruler. (Johanna: I tried to copy & paste a picture of a center finding ruler, but somehow was unable- ??- anyway, if someone can paste a pic of it, you'll see the similarity) And yes, I also would be interested in a center-finding t-square. I would think there would be a market for these in exactly the same places that sell the center-finding rulers (art stores, fabric stores, specialty wood shops, photo shops that mat prints, framing shops, etc)

The color is in the skins, NOT in the scales (which are transparent). What about either: 1) using a conditioner, such as bick4 or lexol, or care4, or some such? or: 2) rub off the dry scales, apply appropriate conditioner & when dry, use clear paste wax & polish? I've used neatlac to seal the scales on belt buckles, but I don't know if that would be appropriate for boots (I really don't think so). Supershene will not seal the scales, but neatlac will. (A really stooopid question: if the customer realizes that the scales will rise up over time, why would he buy another pair?? just curious as to the thinking process involved)

Ah: just the product I have been looking for. Does anyone have any further information on this product (full name, manufacturer, distributor, colors available, etc???