whinewine

Hello, Jock: I believe that all of us are unsure about what you are trying to communicate. Are you trying to BUY buckles or are you trying to SELL buckles for you/from you? Are they: all leather, leather covered, or what? In my part of the US, for instance, belt buckles (of any sort) are VERY DIFFICULT to sell, because most people will buy a belt with the buckle permanently attached (in other parts of the US, results may be different- I don't know...). In the '70s, buckles were very popular & people would change buckles depending on their moods- the '70s are long, long past, however, around my neck of the woods. [if you are interested in buying leather covered buckles with exotic leather inserts, btw , I have many, many for sale- CHEAPLY- &, I'm sure, others on this forum do also.] Anyway, please clarify. Thanks. russ

Try http://www.prorodeooriginals.com - great work, very fair prices. These guys made up a complex die for me that another maker told me that it was 'so difficult that it would cost me over $300' if they tried to make it- Chris at Pro Rodeo made mine for less than $190 including shipping and the ejection foam- and it's a full welded die, not a steel rule die. I would recommend them whole-heartedly. russ

My condolences also. Your mother & I had had a few conversations in the past. She was a lovely person & will be missed. So sad. russ

For the hydraulic shop presses, I'd suggest getting the extended warranty. My 20 ton shop press jack died yesterday & I had to get another one- I got the extended warranty on that one & now I have 2 years instead of 90 days with the jacks. (The jacks are probably chinese or taiwanese made, so there is a good chance they will fail- at the MOST inopportune time, as in my case .) And for $10 + tax, it's worth the protection. At some point, I'm going to try to repair the bad one, but it may not be worth it...

Contact Springfield- they have leather glow very similar to the old version from the '70s- much, much nicer than the current stuff tandy is now selling. I don't have a catalog handy, so I don't know if they have it in quarts or not.

I think some of the confusion concerns the old, turpentine-based antiques. For those, Neatlac did not bond as a final finish coat. I don't know about the more modern, wax-based/paste & gelflo antiques... russ

I thought that clearlac (neatlac) is glossy IF you DON'T buff. I have never buffed neatlac & it's glossy...

We had a woman at an event come up & ask us to try to sell her husband another flask- he had purchased his from us several years before & she felt it was so worn that he should have another. Later she brought him around to our booth & he showed us his original flask, and yes, it was well used. But he really liked (loved??) that flask & wouldn't part with it, even when we offered a new one at a reduced price. That's when you know you're OK, when someone really likes one of your creations & won't part with it for any reasonable price...

Hi: looks like vegtan because of the word, possibly 5- 7 or 7-8 or 9 oz (hard to tell without a significant closeup... I'm going to go out on a limb, but perhaps the natural striations in the leather may have come from a belly piece , or an area with fat wrinkles (maybe neck or shoulder) , because of the faint, but distinct stretch marks (which, btw, does add to the character) Sources: anyone who sells tooling leather- tandy, springfield, among many, many others: coloring- you'll need to do that yourself...

Clay: there was another fairly comprehensive post a few months back concerning use of a foodsaver. They do work, although probably not as well as a commercial vacuum press, but if you have one, they're fine. I've used mine with a fair amount of success. Do a search. The biggest problem with the bags is that the one side is bumpy- easily solved by inserting another piece of bag material with the smooth side against the leather... russ

I really don't know, ken. I'm not a chemist. If you contact Fiebings, they should be able to tell you, OR, you could try on a piece of silver plate to see if there is any effect (I would think probably not, but what do I know).

Hello: I am looking for a source for a small amount of ejection foam that is used in steel rule dies to eject the punched out item. . Does anyone have a source- I don't need a lot - maybe about 1 square foot & 3/8 - 1/2 inches deep (half inch deep stuff would probably work the best). Thank you in advance. russ

It's not. It's ethyl acetate, not alcohol. Nasty stuff. Doesn't even smell like alcohol. It needs to be used outside, because of the smell (& flamablilty). Use with gloves. Treat it with respect.

Or, you can spray it with yellow dye (I used to, back in the '70s if I didn't want to pay for Tandy's nature-tand [my manager once told me that nature-tand was dyed because some of the top grain was sanded off because of the blemishes- I really don't know for sure, though]). Again, you used to be able to buy Omega yellow dye by the quart, so it was very economical to do it then, but I guess not now, Maureen. russ

I'm not going to comment on the odor, as I rarely use rubber cement, but I will note that rubber cement is used primarily if things are to be taken apart (as in temporarily gluing leather to a piece of cardboard, plastic or whatever to prevent stretching while tooling...). If you want a permanent bond, you'll need contact cement or the white, water-based leathercraft cement - which is also a contact cement. The words 'tanners bond' really mean nothing-- [like: 'JUMBO shrimp', or 'NEW, Improved taste' (vs the 'OLD, BAD taste'????), or 'Window Washers' Water- now with H2O'] The big question is: how permanent will the bond between the piece & the liner need to be? Something that will be flexed regularly will need to maintain a good bond, vs something, like a mouse pad, perhaps, could get by with rubber cement...

And the cutter arm doesn't creep? (The olfa circle cutter DOES creep, even in lighter weight leather, even chap leathers.

Love the Targe. Love the Amerikilt, too!

Chris Wright, http://leatherburnishers.com manufactures & sells a variety of cocobolo burnishers that fit drills/drill presses & also dremels. He also will make custom burnishers to your specifications. Excellent, excellent craftsmanship ! His avatar name here is "spinner".

Saddle lac, like neat lac, like clear lac, is a lacquer based finish & much more impervious to water over time than an acrylic (satin shene), or water based finish .

Yes, as Kings said, it is NOT water proof (nor is it water resistant); it is NOT a water barrier finish and it WILL spot. It DOES have a nice mellow finish that many fellows here like, though.

There are many threads here on the boss. Just do a search for Tipmann Boss.... FWIW, I have one that I purchased that was a demo & we had lots of trouble with it. Mr. Tippmann personally had me ship it back & it was totally gone over- broken & bent parts were replaced- I love it now - works like a dream . Their customer service is superb! For the small amount of machine stitching we do, it fills the bill admirably. Yeah, an electric would be nice, (& maybe sometime in the future), but for $1000 less, you can't beat the Boss, IMO, [plus there are many that show up on ebay for $$$ less than retail.].