whinewine

By the way, I should have clarified my post: the preval units are NOT airbrushes. (I do have an airbrush, which I use for close- in dyeing, but they are NOT good for large areas.- so I use the Preval units). I just feel that the dauber puts on too much dye, which, if it is spirit dye, tends to make the leather too hard & stiff because it removes too much of the oils in the leather. I've had customers even complain that the carved, but lightly sprayed leather was 'too hard'- so i worked in lots of lexol for them.

You might try bleaching??? Oxalic acid, which tandy no longer carries, or wood bleach from Lowes or Home Depot, might (or certainly might not) work to lighten it up. I believe there are other posts on this site on using bleach (maybe even one about using lemon juice). Unfortunately, the damage may be already done, and nothing may help at this point, but good luck. (Fiebing dyes tend to be dark, anyway.) I find it better to spray my dyes, rather than use a dauber or a paintbrush. Daubers always streak and one ends up doing more applications of dye to try to even out the color- hence, the very deep colors. Spraying makes the colors go on lighter, uses less dye and you can spray multiple coats till you get the deepness you want. And the coverage seems to be more uniform on today's leathers which (tend to take dyes less evenly). For coverage of a large area, you can use a spraygun (which I don't have), or you can use the Preval units, which consist of a glass container (holding about 8 oz, or so) and a throwaway power unit. Tandy's prices are a little steep for them- i get mine at places that cater to autobody shops exclusively. For the price of what tandy charges for 1 power unit, i can get an entire unit (glass AND power unit) and have some money left over. Suggestion is to buy several complete units, plus extra power units- that way you can have several different dye colors ready, each in their own separate bottles, ready to go.

Esantoro: I've not purchased the secrets of lacing video, nor the basic assembly video, so I can't comment on those. I did purchase the rolled edges video, but I haven't viewed it yet. If you haven't done much lacing or stitching, I'd say, yes, go for it (especially the lacing video- lacing is something that it really helps to see it done, rather than conceptualize it from a 2 dimensional source [i.e.,book]). What can you lose by investing $5 each for a tape? Now, please note: these guys who present the material are not 'motivational speakers'... not by ANY stretch of the imagination. They can be so boring it's easy to have your mind wander away without you noticing it, but the information presented IS very valuable- you just need to be able to stay awake. (Otherwise, they can tend to whip their audiences into a stupor).

esantoro: hidecrafters also has vhs videos on sale for $5.00 till the end of the month. there is a video called 'use and care of handtools' by andy stasiak, #0050-00. it is an excellent audio-visual that supplements any book-type sharpening guide. i bought it & learned a lot, especially about head knives & swivel knife blade sharpening. for $5, you can't go wrong. they have lots & lots of other titles at the same price, too. their # is 888-263-5277

Bill: yet if you do a google search for HR 1022, you will come up with the references I came up with. A difference is listed as (=h110-1022) as in the http you have listed, vs the http that is listed under my google search(=h109-1022) for HR 1022. Ok, I rechecked: my reference for HR 1022 was done in the 109th congress (2006); it had 2 co-sponsors, it quietly died & never became law. Your reference was proposed in the 110th congress (2007), it has no co-sponsors & has probably the same chance of becoming law (none). Many of these proposals are done with knee-jerk reactions to events that people tend to forget rather quickly, and they likewise tend to die in comittee equally as quickly. Example: both Mother Theresa and Princess Diana died at about the same time, but the Dead Diana saga goes on and on and on, while Mother Theresa was quickly forgotten. I think the Anna Nicole Smith saga will be remembered long after the memories fade of a very disturbed individual shooting innocent people in a salt lake city mall, or of drug dealers/gang members killing innocents in Philly. (And I think Philly has a very restrictive gun law which even prevents the sale of black powder weapons.) Anyway, I don't think you'll need to hide your weapons in an undisclosed underground bunker yet. And we are now both aware. Knowledge IS Power And yes, I do stand corrected. Mea Culpa! My mistake!

When I see stuff like this, I immediately get very suspicious. I would rather check it out than do a knee-jerk reaction, so I did check it out. Under a google search for HR 1022, I found some interesting discrepancies... I found several entries: www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/64xx/doc6408 www.space-frontier.org/projects/thewatch and, most interestingly, www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-1022 which ONLY refers to The George E. Brown Jr. Near Earth Object Survey Act. In all three, there is NOTHING about banning weapons. All 3 references to HR 1022 concern tracking asteroids which will pass near enough to the earth to cause concern, and says NOTHING about weapons bans. However, under another google reference www.babytrollblog.com (listed as 'daily ass and sass') it lists this as the assault weapons item forementioned. This babytrollblog appears to be nothing more than a conspiracy theory website ranting/raving craziness, foaming at its collective mouth. It looks as though it has changed a bit of the address to redirect it (and the unwary) to its own scamming site, much as ebay & paypal addresses are ever so slightly changed and redirected to try to steal your financial information: they LOOK legitimate, but are anything but... When I worked in the State Department of Corrections, I would constantly get crazy emails like this, sent to me by my fellow employees sooo concerned that our freedoms are being taken away and sooo willing to accept this craziness without making the effort to check on the legitimacy of these things. (And, btw, these things are not put out by inmates, but are put out by crazies with their own agendas, such as are spewed out on www.babytrollblog.com.) Bill, I don't mean to be hard on you, or direct this diatribe at you, but I just don't like to see good, honest people be manipulated by dirtbags. I don't mean to offend you, and I apologize if you take offense, but truly, none is meant.

Pella: I actually did buy the tippmann in question & I love it. I haven't had any problems with it, so far. I haven't tried to use it to sew thin stuff, though, and I haven't needed to adjust the stitch length either. I usually sew stuff between 4 and 9 oz with no problems & no need to make any adjustments, either. I've been told that the problems come from people turning the adjustment wheels too far: in other words, instead of making a quarter inch turn, they'll make 2 or 3 turns, which throws the machine out of adjustment. As far as the broken part, call tippmann at 1-866-286-8046. Tell them about your email that was ignored and I'm sure they'll they'll help you & replace the broken part with no problems. ***Companies find it easy to ignore an email but very hard to ignore a real person face to face (or voice to voice, for that matter)!*** Call them: if I don't get results, I always call and speak to a real person. If I'm still not satisfied, I go to that person's supervisor, and so on, up the chain. It doesn't always work, but many times it does. YOU have to be firm, YOU have to be forceful, YOU have to be the one in control.

Major: For a project I made as a business banner to advertise our business, I used FW Acrylic Artists Inks, by Daler Rowney. They are semi-transparent (but pigmented) artists inks, but I've also used them without shaking up the pigment. I found them in AC Moore in the airbrush pigment area of their store. They also carry opaque & transparent (but pigmented) acrylic airbrush dyes (Createx is one of them, and there are other good brand names carried there.). For my project, I used both full strength and diluted dye washes to do my dyeing for this particular project. And no, I didn't airbrush them, I applied them with brushes. I am quite satisfied with my final results in the project, but I don't know how fade resistant they are in relation to the standard spirit dyes (which are VERY fade-able over time). Btw, if you sign up with www.acmoore.com, they offer (mostly) 40% off coupons each week which can save a little bit when buying some leather ...'stuff'... or related items.

nice! very nice!

Which would be the better version to get for just designing knots to load onto tracing paper in my printer- the outline version? (I don't see how the enhanced versions would add anything to what I want to use it for- namely, patterns). Thanks russ

Clay is right about those. I actually have an earlier one in metal, called an 'easy beveler' (I think is the name, anyway). Not a particularly effective tool- certainly never could equal the depth of a real, mallet-driven beveler. This is why they're not manufactured today. You could probably get greater definition with any standard modeling tool, and you don't need the swivel knife part to use it. Made to sell, but not too practical in the real world

David: I like the backgrounding on the notebooks. What is the tool used? I'm always looking for something different & I like the background. Thanks. russ

All I can say is "WOW!"

I believe what you are referring to is an 'overstitch wheel'. You can use it to mark out your stitches for sewing, and, after the stitches are sewn, run it over the stitches to flatten them & press them into the leather. Tandy sells them, as do many other companies. However, I've never heard the term 'stitch chaser'- maybe this is why you can't locate it. The overstitch wheels most commonly sold are either #5, #6 or #7- (the numbers being the number of stitches per inch) although there are other sizes out there, they tend to be less practical than 5, 6 or 7 stitches per inch when it comes to sewing leather.

Romey: I also look forward to your article on metal polishing (in particular) and knife making. Many thanks in advance. Russ

The one by Cheryl Smeja (Wetforming & Lasting) is likewise incredibly boring- good info, but booooooring. She presents her material all dressed in black against an all black background, so (other than what she's showing how to do) all you see is her head & her 2 hands, & most times, just her 2 hands, unnervingly floating in space, unconnected. I wanna see a third hand show up, just to keep me awake & break up the boredom. And she speaks sooo sloooowly & in a monotone that it tends to whip the audience into a stupor. I haven't viewed the 'Making wearable Masks' video yet- just haven't had the energy level to stay awake.

The ruby blades are, I believe, real ruby- not natural, but synthetic ruby, grown in a lab, just like ruby crystals are grown in labs for use in lasers. Same chemical formula, same crystal structure, just grown synthetically. I have a ceramic blade & I have a ruby blade (in addition to steel blades). I almost never use the ceramic- it just doesn't feel right & seems to have much more drag than the ruby blade. I use my ruby more than any other blade, & I've had it since the early '70s. It seems to work better in certain leathers, while my steel blades seem to work better in others. Whichever of the two (ruby or steel) works better in the particular leather I'm working with is the one I'll use, but I do favor the ruby 80% of the time. As far as stropping, I really don't think it will work with ruby (it is the second hardest substance next to diamond- & I don't think stropping a diamond cutting edge with rouge would make it any sharper, at least by a few manual strokes on a strop board, anyway). I think the concept of manually stropping a ruby or a diamond is another urban legend- diamond polishing paste on a lapidary machine would be the way to go- not a few strokes on a piece of cardboard with rouge. Anyway, Marilyn, enjoy your blade, use it, & protect that edge- it IS able to be chipped easily if dropped on marble or any hard surface, and yes, I've heard the tips do sometimes come loose (knock on wood, that's never happened to me!). Just to be sure, get a piece of surgical rubber tubing & place it over the tip to protect it. Don't be afraid to alternate with properly stropped steel blades. You may find the ruby works better in some situations than others, & visa-versa.

It is a really good deal: for the price of one dvd ($19.99) on leather, you can get 3 or 4 different vhs tapes containing the same information as is on each dvd. I ordered 7 this morning. They are reproducing them until Hidecrafters' sale ends (I think till the end of February.)

I've used them, and they're quite 'ok' for general spray dyeing. Definitely not for fine work, but perfectly fine for general dyeing. I've sprayed everything from spirit dyes up to and including neatlac & supershene. (make sure you clean them very well after using supershene & neatlac- otherwise they'll clog). They also use a lot less dye than using daubers. Tandy's prices are a bit on the steep side for these units. I buy mine at automotive supply houses. Google 'Preval': you can contact the company to find out where the nearest supplier is to you. Where I buy mine, I can get an entire cartridge & glass unit for less than Tandy's charge for just the cartridge alone. Also a suggestion: buy a bunch of cartridges- they go dead when you least want them to. Harbor Freight Tools also sells a refillable cartridge/sprayer that you refill from an air compressor. I have one, but I haven't used it yet, so I can't say how well these work.

The ad-aware is pretty simple to set up once it is installed. The SE version is free (& this is what 99% of people use). Some of the features (like ad-watch) are subscription, but most use the free version. There is a help button that gives a pretty good synopsis of how to use it. About once a week I hit the section "check for updates now" and download updates, if there are any, then hit the 'start' button. another screen will come up & I tend to run the 'perform full system scan' feature. Check that box & hit the 'next' button. It will immediately start to scan. When through, it will show a list of 'critical & non critical things: I check both boxes. I tend to quarantine/delete everything there. I do this at least once a week, and always check for updates. Spybot also catches spyware & spyware cookies that proliferate on the web. Most people use at least both programs, in conjunction with anti-virus programs. When checking for updates, I always connect to the web: spybot, for sure, needs an internet connection to get & download updates. Spybot is also a free program & is highly recommended. Good luck.

Also blow out the inside of the mouse after you've taken out the ball. I use canned air. Ad-aware is an excellent program & wouldn't cause that problem. I use that in conjunction with Spybot, also. Both are free programs. Did you get ad-aware from a third party source, rather than from lavasoft? If so, you may have gotten some nasty spyware bundled with it. When you boot it up, it should say something to the effect: Ad aware SE, 1999-2005 Sweden... In all probability, your mouse needs to be cleaned. See if that helps.

It looks like a latigo (although the strap seems to have a chrome tanned, greyish center line- it just may be the lighting, though). Latigos can be stamped, but not particularly well, and are unsuitable for carving fine detail. The key to carving/tooling/stamping is: DOES IT TAKE WATER? If you can put a drop of water on the leather & it immediately soaks in, it is vegetable tanned & should be able to be tooled. Latigo tends to be more water resistant, although it can take on some water, hence, it can be stamped, but you don't get a lot of definition. It is a nice purse, with a nice, simple stamped design. Nothing wrong with it!

Wow! that was messed up: glad you got it replaced. Tandy has always been quite fair in replacing things & they do try to keep customers happy. Not all tools are made well & sometimes things slip through quality control, so if you get something defective, don't grumble- return it. A grumbling customer is an unhappy customer: and an unhappy customer won't be back. :fire:

I used to write for the old "Make It With Leather" magazine (30-some odd years ago) till I got out of leather and got out of writing and went into various other careers; after I retired I decided to return to leather & started writing again. So far, I had an article published on constructing a 3-legged stool (Nov/Dec 06) and have another article in for submission, with at least 2 more fermenting in my head right now. It is up to all of us to use our specialties to bring more balance to the only leather related magazine out there. If we whine about the 'horsey slant' of the magazine without doing something about it (like submitting articles about stuff we know and care about, for instance), we have no one to blame but ourselves. Writing an article isn't difficult, and with digital, photography is even easier than 20 years ago. Rachel at the Journal will even help you along.

I copied this link to my personal files for ready reference: basketweave is something so simple, yet if you don't do it on a regular basis, you so very easily forget & screw it up- ask me, I've done it more than I care to remember (& that's because I don't!- because I don't do it enough) :