Go2Tex

Oh jeeze.... stop it. You're making my head hurt. My eyes glaze over everytime I read some article about taxes and business this and that. I understand income and I understand outgo. As long as I have more income than outgo and I don't try to deduct a trip to the Mustang Ranch as a business expense, I rather doubt Ol' Comrad Samski will be snooping around my underwear drawer for a little undeclared income..... besides, that ain't where I stash it anyhow. I do appreciate the correction on deducting the scrap. I hadn't considered that it was already written off. Speaking of articles that make your eyes glaze over, did anyone understand that last one in the Journal about being your own employee? Can this guy make things complicated or what? If I'm my own employee, I'm gonna ask myself for a nice big raise and nice comfy office..... and eh....oh yeah, and a sweet young thang to take dictation.....

Well now there ya have it. But if all you have time for, ladies and gents, is building saddles, pretty darn soon you end up with a rather substantial pile of really good usable pieces of veg tan, which for lack of a better term, I'll just call "scrap", 'cause try as I may, I can't figure out how to stretch that 8"x3"x2"x.... odd shape into anything resembling a saddle part..... well, except for a latigo keeper and I only need so many of them on one saddle. And yes, I have every intention of some rainy day, running all this nice, useable stuff through my hand crank, buying a clicker and some cookie cutters, (actually, I like your idea, Bruce, of the hydraulic press outfit), and cranking out some really nifty Christmas gifts. On second thought.... actually, now that you mention it, my wife needs something to do besides gardening, house cleaning, waiting on me hand and foot, and er, other wifely duties. I should put her to work in the shop. It'll be good for her.... and the business. I could set her up with a table out on the county road and she could hawk her tomatoes, leather coasters and napkin rings! Until then eh,...... where did I put that number for the Boy Scouts?

YES! Another burning question that I was about to ask. I have waaay too many boxes of real nice scrap that I'm paying a mover to haul it to Texas because I can't see tossing it out. You could try selling some on Ebay, but that seems almost not worth the effort. There's already a lot on there and wasn't selling last time I looked. I'll check with the local Tandy, though. I know he has bellies for sale. Haven't noticed any bins full of scrap. I just know somebody needs my scrap, though. I just know it........surely.... SOMEBODY?

I too have wrestled with the full cap for a post horn. Haven't tackled the donut yet but I suspect I'll be running into that down in Texas. They seem to be popular there. I came up with an alternative that may or may not be all that unique, but it seems to be working for me so far. I suspect it's been tried before. Instead of using the filler piece to wrap the horn base, as is explained in the article in Leathercrafters magazine, I tried using the bottom piece with the wings incorporated into the pattern. I apply the piece in the normal fashion and then overlap the wings as I fold the excess out to form the base of the stitching surface. I mark where I need to skive the wings so they will lay flat together at the back of the horn. It takes a bit of work to get it just right and fortunately, it ain't a big piece of leather 'cause it usually don't work the first few times. Anyhow, the filler and top piece are just cut round with some excess to trim off evenly like you normally do with any horn. If you do the bottom piece right, the lap almost disappears and holds real well. Has anyone else tried this method?

Thanks K-Man! Really appreciate the info. This forum is already paying off! I'll definitely bookmark those links and check them out. Right now I'm sitting here wishing I hadn't packed up all my tools. I'm really itchin' to mess up some leather. Now, if I can just find that box........hmmm

OK, here's a couple pics that I took previously that show a bit of my shop. I already tore my shop down pursuant to my move so I can't dazzle ya with a complete layout.

Thanks for all the pics, guys. Steve, I notice your drawdown has wheels on it. I considered doing that too but wondered about keeping it steady when carving a groundseat, etc, even with the locking type wheels or casters. Does your stand move around on you much?

Steve, What are your thoughts on stamping/carving benches? You must have tried and seen a lot of different arrangements, what has worked out the best for you? With all the granite countertops rage these days, I'm thinking it would be fairly easy to pick up some seconds from a local installer, builder, etc. Any thoughts on using granite for a carving surface? Hey K-man, where do you get your dummy guns? I make a few custom holsters and my biggest problem is obtaining the right model to use for a mold if the customer isn't local.

leathershop.pdf Yeah, like all cutting surfaces, eventually you either have to replace it or refinish it. I guess that's why plain old wood is so popular. I tried sanding the poly board to knock down the ridges but the best solution is to just flip it over and use the other side until it's all chewed up, then, move that piece to a less critical station and replace your cutting surface with new. It's really not that expensive and, after all, it's tax deductible. I've attached, (hopefully), a PDF file of my dream shop floorplan. Let me know what ya'll think of it. leathershop.pdf

So, is there a difference between Armitas and Chinks?

Great topic. But, I am reminded of the old adage, one picture is worth a thousand words. By all means, please post more pics of your shops. One reason this topic is of particular interest to me is that I am in the process of moving and will be setting up shop in a new place. I haven't bought my new place yet so I don't know if I'll be converting someone else's auto shop or barn or whatever into a saddlemaking shop or building my shop from the ground up. I'm tempted to try to find a turn-key shop so I can be up and running in short order but the idea of building my dream shop has a certain appeal as well. I've been building my saddles in a converted portion of my home's 2 car garage. I walled off about 3/4 of one side, insulated it and put up some sheetrock and framed in a door. I put down 3/4" tongue and groove board to soften the concrete floor and used rubber mats to stand on. I used up every inch of space on every wall for tools and every nook and cranny under, beside, behind and over every bench and shelf. My little shop was blessed with good lighting from 2 large windows, an unusual feature for most garages. A small space heater kept me working even on the coldest days and the insulation kept the room an even moderate temperature without the heater. With 3 benches, one stitcher, a stitching horse and a drawdown, there weren't much room for visitors! So, naturally, I can't wait to expand into that big new shop in the near future. The perfect one-man shop, as I figure it, would be about 26x26 and would facilitate a smooth work process flow from the shipping/receiving area, with a large overhead door, to the storage area, cutting area, centralized assembly area, with efficient access to the different tool locations, stitchers, splitters, etc, parts, patterns and other operations such as oil/dye station, then to the pre-ship holding location and then back to the shipping/receiving area. An office area and bathroom, lots of windows for good lighing and ventilation, and a good airconditioning system would complete the design. I'm estimating about $20K. And I dreaming or what?

OK, I confess. I make saddles. Guess that makes me a saddlemaker of sorts. I started in 2002 so I'm still just breaking into the field compared to many of the members here. After reading some of the threads, I'm amazed at how much knowledge is here and I have a feeling I'm going to take away a lot more than I give. Thanks for letting me sit in and learn from you all.

I tried some of it a few years ago and found it waay too soft. It does have a nice golden color but it just really did not have the temper I wanted. It also came with a rawhide spot right down the middle of one of the sides. Hey, ya get what ya pay for.