Nod4Eight

Good info above re veg tanned stuff, I'm pretty new to that so I won't speak to stamping and carving. However, if you check out the sales and aren't afraid to dig you can find good deals at tandy. I recently picked up a whole chap hide for $75 that was 63 ft. That would set you up for many projects. You can also usually find suitable scrap pieces. Keep looking and good luck!

What are you working on Tom? Did it soften up enough to work with?

Thanks for the info. Tandy 2062 will get me headed in the right direction. I'll see what I can do from there.

I'm interested in making a hat like this now. Being new to this site I am collecting a lot of new projects I want to work on - just what I need - more projects! Where can I find patterns for a hat like that?

I don't have a pattern but I know that many farrier aprons are made of mule hide. I've worked with mule hide a little bit on chaps and of course in horn wrapping. It's a very compact leasterh and it seems to be very durable. Most farriers were also blacksmiths and I imagine their aprons are fairly comparablel; although farrier aprons only cover the legs. Not sure about shoemaker and leathercrafter aprons.

Nice job. I was going to suggest taking the top and bottom diameters and halving them, then measuring that out from the middle with the desired height between them - the arc should remain the same from pattern to pattern. I've never made a hat before, what kind and weight of leather did you use there?

TomG, I have used those for practice - simply because I mess up enough when I'm learning to know better than to use more expensive pieces. Soak for a few hours and they will get pliable enough to use. It is a low grade of rawhide, very uneven in thickness. Unless you have a splitter to get it to a consistent thickness it might be difficult to work with. An option that might work for you is scrap pieces of rawhide. I get mine from the scrap barrel at my local Tandy. Odd shapes and sizes, but for a buck I can usually dig through there and find a piece big enough to make an 7 or 8 inch circle. That gives me quite a bit of string to play with for a very small investment. ** Also - I don't give my dog rawhide chews because I don't want her thinking it's OK to chew on rawhide or leather.

Thanks wantmore and lilpep. I just found out I could get the goat hides this past Saturday so hopefuly he calls me soon. As soon as I get it and process it I will post some pics and let you all know. That's interesting that its cut out of strait strips, but it makes sense if it stretches that much.

So, if I make a 2 bight 7 part (using instructions from 376 of the encyclopdeia) then I can raise it, just like going from a 4/3 to a 6/5 - and would end up with a 4 bight 9 part? I want to make sure I'm understanding.

Thanks roo. That's kind of what I figured it would be like. I'll give it a shot. I found out the guy has simply been putting his hides in the burn barrel, so I'm on call for when he slaughters again.

Hello all. I'm new to this site, I stumbled upon it while looking for something (can't remember what exactly) and I gotta say I'm glad I did. It appears to be a fantastic resource! I've been working with leather for several years now, starting out repairing tack and the like. Two years ago I started making chinks and selling to friends and local tack shops, made a few sets of buckin rolls and a set of cuffs for a buddy of mine. Well - this winter I decided to try braiding. I got BGs encyclopedia and started working on it. I had visions of many late winter nights, braiding up a storm making bosals, reatas, maybe a couple of hobbles. What I found out is that it's a little more difficult than it appears - and I now have a whole new vocabulary of made up swear words! I have been cutting my own strings out of scrap rawhide I get from local Tandy, but am currently working on making my own from the hide I saved from a steer. Also have been doing a lot of practice with plastic lace to get the THs and such down. Also - quick question - has anyone worked with rawhide made from goat hide? I recently found a source to get my hands on a few per week. So far I have seen some great work on here, I hope to be able to contribute and of course learn a lot!