Mudruck

Unreasonable? lol, umm..... no. Gasoline to clean it? Yikes, that isn't going to buff out. Yea, I think the warranty has been voided at that point!

When I trace a a firearm I 'roll' it while tracing. Lets see if I can explain this... You set it on the sights, handgrip up and mark where the back end of the frame is and then roll the pistol to the left and mark the bottom of the frame. By rolling it, you will see that it takes into account the thickness of the pistol and then it is repeated on the other side. Tandy has a few videos on the Leathercrafter Library that actually show the technique, but this way I can make a holster and know that there will be plenty of room for the pistol in the holster.

I also have a 21oz maul from Bearman and Beary. It just plain rocks. I mostly do basketweave and other stuff like that so I got a 21oz and with the way that it balances, it feels much lighter then it is. Keeps me working for longer without the wrist strain. Thinking about maybe getting a lighter one, around the 9oz mark for some of my lighter tooling as well.

That is exactly what I imagine is happening... the sheen is keeping the dye from getting into the leather and is just sitting on top. Might try giving it a few coats of Resolene to help protect it a bit more as well.

I've used it in the past, but haven't had the best luck with it when the item has been 'groomed. Sometimes it goes on fine and sets like normal, other times I had issues with it flaking off. Tried diluting it 50/50 with water and trying light coats but had similar issues. I switched to using Resolene diluted 50/50 and using light coats and letting it dry overnight between coats and haven't had any issues. I know it isn't as shiny as the super sheen, but it works

One thing that pretty much changed my world in casing my leather was to get a plastic tub with a snap on lid from Wally World as my casing box. I mostly do medium and smaller items like holsters, wallets and belts. I soak my leather pretty much like you're saying yo do. Run it through a pan of water slowly to let it absorb a good amount of water and then into the bin it goes until the next day. After that I pull it out and let it sit for an hour maybe and it is ready to carve and tool. The bin has enough airspace to let the majority of the water evaporate but still retain enough water to stay moist. One thing I have found out though is that you have to wash the tub out with a bleach/water solution once in a while or it gets a case of the funk. I looked around on the web and couldn't find the exact tub but it pretty much looks like this.... http://tianliplastic.en.ec21.com/Plastic_File_Folder_Tubs_Tub--5269784_5269822.html

Had the exact same issue as the OP did until I starting gluing them using the above method. Works like a champ and no more wrinkles!

Yea, I agree. Give it a try, you're going to mess up eventually and then you take that piece, place it somewhere where you're going to see it the next time to attempt it and use it as a reminder what NOT to do. Early on, I did the same thing with a holster/belt set that I though I would be able to 'kick out real quick'.. ended up costing me money after it was delivered. I learned a very valuable lesson that time. Another time I built a tank bib from a rough pattern and didn't know exactly how it fit on the bike and after getting it all done we went to put it on to find that the seat covered up some of the design... back to doing it again and once again I learned another lesson. Yup, you're going to screw up and yup, it is going to cost you somehow.. but that is part of the learning process.

They just don't make talent like that anymore. Wife gets on me for watching movies that were made half a century before I was born, but you just dont get stuff that good anymore. Gimme a flick with Bing and Rita, Im set.

This right there. It started out as a hobby that I wanted to make money....didn't give it enough time to actually make a profit. I was just feeding the hobby. Now, I work my 'day' job until 5pm, come home, quick meal and hang with the famtime and then from about 7pm to some hour of the night I work my part-time job, making leather goods. Now in what little free time I have I promote my business. Heck, I've hopped out of the truck and handed out business cards to bikers at stoplights. 'Hey! That is a sweet ride! If you're ever looking for custom leather for it, give me a call!' That doesn't make me a nutjob does it? Starting to quickly approach the point that I have completely paid for my tools, but that would have taken much longer if I would have stuck with it being a 'hobby'. Eventually, I would like to give up workin' for th' man.... but that is still a little ways down the road.

Here is mine, just something simple

I would be more then willing to take any of the evil Stohlman books from anyone who doesn't want them!

I'll second the Beary & Bearman mauls. Got one a little while ago and it is absolutely amazing! The head material can't even be compared to the poly head material. I had a 16oz Tandy AS maul and even at 16oz it felt front heavy. The Beary maul that I got has a balance that you almost have to feel to describe. When you're holding it, the 21oz Beary maul feels lighter then the 16oz AS but weighs a full 21oz and is much easier on the wrist after hours of tooling.

Awesome! Thanks for the letters Chancey! I agree with the others.... you rock!!!

Hahahaha I LOVE IT! I'm going to use that one! She can't seem to understand that sometimes I get in a groove when I'm stamping like that. You just get to where you're just crusing through it, muscle memory is going full bore and you're mainly just guiding the stamp along and any little thing that gets in your way is going to break it... so I go off into my own little 'taptap' world and don't want to come out until the work is done!

I use the A104 for almost all my large area backgrounding. Yup, of all the stamping sounds that my wife dislikes.... backgrounding large area is about the top of her list. *taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap taptap * and then I get .... "OMG!! HOW MUCH MORE TAPPING!!??" Then I just have to remind her that I gross about a penny for each taptap...

That is the model that I use. I do not use the extension, the tool is light enough to use as is for me. Works killer with the burnishers from Beary. I do about the same as above, a quick zip with the burnisher and a quick hit with the slicker and its good to go.

Yea, I didnt think that a maul would make that big of a difference, but the balance of the maul really helps a lot. I got the BBS handle and it is crazy comfortable. Yea, those drill press burnishers look gorgeous! If I had a drill press, I would for sure be getting the HMS one! For now I have to settle for using my dremel to finish edges. Wow Chris!!! That is absolutely gorgeous!!! That is some awesome functional art there!

Oh, what I used for my slab is some 'shelf lining stuff' from WalMart. it is kind of cushiony/foamy feeling to it and was like $5 for a whole roll and I only really needed a small bit of the roll. Makes it sit nice and flat and helps knock down a bit of the noise too.

For lighting, I used two of the $7 'Portable work lights' from lowes. http://www.lowes.com/pd_203213-1373-FL-300NPDQ12_4294857041__?productId=3122291&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%2Fpl__4294857041__%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1&facetInfo= One on each side of me... I use 60watt bulbs and it provides all the light I neeed. They stay pretty cool with the 60w bulbs and I have them clamped to a shelf that sits above my work area. Not all that pretty, but I can move them to get the light where I want it and to remove the shadows that keep you from seeing your work clearly. Mudruck

So I ordered a maul and couple burnishers. Got them in a box a little bit later and ever since I took the things out of the box.... Now I do not have enough tooling to do! Wow, the balance on the maul is out of this world. I mostly do tooled work so I got a 21oz maul to give me a few more ounces then the 16oz AS maul I had. The Bearman maul is far and above the AB one. The head materials can't even be compared. Not even in the same ballpark. The balance can be described like the maul isn't even there. The AS maul always felt front heavy and after tooling with it for a couple hours your wrist would really start to feel it. With the Bearman maul. it just balances so well that it makes long tooling sessions so much easier on the wrist. No bounce either, it hits like a deadblow hammer. They even added a USMC medallion to remind me of my Beloved Corps when I'm using it. The burnishers are out of this world too. Have only used them a few times now, but they do exactly what they say they will. A little water/saddle soap mix and the edges burnish up quickly and look amazing. Much faster then doing it by hand! I think I'm going to need a few more out of them too, the little cone one is looking really handy for getting into belt slots in my holsters and such. Well, of course a thread like this one is useless without pics!!

That right there! I learned my lesson on mixing spirit based and water based dyes.... and it was exactly that.... a big mess! USMC Black + Cova White does not make grey! It does make a funky lumpy white Cova with black lumps in it though! Stick with what katsass said and you will do good.

Thanks Sylvia, There goes my work day! Gotta find more out about this Golden Ratio thingy! Boy, I hate math... But these numbers are actually kinda cool!!!

Hahahah I hear ya! Yea, I took my blades and ran them across the stone for a while and got them pretty sharp. Went to test on a piece of 2-3 oz and nearly cut all the way through on the first try... but boy... I see how much less work it is to cut now! Heh, when you're learning things without formal instruction, you miss stuff like this... I mean really... who would go and sell a swivel knife to a noob like me??

+1 to that!!!!