bluesman1951

I like the free hand letters and could see a use for the lighting bolts on other things . If the job is complete and the customer is happy then there is cause for celebration . On to the next thing . They look clean and tough enough to stand the test of time .Nicely done . Bill

Thanks for showing this work . I am impressed ! The braiding on the buckle is superb as well as the work over all on the buckle . The flasks are first class both in technique and over all craftsmanship . Call it personal preference ,taste , what ever word you can come up with ,I just found the stamps on the knife sheaths snagging my eyes each time I looked . I have a big love of music and when considering all the songs I might place on a disc ,I ask my self this : limited by only my imagination I can invite any artist living or dead to be on the disc simply by placeing them there . With thousands of choices who would I invite for my music party ?? I pose this to you so that you might ponder the same question when chooseing something for the flaps on the knife sheaths . With only imagination as the limit if you were reaching for the next level what would you choose to impress. Perhaps its time for a makers mark stamp then you get two for one. The work is signed and decorated in one stamp . That sounds like a harmonious out come to me .The old phrase dress to impress applys here ,refined elegance and superb quality are the order of the day . The work is first class ,technique superb , appeal is one of quality and timeless service . Time to be making a custom stamp sir ! All of this is my personal opinion you should feel free to take it or leave it . You have beautiful work totaly sellable any where now all you need to do is sign it with class . Good luck ! I throughly enjoyed seeing your work . Look forward to seeing more . Bill

I would be honoured if you found me worthy of this position .

I just looked at a profile with a bunch of postings and pictures lots of views and no comments .Very big effort ! Whats up with no comments ? No encouragement not a single word positive or negative . The span of this, years with not a single word . Please tell me how this can be . The one thing we all have in common is we sit or stand at a work station and hope to create something others will like and if we are lucky pay us for . The process is the same for all from the buying of the leather to the first cut and on through the project . There are all skill levels here so much experience ,why is it we can not find the words to give one of our own a nod or at least a few words of encouragement ? We all had a first day and like it or not there will be a last day when we no longer sit at our bench . The ads for tools for sale will be for our tools as they are scattered to the winds to be put in the hands of others . In the end it will all be just a memory a moment in time ,for some the work will live on loved and cherished by some for others the destiny of their work is unclear . I have found that a rush to judgement is a foolish endevour ,I am now more interested in who made something than what was made . There is a story behind each piece of work and that makes me very curious . Sad is the word I would use to describe my feelings after seeing all those views and no comments , just dont seem fair some how . Thats my two cents ,if you got this far ,Thanks for reading it all . Bill

If you send me a private message I will share with you pictures of one I custom designed after looking at 100's of pictures on the web . In my opinion it has the best of every thing I saw on the web . Then you can be the judge . Bill

Very interesting construction . Well done ,superb finish ,no short cuts here done first class to the last degree . I like it a lot . Thank you for showing us your work . As a craftsman thank you for caring enough to do this well and showing us the way . My most sincere compliments ,simply put "I like things well done " This to me meets all the requirements for that . The one thing I get from seeing this project : It says loud and clear : I Care !!!!! That to me says it all ! Nothing more needs to be added . Elegant ,pleasing , warm ,show me more ,all come to mind when I see it . Bill

Congradulations other than the thickness of the leather you have achived your own personal version of a Saddle Back leather bag . Very well done ! This fits in the last forever bags catagory . This was indeed time well spent . Bill

I like your bags a lot . One suggestion Reverse the direction of the rivets then cut them off and leave just a bit more than normal ,cut a piece of scrap from left over bag material punch a hole same size as the rivet ,place over the rivet and now file it down to the heigth of the leather scrap . Make sure its square and flat . The scrap has set the heigth and protected the project from the file . Now use the doming tool to dome the top of the rivet . I believe you will find this and acceptable look on a finished project . Experiment a bit with the heigth going too short will not allow the domeing tool to do its job . The fileing makes all the difference ,one other thing here is the washers have a shine side and a flat side make sure they are all same side up when doing this . Things to consider what would these look like if I moved my flap strap down closer to the edge of the flap with the same technique for install ? There is a cleaner way to do the bottom buckle as well . All comments made here are made in the best spirit of the craft . I enjoy the bags greatly ,they have that classic appeal which makes them timeless . I give a big round of applause on your project and my comments are meant to be put in the "What If " catagory . This was time well spent and you have my compliments . Bill

Welcome from New mexico . Best wishes for lots of happy hours at the bench . Bill

Hi <Welcome to the site ,thanks for showing us your work . I really enjoyed the wallet ,well done . Looks like it will give good service and last a long time . One artist to another you should always enjoy your time at the bench and it is my sincere wish that this is the case for you . look forward to seeing more of your work . Best wishes from Albuquerque New Mexico . Bill

My compliments on a very fine project ! Well done first class all the way . Elegant and classy . The Logo is very uptown adds a lot to the look . As to the name change my opinion says you have made a very smart choice . I like it a lot ! Bill

Hi From New Mexico ! Went to your site and checked out your case video . Thank you very much for sharing that . Very well done . I enjoyed that very much . Look forward to seeing more of your work . Bill

Wow do you ever have the bug . Barely got you feet wet and you have discovered things about quality and Tandy . LOL keep it simple and dont try for a Mona Lisa project first time out of the box . Basket weave is a good technique buy one good stamp and work with it for a bit . Maybe find a good border stamp as well those two will keep you plenty busy . Good Luck !!!!!

Thats different and I have seen that work . There is one here like that still got the doors open after 20 years ,so maybe thats okay . Might make some new friends as well Bill

Speaking as one who has thousands and thousands of these experiences under his belt ,I would like to say well DONE ! Congradulations ! I am against the commission thing . One and only one way to do business CASH and CARRY but you must find this out for your self . Never make two trips to get payed ! I wish you good luck with this ,I have never seen it work not once in all my years . If its good enough to carry its good enough to buy ,simple as that . I could fill a ocean with compliments and aint that nice comments from people ,but last time I checked "Smiths " only likes money payments in exchange for their products . Compliments dont spend any better than board game money . I am very pleased that your day went well and you had some sucess with sales . I hope you have many more good days with sales . Rember "EYES WIDE OPEN ALWAYS" All my best BILL

Hi ,From New Mexico may I offer as a place to purchase leather R.L Cox Hide and Fur 505-242-4980 Mike or Ellen are the owners and you would be dealing with them directly. The Cox company has been doing business for 80 years in the same place . I have known Mike and Ellen for 20 + years ,You will get a fair deal and good leather with every purchase . They are old school and do not have a web site or on line precence and when the phone is answered you will never hear music commericals or other junk ,never put on hold . All you are going to hear is "May I Help You " and you will be talking to the BOSS. If you like doing business that way ,this is the place for you . Welcome to the site . Bill

I like the laser work and have considered exploring that path myself . I am stuck on the thread I use Bz-415 Nylon White Bonded TR-350 from Texas threads . For me there is just no other for hand sewing . Hand sewing is fun I enjoy it ,takes a bunch of time so I am not willing to use any thread that dont come out the way I expect it to . I am not going to voice a opinion on your thread ,thats not my place . In the end beauty is in the eye of the beholder . Its well done cleanly excuted and will give years of good service . I expect it will age well and after some time in and out of the pocket it will acquire a nice patina . Well done . Bill

Nicely done . I would offer that the speedy rivet s are not the strongest way to go here . A big dog will make short work of these . My advise is to use the copper rapid rivets . The secret to these is to cut them off then punch a hole in a piece of scrap put it down on the shaft then carefully file it flat down to the leather ,then use the tool to finish the domeing. The leather protects your product from being damaged by the file and gives all the rivets the same heigth after fileing . Make sure all the washers are shinny side up . This gives a very nice look to things . These copper rivets are used in rodeo gear where things staying together matter . Fact is we dont wish for a 80lb dog to be breaking his collar and hurting some one . I like your work and some one is really going to like your Daisy collar . Please give the copper rivets some consideration ,if you follow my directions you will be pleased ,I am sure of that . Happy leather working !!!! Look forward to seeing more of your work . Bill

No worries ,pull up a chair and join the conversation . No one here who has not had a first day at something . Its all about learning so I believe you are indeed in the right place .Glad to have you ,look forward to seeing some of your work . Bill

First class work . Well done ! Looks clean efficent ,and any one would be proud to have this . Time well spent . Bill

I am in awe of your work . Never seen any better any where ! Simply as fine as it gets ! This gets a standing ovation from me !

You will find that with some leathers and some threads that just a tiny bit of extra tension will cause the the thread to pull through the leather . Like a wire cheese cutter goes through cheese . Just the nature of things . Might look into some wood lathe gouges for the cornors . There are a bunch of garage machinists in any town seek one out and have your tool made . Hint make a couple so you can sell some and have yours for free . I like your case ,dont understand doubling the stitching over the strap . Bill

I like this idea a lot . I had something similar in the back of my mind . My objective was to make perfect holes for bullet loops in a line perfectly centered on my leather and indexed for spacing . After seeing your device I may give this further consideration . I also had some other ideas for a blade device for trimming sort of a hand clicker thing . This would give the people at OSHA nightmares and fits . Fortunately my wallet is small so most of these ideas remain on the drawing board LOL . For those who have seen "THE RED GREEN SHOW" I am not quite that bad but on some days close . For fun go to You Tube and type The Red Green Show and see for yourself . This is well thought out and well constructed looks efficent and is a useful jig . I like a lot the use of the plastic ,that is a under utilised shop jig material in my opinion . Very well done in my opinion ! To quote Red Green : "We are all in this together If the women dont find handsome they at least should find you handy "

That's some mighty fine work ! First class ! My compliments . Bill

I think he's sitting down with the stitching unit on the floor . Beyond that I dont know . Bill