Peter T

Wow, that's incredible! Great stuff. Pete

Very nice! Pete

Looks great, Buck. It's cool to see what you made out of the hide you showed us earlier. Pete

That is really great! I agree that canvas and leather go well together and I think your bag is a really nice example of that. Well done. Pete

That's cool, Buck. My knowledge of rawhide = next to nothing so I'll ask, is that rawhide? What do you think you'll use that to make? Pete

Hahaha! This is excellent! Bob, I am comforted that I must still be young as I have only experienced about 80% of these things. When I have done them all I will be able to say I have finally arrived! Pete

They look great, Brad. I really like those colours together. Pete

I think it's great how you guys produce your own hides. That must be satisfying and something I hope to have a go at someday. Went close a few years back to getting some roos to tan myself but the bloke who was going to help me couldn't make it and haven't had the opportunity since. Oh well, one day... Pete

Thanks everybody. Ralph, these are not all that hard to put together. The pen kits are usually used by woodworkers to make timber pens. The knot is tied over a metal tube and then all the bits of the pen are pressed together. I don't make them all that often. I have probably made about 15 or so over the years, mostly the ones you twist to open. I've used different coloured lace to get different effects. The pen I currently use I just stitched on a bit of roo. I really like it. I might see if I can dig up some photos to post. Pete

Good work, Leatherpownder. What is your favourite type of leather to braid with? Pete

That looks great, Buck. Pete

G'day Everybody, Here is a pen I covered with a turks head for a friend of mine. I like doing these pens for a bit of a change of pace from whipmaking. Sometimes it's nice to start and finish something on the same night... Pete

Oh noooo!!! No whips!! After all that effort! Oh well, at least you got free tickets and a couple of show quality sandwiches! I'm glad you enjoyed it, though. Wow I bet the person who didn't put holes in the belt will be kicking themselves... Thanks for posting your story to let us know how you went. Hopefully you get the opportunity to judge again down the track. I reckon you've earned it. Good on you, Handstitched. Cheers, Pete

Very nice work, Buck. Pete

G'day Handstitched, Have you done the judging for the show yet? Be sure to let us know how it went for you. Pete

I really like the colouring on those ones. Nice! Pete

Hi acox4t4, I didn't make the splitter. It is made by Dene Williams here in Queensland. I was fortunate enough to live close enough to him at Toowoomba here to buy it from him personally. I think Paul Nolan at Midwest Whips stock them in the US. It is a very good tool and worth a look. I can't really comment with any confidence as to it's suitability for rawhide as I have never worked with it, but I assume it would work well. If it helps give you an idea, the splitter uses a utility knife blade, which is replaceable of course. However I don't often replace the blade but rather keep stropping the same one. I get the blade sharp, keep it sharp and use it for ages. A very handy tool. Pete

Thanks everybody. Yep, it's a Shrade Old Timer in there. Good spotting, Matt S. I made my first few whips using just that knife. I've since made most of the knives I use for whipmaking out of some old industrial hacksaw blades so it doesn't see any leatherwork action anymore.

G'day Everyone, Here is a plaited pouch I just finished. That was a fun little project. The sides are laced with a four plait round pattern and the press stud inside the pouch is covered by the splicing so it doesn't scratch the knife when it is removed or inserted. Pete

Excellent! I'll bet that was a very satisfying project to work on. Great work. Pete

Hi Foxhill, When I tie a knot with 3 passes like that, I tie the first strand on and then poke and prod that one until all the spaces are even ie the width of two more strands. Once I've tied the three strands on, it is usually pretty tight. I will go around it all to tighten it a little bit but mainly to tidy it up. To do that, I'll use a fid to tighten and position all three strands at each part and do that all the way around the knot. It works for me, but there are better knot tiers than me around and if someone had a better way, I would welcome the advice. Incidentally, the knots on both those whips are basically the same. Both have 3 passes. The one on the left has the lighter of the three strands in between the two darker strands. The one on the right has the two darker strands together with the lighter one on the side, which gives that different pattern. Hope this helps. Pete

That's really nice work. Pete

Very nice.

Beautiful work there. Pete

That's a classy looking bag. Really nice! Pete