Cyberthrasher

Not giving "ME" bad vibes because I know you had some issues there in the past. But, yeah, it does need to be addressed still. Says no issuer chain was provided. Shouldn't be too bad to get fixed. I didn't have too much time to look around, but it looks pretty good now compared to what it was a couple months ago. I'll give it a deeper look and let you know if I find anything that should be addressed. Other than that, hopefully I'll be putting a couple of "stock" items I have up for sale soon Before you guys blast a new website as being blatantly unsafe, please keep in mind that it's a NEW site and has a few things to work out. Instead of slandering just point out that there's something wrong so it can be addressed.

Anytime. The day job on campus keeps me pretty busy lately, but I'm sure we can find some time somewhere I only have the one bike right now, but I'm always up for showing it off. I'm sure my wife might want to pick your brain on candlemaking too since she's just getting started.

I finally got a couple of angle blades just for this fine detail work, but I've been tempted to use an exacto a few times. Just practice practice practice and take note of all the things you do wrong each time instead of blindly repeating the same mistakes. You'll have it down in no time after that.

Irish, I took a loot at your Etsy page. Nothing to be ashamed of there My wife actually has a candle shop on there too, which I found kind of humorous since it sounds like your "just up the road" in Idaho terms.

Don't talk yourself down so much. Post some work and let us see what you do. Getting advice from those we look up to is great, but that can't happen if nobody sees your work. Plus, the confidence gained from compliments will skyrocket your work faster than anything.

Awesome as always David. Now, what else have you been doing

Well, to me "personalized" means the persons name or something else that would be hard to sell to another person. Take the previously mentioned guitar strap that I just got paid for. Technically it's personalized because it's a jolly roger wearing a hat with the customers family crest on it. But, the family crest is so simple and cool that I could easily sell it to someone else. Now, if it had his name or even his nickname then it would be payment in full up front. In the end the goal is to not have any stock on hand that isn't paid for. If I can't easily sell it somewhere else when they fail to pay me the remainder, then they'll definitely be paying me in full before the work starts.

Well, it's not that hard to be strict about money. I have 2 orders waiting in the wings right now with artwork all approved (both from friends). One of them finally paid me the required 50% down payment yesterday, so last night I cut out his guitar strap. I make it very clear up front, and several times once the artwork is finalized, that I will NOT cut the leather in any way until I have a down payment (unless it's a "personalized" item which will require 100% of the estimated amount). Using that method, I never waste an order and I make sure that all my customers are serious about what they want. But, I'm not the kind of guy that cuts favors at all, so that's probably why I don't have a problem doing that to even my closest friends.

Springfield just started carrying a line of Sheridan tools from Craft Japan as well. They're pretty good quality and range about $20 a piece. Best thing I've noticed about them in comparison to the craftools is that they have a very consistent taper between the different numbers (I only have bevelers so far). Some of the Craftool bevelers I have differ in taper and head size even between 2 of the EXACT same number.

Add me to the dye group It's not that I'm scared of it, but I always have that feeling of "this is where I can screw it up the quickest" If dye acted just like paint it wouldn't be an issue. That, and I'm always afraid a customer isn't going to like something and then I'll have to figure out how to make it right. One time I got an email from a customer a couple weeks after they recieved it and my stomach instantly clenched when I saw their name. Turns out it was a huge thank you email with some business ideas after he showed it to his friends. None of it is anything that we can't adjust to though

Ditto. I figure if a supplier stores and ships it that way then that means they're betting their business on the outcome. If that method were going to ruin it then they probably wouldn't risk sending it out that way. I always just roll mine back up the way it comes from Springfield and use the same shoe string they provide, then store it in the same box they shipped it in and label the box with the type and weight leaned up in the corner.

Cool!! No better advertisement as far as I'm concerned.

Now that you mention it, I've never cut myself when there are bandages around.

Never take knife to leather until you have at least half of your expected payment in hand. You'll only lose money that way with all the people who are interested until they find out how much it costs.

That's why I've learned to live my life under that assumption. That way I'm never disappointed My customers are important to me and I treat every one of them like they're the most important job I have, but I won't let any of them treat me like I should be desperate for their business.

I use smooth for everything, but I need to break out of it. I'll check out my tools when I get home and then see where the account lies before I send you a PM.

Are they all checkered? I just got a bunch of new stuff in another tool sale, so I'll have to see how they compare to what I already have.

Looking good!!! I've been tossing around the idea of switching to Y-Knot, but haven't really had any issues with SLC either.

Sorry, that was one of the main things that caught my eye I know I'm keeping all the stamps, haven't gone through all the hand tools yet.

Find people you know in the field that you're crafting for and make stuff for them as an "advertisement" cost (I gave my friends 50% off). Most of my sales lately have been from a blues guitar forum that I'm an active member in. Once I felt I was ready for a storm of orders, I told them all what I was up to. I've been pretty busy every since and never even really worry about my bottom line or how much I'm making (my hourly rate easily covers everything). In my case, it really only took one good friend to order something before they all started jumping in. It's the same thing with the motorcycle gear and electronic device cases too. Make a tool bag or seat for a biker friend that parties a lot and now I get orders. Made a kindle cover for my wife who's in school, and now I get a lot of students stopping by my office asking about it.

That's why I stuck with it on the straight blade, and actually realized it was the cheap blade giving me the most problems and not the style and angle of it.