Cyberthrasher

NOPE! Can't allow it with all the fun you've had this summer

Man, I never even saw this until now..............Guess I was working (unlike somebody who wants to brag about the pool.........) You know I'm thankful Bud, but I gotta give you an extra hard time!!!

If Mike didn't take them all, I'll take whatever's left. If they're gone, that's Ok too

Dang it!! I have too much beard to do the cheek-to-face test, so I'm missing out on all kinds of cool finishes

I don't know how that works with USMC, but it sounds viable. I should add that I also oil between coats to help pull the dye into the leather instead of leaving stuff on top.

I'll add that I get EXCELLENT color out of the standard Pro Oil Black with little to no rub off. The trick is to put down a coat of something dark first (I prefer Dk. Brown) and then top it with black so you're not putting down so much of the black to cover a light color.

So, i was just adding up your list with the membership and that exact list comes out to $147.21. So, you just paid for your membership cost While I was doing that, i noticed that awl you have has a fixed blade on it, so don't worry about that too much. You may find it useful to get one later that you can change the blade on, but I really don't know what the one that's on there is like, so I don't want to sway you either way on that. oh yeah, I also noticed you had the Fiebing's regular dye selected. I don't have any experience with that. I know a lot of us here use the Fiebing's Pro Oil dye, but it's also not available in white. Just an FYI. I remember a thread somewhere on the differences, but didn't pay much attention to it at the time since I like the pro oil, though I may need to try some of that white in the future.

Oh yeah, looking at your prices there, you haven't signed up for the wholesale membership yet. It's $35 for the year and will probably knock close to that if not a little more off your order (as it stands now)

I don't see any awl blades on your list. I'm not sure what size is best since I don't really do any stitching, but I know it's better to use diamond awl blades. I grabbed some from ebay when I was first starting, so I haven't looked at what Springfield has. I can vouch for that 2lb bag of tooling leather. it has a pretty wide range of weights to help you get started and figure out what you want to do. You'll figure out which weights work best for different things and then store the rest for later. I'd recommend 2 or 3 of those to get you started, and I'm pretty sure they have the 2/3 oz in them at about a rough 8" x 8". I still go back to my scrap bags that I bought instead of cutting off the good sides I have for little things. I'll get a swatch made up for you this afternoon and see if I can get it sent out. Send me your address in a PM.

Well, if you're just looking for something really light you could go grab some cheap phone cases from Wal-Mart.

Like these? http://springfieldleather.com/33594/Clip%2CSwivel%2CPowerwedge%2CEa/ Sorry, I completely missed the phone part of that. Changed the link to reflect what you're actually looking for. It's been a long day.

I have a color sample card sitting there with both full strength and 50/50 samples - just for that reason. Do you ever order directly through email? That's my favorite way since I get the exact shipping quote and not the estimated. I started realizing I had in-store credit's on my packing slips due to the shipping being cheaper then what was charged. So, now I have Emma on speed email. I should really send some donuts that way or something.....

I've just been buying all of the Fiebing's pro-oil dye as I need it. I started with saddle tan, brown, and black and have added as I go. The 4 oz bottles from Springfield last a decent amount of time. Look into Springfield's wholesale club too. I bought it right away and saved more than the membership fee on my first order. Since then I've probably saved several hundred and haven't had it for a year yet. They also honor Tandy's wholesale pricing as well. If you want a color swab of the different colors, I have a lot of the primary shades available that I could swab onto a piece of scrap and send your way for reference. Black, Dark Brown, Walnut, Light Brown, Saddle Tan, Red, Green, Yellow. That will get you most colors. I have blue on order. I use tooling leather for everything, but I also tool most of it too. I think you can use some of the other stuff too for your goals. Call up Springfield and tell them what you want to do and they'll definitely get you headed in the right direction. One more thing, I just saw they have a multi-beveler for edges now. I'm ordering one with my next order so I'll be able to report back on it if needed. http://springfieldleather.com/34063/5-in-1-Standard-Edger-Set/

I really like that last one. So I'm assuming all the straps on them are to keep people from plopping their fat buts down and trying them out.....admit it - you were tempted!!!

I missed the tool rack part before I placed my last order....good thing I have another coming up One thing I'd like to recommend though is putting a size reference next to the tools. Since I'm not familiar with a lot of the numbers, it's hard to tell the exact size of some of the tools based off of the shaft alone. I think a dime would do just fine for most of them.

Do you have ENOUGH air flowing? What's your PSI at when you depress the trigger? I can't offer very much advice since I'm new to using airbrushes and haven't really had any problems yet, but that would be the first thing I check. Here's a troubleshooting page I found while looking for some info for you. http://www.craigcentral.com/models/trouble.asp If I come across anything else specific to the 250, i'll post back.

I'm kind of confused. Did you have brown under the black? I always put brown down and then black on top. For me it's more to give some color in case the black does wear off. But, I've luckily never had it wear off after I'm done with all my OCD buffing and oiling. I think by that point there's absolutely nothing left to come off anyway.

Yeah, it's somewhere around there. That's one of those finishing steps that is summed up with "walk away". I usually just wander off and do something else for a bit then check up on it later. That's a great time to catch up on coffee

Ah, sorry. Typo Alert!!! It was actually 200 grit.

I haven't used Resolene at all, but I have some on order to start experimenting with it. As far as the dye not penetrating, Spinner posted some good recommendations about this that seem to work really well for me. If you start with a light coat of neatsfoot oil followed by a 50/50 mix of your dye first (I use 50/50 Fiebings and rubbing alcohol), it will help pull the dye into the leather and kind of prime it before moving onto the full strength color next. I've had good luck doing that between each color, with buffing before changing colors as well. One of them I just did this on and decided to scrap, I had a REALLY hard time getting down to bare leather with no sealer on top. I was trying to give a really road worn look and actually had to pull out some 100 grit sandpaper to get some natural color to show through.

I like the finished product. One thing I noticed in the last picture was that it appears your casing is off. It looks like things were pretty soggy when you tooled it. After you wet the leather, let it get back to the point it is in that picture (mostly dry on top and cool to the touch), put it in a plastic bag or plastic wrap and throw it in the fridge overnight. You'll be amazed at the difference it makes in your work and the ease of the tooling. Also, you can work some of the raised edges with a modeling spoon to round them off and make things look smoother. Again, it looks great, especially for only a couple weeks worth of experience.

Thanks Rohn. I was questioning some of it originally but then when it all started coming together as a whole the "odd" bits ended up fitting in with the overall scheme. Most importantly - my customer is pacing back and forth eagerly waiting it's arrival, so I know he loves it. Thanks Cheryl. Let me know if I need to expand on anything. I just did a quick summary there for the actual color. You know that everything I know came from here, so there's been lots of reading to pick up on those different hints

Here you go, gold or nickel http://springfieldle.../150/Key-Rings/

You typed that exactly as I was responding to the same question in my gallery post!! Couldn't be any more perfect timing. Light coat of neatsfoot oil - don't let it dry out so it will help pull the dye into the leather. Harbor Freight "Deluxe" dual action airbrush (I'm cheap and can't afford a good one yet, so this will do) cover everything with 50/50 Feibings saddle tan and rubbing alcohol for one coat, followed by a second coat full strength. buff out loose pigmentation another coat of neatsfoot oil Go around about a quarter to 3rd of the width of the strap with Feibings light brown - again 50/50 followed by full strength. This time allow for some light overspray to get the shadowing. buff and oil again Go around one last time with Feibings dark brown, only covering about half of the previous color. buff and oil. Keep buffing until it's clean of any loose pigmentation. The purpose of the 50/50 mix first is to help the dye to penetrate the leather some more. I've read a lot of tests here where people have shown how airbrushed dye can have a tendency to just sit on top, so that mixed with the oil really helps pull it in.