Mike Craw

Well, that didn't work. I went through the download and install process TWICE and all I got was a bunch of crap about signing up for a trip to Mexico, a shoper's club, a Yahoo tool bar and a bunch of other garbage. I guess I'll just have to wait for Artisan to send one through the mail. I KNEW this wouldn't be idiot-proof!! Mike

Hey Johanna! Thanks for trying! However, the sound plays but I get a screen that says, "Unable to render video. h264 decompressor not found." What do I do now, Coach?? Mike

I agree with rdb, this was a great idea! As I told Artisan in an email, I couldn't tell some of the small parts in the line drawing in the manual, and watching Carlos and me trying to figure out what we were doing would have made a good TV show! Two border-line senile 60-somethings trying to play "Stump-the-Chump" with something with that many moving parts would have attracted a huge audience (OK, with the language, maybe on HBO). They need a lot more close-ups, but SEEING somebody, who know what he's doing, makes it a lot more clear!! Mike

Hell Bob, you're two pictures ahead of me!!! Mike

Instead of advertising by stacking plates ON a holster, they ought to talk about retention and how it helps you hang onto your weapon in fight. In over 30 years, I never had anybody try to stack plates on me, but I've had a few try to get my gun! Mike

Hey Maxx! I just checked his site, and Barry King's swivel knife WITH BLADE is $45. I've had a few, and that's as good a knife as you'll do anywhere for the price. Mike

If you can make the download to a DVD "idiot-proof" I'm in!! Mike

Hey rdb! I understood everything you said right up to: Mike

Hey Dave! After using the 3000 in Carlos Lopez' saddle shop in Kingsland, GA for months, I have several comments to make. First, GREAT idea having a video. The computer line drawings that came in the manual with our machine were not clear, and Carlos and I had trouble with matching parts in the drawings to the machine (keep in mind, you're dealing with with two, border-line senile 60-somethings). Actually seeing someone doing something is much better than one of us reading it and the other trying to do it! Second, I would suggest that the video have many more close-ups. When Steve referred to a part on the machine, there should have been a close-up. During the threading demo, Steve's hands were in the way some of the time, and some of the parts he was refering to were too small to see. Close ups would have helped with the sewing demo, too. Steve says to Carl, "As you can see..." when talking about sewing back into the same stitch hole, but WE can't see! After watching about the first half (through the demo with the flatbed machine) the only other suggestion I would make would be to have the "Trouble-Shooting" section from the manual on the video with CLOSE-UPS of incorrect stitches or problems (like pulling the bobbin thread out the top of the hole) with the fix discussed using close-ups of the parts tightened/loosened or whatever the countermeasure for the problem might be. All that said, I don't do video production, so I HOPE you can edit in close-up shots without having to re-do the whole thing. Hope this helps. Mike

Thanks Steve! I can see why John enjoys the reputation he has. Mike

Hey Jon! Do you happen to have a link to John's site? Google keeps trying to tell me I spelled it wrong. Thanks. Mike

Hey Peterk! Within the last month or so, an individual named "Snakebyte" posted some holster questions and mentioned he was a security products dealer in Michigan. He specifically mentioned that he stocked "Blue Guns" and said that he would do right by members of this site. You might want to send him a PM and see what he can do. Mike

Hey Shorts! In my own case, that's how I got started in leather work. I started as a street cop with Metro-Dade in Miami and then became a Special Agent with the U.S. Treasury Department. As I have said in other posts, there are few things more personal than your preferences for how you carry a concealed weapon for a living. I had spent years trying to find a holster that I really liked everything about. In 1981, I walked onto a Tandy Leather store in Cherry Hill, NJ and asked the man how many lessons I'd have to take to learn how to build a holster. He said, "There's a book over there by a guy named Al Stohlman for $5 that has just about everything you need to know." In the last 27 years I've wasted some cowhide during the learning process, but some of my holsters have been worn on the street by officers and Agents from many different agencies. It's a real honor when somebody thinks enough of something you've made to be willing to use it when the stakes are so high. It has also opened up other areas of leatherwork and allowed me to meet some fantastic people. Mike

Hey azrider! This photo was posted under a different section a while ago for a discussion about tool suppliers. The third tool from the left is a thumbprint. If you have one or more, they may be smooth, lined horizontally, or lined vertically. Unlike the standard pear shader, they are generally rocked up on one tip before you strike it. Hope this helps. Mike

Hey Denise! Thanks so much for the help. I have no recollection of seeing that original post...maybe because then I never heard of putting elastic next to the zippers, so I paid no attention to it. Anyway, I have made contact with the lady and we are discussing a purchase of some of her stock. Thanks also to Bev for being kind enouth to share this source!! Mike

Hey Guys! We've had a couple of ladies come to the shop lately wanting to have their chaps modified. They want elastic sewn along the zipper seam to allow freedom of motion like some of the show chaps offered in many of the western wear catalogs. Carlos found some rolls of elastic, but naturally this stuff only stretched LENGTHWISE and we need something that stretches crosswise. Does anyone have any information on suppliers of rolls of elastic strips/tape about 1" - 2" wide in black? Thanks! Mike

Hey Murse! Yes, a thumb break on a cross draw is made the same way as for a strong-side holster because the snap needs to be on the "Inside" so that when his hand grasps the weapon in shooting position to draw, his thumb will move down the left, or inside, of the weapon if he's a right-handed shooter. What will change is the position of the belt loop or slots to position the muzzle the opposite way for cross-draw. Mike

Hey Scott! That call should be made by your customer. If he is a law enforcement officer and carries a 1911A1 or clone, he probably carries it "cocked and locked" or hammer back, safety on. The holster should have a thumb break and the strap should go over the rear of the slide and under the hammer. If your customer is not used to carrying a .45 and just wants something to carry it on the pistol range, he may want to leave the chamber empty and hammer down until he's ready to fire. Tom, Your blue gun will come with the hammer molded in the "down" position, so if your customer wants to carry "cocked and locked" then you will have to allow for that when you make the thumb break. Mike

A. I don't know, and B. I don't forsee you gettin' a straight answer here... Mike

The "tinyest" bit, Marlon? No, a whole butt-kickin' lot!! Mike

Hey Pella! If I understand your post correctly, the term "trip" in common usage means to stumble or miss your step. As with many other words in the English language, there may be no obvious reason why Americans from different parts of the US use a word in a particular way. To make matters worse, many of us use the same word differently from folks in other regions of our same country! I can't imagine what folks on this board from other countries, who didn't grow up speaking our brand of English, must be thinking Mike

Hey Hilly! That's called a "latigo carrier" and it's purpose is to carry...nah, that would be too stupid even for me!! Seriously, the shiny ring shaped object right in front of (and partially covered by) the fender is the rigging ring, and when the saddle is rigged to ride, there is a long strip of latigo leather laced through it. That latigo then goes down through the cinch that goes under the horse, and comes back up to tie on the rigging plate. This is how you adjust the tension on the cinch. Because the latigo is so long, there is generally a fair amount left over once the horse is saddled and the chinch tightened up, so rather than having it trail along on the ground where the horse can step on it, the end is passed through the slot in the carrier, and it keeps it up out of the way. Oh, and it's not an ignorant question. If you don't ride or deal with saddles, there's no reason you would know that. Mike

I was re-covering aonther one of the twenty or so of those Billy Cook braided rawhide horn covers that had worn through. I had convinced the customer that it should be covered in leather this time, but she was really insistant that we had to save and re-use the engraved concho that was on the horncap. I got it off (along with the top layer of rawhide and a lightweight leather backer) and found it was clinched on with three copper wire posts. When I tried to straighten the first one, it snapped off, so I decided to cut the leather away from the other two and use them as they were. I was holding the concho (about the size of a 50 cent coin) in my left hand and cutting the leather away from the posts with a razor knife. I looked right at the set-up and muttered, "If that knife slips, it's going to be ugly!" OK, I didn't get "ugly" competely out of my mouth when, all together now... It went under my left thumb nail and half way down to the first knuckle. I don't know which was worse, the pain of the cut or the pain of knowing I could/should have stopped!! Mike

It's a post by Stelmackr under "Announcements and Administrivia."

I just read the November issue of the Rawhide Gazette posted by Bob Stelmack in "Announcements and Administrivia." The lead article was a very nice interview with Johanna about Leatherworker.net. I thought Bob wrote a great article and gave Johann some much deserved credit for everything she has done for us. Also, if any of the Gazette readers didn't know about our little corner of the web, they sure do now! Congratulations Johanna, and thanks, Bob! Mike