electrathon

nice work

I have my singer 17-23 for sale. Nice old arm machine, still powered by the treadle. It sews well and was recently serviced. I am located in Portland Oregon and this needs to be picked up. Not horribly heavy, just bulky. $250 Aaron

If you are not going to line it then use packing tape instead of glue on the back. It will peal off with no residue.

Fiebings red heavily diluted makes a neon pink.

You need a sharper knife too. Do not push so hard, three gentle passes will distort less than one hard pass.

Call them. Most of what they have is not on their site. They are old school. The entire upstairs of the store is dedicated to horse tack. Aaron

Hurry up! Monday is coming fast! And she can fit her cat inside to bring to school.

The veg tan at Oregon Leather is Herman Oak.

4 sets of stamps. 3/4" numbers and 3/4" letters. Also 1/2" numbers and 1/2" letters. These list on Tandy's site for $132.90 retail and $79.80 wholesale. All 4 sets for $60 paypal I pay shipping. Aaron

OK, the IDEA of fish leather just sounds gross, so you get a lot of credit for doing this. It will be interesting how it stands up to wear/tear/ moisture.

Pics?

Depending on the depth you want to tool to, heavier may be better for the tooled panel. If you are just going to buy leather though, 6/7 would be good. Aaron

The color of the leather is dependent on how much dye is added during the tanning process. Veg tan is nearly white, so some color is added to make it look natural. Thickness has no affect on color. Oregon leather has a lot larger selection of leather than Tandy does and the leather is usually better quality. Go in and talk to Abdul, he will point you in the correct direction. On Sept 7 we will be having a club meeting at Tandy. It will be an informal get together of leatherworkers, hoping to make it a regular thing to exchange information and ideas. Also a place to work on projects with support from others. Aaron

No reason to measure the lining. Just cut it bigger than the finished outer piece. Glue it in, then trim to size, perfect fit every time. I always glue in my linings "folded". The checkbook will tend to want to stay shut. If you glue it flat I will want to stay open. Aaron

If would be cool if this gets remembered soon enough next year and nationwide there is a push for leather at the fairs. I am going to try to remember it, but if I don't May would be a good time to bring the issue back to the surface. Aaron

Dye can bring on a whole different batch of issues. There are many different kinds and mixes of dye available. As a general statement, solvent based are tougher than water based. Sometimes it is good to add oil after dying, it helps rejuvenate the leather. A finish will help with rub-off, there are many available. Not sure what you have available but I would use something like Dr Jacksons, Snow seal or similar (basically a waxy shoe sealer). If I was doing what you are doing I would likely use spray glue (super 99 is great). Far easier than trying to smear glue all over on thin leather.

Either glue them together first, then cut of cut one piece, glue them together and then trim the second to the first. If you cut them both you will never get it lined up. It will partially depend if you are going to roll the edges before you sew or not. If you do it will be a more professional look.

Thank you everyone for the kind words. I tried to enter an assortment of different items. The bowie was one I bought the blank for and put the handle on it. The inlay is stingray. The belt is a clean looking Bison outer with a horsehide liner. Hand sewn around the perimeter. The sporran was a pattern I found on the internet about a year ago, was a fun project. The holster fits a Smith & Wesson revolver that belonged to my Grandfather. He had the gun for many years and I got it after he died about 20 years ago. The gun is very nice to shoot and I have a strong emotional attachment to it too. It never had a holster, this one was fin to make. I still need to do a matching belt for it. Aaron

My suggestion is to use the one you bought to make a pattern. Then start over with a new one.

I entered 6 items in the County Fair, won 6 blue ribbons. It is fun getting to display items. I know it is late this year but next year it would be great if country wide we made a push for many of us to enter local fairs. Aaron

Unless you need them they are not worth much. If you already have the tool do you need another? If you really want them, they are worth more. I have hundreds of tools I have got this way, they just sit in the drawer.

Very nice looking work. Especially impressed with your sewing. Aaron

I see a grinder laying on the bench in one of the pictures, use it with a sandpaper disc on it. DO NOT allow ANY color to change during the sharpening. Keep the steel wet and quench constantly. Once it almost has an edge on it switch to a whetstone and do a final edge. Only cut your taper on one side of the blade, this kind of knife is sharpened more like a chisel then a knife.

Eric, I find this very interesting too. Reading through this and a few other posts you have made my main question to you is about your house. Is it filled with prototypes of what you are making or are you not allowed to bring stuff home? I know I would have difficulty not bringing one of everything home. Aaron

I finally got the next step done. The patterns are pulled off the lasts, flattened and transferred onto paper. I hope to cut the pattern apart tomorrow and sew them together. This step basically ends up with a "flat" shoe.