Billsotx

I got lost for a few days ... lol ... On your edge finishing you mention recycling things. If it's chrome tanned leather it does not burnish well so don't fault yourself there. Neither will it tool or stamp well. You can usually tell if it's chrome tanned by examining a cut raw edge - look for a bluish or grayish color line. Dye or liquid dressing is probably you best bet with chrome tanned, unless it's something you can do a French or rolled edge on - probably Not! on the collars and leashes you're wanting. There's also re-tanned leather but I've never messed with that. As far as burnishing veg tan leather you can do it by hand and there are some tools that will help. I was taught to use either a piece of brown paper sack or a piece of canvas (sailcloth and be careful if it's been dyed you might get color streaks you don't want) - white is what I try to find. My wife threw out a canvas shopping bag, probably came from Walmart or Target and you know the garbage man didn't get it ... lol! If you want nice rounded edges on your collars and leashes get a round bottom edger. You can use sandpaper or a sander. If you use a sander of any sort, dremel etc. note that you can burn the edges and you may not want the dark streak - then you might like that if you don't go overboard. Start with a coarse grit say 220 and work up to as fine as you want. 2000 grit wet or dry replaces the canvas rub rag or piece of brown sack so there's less junk in your toolbox. Moisture content is key to burnishing and it's an empirical thing. Practice on some of the scrap you cut away or write-off a couple of good straps and get a handle on what you're doing in that area. You can use dye or stain or water for the moisture content - it's casing - and use either paraffin or beeswax. There's so particular order wax first or case first (dampen) I've tried both ways. I usually moisted first and then rub (sand) a bit and don't wax until it's getting a nice burn to it. How well it burnishes depends on the leather, it'll vary, the moisture content, the method or implement you use. If you can afford tools there are a bunch of them out there and I've seen stuff on the forum I haven't seen before. Search for burnish and or edge, edging, etc. and you'll find more. If I have a bunch to do I have a hardwood dowel shaped burnisher I chuck in my drill press. It has various size grooves for dressing up light or heavy leather. It has a steel shank so it's pretty hardy. Again you can burn edges with these things if you're not careful. I'd like to see some of what you're working on so don't be bashful. talk later ......

Oh a whim I bought one of those kits. It was on the sale table right by the front door. The piece of leather that I got was pretty dry and hard. I realized that pretty quick so I did as suggest and glued it to a piece of cardboard, I used a cereal box and then I whacked it pretty good to get deep impressions. I'm not much of a tooler or lacer to I can't really critique your work. Another thing that happened because it didn't want to hold water, I was using a sponge, is the smooth flesh side began to rub off and fray. I was able to hide most of that with tooling and then I burnished and waxed it after it was good and dry. Then I glued it up and laced it. If all those holes weren't there I would have sewed it. Like I say, it was an impulse buy ~ they got me ... lol! Remember you're not just following lines when you cut. They run for deep to shallow. Clay has posted several tutorials that helped me you might look at those. The most recent is on an oak leaf. No matter, it's swivel knife work. Don't run you cuts together. I think on your fold back cut them deeper near the center and feather out shallow at the ends. I learned after I did this, I think from looking a Clay's tutorials (maybe someone else's piece) that fold backs should run right out at the edge of the petal or leaf. Lot's to learn and take what I say lightly because I just carve when I need some therapy ... lol!

De-glazer may work like Clay suggested. Another nasty one, it will leave a spot where you clean is Goof-Off. Take a Q-tip and pull some of the cotton off so it's not so large or wrap a small dab of cotton around a tooth pick or wooden kitchen match and dip it in the Goof-Off and then blot that on a paper towel of cloth so it not saturated and loaded all to heck and gently dab and rub staying just as close to you dye drop as you can. You will more than likely have a light spot when you lift the dye off and you'll have to try and match that up. A little oil may lessen the light spot or you may have to put a little dye in the oil. I think I put a drop of black dye on a piece of scrap, the same hide if possible, and experiment. Get so dye on a Q-tip or dip a tooth pick in the dye and apply a little drop. Dry it with a hair dryer or heat gun so you're dealing with a well dried blotch and see if you can feather it out. I'd dye it all black or dark brown or just put speckled black dots all over it before I'd toss it. Only you will know!

I don't know much about Sheridan but I got the Jim Linnell tape and I'm working with that. He emphasizes doing Sheridan style with craftools in that tape. I got the Chan Greer book from Hidecrafters also. The info in the book is good but the book I got is a crummy xerox copy and I was pretty disappointed in the quality of that.

Jordan, I pretty much follow Clay's way on this. I keep wet/dry sandpaper handy. (Leather sands like wood.) I modified those TLF bevelers to round bottom edgers when I finally figured out theirs weren't designed for the work I was trying to do. Work through varying grits of sandpaper depending on how much you need to shape, re-shape, modify whatever. On your final run 2000 grit will leave it pretty nice. Rub some polishing compound on a small piece of manilla folder and wrap that around a stiff piece of wire, shaft of a small screwdriver, needle file or similar rod. You've probably got the rod around your workbench and auto parts store have fine grit paper if you don't find it at Lowe's or HomeDepot.

You found a friendly bunch. As you noted lots of knowledge and sharing here. Like your work. Welcome!

Good job Jo! The profiles are working here. The first time in a long time. Now I can put Opera in mothballs ....

I like this and thought I'd do like this man asked: Pass It On! A Different Christmas Poem The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light, I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight. My wife was asleep, her head on my chest, My daughter beside me, angelic in rest. Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white, Transforming the yard to a winter delight. The sparkling lights in the tree I believe, Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve. My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep, Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep. In perfect contentment, or so it would seem, So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream. The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near, But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear. Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow. My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear, And I crept to the door just to see who was near. Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night, A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight. A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old, Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold. Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled, Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child. 'What are you doing?' I asked without fear, 'Come in this moment, it's freezing out here! Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve, You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!' For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift, Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts.. To the window that danced with a warm fire's light Then he sighed and he said 'Its really all right, I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night.' 'It's my duty to stand at the front of the line, That separates you from the darkest of times. No one had to ask or beg or implore me, I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me. My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,' Then he sighed, 'That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers.' My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ', And now it is my turn and so, here I am. I've not seen my own son in more than a while, But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile. Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag, The red, white, and blue... an American flag. I can live through the cold and the being alone, Away from my family, my house and my home. I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet, I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat. I can carry the weight of killing another, Or lay down my life with my sister and brother.. Who stand at the front against any and all, To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.' 'So go back inside,' he said, 'harbor no fright, Your family is waiting and I'll be all right.' 'But isn't there something I can do, at the least, 'Give you money,' I asked, 'or prepare you a feast? It seems all too little for all that you've done, For being away from your wife and your son.' Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret, 'Just tell us you love us, and never forget. To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone, To stand your own watch, no matter how long. For when we come home, either standing or dead, To know you remember we fought and we bled. Is payment enough, and with that we will trust, That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.' PLEASE, Would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S.service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

Here's to Sam Adams! Walnuts toasting in the fire ... lol! Good job on them straps.

Well said David! Amen!

Hey Coiffure, Just in case you get pressed for time and don't find a good template there's a freaking freaky was to make a tool rack quick and cheap. Go here and check it out! If you have a drill and bits you probably have a square and ruler or straight edge. If you don't have a square use the rule to lay it off. I'd lay off lies across the width (using the square if you have one) at 3/8 or may 1/2 inch intervals and then mark off four lines equal distance apart running the length of the 4X4 block and parallel to one another and to the length of the block, then at every other intersecting set of lines, drill a hole; alternate the holes on each row; that is drill holes at the first intersection on rows 1 and 3 and then every other one, start the holes on rows 2 and 4 at the second intersection and drill every other one. I don't know what kind of drill set up you've got but worst case is a hand drill so determine how deep you want the holes, do a test on scrap if you can, if not easy up to it on the very first hole until you get it like you want it, then wrap a piece of masking tape around the drill bit and use that as a visual gauge for the depth of each hole. When you're all done sand it nice and smooth and that should get you going. It may not be perfect but it ain't rocket science you're dealing with and it sounds like you're pressed for time. Time being a closing factor, I'd go freaky. When you put all those tools in that styrofoam block it'll be fairly heavy and it won't be blowing in the wind. Another thing you can do to make it a little more friendly is glue a strip of wood (cardboard or skirt will work too) across the backside of the bottom to give it a little tilt so you can get a visual on your tools and you won't have to crank your neck to much to find that tool you're looking for. Good luck on you surgery, we'll cross our fingers for you, and have fun pounding on that hide while you're recuperating and gettin' back up to speed. - - - Jo, if you see this one I had to open three Fast Replies before I got a window for the reply. Clicking the Fast Reply Button just have the the same ol' screen again, like I had hit the refresh button. I typed it in Word because I can't trust my browser or whatever is goin' on. I suspect the grimlins are still around. Gettin' toward rack time ... taps is sounding ...... c y'all later ~Bill

Pat, As an ol' K9 officer I suggest D-ring on the end and both rivets and stitching is the only way to go if you're looking for ultimate strength. Ray Allen K9 products sets the standards and a picture is worth a thousand words. Check here and see if that helps. Mike's covered some of the tools and supplies very well. I always used burr rivets. The may not look as good but I know that I put them in right and that they are strong. later ~Bill

That diagonal stitch has been around for a long time. As far as that belt & loops in the photo, it has a lot of miles of practical use on it, not just worn for show. That's my personal belt and I worked out of those loops a lot. I'm hard on gear and that piece has held up better than I predicted. It's got a lot of life left. If the stitches are tight you should not have a problem with wear if you use a tight stitch. I've seen loops done with only 1 and 2 diagonal stitches and those usually fray pretty quick. Those in the photo are not grooved. If you get the stitches tight the little stretch you'll get won't matter. Also when they begin to get loose leave the cartridges out and they shrink back. I don't leave cartridges in the loops, that is store them. Crude grows on them if you do that. I've seen it to the point they won't chamber. I wonder why the guy tried to load it into the gun. As far as the .22 rimfire you're right. That's a tight fit - you're working in a tight spot. From a practical standpoint the .22 rimfire being an outside lubed cartridge and the loops rubbing and scraping the lube off the bullets I wouldn't mess with that for my own use, but the customer is always right ... lol! I hate loops that's what pockets and possible bags are for. That method that GTT mentioned of building the loops works well from a practical stand point. Before speedloaders (gee now we're back to geezer days ... lol) we'd have two pieces of 12 inch skirt behind the loops to get some space so you could get your fingers around the cartridges. We're talking game playing here, working against the clock, nothing practical for the field. The best were thick skirt bevel so that they set at angle with the bullets resting against the belt and the rims of the cases kicked out so you could get your fingers around them. We also built slides like this for PPC competition and it wasn't unusual to see them on a street cops Sam Browne. I strayed from the .22, but someone might find something useful and share a better idea. As far as looks I like the loops laced, the slot method, but you'd have to space them out for .22s and that in my eyes would look a little cheesy, but there were a lot of loops done that way when the B westerns were in vogue. One of those beauty in the eye sort of things. Nothing wrong with it. For .22s I'd probably go with a kip lace as it'll have less stretch and a thin piece of kip will be stronger than a piece of split skirt.

That stitch pattern has been around forever. Go for it!

Regis, I bought one of those things and I didn't have any luck with it. It was summer here, about 100 the day I messed with it. I was doing Pro Dye and all I got was globs. I tried thinning and then I cleaned it and tried spraying plain water and then mineral spirits and then dropped it in the trash. I've heard of folks having good luck with them but I didn't. I probably got a lemon but I just went for a cheapo air brush and haven't had any problems with that. I'd experiment with thinning and it you don't have to drive half-way across the county to exchange it, I try to swap it for another because you may have a bad one. Good luck and let us know if you figure it out.

Kathy, does Pete have a website?

GTT got a good idea of mounting the loops on a strap if you're going to do slots. Otherwise I'd line the belt. Lawrence used to attached the loops to a strap but they did not use the slot technique. I never done .22 rimfire but the spacing will be tight. I'd work up a sample. Take you time with it and you might turn that into a slide that hangs off the belt. Here's a few pixs of .45 Colt loops that illustrate the stitch pattern. You're talking the same thing only different with your twenty-two rims.

Last week I was up by the highway cuttin' weeds and a convertible drove by with the top down, there were four cows on board - a heifer drivin'. All four gawking at me and making mooing sounds. I got the tag number, called in and checked vehicle registration. The car was registered to a Gary Larson ... lol!

Not bad welder. Turn your deco cuts around. Most folks don't learn that molding right off. Makes it clean. Keep that piece, save scrap work like that and look back to see improvement. It's inspiring. Learned that from Verlane. She had stuff from her teens. Doing it four times ain't a bad idea. Repetition is the mother of skill.

OK Skip it bit ... lol! You ought'a have at least 2 on there. It'll only took me a dozen of so tries to access it. I'm wearing out the back button on this browser, but it don't discriminate, I can't get to mine either ... lol!

Boy does that put a gap in the knowledge base of leather-work and the history of the craft. I am sorry to hear of Verlane's death. Her family will be in my prayers. Condolences to the bereaved. She will be greatly missed!

Hey mortar man! I use bag punches, but what Luke's saying is versatile and inexpensive and requires less sharpening and of course more skill and a lot cleaner that a bit. What's on the Chirstmas wish list? Tools! can't have too many TOOLS!

Hey Mike, If you're serious, no thistles around Quinlan, remind me next spring and I'll get you some thistle pictures if you're talking old wild and wooly Texas thistles. Probably a Scottish thing (lol) but I got more than I want. later, Bill

You're not alone Bruce. I started getting that also. There's a bunch of goofy stuff going on. I'm also using IE and I so far I haven't had these problems on other forums. I wonder if someone is messing with Johanna's site.

I messed with irfanview for weeks and never figured it out. You better know something about computers to figure that out. I know I don't know nothing and couldn't figure that one.