Peter Ellis

The lack of clarity in the picture makes it impossible for me to be certain of this, but due to the yellowish color of the blade area, I'm wondering if you've cleaned it off ? Sometimes tools will have a protective coating to prevent rust through shipping and waiting around for sale. If that coating is still on the blade, it just isn't going to work right.

You know, the fellow may very well be right. Literally correct. He didn't say "I don't have anything left to learn", he said "there is nothing anyone could teach me". With that belief, it's quite possibly true.

http://larsdatter.com/cases.htm The page above lists links to photos available on the net of many interesting objects made from leather and housed in various museums. One of the things I find fascinating is not only how much our ancestors liked their tooled leather, but how some design elements still used today can be clearly seen in pieces made more than five hundred years ago. These are the kinds of images I find tremendously inspiring. I hope others will enjoy them.

It might just be that discussion about antique application, finishing, dyes and all of that is generally going on in the forum that is dedicated to those subjects. You might find that what you're asking for is already there

I've worked with both and I make hardened leather armour on a very small commercial basis. I work primarily with the saddle skirting as it is very much easier to do any forming/molding with than the sole bends and also can be had in larger pieces. This last can be important for some items of armour in that you may not be able to cut the pattern from a sole bend. Sole bend can be hardened, but for most purposes it's dense enough that you don't need to harden it.

Chuckle.. you too

Magnificent!

Considering that you are trying to get by with leather that is too light to harden, you might want to try this trick instead of any of the heat based processes. Damp form your leather to the shape you want. Fill a bucket or deep tray with acrylic floor polish. Submerge your leather in the polish and leave it there until it stops bubbling. Take it out and hang it up to dry. Use a damp cloth to take the drips off the pieces before they harden in place. This will stiffen up any weight leather and doesn't run the risk of cooking it. No shrinkage concerns. It won't make your thin leather any stronger. Part of why you don't harden light leather is that when leather stops being able to flex, it cracks. Try this technique and see if it works for your purposes. It has the added benefit of making the leather both semi-waterproof and very shiney.

That sounds about right. They market a "sample" size at about $30 for 2 pounds (2 lbs part A and 2 oz. part that is roughly a quart in volume. It goes a pretty long way, since you're spreading a layer over the leather just thick enough to coat the surface thoroughly. And yes, it's pricey.

Stamps work by compressing the surface and in doing so burnishing the leather a bit. You don't want your stamps going through the grain. It's best to make the impression with one firm strike and not try to hit the stamp a second time on a single impression. It's a really difficult thing to keep the stamp exactly aligned so that you can have that second shot. It takes some practice and experience to develop a sense for how hard you need to hit a given stamp. Some small stamps, like seeders or stops, will punch right through your leather quite easily and only need a light touch, while larger stamps may take a solid whack. It's important that your leather be properly cased for stamps to make good impressions.

Hey folks. Some of you may remember me from a couple of years ago. I've been wrestling with some other aspects of life and not had a whole lot of time for visiting here. Things have come around again, such that I'm back and eagerly following the inspirational work and terrific tips, tricks and general advice that make these forums such a tremendous resource and asset. While I've been away from here I've been doing a bit of leatherwork and finally got my website to a point where I can let the public see it. While still a work in progress, I would appreciate it if folks would take a look and let me know what they think. Thanks. Peter Ellis www.noblelionleather.com

You might want to take a look at the website below. http://www.redkaganate.org/ Also, there's a website called The Armour Archive http://forums.armourarchive.org/phpBB2/ with truckloads of information about historic armour. While not very big on fantasy work, they've got a vast collective knowledge base about historic armour and can probably offer sources/resources for images of just about any kind you can imagine

Smooth-Sil 940 is the product I use for my jacks and bottels when I want them to hold up with hot liquids and/or strong spirits. It has a consistency similar to cake frosting, so it's not a pour and swirl application. It also requires an extended heat cure - 4 hours at 212 F. But, it's good to over 400 degrees and food grade Lots of vessel makers use welted seams - it helps with making them water tight.

I know I'm late to the party here, but wow. Inspiring, beautiful, amazing.... words fail...

Honestly, because it's easier to match two pieces and stitch them together then stretch them out than it is to match two pieces that have been formed separately and stitch them together. For example, I don't know how the heck I would sew the seam on my Boss if the pieces are pre-formed, but when I'm just stitching flat seams on flat leather, it's no problem.

Strong recommendation against attaching those arms to the gorget. Instead, sew a leather patch on your gambeson at the shoulder, punch a pair of holes through the patch before sewing it in place, and run a tie from there through a pair of holes in the top of your rerebrace. Hanging them off the gorget will pull the gorget as your arms move and not provide adequate support for the arm harness. What will you be using this harness for ?

While the majority of pieces that Goubitz reconstructs are late middle ages into 16th century, he discusses patterns that are found over a very broad span of both time and geography. He also gives valuable information regarding construction techniques. I thought his work was the source for a Norse wallet pattern I've built a couple of, but in looking through just now I didn't see it (which could easily mean that I'm just not seeing, or that I've misremembered my source). Purses in pieces is a unique resource, in that it is the product of a fellow who spent many years handling surviving leather items and piecing together construction methods. He shares insights that others who only look at the surviving fragments simply cannot provide. Even though his focus is on finds in the Netherlands, his observations are valuable over a much broader scope. Have you looked at the Hedeby purses ? Some interesting stuff there, including questions like, which side is the fur on ? And you are absolutely right, I switched Netherlands with Denmark..

I agree that Dan gave an excellent tutorial on a very consistent and reliable method of producing hardened leather. Marc Carlson's webpages (mentioned earlier in this thread) give a good introduction to the chemistry involved and the temperatures required. I'll second the observation made earlier regarding halftanned leather and hardening. I did an elbow cop from halftanned (about 12 oz or so) and was amazed at its toughness and resiliency. I could actually turn it inside out and pop it back into shape without cracking, yet it was hard... The historical records regarding use of wax and pitch appear to be related to making leather waterproof. There are records describing in great detail a French process for "jacking" boots, involving wax.

You will want to have a look at a book titled "Purses in Pieces". It examines leather bags, pouches, purses, wallets, etc. found in Denmark (primarily) and provides patterns and construction tips. The author did reproduction work for archaeologists and had the opportunity to examine many of the originals discussed in the book. It covers a broad time frame, including your period of interest.

It doesn't make sense to me at any level. If I buy a widget from Weaver, how can that possibly allow them to make and sell a widget for free ? What are the words supposed to mean ? They're already making the thing, or I couldn't buy it from them. Really, I can't even begin to understand what it is that is trying to be said... I know Weaver will make clicker dies, and that they will even hold your die at their factory and cut out your pieces if you ask them to. Maybe the suggestion is when you have them do this that they are using your die and making your product and competing against you ? I think that sort of thing would get a business into a world of trouble in a very big hurry and have never heard anything to suggest that they do it...

As an example, if I want to make a dozen Mickey Mouse coasters and use them on my patio table, there's not a problem. If I want to make ten dozen and sell them, there's a very real problem. If I want to make and sell one dozen, there's a very real problem. It's ok to copy a famous painting in the museum. It isn't ok to try and sell it as the real thing. It's probably not even ok to try and sell it as a copy - because the museum probably reserves that right. Want to do trademark/copyrighted stuff to work up your skills, it's not a problem. Start distributing them and it can become a problem, rapidly. And yes, there are lots of people out there breaking the law in this area. Don't get sucked into the trap that "everybody does it" - it isn't true about cheating on taxes either, and both can get one into serious legal troubles.

Did she offer any reason for thinking that the tool would have been used for leather working ? I'm confused that they would find something used to mark up a clay vessel and think of it as a leatherworking tool. As far as resembling anything I've seen evidence of in historic leatherwork - from the late 1500's or earlier - this stamp doesn't look like anything I've seen. I haven't seen much evidence of using stamps for anything but backgrounding work, and those are all much, much smaller.

Welcome aboard Mike. I think I've seen your work before on a British Blades, site, yes ? I make a few of these as well, and enjoy seeing other people's approach. I've found a food grade silicone product that I use for lining some of my pieces. It's rated for temperatures well above boiling water, so it's unlikely anyone would put any drink in it that it can't handle. Plus the silicone can handle strong spirits. Of course, it's wildly inauthentic I do a little 12 ounce size that makes a great flask. Historically these things had a huge size range. When you're making these, I assume you've got a bunch of them ready to go into the wax before you go spending all that time and energy melting that big pot of beeswax I need to find myself a large double boiler like yours. Right now what I've got really isn't quite up to my needs. Thanks for sharing your tutorial, you do a great job of presenting the process.

No need to apologize. If you didn't tell us in advance, that you would need to apologize for ... And add me to the list wanting to place advance orders, preferably for an autographed copy