Sylvia

Oh well then Pfft!... you don't need MY help then. LOL

I guess I could have been more specific. It's the black safety skiver that I use with a fresh blade it works really well. The sanding helps too. I recently got from my hubby a bench top belt sander so I don't skive as much as I used to. It's got a pretty aggressive grit on the belt and makes really quick work of things like this... and as long as I keep my fingers out of the way... It is pretty safe. It's this belt sander and I keep it tilted up like this and the very top is where I sand... I just drag the belt across the top because the belt is exposed there and it works really well. As far as "too wide and too shallow"... I would skive from just past where your buckle tongue will go, to the end of the edge that will fold under. Skive linearly not across the belt, then sand and sand a little extra across where it folds. Practice on some scrap belt... so you can get a feel of this. Good luck! Syl

Hi Joe: I use a safety skiver for that, then a little sanding with 150-200 grit paper, to smooth it so it doesn't look so rough. Keep your french edger though... I understand they are good for a few things like insetting rivets syl

That certainly is a valid temporary solution, Twin. Ive considered doing that myself! But even with a bunch of lead shot I don't think you'll get the heft you want, unless you melted the lead and poured it directly into the cavity. If you got lucky and it didn't catch fire... it might work. lol From what I gather 14oz to 20oz Poly headed mauls are preferred, for all around use, with 5-9oz being used for lighter more delicate stamping. Balance seems to be important depending on the users method of holding the maul. I tend to old my mallet like I would a 16oz framing hammer... all the way down on the handle. Especially when I am using brute force to get some of these larger punches to go through. According to the young man at Barry King (not Barry, and I've forgotten his name), the white material is the most resilient, and there was some side note about nylon I don't recall. The brown and black apparently have a slightly, almost indiscernible, difference in feel from the white and yellow.

I bet Double C would if the price was right.

I am very happy that everyone loves BRL... I don't typically stick my neck out for a company like that but I just knew some of us would love to be able to get decent templates at a reasonable price. Of course, Joyce and Jerry are super awesome folks that really good care of the customer... which makes it really easy to sing their praises here.

Ok you bought a 16oz AS Maul and put it back in the box... was it because of the weight,... or the feel of the thing?

Same rules apply don't you think? Every contact cement I've ever used required thin coats and allowing it to get to "slightly tacky" before meeting the materials.

Thanks again Fella's! I've made my choice and have placed an order. I went with a Barry King 20oz (even though it was $ more than I wanted to pay) because I felt I needed a little more heft for those dog-gone bag punches. If all else fails I'll still have my el cheapo light weight one for the lightest work. ***Edit... I actually ended up with the 16oz Barry King. I got to flailing around with that 1lb 1.6oz rubber mallet and that 20oz might be a little to much for me. LOL Please do continue to offer your insights... I'm sure Double C and other's find it helpful.

Thanks again, Bruce. I imagine most of the "tool makers" are there... heck I would be if I could afford it. I think I am zeroing in on a 16oz Poly head one to start with. Though I am still not clear if the different colors of poly has anything to do with the feel and behavior of the material. I had actually had my eye on a 3lb one... but I don't want to drive my seeders through the leather with one blow.

Usually if rubber cement isn't working you've done one of 2 things. 1. you put it on too thick. Thin coats are better. or 2. You've tried to stick them together too soon.

Ok Gents... we are getting more into... I like "Mike the tool maker" fest here And Frankly, If I want a pretty tool... I'd paint mine pink and bedazzle it with ruby rhinestones. I don't care about looks or exotic woods. I care about your impression of the weight, and striking material... and your perceived benefits of those materials. As Joe Friday says. "Just the facts, Ma'am."

Thanks Bruce. I saw your post on the other thread about Wayne being your favorite. I imagine he's at Sheridan right now so when I called, I got a voice mail. When you way expensive.... what are we talking... will I have to sell a kidney?

LOL Bless you, Kevin for reminding me that there are 16oz to 1lb. :D (knew that) Well, I weighed my poly mallet from the Tandy Deluxe kit and I believe it is a 4 oz., since the entire thing weighs 6.6oz. I went around an gathered other hammers and mallets sitting around and got a total combined weight of 2lbs 8oz. Then I held all of them and gave them a "how's that feel test" well besides being awkward as heck... It felt quite a bit better to me than my little poly mallet. Then I weighed this rubber mallet I have for tent stakes. It weighs 1lb 1.7oz. It feels ok too. As for color... I don't really care about color... I do care about the material and had hoped someone would be able to give some info on IF there is a difference based on the material/color combo. Meaning.... perhaps the black is slightly Less slick than another color... something like that? Make sense?

Thank you. Ok, so "LF" (is that leather factory?) Also I've noticed different colored poly materials... Do the colors indicate say softness or durability? I've seen white, yellow, baby poop yellow, brown and black. Are or were any of your mallets rawhide? Any benefit to offset the durability problems?

I vote for a BLT, Beer and Sleep. lol

Thanks Spinner. Ok so from what I reading thus far, the poly material is more durable... and about 1.5 to 2lbs is a good all around weight.

A recent experience with a bag punch got me thinking about upgrading from my poly mallet from the Tandy Deluxe Kit to something better. During my research I find a lot of different sizes, and materials. I swear it's worse than trying to decide on a new pair of shoes! So I wanted to ask everyone a couple questions. What do you use the most, a maul or a mallet? What weight is your maul/mallet and why did you choose that weight? What material is your maul/mallet made from, and what do you feel are the advantages of this material? If you were to buy another maul/mallet... would you get a heavier one or a lighter one? If so why? I'm not looking for recommendations of from whom to buy. I've pretty much found the place I'll make my purchase... I just wanted a little more information on what YOU use and why. Thanks for the insight. Syl

Hi Dallas With you being a blacksmith... can you make tools and buckles and such? I agree with the others on Barry King. Well made Quality tools that aren't too expensive for the most part and they take good care of the customer.

The whetstone will work. Somewhere on Youtube is a video on how to sharpen these oblongs. I'll try to find it for you. ok... the oblong section starts at about 3:00 in this video.

Hi Cheryl: I have a 1.5 inch oblong and the same thing happened to me. took me about 6 hours to bash my way through 9oz leather 8 times. When I finally took a really good look at the thing I realized that one end was thicker than the other. When I get time I'll be spending some time with the grinder and the dremel on it. So yeah, yours probably needs to be sharpened REALLY well. S

Hi Dom... LOL I didn't even see the link before.. just the picture. That is the coolest thing ever! When I saw the picture I thought it was one of those resin sculpture like things. Now I see that it's actually a case with a moulded leather dragon on top. Very cool.

I see. May I suggest that you figure out a way to put the glass piece over a light box type thing and trace it? Or perhaps try to scan it using a colored backing paper to enhance the laser etching? I think what is happening is you are loosing some of the finer points in the glass when you freehand sketch. If you don't have a light box, you can use a window or even your monitor if you can figure out a way to get it to stay in place while you trace. Even a clear casserole dish turned upside down with a bunch of clear Christmas/fairy lights stuck under it would work in a pinch... and might be easier to work with. Use one of those clear sheet protectors to trace on with a sharpie. The clear won't hide any of the features of the subject while you are tracing and it aids in placing the image when you go to transfer it to the leather. As for the moon you can always use a coin, or bottle cap or something similar to make sure you get that nicely rounded shape. I think I would be more likely to leave the moon smooth rather than trying to indicate craters with a stamp. Are you planning to paint this with color?

A agree with the fellas, never condition before your casing and tooling. I also think you are over finishing the piece. One thing you'll learn doing leather working is patience. When you say "crackling" are you speaking of a wrinkled effect when the leather is flat and not flexed? If so, it sounds to me as if you have not skived the leather where the buckle goes. When you bend the leather over to test or place a buckle, you stretch the hair side... when it is returned to the flat position is doesn't rebound so the stretched skin wrinkles. Also if you flex leather to condition it to the hair side it will leave wrinkles and such on the finish side of the leather. As far as I know there is nothing to fix this once it's done. But frankly.... the other end of the belt will overlay that and hide it when worn. So I wouldn't worry about it too much.