bruce johnson

Just another of the Metal Rescue and Evaporust tips. They will get into areas you cannot by any mechanical means. You will notice on the label that it says works better over 65 degrees. True enough, and the warmer the faster the chelation reaction. I talked to one of the celebrity endorsers of one of these products. His tip under condition of anonymity. You can heat these and turn 12 hours into less than 12 minutes. I do this for small parts like bolts and hardware. Put them in an aluminum pan, heat to "hot enough to stick a finger in but too hot to leave it there". Simmer for as long as it takes, a couple rinses of water, and you're good. You will lose some solution to evaporation but there is the time saving element. Strain the solution through a paper towel back into the container and you're ready for next time.

Hanson's silver has them.

This slaughter-free vegtan leather was only offered by Siegels. Steve Siegel downsized his business not long after, and now seems to be concentrating on higher end book binding leather. This doesn't mean country hides went away, they just aren't marketed as such.

Some contact cements are heat activated, Barge is the one most think of but others are too. They can dry and then you apply heat to tack the cement back up. I use a paint stripping gun. A few places that this is helpful. Cement won't stick very well to wet leather. You can apply cement to dry leather and let it set. Dip or soak the piece and when it is right, hit it with some heat and stick it. Good for ground seat build-ups in saddles. It also helps if you are batching up stuff. You can apply the cement to everything at a whack, then come back and heat-n-stick.

Here's a link to my web page that has the tutorials. Interestingly enough, rein rounders are at the top of the page - http://brucejohnsonleather.com/tutorials/

Normally when they twist to one side then a few things can be happening. There should be a way to adjust the distance between the bottom roller and the blade and level the blade vs. the feed roller. On the US made ones there is a stud that goes into the two bottom roller bushing blocks with two jam nuts that can be tightened or loosened to adjust each side. The other thing that twists the piece from one side to the other is pressure. Again, on the US made ones there are heavy compression springs that pressure the bottom roller. If one side has more pressure than the other that can affect feeding. Sometimes you have to back the pressure all the way off then tighten each side a bit at a time to keep it even.

To back up here and update my previous post from August - You can now print postage from home for the small flat rate Priority Mail boxes again. Not beimng able to do that lasted about a week. The word I got it was that they realized it was either a glitch in the website update or the complaints were huge and they had to bring it back. Either way - good to go again.

Dan, I sent you an email. Have one. - Bruce

They are not real common in that large but I get them every so often. I just sold one this morning heading to Australia. I will check to see if any I haven't got to yet in the shop are that big.

Obvious to me that this is a different animal. It is a crankstyle and not common to the US. I would try to see if you can find somebody with one over there or Europe and see if the blade bevel is correct. That blade may well need to be that way by design. Changing to a single bevel may change the edge position. This particular splitter may need that double bevel to clear the bottom roller when it is up against the stops (where the corners have chipped out). Those corners can chip out on US crank splitters too. If you allow the blade to sit back from the stops the distance of the chip, they will work without sacrificing good blade in the center.

Thanks Camano for providing that link. I do have a few half round pinking punches availalbe right now. That page link is here - http://brucejohnsonleather.com/leather-tools-sale/leather-scalloping-and-pinking-punches-sale/ .

From this view looks like a fur machine. Cowboy Bob or Cobra Steve could probably tell you what it'll do.

Most but not all 5 in 1s can be set for level splitting but you'll wear your arm out cranking it through. The adjustments are not as precise. The CS Osborne #86 splitters see a lot of use because they are pretty available and tend to be the least expensive pull splitter. Easy to adjust, don't take up much room, and normally a solid unit.

Looks like a pointed figure beveler and just from what I can tell, probably from Robert Beard.

Another vote with OlToot. I've had one of the new Randall Keystones here that was good and wouldn't hesitate on recommending it. Blade is sharpened to better angle than the imports. I wouldn't look past a good old Osborne #84 either. An older one with a good blade is just what he said. If you are determined to buy new, look at the new Osborne #84s. I have now bought two 84 replacement blades to go on older 84s I have refurbished. I don't know what happened with Osborne but the quality decline on some of their other tools has NOT transferred over to the new #84 blades. They are bimetal blades that are really good and finished well. The only difference between new and older CSO #84 frames is they went with a smaller thread on the handle.

Really nice, Sure like the set I have from you!

That is one edit that is within my skill set here. I got them marked as sold for you.

Rons by a huge margin over Weavers. Rons will maintain the same tension raising or lowering the stand because the tension arms are on the post. You can turn Rons with tension on as well. Weavers tension from the base so you can't do either with theirs. I have had Rons for quite a while and haven't regretted one second of that time.

Books - in particular older poetry by Robert Service, Edgar Guest, Banjo Paterson, Henry Lawson, and old western poetry from the early 1900s before "cowboy poetry" was cool. Will James, Ross Santee, and books by or about Charlie Russell and Will Rogers. Tools - old leather tools, but not any one maker. I have an old knife from the 1830s that rocks my world. Use it quite a bit, and I expect the makers would be proud that I do.

Looks really good! Like the pattern and just the right amount of silver!

looks good!

Besides Weaver you can buy Jeremiah Watt tools directly from him as well at www.ranch2arena.com . Only Weaver sells the Master tools and that is their "house brand". You still may be able to buy from Weaver directly with a Danish license.

FWIW, I think the original Heritage tools were/are cast overseas and came with the deal when Weavers bought Mast a few years ago. The friendly phone folks at Weaver may not always be particularly knowledgeable about their products. Several years ago I added a maul to an order. I asked if Barry King made them because they looked just like Barry Kings. She told me they were made by a local Amish craftsman. Yeah, uh uh. Barry King stamped on the top when I got it. Same with the Heritage tools. They told me that the skivers were made in PA too. Finish wise the draw gauges can be a little rough but comparable to current Osbornes in finish or lack of. At least the bars are solid and not hollow back aluminum like the newer Osbornes. Like I wrote in the other thread you will need to work on the Osborne blades, They don't come ready to use, but come with a fourth of the price tag of blades that are. Once you get them right they do hold a pretty good edge.

If you ever get over the Altamont, I'm in Oakdale and you'd sure be welcome to stop by.

Same info as Kevin. I haven't heard of the bench skiver before. Got a picture or a link?