SandSquid

I need to get a hold of several medium weight mauls for the campers to use here. Being of limited funds and wild imagination, got to thinking that a resourceful person with a modicum of turning skills and a wood lathe ( at the house, 150 miles away....) and a hardware store could probably make quite a few for not much money. I'm guessing the the "hardware" is about a 10" long 1" bolt, and some fender washers and a acorn nut to cap it off. Handle is easy enough... The rawhide head has me puzzled. I'm thinking a bunch of rawhide stacked and glued together with contact cement, or epoxy? They don't need to be fancy or even nice just useable!

So far we have deemed down to 1"x1" as "useable". perfect for testing to make sure your letter is right side up before committing it to your wrist band.

Works perfectly, especially once I put a dab of lubricant on the little nipple end of the punch. Box came in today... AWESOMENESS!

Luke, none of this would have been possible without your scraps! I actually use your gesture as a talking point with the kids... “Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above.” James 1:17

I'm teaching archery and "reconnecting with polite society", which is what I need to be doing to get my head straight and figure out what the new normal is. OK, It's kinda weird to wake up and get dressed and not holster a weapon on my hip, but I'm slowly getting over it, and this is a good place to do that. Granted soon as I pull out onto the main road I'll be going into the trunk-safe for my .45 The kids are happily pounding leather. And I'm cranking out wrist bands almost as fast as the kids can make them. Leather-working has been a huge boon for me as well, fills up my evening hours by the campfire when I can't sleep. Keeps me from dwelling on combat zones that has been my home for the past few years.

Take your (1") wide leather bracelets and a stitch groover set for 1/3 the width And make two equidistant grooves. For a cleaner look "stop" the groves w/ punched holes Cut through the groves and you are good to go! This is our "demo" set that will be attached to the wall of the of the Craft Hut.

I refuse to.....Look up "vicarious liability". Think about slapping you or your precious cargo. They are illegal is some jurisdictions.... No need to attract additional attention from the man.

I just got a 5-Peice set of big bunches, and theTandy Mini Punch Set So I'm now covered for: 5/64", 3/32", 1/8", 9/64", 5/32" and 11/64", 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 7/16" and 1/2" that's pretty slick! Just got that same setup from Kevin. It works great. Position the barrel over the snap insert drive punch and tap, tap, tap. Snap set nice and snug. The kids will be able to work with it once shown. I'm very glad to hear that.... There is so much hyperbole in advertising these days, it's hard to know if I'm making a wise decision. And when you have very limited funds, buyers remorse sucks all that much more.

I can handle Line 20 as well as Line 24 now that I ordered (100) snaps and a Line 20 & Line 24 Snap Setter, and The Original Strap Cutter of my own, So I can cut more straps from scraps here.

After much frustration with trying to punch holes and tie the wrist straps/bracelettes, we've decided we really NEED to get snaps for them.

Yup, got the package from them and from you, THANKS... The mystery braid is already a success!

Cleaning and organizing the remains of the leather-working activity at summer camp Craft Hut. Between the remains of 4 different sets, I am only missing the "J" to make one complete set.

found the remains of 4 sets of letter stamps. Between them all I almost got one full set. Just missing the "J".

Things are starting to come together.... I did some digging/cleaning in the Craft Hut and think I found most/all of the leather-working stuff. The stamps are pretty old and oxidized but leave good impressions. I really need to clean them up somehow as I'm fearful they will stain the leather. Then I want to make a inventory of all the stamps in a bigger piece of leather to hang on the wall so the kids will know what impression each stamp will make. For challenges, I've taken the nice big heavy headstone/tooling slabs off the picnic table. I need to come up with a way to beef up the supports and tops. Those tables are fine for tie-dyeing and rock painting but not leather-working. They just cannot handle 200# of dead weight, never-mind the full 600# of all of them. Full day of archery today so I don't know how much I'll get done.

You are Awesome, thanks. things are starting to come together.

That'd be awesome, thanks! the address here is: John Gunterman @ Lakeshore UMA 1458 Pilot Knob Rd. Eva, TN 38333

Well, I used the rained-out time I would have spent teaching archery this morning cutting the 1" strips into useable lengths, we got : (135) @ 8" long "Large" - will fit a full sized adalt (50) @ 6" long "Small" That should keep some kiddies happy for awhile!

Archery is cancelled for today! Severe thunderstorms in progress.... I don't think standing outside with aluminum arrows in our hands is prudent. I sure hope that order from Springfield Leather gets here today, and EARLY.. We NEED some "indoor activities"

I've quickly learned that Leatherworking is probably the single most cost intensive activity offered at the craft hut, just because of the cost of the raw materials. If it weren't for the donation of scraps and use of the strap cutter, I'd be dead in the water here.... Over the next few days between archery classes, I'm going to make up a jig to accurately (and safely) cut the straps into appropriate lengths and mark the locations for the lacing holes. The number and letter stamp sets, groover, hole punch set, etc. should be here in a few days, they supposedly left Springfield Leather on Friday.

that's got it.

Sweet, thanks! So, stupid question, how do I download it so I can print it....

Right now, a supply of leather is at the top of my list of very important thing to acquire... Gotta sell some wrist bands, so I can buy more/bigger pieces of leather for other projects.

That'd be a slightly longer hike, but no we are at "Tent & Trailer". <you can see the front of my wife's car in that photo ;-) We do share the hygiene facilities with them though.

As long as the kiddies don;t mind the occasional expletive. the "small" grey ones 12'x24'x4" are about 100#, the pinkish one below it is easily 150# after placing one this morning, I have some serious doubts about the integrity of the picnic tables... There are 4 incandescent bulbs in the ceiling, that is all... aye but those cost money....