St8LineGunsmith

cool thing is it is already full of stuff.

I would like to see some period accurate designs and where to buy buckles and hardware also.

If I could only have one I wouldn't waste my money on a Tippman Boss it has a shallow throat and continually comes out of adjustment. I would save a little more money and get a Cobra class 4-S, 4-P or a King Cobra 4-25 however trying to stay within a $1300.00 budget the Tech Sew 3650-HD would be my choice. JM .02

looks like a relatively simple project.

My local Tandy Leather Factory store here in Chattanooga is awesome! everyone there are very helpful and Jim the manager is one of the most helpful and dedicated and willing to help however he can he holds classes every week and regularly tries to schedule professional leather working business owners to conduct workshops. we just finished a holster making work shop and the end of this month a saddle bag workshop will be taking place if there are any issues with tools and material they will do everything possible to make it right However I too have noticed the decline in quality with some tools and I think that has a lot to do with out sourcing from overseas manufacturers I remember a time when all the tools had made in USA now they have Fabrique EN Tiwan or China or some other foreign country. I think if they are going to sell specialty tools made with sub par materials and sub par materials they should not be asking a premium price. the price should reflect on the quality of the tools.

I use a wood carving V gouge and it works very well I also use wood working chisels for cutting in slots good sharp wood chisels and gouges work great for making precision cuts on leather Ialso have a thumb plane that works excellent for skiving down leather anyway I just thought I would throw that out there

this might sound crazy but oil dry compound will pull the oil right out of a soggy holster that has been oil saturated. I went overboard with the oil one time and didn't want to throw away the holster so I shoved the holster down in a bag of oil dry, (or cat litter is pretty much the same thing) pulled it of the bag a day later and it was dry as a bone like I never put the first drop of oil on it. anyway the best thing is not to over do it with the oil.

Springfield has a good selection of tools I attend the free leatherworking classes at Tandy Leather Factory in Chattanooga, TN every Saturday so I get most of my tools ,Leather and hardware there since I get everything at wholesale. I also make as many tools as I can to save money I am very impressed with the new professional Crafttool stamps and swivel knifes from Tandy. a bit pricey to start out with so if you dont belong to tandys wholesale club you should seriously consider shopping with Springfield for the best price If you have a Tax ID number you can get your supplys wholesale from tandy or springfield.

Josh I tend to agree with you about using the belly Dwight I am glad I was able to be of some assistance Mike as always very nice work!

I use 8 to 10 oz veg tan for most holsters 10 ox will be thick enough for a belt also. depending on your girth if you are a 36" waist you can use a double shoulder to get several belts and holsters. if you are larger than a 36" waist then you will need to get a side for it to be long enough to make the belt and a side will be large enough to make a lot of belts holsters and other acessories. if you are wanting a bare minimum of leather then you could get a tooling belly for the belt and a single shoulder for the holster and other accessories.

very nice I like it a lot Good job!

Rod or Dense FWIW any information pertaning to saddle making is vague here in the forums it sems no one is willing to share information on how to do something without a price therefore using a search engine is some what beneficial at least to get some kind of an idea if something is doable by an individual with what tools and resources are readily available to them. as far as the E how website is concerned has probably got to be one of the most worthless sites on the internet however using the search query "how to make a saddle tree" can produce some good results as well at least enough for a person to determine whether attempting to make something is within their skill set or not so the search browsers are a good tool from that stand point. here is a website that has some illustrations that are very helpful that shows how to properly fit a tree to the horse the saddle is being made for http://www.cowboysaddlery.com/saddletrees.html Here is another web page that shows the diffrent steps in making a saddle tree: http://www.freckerssaddlery.com/saddle_tree.php although it does not tell you how to make the tree it does show to some degree of what is involved in making the tree. here is another page that shows some construction techniques and procedures of making a saddle tree http://www.willghormley-maker.com/Custom-Old-West-Saddle-Tree.html another good resource for basic knowledge http://eclectic-horseman.com/content/view/218/33/ another http://crestridgesaddlery.com/Backmap.html lots of good info from Bruce Cheaney on youtube

No problem, I am glad I could help actually making the saddle parts are no more difficult than any other leather project as long as you have a good foundation to build on,the foundation being the tree. if you follow tried and true procedures you will be able to make a nice saddle without a whole lot of difficulties measure twice cut once and you are better off making your parts too big than too small.

Dusty Johnson has paterns that will work for pretty much any style saddle you want to make here are some saddle patterns you will find useful and they are free. are you going to make the tree? making the tree is the hardest part to make. since this will be your first saddle I would suggest buying a saddle tree that way you can get the right fit and see how the saddle tree is constructed. you can get saddlery and tack hardware from tractor supply that is very reasonably priced if you will do a google search "Western saddle patterns and "how to build a western saddle tree" you will get a lot of good research information that will get you started in the right direction If you dont mind spending the money get all three volumes of the Stholman encyclopedia of saddle making a little pricey but well worth every penny if you want to learn how to do it right. you can save some money by getting a digital download from Leathercraftlibrary.com however I would recommend getting the hard copy's for quick reference that you can keep handy by your work bench. Here is another PDF link you may find useful http://umaine.edu/4h...saddleology.pdf

I like it a lot! I want to make one wth a back strap for carrying my double barrel coach gun.

Yep they make them http://www.berettausa.com/products/beretta-92a1-blue-gun-inert-training-tool-2-magazines/

I know this is an old thread but I have to say that is one of the most beautiful knife sheathes I have seen Very Nice Work!

I use a bamboo chop stick that I sharpen with a pencil sharpener then sand the point round to transfer patterns to the leatheri the bamboo is strong but is softer than a metal stylus so it is a little forgiving on the transfer sheet as far as tools it pays to shop around. you can find tools at a discount on E-Bay and Amazon. you can also browse the for sale section here in the forum things like cutting boards measuring tools,and cutting tools can be found at harbor freight toolsfor a frction that you would pay at the leather store. springfield leather has new tools reasonably priced Check out the ergo swivel knife and get a 1/4" angled blade it really feels good in the hand or if you can swing the cash check out the new pro swivel knife tandy just put on the market it is really nice but it is a bit pricey.

wOw! I like that, you did a fantastic job on it.

This is a cool little setup.I might have to find me a nice log . The video tutorials are top notch too.

Good work there!

you can also use a bone creaser or a stylus to make a groove but a groover is going to do the best job. as someone else mentioned a v gouge works good on the rough side i wouldn't recommend a gouge for the smooth side

Hey guys I did not see anything about this classin the forum so I thought I would post about it here. Not sure who is conducting the class but this Saturday January 12 at Tandy Leather they are having a holster and knife sheathe making class just thought I would give a heads up for anyone in the area who would like to go.I think there are 26 signed up already you may want to call the store for all the details.if you are interested.

I have noticed here lately I am unable to log on to the site.

shoot I cant even afford a maul let alone 900 bucks for the likes of that , sure looks cool tho maybe if I ever hit the lottlery for a few million