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Reegesc

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Everything posted by Reegesc

  1. Ya know, I think you're right, That would work too or at least should work. What's to prevent it from landing randomly ever now and then on a jiggle? I suppose you can ascertain that by obsevering where it most often lands. Yeah, I can't see any reason that wouldn't work. Cool, two solutions. I've just about got my DYT Pro toe type Model 1A Experimental finished. Just need to plane 1/16" of the top and then give 'er a whirl. It was super easy to make with scrap lumber plus I already have a like five jumbo straight edge rulers. Imagine, perfectly centered collars from here on out. It's an amazing time to be alive for sure.
  2. Thanks Monica. You're a peach. I guess you never saw the thread where I said "it was all due to competing with you"? Something like that. me competing with you. I thought for sure that would illicit a giggle or two. Lemme see if can find it. btw. you haven't been around much either. Do you two know just how damn hard it is or someone to do battle here all by themselves? Geez.... Ah here it is. The squeaky toy thing. I'm sure this left a lot of people scratching their heads -- "What in the hell is he talking about?" Haha And it certainly didn't help that you didn't at least pop in the convo with a little haha yourself. Nope, just left me twisting in comic limbo. Ya know it just occurred to me that that could be a terrific way to multiply the compliments exponentially, right? Instead of eating the whole compliment like a greedy attention grub, you take a bite then deflect it to someone else who takes a bite and deflects. You could probably feed 20 off a single compliment. Then, before you know it there's love and admiration ricocheting all over the place. You getting this Monica, for your Presidential gig? You remember me talking about how this entire industry needs a massive makeover and a massive visionary leap forward? I was visiting a friend in Houston a couple months ago and I made it a point to visit one of their THREE Tandy locations. THREE! We've only got one in Dallas and it's pretty pathetic. It's like shopping in somebody's garage, ok, a four car garage. Years back I made a similar Houston trip and visited my first "Mega Narrow Interest Store." That particular store was a Sausage/Meat Curing & Smoking Mega store. It was way into sausage making back then and up to that point all my shopping was done online. This store was incredible, they had every swinging thing there could possibly be for the sausage making enthusiast. They had stuff I had no idea even existed. And because of that trip I I just said it my mind that Houston was Mega Store Town. That no matter what you were into, some bright opportunist would see to it to open a super store catering to your intererest. This was on my mind heading to the "Mega Tandy Store" I was fantasizing about on the way-the-hell-out-of-the-way-trip to get there. The closer we got the more excited I got. Maybe they'll have some great indoor specials? Maybe even a class going on? The possibilities seemed endless. Then we pulled up to the nastiest, falling-apart strip mall and a tiny decrepit Tandy Store. So small that with 6 people in it it felt crowded. IT was dark and dingy and the crap on the walls had been there since Reagan was in office. It just looked tired and sad and dead. Is was embarrassing is what it was. I imagined our entire country comprised of just more of these little s*** hole stores and that was the public face of an entire industry in the same state just wheezing through it's final days in a dingy corner of a nursing home, an industry grave yard. And I'm thinking it doesn't have to be this way. It isn't this way in Europe. Heck, they have.... what? Three year degree programs in Europe? This line of work is an esteemed profession. Where are all the bespoke shoemakers. Europe. I havent' researched this, its just my sense from being around it for the past decade. But I had visions of how it could be completely turned around and only needed ... who knows. It's in such a sorry state that it can only go up. Do you buy Tandy or just bury them? Probably easier and cheaperand more effective to start fresh. Then create an industry group chartered to promote and educate. Let's say a couple hundred million you could pull it off. Joan Krock philanthropy money. Mega Lotto money. Completely Doable. A full pronged, all out reinvention of the industry in every respect. Put together some schools and elevate the profession again at least on par with the Europeans, and a PR campaign to promote the craft to the public and especially young people. Goes without saying you would have a Mega Leather Supplies Super Store in every major city in the US. So anyways, the first mega huge El Grande lotto I win, that's what I'm going to do and hire you two to run it. Hey, it could happen. So don't too comfortable in your current gigs. I'm serious.....
  3. Well bust my buttons, if aint the one and only Grey the friendly Drakkon. You are too kind with the compliments Grey, too kind indeed. Yeah," Leatherer " does sound weird. But I do like both of Bikermutt's suggestions. Hidesmith in particularly, although I think i would spell it Hidesmythe, or Hydesmith. It doesn't matter as long as you can derive the shorthand nickname Smithee. Love that name. So where the heck you been? We have all missed your therapeutic dog cussings. I stopped by your profile room a month or so ago it said you haven't been around since school let out last year. I figured you probably went Pro with your Poker Game and was doing the Rounders Circuit. I stopped by because I have something to send you and now I will. I think I still have an address. If not I'll PM you. Welcome back.
  4. Hey Dwight, yeah I can see that working. Going to give that a try. Thanks a bunch man,
  5. TomG, you of course are right. You're running a business and I'm running an ego. Nevertheless this should have a simple answer. And if not, then a hard answer. I'll take either one. :-) Thanks for the perspective though.
  6. I wonder if water buoyancy would reveal true bottom center? What I'm thinking is if you had a clear container and filled it with water, then lower the collar into the water and look at from the side, the lowest point should be true bottom center, right? Then just straight up from there is true top center......theoritically. Ya know, it's something you could do before dyeing and finishing.. I dunno....just guessing at it. Surely somebody has cracked this nut before.
  7. Hahaha It's like Keystone Cops, but I was working my way to it. :-) I'd say that is a ferrule. http://www.ebay.com/itm/100pcs-M2x35mm-Hollow-Pillar-Column-Ferrule-Cylinder-Brass-Standoff-Spacer/231340040389?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D41376%26meid%3D041c8bc919cf4d20990e72347e6880a6%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D6%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dlo%26sd%3D311101564197 But searching on ferrule is pretty useless since it's a generic term . Maybe lanyard ferrule> Heck you could make that yourself pretty easily But MadMax is right. YOu're better off sending g Buckle Guy or Rusty at Springfield, somebody who knows the names of such do dads. Searching is easy when you know the right terms. Kinda like looking up how to spell a word in a dictionary. You have to know how to spell it to find it. :-)
  8. I have put off asking this question for months because it sounds so stupid simple, but I'll be damned if I can figure it out. Hoping one of you Gurus can set me straight on this. Here's the deceptively simple question: How do you find true top center on a dog collar, for tooling names or anything that requires accurate center placement? Here's the problem that I keep running into. Dog collars are not worn as belts are and therefore Saint Al's belt-centering formula does not work (Center Buckle + 1/2 Waist Size) or when it does it's just dumb luck. A dog collar buckle isn't naturally centered at true center bottom like belt buckles are centered in the front of the waist. The true bottom of a collar is the center of gravity of the buckle assembly plus the weight of the leather on either side, in particular the Billet hanging off to one side, IT seems to me that to find true top center as defined by a worn collar, the formula has to account for the weight and the distribution of that weight. And I just get lost at that point. Is there an easy way to figure this out without having to get out the graph paper and the gram scale? I swear I screw it up every time just trying to eyeball it and I'm picky as hell and it drives me up a wall. The thing is there's very little real estate on a dog collar to begin with and a half an inch either way stands out like a sore thumb. Help me Obi Wan...
  9. I too just came across this type of closure and here's where I saw it: https://www.buckleguy.com/b7498-natural-brass-fish-hook-key-chain-solid-brass-ll/ EDIT: I thought you meant the one in the back, It's kind of hard to see the one in the front, but it looks like a shackle. https://www.buckleguy.com/search.php?search_query=""shackle""&squery="shakle" EDIT 2: Check out the full assembly on this one....pricey however https://www.etsy.com/listing/236656990/solid-brass-hook-fish-key-chain-polish?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=shackle leather&ref=sr_gallery_42
  10. I'll second that! I think the same thing every time I read one of his posts. It's not easy being patient and polite when you're an expert in something, fielding the same dumbo questions over and over. But Wiz does it with class.
  11. Having said I was going to make a Sandal Making tutorial and never did you shouldn't put too much faith in this pronouncement either, but I hope to make a shoe/boot making tutorial this Spring. Been thinking about it a lot and have a lot of ideas to do something really cool and really helpful. Something that will belie my mediocre leather skills. I'm far better at showmanship. Stay tuned.
  12. Mini Rant Isn't it odd there isn't a unique term for those persons who are skilled in working with leather as generalists instead of specialists? It's an esteemed occupation that has been around for thousands of years but the best we could come up with is "Leather Worker"? That's the sort of temporary title that is used until a permanent, more discrernable title is invented like how "Computer Worker" became "Data Entry Operator" or "Programmer" and so on. It's also the sort o term to denote the lower skilled class of workers like "Farm Worker" versus the "Farmer" and "Factory Worker" versus "Factory Foreman". There's tailors, blacksmiths, jewelers, bankers, grocers, bakers, chefs, teachers, herders, writers, artists.....and leather workers? I doesn't make sense. Leathercrafter doesn't cut it either. I mean crafts is what you do in elementary school, isn't it? To be fair there are Cordwainers, Cobblers, Saddlers, Tanners, Currier, Booteliers, Girdlers, Lorimers, Malemakers, Shoemakers, Thongers, but everyone else is just a Leather Worker, not a Leathersmith, Leatherschmidt, , or Leathermeister. Personally I think it should be an occupation title that doesn't even include the word "leather". Instead it should be a a unique word that is only used for this line of work like Tailors instead of Cloth Workers, Chefs instead of Food Workers, heck even Escorts instead of Sex Workers.. Pontiers, Marlanes, Ceptuns, Tauthaffens, Fletchmores, Spuras. I dunno...just seems odd. Repost Be that as it may, here's a repost from the Show Off Section -- proof that if you can figure out how to make a pair of flip flops, there's no reason you can't also make shoes if you're so inclined. I had never made a pair of Flip Flops until ust a few months prior to writing this tutorial and just figured it out by taking a pair of flops apart. Two years later I made these boots completely by trial and error, first progressing to sandals, then to shoes, now boots. And the thing is after....geez how long has it been anyway? Hold on I'll look it up.... Wow., 12 years as hobbyist and I still suck as a "Leather Worker". Seriously, I should be a lot better at it than I am after 12 years. The point is anyone with average, or in my case mediocre leather working skills can do this too. ++++++++++++++++++++++ A surprise Welcome Home gift for a buddy returning from his fourth tour in Afghanistan -- two with the Marines and last two as a Security Contractor. He says the pay is better but the duty is a lot more dangerous nowadays. So these are his good luck boots -- he returns for a fifth tour in eight weeks. The boots were made using the "Stichdown" method and are modified from my regular Chukka Boot pattern (last pic -- also a recent pair) with a higher top, exterior toe cap, and some tooling. The treaded rubber soles are also handmade from conveyor belt rubber. I didn't to take a pic but I carved the tread with lightening bolts on the front half of the soles and the Marine's "RECON Seal" in the heels.
  13. Thanks guys. It's not as hard as you might think. No special tools beyond what you already have are necessary other than a pair of shoe lasts and you can make a rudimentary set of lasts fairly easily too. I've been intending on putting together a Men's shoe/bootmaking tutorial for some time now based on what I've learned through trial and error the past couple years. Maybe this Spring. We'll see. In the meantime you might try the reverse engineering approach. That's how I got started. Well actually I started with Flip Flops, then to sandals, then shoes. Nevertheless, once you take a pair of shoes apart it pretty much demystifies the whole dealeo. I have a Flip Flops tutorial that may be of some help. A place to start anyways.
  14. Reegesc

    Odin

    You're in a whole other class, Mike.
  15. Although I can't remember my first project it's been so long, I'm quite certain it wasn't this nice. :-)
  16. clap clap clap. sb in a museum
  17. Reegesc

    Lucky Work Boots

    A surprise Welcome Home gift for a buddy returning from his fourth tour in Afghanistan -- two with the Marines and last two as a Security Contractor. He says the pay is better but the duty is a lot more dangerous nowadays. So these are his good luck boots -- he returns for a fifth tour in eight weeks. The boots were made using the "Stichdown" method and are modified from my regular Chukka Boot pattern (last pic -- also a recent pair) with a higher top, exterior toe cap, and some tooling. The treaded rubber soles are also handmade from conveyor belt rubber. I didn't to take a pic but I carved the tread with lightening bolts on the front half of the soles and the Marine's "RECON Seal" in the heels.
  18. A surprise Welcome Home gift for a buddy returning from his fourth tour in Afghanistan -- two with the Marines and last two as a Security Contractor. He says the pay is better but the duty is a lot more dangerous nowadays. So these are his good luck boots -- he returns for a fifth tour in eight weeks. The boots were made using the "Stichdown" method and are modified from my regular Chukka Boot pattern (last pic -- also a recent pair) with a higher top, exterior toe cap, and some tooling. The treaded rubber soles are also handmade from conveyor belt rubber. I didn't to take a pic but I carved the tread with lightening bolts on the front half of the soles and the Marine's "RECON Seal" in the heels.
  19. I'm also interested in the brass name plates. Did you make those yourself using the etching method? Very cool looking plates.
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