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danboy295

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Everything posted by danboy295

  1. danboy295
    Tim, Thanks for the offer, I'll give your stuff a look. PM'd you my info for samples. Anyone else have any feeedback on my original post?
  2. danboy295
    Hi All, I am having a lot of recent issues setting some Line 20 Snaps with my hand held setters. I recently bought some Gun Metal Black snaps from Springfield Leather. I have had nothing but problems trying to set them by hand. All of my posts bend at sharp angles despite careful setting technique. The result is misaligned button snaps which do not function properly, look terrible, and have to be removed. This is marring up my projects and making me a crazy man. I compared these snaps against some nickel plated Tandy snaps I have. These Tandy snaps have been setting and functioning with zero issues. I believe I have found the problem: the Gun Metal Black snaps have 2 slits cut out of the base near the post. This means the post has different levels of support at different angles which is causing the post to bend to the side that is offering less support when setting pressure is applied. The results are these crooked snaps. See the side by side picture for comparison (slightly blurry sell phone picture, you;ve been warned ). The Gun Metal Snap is on the left, the Nickel Plated Tandy Snap is on the right: As much as I would like a snap setting press or tool, they are out of my price range. The alternative and easier option is to find some higher quality snaps. Can anyone recommend a source for or a specific brand of higher quality snaps in Gun Metal Gray or Black colorations? Specifically Line 20 and Line 24 varieties?
  3. danboy295
    Thanks for all the feedback guys. In regards to the rivets, I’m using medium length single cap rivets with 6/7 oz leather. I haven’t experienced any warping or misaligned rivets on this or previous projects, so I think the hardware is ok. I will definitely be taking the gluing first with contact cement and riveting the corners first techniques into my next projects. As for sewing, I finally have the materials ordered and delivered. I’ll try my hand at it as well. It would essentially be straight line on the side of the holster, can’t ask for an easier first project than that!
  4. danboy295
    Hi All, I recently ran into some trouble with a Nerf holster I made. After lining up my edges and making sure they lined up as close to even as I could, I punched holes for my rivets. I then placed my rivets in the holes and capped them (without setting) to make sure everything was lining up correctly. It looked good, so I began to set my rivets. By the time I finished, somehow I ended up with edges that were misaligned. It is most notable near the top of the holster, see the included picture. My best guess is when setting the bottom rivets, the force of setting the rivet moved the leather ever so slightly and it compouned as I set the rest of the rivets. How can I avoid this in the future? Thanks in advance.
  5. danboy295
    I really like the texture and colors on the layered shoulder piece. There is a lot of subtle detail in there.
  6. danboy295
    Hi All, I have been having some issues with discolored edges and I am trying to figure out the cause and how to avoid them. After I burnish my edges, dye, and finish my piece, I am noticing discoloration near the edges. See the included photo, specifically along the edges near the Nerf blaster. The dye doesn't appear to take as cleanly near the edge as it does on other portions of the leather My burnishing process was adapted from Bob Park's tutorial here on Leatherworker.net based on what I own. Steps I am using are below: 1) Bevel and sand my edges, 2) Wet the edges with water 3) rub glycerine soap into the edges 4) burnish by hand with canvas until edges are smooth I am applying Fiebing's Professional Oil Dye via wool dobber when dyeing. I am seeing the issue with Dark Brown and Saddle Tan, but not when using Black. The dye is not penetrating despite several carefully applying several coats of dye. My best guess is I am getting glycerine soap onto the surface of the leather when I am applying it to the edges. Or perhaps I am accidentally burnishing a portion of the top of leather as I am rubbing the edges with the canvas cloth. Before I have been dyeing, I have been taking a look at the surface of the leather and I am not seeing any obvious signs of excessive glycerine soap residue or inconsistent texture from over burnishing. I am stumped. Has anyone encountered this issue and can you give me feedback on how to avoid it?
  7. danboy295
    Ian Atkinson of Leodis Leather has a great Youtube channel. It has been an excellent resource for me. His video " The Tools You Need For Leatherwork" (linked below) was a HUGE help for when I was making a list of things I needed to purchase when I was getting started. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1pAMZQpYFA
  8. danboy295
    Hi Jayjay, The banner was outsourced to a friend who is a freelance graphic designer. He used Adobe Illustrator. The logo and design of the banner were created by him with input and guidance from myself along the way. If you are interested in his work and services, shoot me a PM and I can get you his contact info. Since a banner and logo are essentially the face of your business in an online world, I thought it best to outsource my logo and design to a graphic designer who knew what he was doing. Sure, I could have tried to figure it out as I went using templates and tutorials but the finished result wouldn't have looked nearly as good as. I wanted it to look clean and professional. And besides, I want to work with leather, not Illustrator, so hiring a freelancer was the best option for me.
  9. danboy295
    St8line, I really like the leather strap holder for your hand tools. That is a great set up, I'm going to borrow the idea for me workspace.
  10. danboy295
    Hi Sleez, I was just recently in your boat back in September. I went with the "buy quality tools as you need them" method instead of the kits. I found this to be the way to go for me as I didn't spend money on tools I did not need and I didn't have to pay to replace them with higher quality tools down the line. The only downside can be turnaround time. You may want to do something now but have to wait until you can order the tool you didn't realize you needed. For what you are looking to do, I would recommend 6-7 oz leather. As I started out I played around with 5-6 and 6-7 oz leather. I found 5-6 oz to be too thin for what I was doing (holsters for Nerf guns for structural and "feel" reasons, sheaths for safety reasons). YMMV. There a few lists kicking around for good starter/basic tools to help you flesh out your basics. I have also found some random stuff I didn't realize I needed until I started working. Since I work on my kitchen table, I have found a cutting mat (Alvin or other) to be invaluable. I do all of my work except dying and finishing on the mat to save my kitchen table from undue damage. For my punching and stamping, I have also found a cheap marble slab glued to a poundo board to be helpful. Combined with a piece of polyurethane kitchen cutting board for punches and a bar anvil for hardware, this combo makes punching, stamping, and setting hardware very easy.
  11. danboy295
    Seconding what WScott said, Al Stohlman's books have been invaluable to me as I have been learning the craft (as well as Youtube and this forum). His hand sewing book as well as "The Art of Making Leather Cases, Vol 1" are really great references to have, I can't recommend them enough. Its definitely worth picking up and is filled with tons time tested tips and tricks (like the paper bag/waxed thread trick) that make your pieces look better, last longer, and look professional.
  12. danboy295
    Thanks for the heads up mlapaglia. The text you are describing is in the "Overview" section of all the items. This is automatically generated and formatted by Etsy using profile info. I don't have any control over how that looks, but I can play with the data that it is pulling to generate that line to hopefully make it read better.
  13. danboy295
    Thanks David, I appreciate the feedback. From what I have found, the difference presentation qulaity in Etsy stores has been the photos and information. Even though all users are using the same template, many owners don't provide enough information (policy sections that are blank, no info on shipping , not enough detail in listings, etc). I want to want to make sure that my store comes across as professional and a user would feel comfortable enough with the information I have provided to make a purchase from it from it. I will definitely try to take some action and outdoor pics of the holsters for future listings. The issue is I live right outside Manhattan so my natural elements are limited to parks. But I could certainly make the most out urban backgrounds. I didn't think about the small toy shops and Nerf blogs, those are great ideas! I will have to look into those.
  14. danboy295
    Hi All, Quick question about the process of dyeing and finishing when stitching a project by hand. I am working on my first sheath and will also be hand stitching for the first time. In general, should I start stitching with the leather already dyed and finished? Should I be stitching first and dyeing and finishing later on? Should I wait to finish the piece after dying and sewing it together in order let the acrylic finish protect the thread and holes from the awl? I'm not sure what the proper method should be for this and any guidance would be most appreciated.
  15. danboy295
    Hi All, I just recently went live with my Etsy store called "Axis Leatherworks". I just recently got into the leatherworking and have spent the last few months learning and crafting Nerf holsters and accessories. My target market is for the LARPer and cosplayers as well as Nerf enthusiasts of all ages. I utilized many of the resources posted by others here on the forums as well as the many Etsy store resources available online to get the store up and running. https://www.etsy.com...xisLeatherworks I would appreciate any input and feedback you could provide in regards to the stores’ layout, item descriptions, photos , policy descriptions, tag usage, etc. I want make sure the website looks and feels as professional as possible to a user. Thanks ahead for the help! - Dan
  16. danboy295
    Hi Hallyth, Fellow newbie leather worker. I actually purchased a few of the Al Stohlman books people are directing you to and have found them to be a SUPER helpful resource (along with this forum, of course ). The must haves for me were "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather" and "The Art of Making Leather Cases, Vol 1." Lots of highly detailed and easy to understand pictures and examples, step by step instructions, plus lots of helpful tips and common mistakes to avoid. The only downside is they are referred to as books but in reality they are high quality magazines.
  17. danboy295
    +1 to lonestar tactical about slowing down and enjoying the work. What really helped me my starting out was prefabricating my projects out of poster board. Trial and error doesn't hurt so bad at $.99 a sheet compared to $6.99 a square foot. Plus, you have templates to work from for the future if you want them.
  18. danboy295
    Great job from a fellow newbie leatherworker! I really like the contrasting look of the natural leathers. The stitching also gives it an old world, rough and tumble look. Also, your choice in hardware and decorations was really creative. Way to make due with what you have on hand. My suggestion for your next few quivers would be to work on finishing the edges on the top opening of the quivers. Even if it’s not a full finish (just beveling and burnishing the edges to clean them up), I think it would be a quality addition and improve overall look and feel of the piece. The more leather pieces I look at and research, the more I find that clean and finished edges take a piece from good to great.
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