Regis

Welcome Alexblow. Your English is very good. Glad to have you join and looking forward to seeing some of your work.

How long do you keep leather over a mold in a press, or vacuum, or clamped? Do you keep it untill dry or specific time or specific pressure or ?? I clamped a knife case over night and a holster for about an hour and got same results. They were fairly well formed but, seemed to loose some of the detail during assembly. I did wait until they were dry before sewing. I wet them pretty well (completely thoughout) under the faucet but, did not emerse them. Shook off some of the water and clamped them. Both were 7/8 oz Appreciate any tips. Regis

Here are some recent projects. Wallets for the young men in our family: 1st try at holster. It really is black and I don't understand the greenish hue in the photo. If you can see any errors, you are sitting tooo close to your screen. Back up 15 feet! :biggrin:

Welcome Daggrin.

Luke, Good lookin' stamp. I put toooo much on mine and it's hard to read.

Or, maybe he is a reader of this forum and decided to do the right thing!

Kate, Picked some up today and tried on scrap. Really easy to use and to lift off. One and two coats worked but, I'd feel safer with 2 coats. I didn't spray but, daubed the dye on. But, it's a good thing yours sat on the shelf for a year....WOW, strong amonia odor while the lid is off. I'm working on a simple holster and will use the resist on the initials and post (if holster turns out ok). Thanks for the tip/idea *UPDATE* Heavy daubing is NOT a good thing. It came up under the latex. Spraying like Kate would be much better....so much for the black holster with brown initials..

Dale, This looks like a good project (figure & scenary) for some of us newer carvers to make. Just finished products (carved & tooled) with no step-by-step because that would take a long time (via internet). If several of us submit the same project then we can learn from all your comments. If you've taught a class on this, perhaps you could tell us some of the common areas that students had difficulty with. If you give us an approximate size for this peice, I for one will do it (and most of my tools are TLF). Thanks for showing (and sorry about earlier contest hiijak) Regis

GREAT idea.......especially if there is 2 classes: over and under 2 years carving experience. Could call it the "yak-a-dy yak carving contest"! Now, if it had to be carved on yak hide, would that be a conflict of interest [lol] :biggrin: Regis

Wood, Welcome to this great place in cyberspace. Fine looking clock. If that is a "9" under the minute hand, I can definately relate. Looking forward to more of your work.

I apply the gel and try to wipe off immediately (like the normal/older pastes). After the gel is dry (15 min or so), I dab super shene on, usually with a damp sponge. When I 1st started, I was not getting finish into the pattern so I started dabbing on a rather heavy coat. That way, it only takes one coat. I let dry for 5-10 minutes and buff. I've used the gel both over tankote and straight onto the leather.

Daniel, Glad to have you join up. Looking forward to seeing your work

Kate, Yes, but, for single color items so it would be less likely to see smearing. The guitar strap I posted today is done with the new med brown gel antique. I put super shene on it (but, I think after the photo). I've regularly used spirit & oil dye. I'm fairly new so my detailed coloring is only minor and I do use acrylic and don't see any smearing.

Thank guys. Stitching is not exactly straight and even (like Bruce's beautiful belts) but, I enjoyed making it. And Bruce, I'm not ready to post a holster yet but, I have enjoyed the video.

The Glazed splits are rather stiff. I've used it on a folder (9X12) and liked it. I also used it in a handbag and did not like it due to the stiffness. I'll continue using on folders, book covers, and checkbooks. I too like thin veg tanned for other lining, especially if I want other than black. I think thin veg tanned is the only one that could be used anywhere. my 2c

Here is 1st attempt at guitar strap. It is for a Gospel singer friend of mine. I'll have to make a fancier one if he hits the 'big-time' [lol]. He wanted a fixed length and I only lined the the wider/carved area. I put 1/8" lightweight neoprene-like padding in the shoulder area.

I use super shene a lot and was trying to figure out why I don't have smear problem with it after reading your post. Sooo, I just tried some scrap with Feibling acrylic dye and Delta Ceramcoat with TLF super shene on top and no smearing. Only thing I can imagine I may be doing different is that I dab it on and don't rub/brush it on. I got in that habit because it was the only way I could get down in cuts while using sponge rather than brush. Now, if I can only get the underlying color neat to begin with [lol].

Although I haven't ordered lately, I've bought a lot of silver and tools over the years from Indian Jewelry Supply Indian jewelry supply link. Really nice folk to work with, particularly in the Gallup, NM location.

Dave, Glad to have you with us. Good folks here to share ideas, help, and get help.

Chris, When I started, I used a knife like yours. It works ok now that I know what "sharp" really is. At first I sharpened, polished, polished, and struggled carving (jerky & ugly) even though I had sharpened the knife.. Then I bought a Henley and wow, I found out what sharp is. Now that I know this, I can sharpen and polish any of my knife blades. Proper casing is difficult to learn alone, but when you get it right you'll know it (as long as your blade is sharp). With both questionable casing and questionable sharpness, it is hard to move forward. Best of luck, Regis

I've used it on a couple projects now. It applies very nice but, doesn't wipe off as well. Even over Tankote it leave a strong color after wiping (immediately). Now, I do like the look and will continue to use but, I don't get as much contrast as I would like. Continuing to experiment though. Previously I've been using paste. Regis

I always order by phone and ask if it is in stock. Hidcrafter has been out of a LOT of things for the last several months. Each TLF seems different perhaps depending on how busy they are. Springfield and Seigle are great but, takes a long time to ship to us here in Fl.

Thanks all. My test peice didn't work because I never let them dry. Now that the actual belt is dry, I am able to scrape off with xacto and clean minor residue with eraser. Luke, I do even have one of the file and sanding belt cleaners. I had not thought of it but, it will be a great eraser for just this sort of thing. Fortunately, I didn't thin the Barge so It did not seem to soak-in at all. Next time I want to dye & antique the peices together, I'm going to lay them side by side with tape on the back. Thanks again, Regis

Like Don said, use a rule. And, to get a nice curve for initials, I use one of the plastic school compasses (measurment on both the straight and curved sides). It's only one size but, that's all I've needed.

I glued guitar strap parts together before sewing and so that I could dye & antique all togather as one peice. In doing so, I let a drop of Barge smear on the surface. I took some scrap leather and tried removing Barge smear using Feibling Deglazer and alcohol. Deglazer looked ok but, dye and antique did not take/penetrate on the spot. I also tried erasing it with a penscil eraser and that looked good but still didn't work. Appreciate any tips. Regis