Ulfberht Leather Works

I know this is an old post but just came across this..... this could be a game changer...... Thoughts: You could print in a lighter color than that which you are dying the leather with if you only needed to cut and tool the image. There may also be benefit to doing this to lay out actual images also. Planning to test it out soon.

Thank you Gentlemen. I posted it on Imgur and Reddit and it got a ton of views, surprisingly. What stood out to me was how a lot of folks(likely younger) were knocking the belt holster idea in general. I use one at work for my business phone and my personal cell stays in my pocket. They are great for utility and have a purpose either way.

My Dad used to have a phone Holster similar to this one. He loved it but, well.... it was made in China and died. Figured it was time.... and his birthday... for a new one.

Yeah, portraits are the hardest thing I ever had to draw/sketch up and you just applied them to an even harder medium. Kudos to you!

Nicely done. I like the trim work.

I learned my lesson about a year ago. Ended up with a customer who could not read and thought he was ordering two of a custom item, even though exolicitly listed as single units. He wrote to me and said he could not afford them as pair which he believed he was receiving. He then proceeded to advise that "upon further inspection.... blah blah blah.... busted rivet.... blah blah blah" in tertiary emails days later. I refused to refund him at that point and vowed to repair it, which resulted in a very negative response litterally wishing a "curse" on me and his negative "review" on my shop page. PayPal refunded him anyways and made me pay return shipping. It cost me days of work, money and honestly a great bit of anger over all of it, NOT WORTH IT!

@Itch, Good call on the fan and ozone generator. Didn't even think about those for some reason. Florida loves her humidity @JLSleather Agreed on the siding part. Whomever owned this house before we moved in got conned up and down. Having to go throughoutt and insulate and seal all over the place. Litterally finding holes in the walls where electrical contractors pulled wire through and a sheet of 1/8" thin plywood or in one case the bathroom mirror over the holes. Sad because 5% more effort and $200 more in materials and this would never have been a problem. Sad to see how some folks get screwed over.

Ditto on the super glue. An old school mechanic showed me that one years ago. Stupid Al Stohlman skiving knives don't have the auto brakes that Honda puts on their cars. Come on guys, I know we can figure this one out. lol.

Recently relocated to a new place with a huge garage. I was very excited until I discovered mold and the lack of any vapor barrier in this plywood box of an add-on garage. The mold came from a defect in the vinly siding which lets water drip in during rain. No worries I guess, the pro's are coming out to tear it up and fix things. This got me wondering though..... What do you all do to protect your leathers, skins and furs in your shops or garages? We are cleaning things out and sealing it up, but let's face it..... living in the Arm Pit of America:Florida, moisture is going to get in no matter what. Would bins be a good idea with dessicant packs? Daily Dehumidifier runs to keep humidity below a certain level? Even then, my biggest concern is mold growth. I have remediated a very large bit of the mold using essential oils dispersed for days on end. The mix I used cleaned the air and killed a lot of the mold. Also utilized peroxide to soak the exposed wood, clean vinyl sidings, etc.

Well, I guess someone has to rain on the parade. I have had good dealings with Zack white since January and have only placed three small orders. I like the products that they offer and the quality. The receptionist, as said has always been kind and polite, they have always been quick and had never had any issues. That was until after selling a bunch of products I found out that the line 20 snaps I purchased from them and were listed as solid brass, are not. I contacted them before my third order and spoke with them in reference to this. They assured me that they would make sure to get the right product delivered. The moment it came I opened it up, pulled out the snaps and put them to a buffing wheel and well they are not solid brass. They are steel plated crap. The previous two batches that I ordered were already used up and sold with products as "solid brass fittings". So, I am out the initial money for two batches and can of course return the third batch. Besides being out the money and time my biggest concern here is a company that simply would not listen to the fact that their snaps were not solid brass. I even pleaded with them to have the owner grab one and go hit it with a buffing wheel . I also advised them that they may want to consider relisting the item as it is not solid brass, or contacting their distributor to see why they are getting an item that is not as listed. Another concern that I have was that I was constantly given the line "That is all we have". No apologies for the inconvenience, the money lost nor advised that they would even look into it. So in tandem to this, does anyone else have a good recommendation for horse grade and heavy duty materials/hardware similar to what Zack White offers? Especially..... Line 20 snaps?

Thanks for the idea. I imagine this is a little more than I wanted to actually do with it. The rubber would be pretty hard to get into the horn especially when it gets deep and would begin to fold. Thanks also! That is some great information man! I will give the sanding and buffing a try once we have carved some designs into them. I scrubbed the horns out last night heavily with a bottle brush. Hot.... HOT soapy water did the trick to clean them. Used a natural plant based non toxic soap also(Myers Clean Day). Then I soaked them in a bath of hot water and 2 cups of Baking Soda on a whim. The soda is alkaline so it should not cause issue with the horn structure or strength like acids will. This morning I smelled the horns and they were almost perfect. I filled up the sink again and put another 1-2 cups in. I imagine by end of the day they will be fine. This should also kill any bacteria or germs on it as they cannot survive in an alkaline environment for long.

Hello all! Working on a pair of drinking horns with a friend for Dragon-Con. Nothing too elaborate per say. I am looking for several things. 1: How to remove the processing smell, etc. Was told fill it with Guiness for a day and that would solve the issue. 2: Looking for a food safe sealant for the insides.... is this even necessary? 3: What would work well to seal the outside while keeping a natural appearance. I am thinking a good oil and sanding/buffing or even a rouge. Anything will be helpful and appreciated. I will also be working to update this post on progress and ideas. https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t1.0-9/10443366_273651072814784_2791506164595326049_n.jpg

Looks good, how much time would you estimate?

Bump! I too would be interested to know more. What I have gotten from Bee's wax is that mixing it with a thinner oil and applying it when hot will carry more of the actual wax materials into the skin. This should allow it to penetrate better thus giving you a better seal. As for heat, etc.... I have no idea. I am looking to try the same thing with some drinking horns we are working on.

http://www.ebay.com/usr/loadsofleather?_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2754 Loads of Leather on Ebay. I may not still know the ins and outs of quality leather but this stuff is soft and supple, thick and great to work with. Seriously have been able to use 95-98 percent of it. A great piece for the price and it was HUGE!

Jake, sorry for the late reply. Just got back from a week out of town and some crazy fun at Tandy! That one is a 8/9oz leather, pretty thick. I picked it up for a great price on Ebay of all places, from a small Tannery. And thank you

Hello All! I wanted to stop in and leave some pics of the things I have been working on. I have been off the site for a short bit but am thankful for all the help folks have provided plus the trove of information that help guide me on this site! Here are a few of my first pieces which I put up on my Etsy shop.

I can totally agree with you and understand where you are coming from. And yes, those elements are key to what I would charge at a minimum no matter what. Then there is perception. With a couple of beautiful women dawning my wares and strong viking looking men I can surely use these things as marketing to charge someone on their desires and not necessarily my product. I got into leather working for armor making and costumes for friends, conventions and even my lady friends burlesque group that wants certain custom items. I am LOVING it and know I have only barely to scratch at the surface. However, I see the potential in not only enjoying the craft and eventually(shall it be so) mastering aspects of it. Yet the possibility to make an extra income from selling wares and taking me to events to which I would be attending anyways, now as a business. I applaud your purist approach, it is just not for me. I used to be that way with other things in life. I now see that sometimes you have to sell the people a new box of crayons with two new colors every six months and make them feel it is special. This is what Apple does with the iPhone and all other manufacturers. To me it is crazy and I do not participate in it with my personal life and my personal spending. Yet, the people want it and are willing to give their dollars away for it If someone wants me to make an item for them that no others will and I can profit from it. Done! I am an artist and a realist. The realist side of me wants to fund the artist side

I am not sure the time for me to stitch it would be worthwhile as I am hand stitching. I tried to keep the hair parted and it seemed to just not work for me. I have considered shaving the hair on 1/4 inch or so from the edge and to use my template to stitch it from there. THat should work but I need to try it also. Thank you for the input man, all is appreciated and weighted since I am newb! lol. I found a few places, thanks! I was wondering if there would be a local solution contact cement wise as well. WIll have to do a little trial and error!

Sweet, is that available at a typical big box store or special order kind of thing?

Posting in here because I am interested to see some good glue options. This is prototype #1 for a collar I am making to sell in my shop(please ignore the fact that some rivets are uncentered and backwards as it is unfinished and I just placed them in the holes to get an idea of the end look). I attempted to sew the rabbit fur on, after glueing it on with Tandy Eco glue(which smells like watered down Elmers). However the fur pulled through the stitch holes and came out the front. I cut the stitches out and am working on ideas for stitching it. Is there a glue option that will last and can actually be worn without worry of it coming apart? I do not want to make a product that only looks good but is strong and functional that will last. I have several folks waiting already so any assistance is greatly appreciated.

Agreed on all points Tandy. I grabbed my first set from them and see their place in the business if you will. A great place to start for crafters and the like. My friend and I started after coming across a Tandy booth at a steampunk convention recently. We had been talking for a while about it and the folks that worked for Tandy were awesome guys. Full of info and reccomendations. Not to mention they made it clear to buy THEN as they had what would be considered their 'Elite' level membership prices, at the show. Come to find out later, I can buy pure copper rivets from Zack White and they are cheaper than Tandy's plated metal crap(of which I have already busted several when testing pull strentgh). Gotta start somewhere though. I am a tool guy and already see myself needing/wanting better quality stuff.

Thank you all for the help. I have noticed a handful of those sellers on Etsy that get what I would deem far too much and in some cases far too little for their work. What matters most? It is likely that they are at least selling their wares and I imagine loving what they do. I see that time, materials and profit are key. As with any product there is a lot to say for confidence in pricing. If you ask a cheap price for something that looks far superior to its pricing, one may think it cheaply made and not to last. Whereas blowing myself out of the water and putting $35 plus price points on such a simple 10-15 minute item like those cuffs just seems obsurd(even though I have seen people selling a lot near that price). First things first at least, I have to knock out all of the items to put in the store ASAP and see where things go from there. Waiting on a shipment of hardware and I am burning a hole in the floor!

Total newb here but I was at least glad that I had a better than average understanding of tools before I went in. Sold tools for over 3 years at Sears. Talk about marketing! Anyways, I kid you not, I spent an entire week scouring the internet looking for the best price on the appropriate tool or type of tool. Even picked up a few of those cheap chinese punches and re-ground them myself. Might I go so far as calling Tandy one of those marketers too? Half of what I ordered from them(Thank God it was 60% off or more) was no better than the chinese stuff on Ebay