RandyScott

Here is a link to google to search for 'how to degrease bones': https://www.google.com/#hl=en&gs_nf=1&gs_mss=how%20to%20degrease%20bo&tok=mFMYrWuI9p8ieIo0iWQrag&cp=20&gs_id=1x&xhr=t&q=how+to+degrease+bones&pf=p&sclient=psy-ab&oq=how+to+degrease+bone&aq=0&aqi=g1&aql=&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=d6f68e5c56c9b3bd&biw=1130&bih=639 I have made boning tools from hardwoods, both exotic/foreign and domestic... it is quicker, cheaper and easier. Bone has a propensity to leach fat for years if it has not been degreased properly. One Christmas season Rockler's, a retail woodworking chain, had a box of 'exotic hardwood' cutoffs. I paid about 50 cents each and made fids, creasers, burnishers, boners, etc.. Some of that wood was really hard to work with hand tools. It will hold well against leather.

On the advice of 'nthe10ring' a couple years ago, I purchased 'bowstring wax'. Still using it. Here is a link: http://www.3riversarchery.com/product.asp?i=4192 I make a few sheaths from time to time; the wax is 'sticky', smells great, and seems to do the jiob for me. Best yet... the cost is reasonable.

The above link returns an error... not to worry... simply backspace through the period following 'aspx' in the URL box, hit the Enter key and the link loads.

I'll be glad to get up some photos.. as soon as I get the camera back from my granddaughter. She borrowed it to take photos of some kittens that she is fostering and using the photos in an attempt to get them adopted. I am hoping to get the camera this weekend, so I should have something in about a week.

And as Paul Harvey used to say "Here is the rest of the story!" : http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/wakeup.asp Please read the entire article.

I use a stitching pony (Chuck Burrows or WRTC style) that I made. The edge of the sheath could be two to four layers of 7-8 or 8-9 leather and the leather tends to want to work up and out unless I tighten the jaws very tight, so I back up the stitch line with the cork held in my hand.. just a cork from a wine bottle. I grind two sides flat (a right angle), one to rest on the jaw and the other just beside where the awl point should exit. As the awl point approaches the rear side of the leather it will create a little bump indicating where it will exit. If not correct I will adjust the point to hit the stitch groove or stitch line I want and complete the punch. Up around the mouth of the sheath, where the welt and edge are thickest, they are also increasing in thickness, therefore not flat and it is harder to get the awl through. Here I use a cork that I cut a notch into it, this provides more area to support the leather as the awl point approaches the back side of the leather. Just reread the above, I also remove the wine stained portion of the cork, ususally just a tad on the end. By using my finger tip to control depth of the awl blade exit, I control the size of the hole, especially important when back stitching at the thickest portion of the welt. Perhaps true for others, however all I use is 18/5 cord.

I use the 'leather washers', flat spot on the awl handle to prevent it rolling off the table, flat spot on the handle by the ferrule for my thumb to 'index' the awl handle, shortened the awl handle till the butt of the handle nestles in my palm, back up the leather where the awl will exit with a large cork.. it provides a nice solid surface and prevents self impalement, and rest the fore finger on the awl blade so that no more than 1/2" of blade is beyond the finger tip. Punch and control the depth with the finger tip. Adjust the 'depth limiter' to achieve the proper sized hole for the needle/thread combination. I use 18/5 at 5 or 6 SPI for my sheaths. If you cut a notch in the cork, you can observe the awl point before it completely penetrates and adjust to put the awl point in your stitch groove.

I am in Sugar Hill, just north of Atlanta.. Hey Mike, I lived on St Simons a long time ago, summer of '69, during the four months of training out at NAS Glynco before it became the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. Does it still smell when crossing the causeway into Brunswick? The locals always said it smelled like money to them. And if I remember correctly, you have some very large mosquitos in those salt water marshy areas.

No... I acknowledge that my situation must be unique in that no one else reports this issue (of the forums I frequent, it only happens on LW), I have a work around that is not onerous, and I am a tad leery of undocumented 'fixes'. The operative word is 'May'... Better the devil I know... thanks for the suggestion, but I will pass on it. For the record: I download all the MS updates promptly; I did walk all the way into the Add/Remove programs.. selected Help and searched for 'repair' and read the applicable items therein... and did not find anything that provided me with the assurance I need to pull the trigger.

I was not aware of this application... neat tool for some uses... my work around suffices for the moment.. I added the link to my 'bullet collection', i.e., nifty little bullets (tools) in my gunbelt for future possible use. Thanks for the link.....

Nope... the work around mentioned above works for me.... quick, easy, copy what I want, ignore the rest.. thanks for the suggestion.

Nope, didn't even think of it.... however, I tried it and it works! Thanks for the suggestion!

Johanna, Thanks for the info... I had forgotten all about those icons! When I click on the printer icon, it displays all the text in the thread right justified against the right margin, yet when copied and pasted into a Word doc, it scrambles the text as before and, additionally, is right justified.. net result, no gain. The download function saves an html image of the entire page.. just way too much when all I want is text and/or a photo. Am I the only one this is happening to? If so, then there is no further need to seek resolution as it is on my side of the fence and not yours. Randy

Hivemind, I am careful when grabbing the text, for example: #1 above appears, when pasted into my doc as ".t try and grab entire web pages'don ,re after'Be very careful to just highlight the precise text you" and I only saved the sentence. As to #2, that process grabs the entire visible screen page.. all I want is a paragraph, a text snippet, perhaps a photo, not the entire page. The screen capture program I use permits me to 'draw a box around what I want'. Some forums have a feature that permits one to view a 'print version' of the screen which 'cleans up' and displays the content of the thread and not all the avatars, signatures, etc. LW doesn't have that feature as far as I have been able to ascertain.

I was browsing the forums today, saw some information I wanted to copy (when I want to 'keep' some tip/technique/idea/etc., in a permanent manner, I create a document, title it and move it into an 'archive folder' where I can access it as needed. I then 'copy and paste' the text/photo/etc., into the document.) into my archive document. As soon as I pasted the text, I realized the text was.... well, all sort of mixed up.. it was like portions of it were cut and repasted at random. And, I then realized I had encountered this before and became really frustrated and simply quit trying to save these tips, etc.. When I attempted to 'straighten it out' in my document, it sometimes will work and sometimes it simply will not let me. I use this technique on multiple websites and this is the only one where I encounter this problem. I am running on a DSL with near T1 download speed, through a router with a dynamic IP address, into a server running Windows XP OS and MS Office Suite of products. I was able to successfully copy and save text and then, one day it started to scramble the text. I have my profile set to auto sign me on when I access the site. I don't 'log off' either, just close the browser or enter another URL address and go. I will give that a quick test, and if it clears it up I will post the new status. I can simply use a screen capture program and do it the hard way, but I like the ease of save and paste the text and photos as needed. Hmmm... just learned one can not cut and paste text within this box... i.e., move a bit of text from one paragraph to another. Anyone have any ideas on resolving the initial issue? Thanks