rawhide1

Well I wont be much help because I don't know what IE or Firefox or any other computer thingy is. But if some one would let me know I'll find out what we have at the house. When I click on member profile it comes up for about a seconded and then dissapears for a sec. then comes back fine. I know this probally doesn't help but that is what the computer does at the house. Mike

Cora Welcome always glad to see another knot tyer!! Those are excellent books ya got. I'm saving my pop cans to buy more of Mrs. Houghts books. Everybody is great on this site and will help anyway they can. Can't wait to see some of your work. Mike

Very nice work Cecil. I bet your son was tickled ta death to get that billfold. Mike

Opagon Very nice work I like the green accents. I would also like to see more of your work. Mike

Hi hope every ones doing fine. I need some help on this repair. My buddy bought a barrel saddle for his daughter. The rawhide braid work has been wore off about half way down and he wants me to fix it in a couple of weeks. Nows here's the problem I've never built a saddle or tore one apart. So I need to know if this is a bigger job than I can handle. And if it's not were do I start. Whats the length and width of the rawhide need to be I can handle the braidwork but don't know how far up to cut rawhide for strings or # of strings. I'm just trying to help a buddy out and he knows my lack of saddling experience. Thanks for any help ya can provide Mike

Welcome Heather glad to have ya!!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait to see ya work. Mike

Kate excellent clock big K-STATE football fan myself!!!! I can't believe they let the gayhawks beat em oh well. Keep up the great work.Mike

Robert very nice looking belts!!!! Mike

Nice work I like the skull!!!!!!!! Mike

Hi everybody I posted this question in the how do I do it part. I don't know if it's such a silly question no one has the answer. But here goes again instead of soaking or boiling your hide to make the hair slip can ya just clip it with a set of surgicial blades or not. Thanks for any help Mike

Rayban I got your message I tried to send you a replie. I don't know if it went thru. Let me know if ya didn't get. Mike

Welcome to the site Bob can't wait to see some of your work.Mike

joule Welcome I think ya can just roll the hide up and freeze i've done that with smaller pelts and it worked fine. Look under braiding in the forum for the tutorial on making rawhide it's by KAW good luck Mike

Very cool looking!!!!!!! Mike

Dink these are for sale my wife was going to put them on some crafters site tommorrow. If someone would like one let me know and i'll keep it back or braid one with the colors ya want. I have natural,black,brown,and whiskey colored roo. I don't like to dye rawhide so I just use it in it's natural shades usually. They measure 81/2" from loop to loop or I can braid them any length. Thanks Mike

Mr. Phelps very nice work. I've always liked stuff that was doubled and stiched I think it gives it a finished look. I also like the color of the leather and nice basket stamping. Mike

Sorry to hear about your troubles keep your chin up and stay after it. Great looking headstalls!!! Wish ya luck. Mike

Mr. Phelps i'm sorry I forgot to answer your ?. I got lost in all that previous hunt and peck typing I do!!! In the body of the bracelets there is about 12 to 15 feet of strings and probaly 8 to 10 feet in the knots. The shorter knots take about 2 feet apiece while the long center knot on the one bracelet took about 6 feet. Pineapple knots about a foot each and the spanish ring knots 6-8 inches. It would probally be a good idea for me to measure the strings when i build the knots but I always get going and forget to. But I think these measurements are pretty darn close. Mike

I want to thank everybody for their kind remarks. I will try to answer your ?'s. The key chain,black bracelet,and the whiskey colored bracelet are made out of roo with rawhide knots. The black bracelet is all roo. The other bracelet is all rawhide. All three bracelets and the key chain are a four strand braid using 1/8" strings. The knots are all built useing 1/16" strings. For the end knots I like to use tape over my terminal knots to get them round and to the size I want them. On these items I used a six bight , seven part turks head interweaved with a over two under two herringbone weave to cover the tape. The three knots on the black bracelet are a four bight two turn long button with a over two under two herringbone weave. The whiskey colored bracelet also has the two four bight two turn long button with the over two under two weave knots. But in the center of this bracelet is a four bight four turn long button with a under three over three herringbone interweave. The all rawhide bracelet has three knots that are also four bight two turn long button knots. But when I done my first interweave of over two under two I used the same colore of rawhide I then done my second interweave of over three under three I used a different color of rawhide. The laceing on the black bracelet is the same as what is covering the ring. The key ring has a four bight two turn long button knot with the interweave being roo and the two pineapple knots that cover the mane hair are six bight seven parts turks heads with the interweave being roo. I hope I ansewered your ?'s without boring ya ta death or cornfusing the hell out of ya. Mike

I like SmilinJim also grew up around guns. My dad was a lawdog in Southeastern Okla. when I was little and he made sure we knew guns were for killing and not playing. Wether it be hunting or self defense ya shot to kill. So even at the age of 5 or 6 me and my brothers were allowed to take a .22 with us when we went out in the woods mostly for rattlers and copperheads. So being around guns is no big deal to me. I'll never forget when I was 6 maybe 7 I shot and killed a boxturtle well when my dad found out he busted my butt like it was going out of stly. And ever since that day i've never shot anything unless I was going to eat it. I have guns now and will always have guns and will teach my kids to shoot when they get older. But even now at their age 8,3,1 we talk about not touching guns and if their friends are playing with a gun to leave and get a grownup. If they want to look at one of the guns I will let them. I honestly believe if ya try and keep a youngun from something their little minds will be wondering and wondering about it until they get a chance to get at it by themselves. So I want my kids to be comftable around guns and know what they are for so their little minds aren't wondering. My two cents Mike

Here are three bracelets I just finished and a key chain. Any feedback on how to improve would be greatly apprciated. Thanks Mike

Welcome Avril !!!!!!! Mike

Welcome to the site glad to have ya!!!! Mike

I'm glad i'm not the only one that has trouble finding time. Ya would think with my job scheldule 24hr on 48hr off I would have time. But with my wife working 3rd shift as a RN and three kids 8,4 in Dec,and my boy turning two in Jan. I spend all my time chasing the two little ones especially the boy. So the wife gets up at 2:30 or so and then we pick the oldest one up from school and get home and I cook supper and make sure homework and the kids chores are done. So my wife can ride her horses and do chores (5 hayburners,4 dogs,4 cats,rabbit, and a fish) it's dark thirty and time to put kids in bed and the wife to go back to work if she's scheldued. Now my wife does aplenty around the house (pay bills,laundry,baths for kids ect..)So i'm not griping about it and I feel it's important for her to have time with her hoss's. Because I diffently married a hell of a lot better than she did. But trying to braid especially rawhide while trying to watch those two little counter monkeys just doesn't seem to work real well and I can try to braid while on duty after 17:00hrs but calls always seem to come in at the wrong time. So I usally just braid at home after 22:00hrs for a couple of hrs. With all that said I wouldn't change a thing if I could. Kids are great the wife is great and i'm finner than frog hair. Sorry for rambling so much but it's nice to know i'm not the only one with no time. Mike

Welcome James glad to have ya. As ya'll see this is a great site with everybody willing to help each other. Mike