Redochre

When I first started out I made an impromptu pricking iron from a fork and an awl from an old small torx bit..... They were terrible but I couldn't afford actual tools and they got my started. I still use that awl now for corners. Keep your utility knife blade stropped, they last twice as long. The Tandy poly mallets are very expensive for what they are, just ebay plastic mallet and you will have a good choice. The biggest money saving tip I think I can give is choose your leather wisely.... I have a draw full of leather I have no use for because I didn't know what I was buying... Experience is a strict teacher. Also this is a great topic, I look forward to everyone's responses.

So I ended up chatting with a saddler I met on a train about bridle leather and conditioning leather in general. He said some very interesting stuff.... Mainly his loathing for neatsfoot or the use of any oil in general for leatherwork. His argument was that its not oil that is lost when you work with leather, it's fat. The only reason saddlers traditionally used oil was to aid the tanning process (sun tanning). He said look at curriers grease.....Its mainly made up of grease(tallow) and waxes with some oil as a carrrier. Can anyone confirm this? I have no way of verifying what he said, I had a to get off while he was half through a rant about horse magazine's giving bad info to the public. I couldn't find much tallow so I bought some beef dripping to experiment with.

I have both and prefer the Seiwa Chisels. Both benefit from a little polish though, they pull out so much easier. On a side note I have the pro line set too and I'm pretty impressed. They come with a rough surface on the prongs but an hour with a file, sand paper and polishing soap and they do a pretty good job and not just for the price.... Also worth noting the steel is hard enough to ruin my needle files.

I made this a few weeks back for my niece. It's an easy project to do which looks and functions great, I used a magnetic clasp. The problem I ran into was the inside really needs to be a couple of mm smaller the the outside because if you follow the pattern exactly you do get some nast y bunching on the internal fold.

Thank you my good man.

I use the tesa tape sometimes too! It is amazingly strong. Downside is that it gums your awl and needles up. It can give you grief burnishing the edge too. Plus side is there are no drying times, it sticks VERY well and no fumes/mess to deal with.

That's it, I'm buying some waxed canvas! Huns may ask if you hand stitched the canvas? If so did you saddle stitch it?

You're a wizard.....

Because of the shapes of an axe head doing a friction fit sheath would be very difficult. Personally I don't like snaps, I don't trust them and feel I would be creating a weak point in my work if I use them. I just made an axe sheath out of scrap for myself and used a flat Sam brown stud... But still had a restraining strap. One option could be a top loading sheath with a flap.... No strap but would still need a fastener of some kind. If the guys at British blades come up with something please share.

That's some nice work there, I like the design. I'm having the same issue with edge longevity.... I'm fine the problem with beeswax is that it's sticky... Even when cold so it looks grubby.

Huns that is some great work... I've been wanting too try some congas with leather for a while. Where did you get that particular canvas from? I love it!

That is just..... Do you need an apprentice??!! Please??

That's a cracking bit of stitching there Joe! How do you finish off the run? Do you mind sharing the rough dimensions? Hope everything is going well for you!

Thank you Monica... I'm aspiring to make bags and you've been an inspiration. Thank you capsterdog. It was 2/4oz Tandy economy tooling side..... You get what your pay for....

Thank you thekid77. It's 8spi and yes I used a stitching chisel and awl... I don't like the hole that the craft sha chisels make so I never fully penetrate with it.

Thank you old bean, what what pip pip.

URL=http://s36.photobucket.com/user/redochreforest/media/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20150303_173253_zpsrh3vbfxu.jpg.html][/url] Dyed with eco flo pro waterstain. 8spi 0.8 tigre thread. Lined with Italian split.

I genuinely don't see why this would be an issue? The baby is safe and you're hands free.... But I've always said if I ever have kids then I'll duct tape them to the tank of my bike... Who needs a car..

I've made a few with different wieghts and found that 3-4 oz worked best. But I did burnish the back, dye it and rub some beeswax on there to stiffen it up. I did a modified version out of 8oz that will hold a 7" tablet. Thank you for doing the pattern by the way!

Man I wish I could carry.

I was thinking similar to Electrathon. Except I'd make a minbi brand from wire and brand the wallet that way.

Try landing the stitch in between the slots instead of bridging them. Use a scratch awl to make a hole on the outside showing where the slots meet.(do this by pushing the scratch awl in between the slots from the inside) Then carefully open the hole up with a diamond awl making sure not to damage the slots inside. Now use these holes as your point of reference and work away from them.

When you draw around a pattern your lines are already laying outside the dimensions you want. As mentioned above you can counteract this by making the template 1mm smaller than needed or you can not use a template and draw straight on to the leather.(this isn't viable in a production setting) Also mentioned above the correct way to cut a line is to disect it. For example if you mark out with a pen then there should be ink on both sides of the cut. Its also the accepted rule that you always cut with the waste side showing. Ultimately though leather is organic, it moves. If you're not pressing hard enough on the rule then leather will distort.

That's a pretty sweet looking collar! Did you use a finish on the copper? I've done a few copper inlays and found the copper tarnishes very quickly.

Love it!