Grunt

Very nicely done indeed! I like how th eleatters turned out. I can't wait to see it when it is complete!

I use Jeremiah Watt's overstitch wheels #5 and #6.

Very nice! That is one of the nicest apron cases I have ever seen!

Here are a couple of pics of my latest sheaths. These were dyed with vinegaroon the edged were dyed with leather dye in order to get a consistant color.

Thanks I put a light coat on to help finish setting the color and to make sure I have the depth of color I want. I haven't had any problems so far, although I don't do any really fine molding or boning. Usually the oil soaks in pretty quickly back to dry. I'm sure waiting until all molding and/or boning is complete to apply any oil at all would work just fine. I will try that on my next black sheath and see if I get different results. Thanks. Once I am finished with a project I will apply 2 or 3 light coats of oil and go from there to my final finish. Regards, Nick

I'm no expert, but I do use vinegaroon quite a bit. So I will put my two cents in. Once I have a batch of vinegaroon that is the desired strength and works like it should, I put it in a big food service tub that I have just for this pourpose. I take the pieces of leather that I have cut out from my pattern and put them in the vinegaroon and let them soak for as long as it takes to get them to color, usually 10 or 15 min. When I take the leather out it is generally not as deep black as you want it to be. Then I soak the leather in the baking soda/water rinse until it stops fizzing. This helps make the color deeper and usually the shade you are looking for. Then I blot the leather dry using some old towels. Next I set the leather on wire cooling racks,like the wife uses for cookies, to dry. Once the leather is dry I give the it a light coat of oil and assemble whatever I am making, usually knife sheaths. I can then wet the leather and do any molding, shaping, etc. I need to at this point. Sometimes I make use one light coat of leather dye as a final touch. Usually this is not needed but, a little evening up of color is needed from time to time. Hope this helps. Regards, Nick

Thanks for posting this. I enjoyed the pics of the work in progress and the history lesson. Posts like yours are some of my favorite things on this forum.

Thanks for sebding me a PM. I think I will pass on this one. Good luck with your sale though. Thanks again, Nick

Troy, THanks for posting those pics. Your work is stunnig and usual.

Very nicely done!

I have been buying shark that comes in a reddish-brown color. I have had great success dying it black with vinegaroon. It smells like pickled fish for a little while but it goeas away as it dries.

Very nice indeed!!

WOW! That's a monster! Nice machine

Pete, Rare earth magnets work well to hold your knife in the sheath. I have made a few sheaths with magnetic retention for customers and I am by no means the first guy to do it. It's always fun to try out new methods and techniques let us know how it turns out. Nick

Here are some pics of my latest knife sheath. Some of you may have seen this on other forums but here it is for the leather folks. The knife is a Busse Combat HACK Cub. The knife is very small and very sharp. I bought it for my wife so she can carry it in her purse and have a knife that won't alarm people when the see it. The sheath is covered in Cayman. There is no belt loop since she will be carrying it in her purse. This is without a doubt the smallest sheath I have ever done. Thanks for looking and Merry Christmas, Nick

Bruce, I think that two machines may be the way to go. I am assuming that that I can use the flat bed machine to sew multiple layers of fabric like cordura nylon, canvas, and denim as well as leather. Thankfully I have some time to think about this. The funny thing is the fella I am buying the Boss from was going to sell me his Artisan 3000 for a good price, but his wife said that he may need it one day, so that nixed that. Thanks for all the help guys! Regards, Nick

I am still looking for a sewing machine and I have questions about a couple of different machines. I am looking to sew concealed carry belts, saddle bags, chaps, and knife sheaths. First I have the opportunity to buy a Tippman Boss for $750.00 complete mounted on the tippman table/bench. This machine is one of the older cast iron machines and is in great shape. It is also about 10 min from my house. I have also seen a couple of different machines on Ebay for sale that look interesting. One is the Neel's Saddlery Model 5. From the description is seems like it would do most anything I would ask of it. How are these machines and how is the customer support? I have also seen the TECHSEW GA5-1 Heavy-Duty Cylinder Industrial Sewing Machine sold by Raphael's same as above it seems from the description it would do most jobs I would need done. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks, Nick

Is this machine still for sale?

Dang!! Too bad I live clear on the other side of the state in El Paso. A friend of mine was going to sell me his for that price but he had to back out of the deal.

Here are some pics of a prototype Molekine notebook cover I made recently. As usual my pics are not professional quality but they get the job done. I made this out of 6oz Wickett and Craig Saddle Skirting oiled and suntanned for that "Saddle Tan" color. I hand stitched and finished everything. It is made to fit the large Moleskine notebook and the small Army green hardback "memo" book. Since this is a prototype I have been carrying it everyday and getting a lot of use out of it. I have taken it out to the range as well as everywhere else I have been this week. Any comments or suggestions for improvement on future covers is welcome. Thanks for looking and best regards, Nick

WOW!! That's some pretty outstanding work!

Thanks for all the input folks! I am still mulling over which option to go with. At least I now have a little more info. Nick

I am looking to get a press in order to mold holsters and knife sheaths. What I need to know is how big of a press do I need. I have seen hydraulic presses at Harbor Freight in 20, 12, and 6 ton models. Do I need that much pressure? Would one of these presses used to mold kydex knife sheaths work? I make mostly knife sheaths but I would like to be able to make the occasional holster as well. Thanks for looking. Nick

Bree, Thanks for the kind words. I am sorry I didn't see this sooner, been busy with work. I use Barge cement to bond the two layers together then sew. I have used it in several belts to date with no problems. If there is a better solution then I would like to know about it so that I can make an even better belt. As far as the stitching across the width of the belt, I have read Al Stohlman's Hand Sewing book also. Even though I am going to use another method of attaching the keeper on future belts, I went with this method for this belt after some thought. One was that the stress being placed on a belt, even one being used to carry a large handgun in a holster, spare magazines, cell phone and possibly a pair of handcuffs, would not be from such a direction as to cause a tear "like a postage stamp" where it was stitched. Secondly if you look at mens leather belts in most clothing stores they are stitched across the width of the belt to hold the buckle on. I have owned several cheap store bought leather belts for long enough for them to wear out and none of them has ever torn in the stitched across area and these were single layer belts. Either way I am going to use another method in the future. Besides I am going to be wearing this belt myself so if it does fail it will be while I am wearing it. And if that happens all I will be able to do is grin and bear it, that's why it is a pre-production model. I do appreciate peoples comments especially when they are constructive like the ones posted in this thread. I have learned a lot from folks here and I hope to one day be helpful as well. Regards, Nick

Thanks for the kind words! Yes those are chicago screws, I like them better than snaps!