billybopp

As mentioned by @zuludog Tiger thread is a synthetic, and will melt when heated which gives a good way to end a line of stitching: Linen thread is natural and will just burn, so has to be finished differently. Many folks will leave a small section between the edge of two pieces of leather un-glued, and put a knot in their thread between the pieces then glue after sewing is completed. Others will fully glue, backstitch/overstitch their thread, cut it really close and put a dab of white glue on the ends to hold it. Tiger thread is a woven polyester while linen is a twisted thread, so they do behave differently, as you've found particularly where locking the thread to the needle is concerned. Make sure to leave a considerably longer tail with linen and after locking it to your needles wax the daylights out of it to hold it together. A little white glue might to the trick there as well, but I've never tried that. Make sure, too, that when you lock your thread, you do that a couple of inches down from the eye of the needle (no matter what kind of thread you are using!): It makes getting the knots through the hole far easier than when it's all bunched up at the eye of the needle. As for wax, you'll find that Tiger is super-saturated with wax: Far more than even other braided polyesters. That makes it so nice to sew with, but it also means that for a given size it is a little plumper. 0.6mm Tiger is more like 0.8mm for most other waxed braided polyester threads. Most other waxed braided polyesters can benefit from some additional wax rubbed on it before sewing, and the same is true for Linen thread. Hope that helps, and the strap looks really good BTW - and your sewing looks perfect! - Bill

You may not be able to prevent this entirely, but try this: Before you dye your edges, burnish with water and saddle soap. Let it dry, then edge dye. That will lessen the dye absorption from the edge - If saddle soap doesn't do the trick, try a little gum tragacanth. I'd also suggest something a little firmer than a Q-tip - a small foam brush or a little piece of felt held in a clothespin. Make sure that whatever you use isn't too heavily loaded with dye: Just enough to do the job. Hopefully that helps. - Bill

We've always had problems with USPS packages arriving here in Philly. I'd estimate that I only get 90 to 95% of what is shipped, and far far less on time. And of course, they NEVER find missing packages. I expect that will get much worse. - Bill

If gluing isn't something you do all that often - Just open a window and put an exhaust fan there! - Bill

I mentioned above a jig for centering stamps on strips and belts and such - and found a picture of it to share with you. This is the prototype made of hobby plastic sheets - plastruct brand if I remember right, and chicago screws. I also put together an Adobe Illustrator file as a fancy version of this to try to get it laser cut, but it just never happened since the prototype did what I wanted it to do! I may still get a nicer version made from my drawing at some point if I can find somebody that can do laser-work for me! It's pretty simple, really. A self-centering jig within a self-centering jig. I should also make a center "arm" specifically for punching holes (and will at some point). - Bill

In my opinion, they both have their place in leatherworking. For big stamps, such as letter stamps (1/2" and bigger) the deadblow hammer is really nice. You can hit hard enough to leave a good impression without the "bounce" that a regular maul or hammer has so that you don't get an accidental double-strike. Those double-strikes make can make coins more valuable, leather not so much! For smaller tools a lighter poly or rawhide maul or hammer are more suitable, particularly if you need multiple rapid strikes such as used when tooling leather. A deadblow hammer would just cumbersome in that situation. - Bill

The difference is that if you make a tool like that, or a jig - you only have to take the time to get it just right once. If it's something that you do often the time and money spent will pay you back in time and money! I need to make something similar to that for my hole punching - I already made one to help me align letter stamps on straps out of thick plastic (I just don't have the tools to do metal). - Bill

An acrylic finish does a reasonably good job of promoting water resistance (as mentioned above, water proof is not really possible). You also mentioned that you do not want a shiny finish such as Resolene (probably the most popular acrylic finish) yields. A good alternative would be Tandy's Satin Sheen or Angelus acrylic finisher( available in high gloss, Satin, and Matte). - Bill

Every time I use my airbrush I clean it after using a cheap ultrasonic cleaner that I have. Some airbrushes are a pain to disassemble, others not so much. Thankfully, my Paasche and Iwata are both reasonably easy. Never a problem! - Bill

So glad to hear Ferg!! - Bill

I came across this today on YouTube, and thought some might enjoy it.

Outstanding!

Have you ever looked inside a woman's purse? There is NOTHING minimalist about it! All joking aside, minimalist doesn't give you much to work with (by definition). About the only things I can think of to make a minimalist wallet more feminine would be to make it curvier, and aside from that, choice of color. - Bill

The search on here is so-so. Try searching google on this site by putting in what you are searching for, followed by a space then a full colon and site name ... So something like canvas leather bag pattern :leatherworker.net Hope that helps! - Bill

I use a combination of disposable and fixed blades. Whichever better suits the task and way that I'm working at the time. I do find that disposables can usually be made better from the box with a few passes on a fine stone and some stropping, tho. Many of them have visible scratches from factory sharpening, and work much better with just a little work. I don't use expensive stones, just a couple of two-sided water stones mostly - I want to say about $50 or so for both of them. I also have a worksharp guided sharpening system that I used initially as I was learning to sharpen it was a big help in learning how to control the angle. I still use it from time to time when a blade is damaged, as the coarse diamond plate makes quick work of it! - Bill

Wet a thick piece of leather - or even a few layers to make thick - put the rivet head on it and hammer from the backside. The leather will make a form for it that'll work from then on to support the rivet. That little trick works for all sorts of oddly shaped rivets. I set a ton of skull rivets and some others that way. - Bill

There can be a number of reasons, as mentioned lack of electricity for somebody doing mobile repairs, etc. Cost is a big reason too. I'd add to the list space - manual machines are generally smaller and lighter. I'd add noise they are relatively quiet with less noticeable vibration. I'd add control / speed - they just aren't going to run away from you as a motorized machine might. I'm sure there are other reasons as well. - Bill

I wonder if an old washing machine wringer would work for bigger pieces ... Hmmmmm - Bill

Looks good! I especially like the "pillowing" on the back! - Bill

Those are cobbler tools. The skiver-like tool is essentially a plane, sometimes called a heel shave (or some variation thereof) - It's for shaping the edge of the leather sole. The other tool - the name escapes me - the wheel version is called a fudge wheel - but it's pretty much for putting that fancy corrugated pattern on the outside top of the sole/welt. I'm not a cobbler, so forgive me if I don't have the names right! LOL. Maybe somebody will come along that can help me out on that and correct as needed. -Bill

Try Wickett and Craig - their hides are North American, tanned in Pennsylvania, and you can buy single hides/parts from them directly. Hermann Oak uses all North American hides as well I'm pretty sure. - Bill

I have a Singer bantam sewing machine that has a wood storage case. The outside is covered with pig skin. - Bill

To me, that looks exactly like a civil-war union US stamp - that might give you a good starting point for a search! You may also be able to get a stamp made for not too much $$. And that is a very cool item to have! - Bill

Good going! The stamps you have might not be as good as the ones in the distant past, but the ones from the 70s and 80s are still better than the ones that Tandy sells now. Even the new ones are OK to get started with and learn from - as you figured out, it'll just be a little harder to keep things lined up but you can overcome that with some practice and some adjustment. When you figure out which ones are most useful to you, you may want to buy better quality to continue on with - it'll just be easier to work with 'em! That's what I've done and it works for me. - Bill

@chrisash I see your point, however at this time @Rhale is mostly right when it comes to new tooling stamps for sale. Bob Beard and Wayne Jueschke both make hand-made tools with the price tags that go with that(WAY beyond my budget, so I can only speak to their reputation)! Barry King tools are semi-mass produced and still very good for the price. Sergey Nescromskey (spelling?) from Romania also makes good tools, and the ones that I have are good, but there are not many "traditional" tools in his catalog yet. The stamps out of Asia are mostly sub-standard by all accounts, but that may change in the future - they are catching up on other types of tools! In the past, there were some good tooling stamps coming from other places, but those are not available new anymore sadly. As for other types of leatherworking tools, there are few left anywhere that mass produce with decent quality. The best right now come from those that hand-make these tools, and most of the world is represented with these! The old mass-producers are mostly gone, and those that remain are a shadow of what they once were in terms of quality (in particular thinking of CS Osborne in the US, and Vergez-Blanchard in France). PS - If you ARE going to purchase tooling stamps from Barry King or Sergey Nescromskey - be sure to use the links at the top of the page and give Leatherworker.net some love! Also, if you're interested in used stamps check out Bruce Johnson's banner ad above as well! - Bill