billybopp

Sad to hear about your friend, but I'm sure he takes comfort in knowing his tools will be used and loved. If he is survived by loved ones, a little gift of something made with those tools as @Grumpymann mentioned above would be a wonderful touch for both him and them. Bill

Skive it down a bit thinner and wet before bending should help. Some leathers are just difficult tho. Bill

Tandy 4 in 1 is garbage. - Bill

I suspect that is a ribbon pocket. Check out this link... - Bill

For a hobbyist, steel molds would be more trouble than they are worth. Hard to make, and easy to rust without proper care. Rust would stain the leather. The only advantage I can think of for using steel would be that they might be able to be heated to speed the drying process a bit. I've seen people using wood, plastic, foam and just about everything else to make a mold. As long as it's somewhat sturdy and not damaged by water it should work! Whatever you use, you may want to seal the surface, such as a polyurethane varnish on wood, to protect from moisture. That should do the trick just fine! Here are a couple of videos that might help .... Making a mold for wet molding leather and making a molded bag . - Bill

You could try HDPE from McMaster-Carr ... https://www.mcmaster.com/hdpe or from WW Grainger .. https://www.grainger.com/search/raw-materials/plastics/plastic-sheets-and-film?ts_optout=true - Bill

Lookin' great... once again! -Bill

I love it! May you never need to use it. - Bill

Great looking belt, and brilliant insight into doing angled basketweave. Thanks so much for the detailed info for all of us! I know I'll be using your method! - Bill P.S. Do you think Santa's belt is basketweave?

I wrap some cloth athletic tape around my fingers at the "wear points". It's cheap, protects my fingers and provides a little extra grip. - Bill

A sewing machine will not sew when turning backward. That would reverse the hook, etc and it won't pick up the thread from the needle then. - Bill

There are a couple of options that I can think of for using a stitching chisel in thicker projects. 1. Before gluing up all layers, punch through a couple of layers at a time, using already done layers as a guide for the ones below. 2. If it's already glued, use the hole already there as a guide and finish the holes with an awl. - Bill

Hehe. Yeah, I realized you were selling ... but now you have alternatives for your use! - Bill

A well equipped first-aid kit is arguably the most essential tool in every workshop. It is an established fact that some leather projects require an infusion to bring them to life / back to life. A number of my projects have certainly been given life by infusion. I understand that the same is true of woodworking, metalworking, cooking, electronics (the backside of old circuit boards were treacherous!) and apparently fiberglass working. A few months ago I managed to remove a small bit of my left forefinger and fingernail while cutting up some veggies. Oddly enough, it did not bleed at all at first, then I went to the bathroom sink to wash out the wound. Who know an entire sink bowl could turn such a shade of pink! - Bill

... Just make sure that you get the right kind! The laser printer kind is fairly thick to stand up to the heat of laser printers and smooth with no tooth to hold inkjet ink but still does fair with overhead pens. The inkjet kind has a slightly matte side to hold ink, and is usually thin enough to melt in a laser printer. Regular "hand drawing" film is VERY thin and smooth, so not suitable for either type of printer. All three are decent for transferring patterns to leather, but I usually just use paper. Use once and throw away. - Bill

From what I have seen, I'd expect that one to go for something like $100. In really good condition, more like $150+. @bruce johnsoncould give a better idea on value for this knife. I looked at his website, and found a bit more info there: It seems that they made these from around the end of the Civil War to around the beginning of WWI It's in decent condition without very much pitting on the blade, and most of the blade still there. It's got MANY years of useful life left! As for the handle and ferule, I think I'd leave it unless it's uncomfortable to use. The dents, dings and burn detract some from the value, but they also tell a story. We don't know exactly what that story is, but its kind of fun to look and wonder what happened. My guess would be set down too close to a burner used to heat a creaser, what's yours? BTW, it's interesting to note that the design of this knife is good enough that Terry Knipschield decided to make a copy and include it in his lineup. - Bill

Congrats! These older round knives are really great tools, whether collector or user. I've been looking for a rose, myself if I find one in good condition at a good price. Not that I need it, I have a Gomph and a CS Osborne that I love to use, but I live in the West Philadelphia neighborhood where that one was made and think it'd be kinda nifty to return one to its home! W. Rose is still around, but has moved several miles outside of Philadelphia now, and are known for their masonry tools. Unlike most of the other leather tool makers, Rose seems to have ONLY made round knives - no edgers or anything of that sort. I'm not a collector, but AFAIK they aren't super rare, and seem to be a bit more rare than CS Osbornes, Gomphs, and some others and hence take a little higher price. As you have discovered, the Rose knives are known for being considerably harder than others! So they can be a bitch to get sharp, but tend to hold that edge extremely well. I wish I could tell you more about the bevels, but again I'm not really an expert. As far as patina and collectibility is concerned, my own thoughts are remove any rust that you can get at. It's rust, not patina, and will deteriorate the steel with time. If fine steel wool won't get at it, chemicals might be the ticket, but get rid of the rust. I use paste wax on my blades to protect them. For the rest, I don't entirely agree with the trend toward "preserve the patina" and think it's really overdone. In most cases, it's corrosion and dirt to me. Take off as much "patina" as you need to make it usable if you intend it for a user. If you intend it for a collector, THEN worry about the value and leave the dirt! My Gomph came pretty clean, so I keep it that way. The Osborne was not so clean. I left the blade alone, but the handle was sticky in my hand (GROSS), so I cleaned that up. Maybe somebody that knows more about collector value will come along and give you better advice, but above is my take! Hope that helps! - Bill

Here are some pictures of a bag I made last year using leather and purpleheart. The leather is about 6 oz dyed yellow, with mahogany dyed straps and the wood is 3/8" purpleheart attached with brass escutcheon pins spaced about an inch apart (sadly hard to see in the pictures). I pre-drilled holes for the pins to avoid splitting the wood. The stitching went a little wonky, sadly. My woodworking tools are very limited, and had I known how stinking HARD purpleheart is, I would've chosen something else! - Bill

ROFL ... I wish I had that joke in my arsenal when I used to work with drug companies, they would've loved it! And as you said, content is king! I can put up with quirks, a bit long-winded, and even awful background music as long as I learn something good! - Bill

I wouldn't mind havin' that under a nice glass of old enough to vote Laphroaig. Looks good! - Bill

I just came across this on eBay ... It looks about right, and might be helpful if you ever do similar armor again! https://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Hand-made-Leather-Punch-Cobbler-Saddle-Maker/302989484499?hash=item468b94a1d3:g:0dEAAOSwhfRcDGRw - Bill

Antiquing is generally done with something darker than the surrounding leather. You can't get darker than black, really, so can't exactly antique that way! But, you could try using a lighter color dye or paint that will settle into impressions and wipe it off the same way you would antique. It'll highlight the tooling for sure, but may not be a look that you want!! - Bill

I don't make holsters, and probably never will unless somebody asks me to make one for 'em. But still learned a thing or two that will be helpful for other items! I love to learn. Agreed about Sam's voice - and feel badly for his wife LOL. But I suppose like anything you get used to it.... There are other youtubers that I check out often and have to cringe through their voice, but the content makes it worthwhile. There are one or two others that I just can't get past. LOL. But, this does bring a question to mind @JLSleather. I know you do your own designs, and curious if you "get it right" first time every time now, or go through iterations? And if mostly first time, how many did it take you to get there? Just curious and food for thought! - Bill

The best casters for you really depends on your situation! There are a ton of choices all with pros and cons. Personally, I'd go with something like this from Woodcraft (and probably available elsewhere as well). They won't raise your stand at all until you are ready to move it, and the wheels won't go out of round if things aren't moved around for a long time. You just flip the wheels down when you are ready to move stuff! The only downside to that particular wheel it that they are smallish and could be a pain on carpet or uneven floors. Maybe somebody makes something similar with bigger wheels? - Bill

It's a single LONG strip of leather with bleeder knots in three places. That video that @Mattsbagger linked should be very helpful, and I agree with him that if there is any concern about strength of the rivet, the leather will tear before a properly set copper rivet lets go. - Bill