ferret

Used to have one back in the 70's, got rid of it when I got into re-enactment. It kept getting caught in the maille shirt and It's quite painfull having 60lbs of steel hanging off your ear.

Have you tried Le Prevo ? The special offers may be worth a look.

That about sums it up. Some time ago the marketing/advertising firms realised that the product is irrelevant, what they are really selling is another by product of the meat industry, the one that comes out before the animal is converted to meat and hides.

That goes for me too. I'm useless at finding the right words sometimes.

here's a few links that may be usefull http://www.theairbrushforum.com/ http://airbrushtricks.com http://www.airbrush-....com/index.html http://airbrushtechnique.com/forum/ http://www.goldenpai...ata/airtips.php

Hi and welcome to the forum. This is the best place to learn the craft and there are lots of freindly people willing to offer advice. Take a few days to read through the posts and you can learn how to avoid all the mistakes the rest of us made when starting out

Can't say I've noticed a lack of help on here. When I signed up I thought I knew something about working leather, a quick browse through the forums showed me how wrong I was. I've never needed to ask a question because most of the answers are already here, along ways of avoiding problems before I knew they existed. As for "trade secrets" there is really only one, and that is frequently repeated on here, "keep practising" .

Drac has made an excellent tutorial here. Should have all the info you need./

Here lots of patterns.

I've tried making a few templates but keep messing them up. In the end I bought a cheap belt from a charity shop and use that as a template.

I'd go for an edge beveller, adjustable crease and overstitch wheel. Tandy UK have one on sale here.

I'm already envious, you live close to one of my favourite breweries:cheers: and my favourite leather/tool supplier. Get a copy of Al Stohlman's "the art of hand sewing leather", it will show you (almost) everything you need to know about sewing and what tools to use. It's a good idea to read through the relevant threads on the forum before starting projects, there's lot's of usefull tips from the pro's and you can avoid the mistakes the rest of us made when we were newbies .

I've been buying from them for years, very friendly and helpful staff. A word of advice on that sewing awl, don't bother taking it out of the pack. A lot of us bought one when starting out, they are all now stuffed away in the cellar or buried in the yard. Get a copy of Al Stohlman's "the art of hand sewing leather", a decent awl and a pack of saddlers needles. It will save you hours of frustration.

Dye penetrates more so will last longer. I've used acrylics on a few projects and it seems to be holding up ok, but its only been 3 years so it's too early to tell how long it lasts

You can get it here , but it does involve shipping across the pond.

Only thing I've found that realy waterproofs leather is liberal amounts of dubbin applied frequently. Not sure if it would be suitable for armour though as it does soften the leather.

paypal will pay in any currency you specify, I think there is a small charge for the service. Not sure but I think most banks and credit card companies do the same. Got no idea about posting from the U.S. or international cellphone charges. International dailing codes can be found here

Hi Stefan nothing you do to clothing/upholstery leather is going to make it stiff enough for armour, so your best bet is to glue it onto something that is already stiff. Plastic pop/milk bottles cut into shape and sandwiched between a couple of layers of soft leather should be good enough for LARP. You can find patterns for armour here . When you get around to trying vegtan 2 1/2 - 3mm should be adequate, it can be wet formed, carved, embossed and hot water hardened.

For small / intricate work I find it easier to use a fountain pen rather than a brush.

I go offline for a few months and the site changes. Usually I don't like change ( I refuse to learn metric, I've only just got used to using that new fangled stuff the Romans introduced). Must admit I like this new layout, well done everyone involved:thumbsup:. (My opinion may change when I find where the ferrets have hidden my specs and I get to see it properly)

Yes but you have to use several coats to get a deep black. This also works if you are using acrylic paints, remeber to put tha paint on first.

have a good one

Having been a guest at Buck House a few times I can confirm Jordan's opinions of Her Majesty are completely correct, She is a very nice Lady and one of the best Monarchs we've had. She does love the corgis and has a passion for horses and frequently pops down to the Royal mews to groom the Royal mounts. I wouldn't worry about the President's gift, it was the music on it and the technology behind it that expressed U.S. talent and craftmanship, not the container. Her Majesty already has an example of U.S. Leathercraft, She recieved a pair of Cowboy boots during the state visit back in '72. It's up you guys if you want to send something, but it should be done as an expression of freindship from U.S. citizens rather than an apology for the official gift. You wouldn't want Her Majesty to think you are still a bunch of rebellious colonials with no respect for authority would you? If you do decide to go ahead you can find info on the correct ettiquette at the Royal website .

Take the thread out, dump the rest of it in the trash, buy a copy of Al stohlman's "The art of hand sewing leather". Alternatively put it on ebay so it becomes someone else's problem. Even with instructions it's a waste of time and effort.

Still waiting for mine, but it does take a while to ship stuff across the pond. Come to think of it I'm still waiting for the previous one.