barehandcustoms

16" Tube Frame https://www.etsy.com/listing/60015876/16-inch-bigest-aluminous-tubular?ref=market 20" Tube Frame https://www.etsy.com/listing/172231173/20-inch-aluminous-tubular-internal-hinge?ref=market

You have to custom order those clips. You just aren't going to find them in stock anywhere...much less with the tape measure etching on them. Several companies can handle that for you since its an easy 4 bends and 2 holes piece of metal. I listed a couple of them below. http://www.peninsulaspring.com/flat-springs http://www.keatsmfg.com/custom-brackets-custom-clips.html But... If you want to stay away from custom ordering them then you can look into something called a T frame security hanger. They make numerous styles of clips exactly like that for hanging large picture frames to the wall. So if you start searching for heavy duty security hangers....you should stumble upon a very similar piece of metal. Hope that helps

Two links for similar skins http://www.chichesterinc.com/TibetLambSkinsWhole.htm http://www.chichesterinc.com/IcelandicSheepskins.htm http://www.chichesterinc.com/LambskinsandSheepskins.htm - link to all their sheep/lamb skins They should have anything you need

http://www.wickett-craig.com/ http://horween.com/ http://www.hermannoakleather.com/ Any of those will get you started down the right path.

http://www.spottedfashion.com/2013/10/08/hermes-leather-name-reference-guide/ Describes the various leathers being used by them plus pictures of the calf and goatskins to help you identify it. The Togo bag you are asking about is made from baby calf leather with a pebbled finish. Since they are selling bags for 20k to over 100k.... I would seriously doubt you can buy the same leather hides they use. I think it is safe to say that what they buy is sold exclusively to them because of their demand for large volumes of high end calf and goat hide. It also appears they do a lot in house to their hides to achieve that look. http://www.ebay.com/sch/leatherwise/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from= Carries a large variety of embossed calf, sheep, pig and lambskin.

Where can these lift belt companies get these cheap, or high quality seamless roller buckles custom made? http://www.buckleguy.com/custom-manufacturing/ http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/roller-buckle.html There are several companies that will do this though. You mention no one has good quality 4" seamless roller buckles. Would you mind expanding on what makes a seamless roller buckle good quality? They make plenty of good quality seamless roller buckles, I would just be surprised if anyone sells them 1 or 2 at a times. Qualities of a good roller buckle: Good quality metal Proper gauge metal used on the body Roller is not so thin it feels wobbly on the body Polished up so that seams and bends aren't showing from production

Looks like they are just ordering mesh is large sheets and cutting them to size. Some of it looks like Noseeum...not sure if that stuff will stand up to the abuse wallets take though. http://textiles.jasonmills.com/category/-knit-mesh-for-tactical-gear-luggage-and-backpacks http://www.questoutfitters.com/mesh_fabrics.htm Those two links should give you the "buzz" words you need to do further searches.

It sounds like you only need a few of them. The answer would be easy if you needed 1000 to 5000 of them. Your best bet might be to call or email someone who makes high end lifting belts and see if they will sell you some. You would be surprised how willing people are to help you out if you approach them in the right way. I think it's safe to say no one has good quality 4" *seamless* roller buckles in stock. I have seen low quality 4 inch roller buckles before but they were just left overs or discards from large custom orders for people making Santa belts and lifting belts. Most of the lift belt companies just use the cheap 4 to 6 inch roller buckles that they order custom made by the 1000s. Hope that helps Good Luck

Depends how long it would take you to pay for that splitter with the profits you make from selling wallets. There are several companies that will split your leather for free before shipping. Never a good idea to build your business on debt. Honestly, If you were at the point in your business adventure that you needed a nice electric splitter then you would know exactly how thick you wanted those wallet interiors. The money spent on a good splitter could buy you a lot of already split leather. I see more good coming out of a mountain of already split leather than I do a good splitter. Most wallet interiors are below 3oz in size.

http://www.bucklebox.co.uk/50mm-solid-brass-belt-buckle-2-inches-wide-50mm-3798-p.asp http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-x-HEAVY-DUTY-SOLID-CAST-BRASS-SQUARE-BELT-BUCKLE-3-4-2-you-select-/191109753035?pt=UK_Crafts_Leathercraft_LE&var=&hash=item2c7f0768cb http://www.ebay.com/itm/SOLID-BRASS-MILITARY-ROLLER-BELT-BUCKLE-Leathercraft-1-2-2-408-you-select-/191107929004?pt=UK_Crafts_Leathercraft_LE&var=&hash=item2c7eeb93ac http://www.ebay.com/itm/HEAVY-DUTY-2-or-50-mm-2-Pin-Solid-Brass-Roller-Belt-Buckle-Leather-Craft-410-/201017504574?pt=UK_Crafts_Leathercraft_LE&hash=item2ecd93b33e Use 50mm instead of 2" when you search for them. Most of the countries that make 2" belt buckles use the metric system. Granted only 4 countries in the world use something besides the metric system. I have never ordered from any of the listed sellers so I can't vouch for them. Two of the links are for roller buckles but you may want to dig further into their inventory.

Looks like the same stuff several companies import and sell for twice the price to be honest. I never bought a big tool kit when I first started but I did buy numerous cheapo tools from China and Japan off Ebay. Several of them are in those big tool kit pictures you linked. A few of those tools were absolute garbage but some of them are still chugging along and turned into great tools that I will use for years to come. I was working on my kitchen table at that time though and doing leather just as a hobby. I wish I had just bought a tool kit like this back then instead of buying them one or two at a time. Would have saved me a lot of research, time and wasted leather as a newbie if I had. Knowing what I know now though....my answer would differ depending on your end goal. If you are going into leather craft as a fun hobby then those cheapo tool kits will be a excellent starting point for you. Great way to start figuring out the purpose of certain leather tools and how to use them. You will also learn which tools you use a lot and which ones collect dust. If you find out you like working with leather then start purchasing really good tools that you tend to use the most. Expensive does not always equal good quality. However If you are going to make leather products with the goal of selling them.....invest now in good tools. *Most* of the cheapo tools just do not last in a production environment when you are using them almost daily. You will get frustrated with them getting dull and wasting your time on tool upkeep. my 2 cents

I find myself ordering buckles from Amazon lately. Huge variety and prices are usually in line with everybody else. Check out the link below http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2/185-3087700-5216044?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=center%20bar%20belt%20buckles otherwise http://www.buckleguy.com/center-bar-buckles/ Never had any problems with them in the past. Those volume discounts help out too if you buy those in bulk.

My Tippman Boss gets used 98% of the time as a hole puncher for hand stitching and 2% as an actual sewing machine. Keeps the holes perfectly spaced and lined up as it punches through to the other side. What used to take me about 20 minutes to punch by hand is done now in like 45 seconds. Just food for thought if you are going to be selling those briefcases. It will pay for itself with the time you save.

If you are hammering them into wood then absolutely. When you see antique furniture rotting away...those tacks are still firmly in place. I have never used them so keep that in mind. I can't imagine they would stay properly without some method of bending the needle back into the leather though. Just pushing them into leather without some method of securing the needle will not work. I would suggest ordering a bag of them since they are so cheap and just experiment with some scrap leather.

My favorite of your work so far. I really like how the cloth peaks over the top in the front. Excellent job man

Looks like everything listed above is 2mm in size. I did some more checking around but that seems to be the minimum for the high end and low end awl makers. My guess is that anything smaller than that tends to bend or break. If you just want quality thin diamond awl blades then your answer is already listed above. I may do some more digging around and see what is out there. I am kind of curious to see if other industries have similar diamond shaped tools that could be used to do what you want. Maybe there is a jewelers tool that gets down towards 1mm to 1.5mm in size.

http://www.sheridanleather.com/Awl_Handle_p/dt-awl-handle.htm http://www.sheridanleather.com/Awl_Blades_p/dt-awl-blades.htm *make sure you select slim from the drop down* Excellent American made tool but quite expensive

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Leathercraft-Stitching-Awl-for-Sewing-Leather-Diamond-Point-2mm-/111415264500?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19f0de04f4 2mm diamond awl thin enough? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Craft-Sha-Leathercraft-Stitching-Awl-Sewing-Leather-Standard-Diamond-Point/121271695228?_trksid=p2045573.c100033.m2042&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D24902%26meid%3D3171736558e2489195f41aecdd2c8abf%26pid%3D100033%26prg%3D10502%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D4%26sd%3D121271695228 Another small diamond awl I have always read that the smallest hole you can get away with is the best for a good looking stitch job. You might want to try a regular awl if the diamond awl is making holes too big. 2mm is still a pretty big hole if you are using small thread. Just a thought.

Either they are showing on the backside or those are actually just upholstery tacks that have been hammered in. Check the link for what I am talking about. http://www.ebay.com/itm/100pcs-Upholstery-Supplies-Tacks-Nails-Pink-161-/271297119845

Doesn't look like the center is actually over the sewed line. Looks to be just below it. They probably punch holes just below the sewed lines and then punch them down.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beading-Awl-5-leather-punching-pin-pushing-sewing-Jewelers-hand-tools-4pc-T005-/201152863812?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ed5a51e44 I ordered a batch of these a long time ago and they were the smallest awl I have ever used. They are cheaply made but very small and get the job done. I would suggest pulling the small needle out and making your own handle. They are just heated up and pushed into the little plastic handles. Another option is to drill a tiny hole into a wooden handle then press a sewing needle into it. Make sure the hole is just a bit smaller then the needle and apply a bit of glue to secure it. You can always resharpen the point if you dull it a bit when pushing it into the handle.

They use a different thickness/quality/density then what is mass produced for craft grade sheets but it is still just foam. With a quick Google search it shouldn't be hard to find any kind of foam you want. I know some companies mass buy sea food packing foam and use hot wire to cut out very thin sheets for their products. It is going to be sewn into the layers so they don't care about looks....only its ability to fill that space.

Good information so far and thanks to everyone for your replies. I was going to use Weaver or Texas Dies because of a referral from someone who literally has a wall full of dies made by both companies. Sorry you had a bad experience with Texas Custom Dies. I was probably dreaming when I thought I could get by without buying the clicker press. It looks like every template will be around 1sq foot in size. I have noticed my hands getting very sore in the mornings after long nights in the shop. I think most of that comes from the cutting process since that seems to be when I feel them cramping up. Luckily I am a network administrator and they get to rest for most of the day other than pounding on a keyboard. I'm only 28 but it seems my hands are getting stiffer on me already.

If I do go that route then they will definitely get my business for several reasons.

Few questions regarding cutting dies..... When did you feel it was worth minimizing material wastage and the time saved to invest in good quality cutting dies? Is it okay to just hammer the dies instead buying a clicker press? What is the normal process to get a custom cutting die made? *how are designs submitted etc* What are some common mistakes to avoid when getting several cutting dies made from your old cutting templates?