gringobill

I've made several shot bags that I use for bench weights for stamping leather. A couple of them are round and the seam is turned in. I left about 1" open to turn them inside out and fill. On those I fiddled around figured out how to prepunch the stitching holes before turning and then was able to thread the thread (if you know what I mean,) through the holes and tie it off after the bags were filled with shot. It's hard to find where that spot is after I got done. Another one is squareish and I left the seam on the outside. With that one it would be real easy to cut a few stitches to allow the tip of a funnel to be inserted to add more shot, then restitch. The first two are made of some pretty thin pigskin which probably would not work for metal forming. My square one is made out of some chap chrome tan rough side out. Some heavy split chrome tan should be good for what you're talking about and just leave the seam on the out side. It would be pretty tough. I think steel shot, probably # 8 would be good for a metal forming bag and I really doubt that you would ever have add shot and I really doubt that you can damage it by pounding on it through the leather. I think you'd wear a hole in the leather before you'd damage the shot. It'd be like trying to tear up a ball bearing, LOL! If you want too see pix let me know and I'll take some any post them. Bill

It looks like most of what you got are a bunch of modeling tools that are supposed to fit into the two chuck handles at the bottom left. They appear to be in an old Exacto box. I don't see any awls, sure not any that look like could be used for an awl but as I say most of them look like a set of modeling tools and a swivel knife. Those "bit," type tools should slide into one of the handles and seems like then the knurled collar on the end should tighten up on them like a drill chuck. That's the way most Exacto knives and their other tools work. You can probably get some use out of them as modelers. Don't know if that makes sense. It seems like many times on ebay when someone is selling a "Lot of vintage leather working tools," there are a couple of ice picks thrown in with some actual old leather working tools. If there are a couple of actual usable tools in the bunch that I want, I figure out how much I want to pay for them and figure on tossing the ice picks and other worthless junk when I receive them. Bill

High Desert Leather in Utah, I believe he carries the piece you're looking for.

Sorry for your loss Spinner, that's really a bummer. Do the best you can. Bill

That sure turned out nice!!! And it sure will hold a lot of "stuff!" Like my brother told me about a little travel duffel I had one time, "you can put more stuff in that that you want to carry!" Bill

Another great looking piece Mike!!! That's also a pretty fancy wooden model, did you make that too? Looks like it's made out of walnut or some other fancy hardwood! Bill

I've seem a lot of it along the Mexican border in Az. but have never seen anyone doing it or even seen exactly how it's done. Big time saddle maker from Loma Rica, is putting some piteado on some of his fancy saddles. I the TCA show catalog it says "trying to revive the art." It sure looks like a really fine and time consuming process. I'd like to see how it's done. Bill

Hey Mike, first off, all your holsters really look good( that one with the yellow ostrich leg inlay is killer,) and my hat's off to you for hand stitching everything. It's darn sure a lot more work and time consuming. Having said that it seems like there's a renaissance in hand stitching and I see more and more high end stuff that's "hand stitched," i.e. some of the really fancy stuff in the Traditional Cowboy Artists show. It's a nice touch to say your work is all "hand stitched,) particularly when it looks as good as yours does! So you're on the cutting edge of a trend and probably didn't even know it!!!!!! LOL I learned the same way you did, in the saddle shop where I learned as a pup, the ONLY way you hand stitched was with waxed linen thread. So when I hand stitch that's what I do. What they used and what I have always used is "dry linen," and I use a block of beeswax to to wax it. One Big advantage of waxed linen is preparing the ends ( attaching the needles.) with linen you can thin down the ends of the thread with your sharp knife and then roll them to a nice sharp point making it way easier to thread into a small egg eye harness needlle and there is less bulk there when you pull it through the holes. Those ends really stay together way better than any kind of waxed synthetic thread. When I hand sew with waxed synthetic thread of any kind inevitably the needles are wanting to come off pretty quick. One thing I wanted to ask you is where you get your linen thread and are you buying it in different colors or are you dyeing natural linen? All I have ever used and seen is natural. Thanks, Bill

I'm a closet fly fisherman myself and a leather cover rod tube is a great idea. If I was going to build one (and I just might have to!) I'd want the inside core to be thin, light and strong. I just went to the Amazon link about and another ad showed up that, for me looks like just the ticket. They are clear plastic tubes and come in all kinds of sizes, (diameters,) and thicknesses. I tried to add the link here but something's not working. The name of the co. is Clear Tec. Google that name and clear plastic tubes and you should be able to find it. There is a heavy duty tube that comes in 48" length and several large diameters. That looks like just the ticket to me. In looking at their photos, I have seen these kinds of tubes in much smaller sizes at Home Depot, sold to put small parts and things in, they have vinyl caps that slip on. Check those out. One thing I didn't see what the price or minimum order? Bill

That's a great lookiing piece, neat structural design and nicely made!!!!! Bill

I think the consensus is that olive oil leaves leather a lighter color that neatsfoot and compound neatsfoot turns leather darker than pure neatsfoot. My experience is that the brand of leather makes a difference in how it reacts to oiling. I believe the chemicals used in the tanning process determine how the finished hides react to oil. I now use Herrman Oak exclusively but I've had some Tandy sides and any kind of oil turns the HO darker than the Tandy veg tan, I haven't used Wickett and Craig so I can speak to that. HO turns a really nice reddish brown shade if I oil it very much with neatsfoot. I have heard that extra light evoo colors veg tan less than regular evoo, I haven't tried any of that. Also the more you oil it the darker it gets. If you are wanting the oil to darken it, set in the sun after you oil it. I saw and holster that Chuck Smith had made and oiled in the sun and it was a very dark chocolate brown. I understand he left the holster in the sun all day and may have oiled it a couple of times during that time. I don't know what kind of veg tan he used to make it. Bill

Maybe High Desert Leather? Bill

Hey Pete, there's another thread going on right now on this topic and maybe you are just piggy backing on that? But Kieth Seidel and Bob Park have both weighed in on this topic about "what is the best swivel knife blade to use for floral carving." And I don't think you'll get much argument that those guys are two of the top floral toolers on this forum. There are plent of others really great artists on here as well they just stay below the radar more. I consider my self a pretty good hand with a swivel knife but I've also got plenty of age on me and in addition to doing floral tooling myself I have spent 50 plus years studying and admiring the work of some of the best artists in the business. There are some common traditions and methods that exist in all floral tooling whether it is old time western floral, like came out of some of the early shops of the southwest like S.D Meyers from El Paso, to the great California shops like Visalia and Rowell, Hamley's from Pendelton, the different Porter's shops in Arizona, to the Kings who put Sheridan on the leatherwork map. I know I've missed a lot and sure don't mean to slight or offende anyone, that's not what's important. My point is, I am essentially positive that there are certain common practices that all of the reallly good floral toolers did and do. I am sure not wanting to be mean or overly critical but I'm pretty sure that none of those artists use or used a angle swivel knife blade for the majority of their carving. As both Bob and Kieth point out, you just can't get the effects that are needed to make good floral tooling look like it is supposed to look. I think that anyone who is "really into," this craft/art can look at a piece of work from one of those famous artists from yesterday thru today and figure out, "Hey, that looks good!!!" "I like how that looks." People on this board look at work from the acknowledged best tooling artists that post on here, and are amazed, impressed, and envious of their work. I think I can pretty well guarantee that none of that acknowledged top work is done with a angled blade of any width. You just can't get the effects, be they subtle or not so subtle, with an angle blade. That is because of just what you mentioned, you are doing all the cutting with the tiny point of the tip! It's just too tiny and narrow. The only exception to this that I can think of (maybe,) would be some extremely tiny floral patterns. To get the many effects that look so good in the best tooling, you need a straight blade, and it probably doesn't matter if it's what is called "hollow ground," or not. What is called hollow ground in a swivel knife blade is not the same as a true hollow grind in a regular knife blade or like a straight razor which are hollow ground horizontally. The advantage of the so called hollow ground swivel knife blades offer is that they are hollow ground vertically and not horizontally like a true hollow grind is, that makes them easier and quicker to sharpen and strop because you are having to remove and sharpen less metal. Most people use a straight blade 3/8" or 1/2" wide for most carving, I have a couple of 1/4" straight blades that I use for really small intricate patterns. I bet Bob Park and Kieth probably use their normal 3/8 or 1/2 blades for that too? It just takes more finesse. I'm not going to repeat all the other tips that Bob and Kieth mentioned in their posts in that other thread, there is some great information in there. But a HUGE one is having your blade sharp. Bob wrote quite a bit about that and I couldn't agree more. Most people are trying to work with a dull blade. I believe that is the biggest impediment to people doing better carving and improving quickly. I have it in my mind that when someone came on board as an apprentice at one of those shops of yesteryear they had to learn how to get a knife sharp enough to suit those old masters before they'd ever let them touch a piece of tooling leather. If you look at a piece of acknowledged good/great carving one common quality is how the swivel knife cuts look. If you study the cuts they are not just lines on a piece of leather. All great designs like this be they engraved scrolls on metal or a tooled design on leather have a graceful tapered quality. In a good tooled floral pattern the swivel knife cuts all have that flowing taperd look to them and that's what separates the really beautiful carving from "just carving." To get that eye pleasing tapered, flowing look you have to make those flowing tapered swivel knife cuts. Both Bob and Kieth go into detail about how to do that. That is something that takes a lot of practice but first you need to study that outstanding work and figure out what it is that make's it so appealing to the eye. It's like the difference between da Vinci painting the Mona Lisa and painting a house. Again, it starts with a sharp, well stropped blade! There are all kinds of subtle movements with the swivel knife blade required to achieve "that look!" Some of it is tilting the blade forward or backward, left or right to a lesser degree and theamount of downward pressure applied with your index finger. Some cuts require a more blunt end at the start, meaning more pressure to begin with then easing off as you finish. Others are taperd at both ends to varying degrees and you start with less downward pressure, increasing as the cut continues, then gradually decreasing as you complete the cut. Again, and it is harped on repeatedly, it takes practice, practice, practice. BUT.......first you need to learn what each cut is supposed to look like in order to make your practice count. There's an engraver on a bit and spur making sight whose motto that he puts on all his posts is, "Perfect Practice Makes Perfect." At first glance that sounds kind of simplistic but it is spot on. Maybe this might help somebody? Bill

I've been using 16 ga steel cut 1/2" wide and you're right, I drill two holes, one larger for the snap and one smaller for a jiffy rivet. I line all my holsters so there are no snaps or rivets that rub directly against the gun. The jiffy rivet goes through the outside to the back, this rivet gives more stability to the break. This rivet can only rub against clothing. Of course the two sides of the snap can potentially rub the gun if they are not snapped together. The back side of the male half of the snap is covered by the lining. If you are not going to line a holster then you would need some kind of safety back for half of the snap. I have seen those but don't know a source. I think High Desert Leather may carry those as well. I know there are others on this forum who specialize in holsters exclusively that would have sources for all those parts. Bill

Those are called Thumb Breaks. One member of this board, High Desert Leather, sells them. There are other sources too that I am not remembering now. I have seen then in different lengths. I make my own. Bill

Wow, that blade is beautiful! I saw it when knipper posted it before you got it.It's like Chuck Smith's swivel knives, like jewelery, LOL. And that is some kind of unique plough gauge with that long adjusting screw, I'm guessing you can adjust it to razor thin accuracy. I have an old Dixon and after using draw gauges for years the Plough gauge is like a breath of fresh air, so much easier to cut straps straight. I am really amazed that some US companies haven't made them because they are such a superior tool?

I've been learning to engrave metals and its all about scrolls in that medium so I've seen the Golden Mean discussed a lot in those forums. So when I read about it and all the math came up in the discussion smoke started coming out of my ears and I had to back off. But I asked my daughter with a MA in fine arts about it and she had learned about it in school. It's kind of like the Supreme Court trying to define pornography " We can't define it but we know it when we see it!" It's like one of the other posters said, "now we know why somethings just look better than others!" The cool thing is seeing how it occurs in nature. Bill

HOLY COW! Jessica Rabbit and another stringed instrument junkie to boot! You and your hubby are definitely guitar poor! I used to see a fancy blue acoustic out of some nice looking wood in your avitar so I knew somebody was into some nice instruments. Ok, I guess I gotta participate in show and tell. Hi, my name is Bill and I'm a instrumentaholic..... Collings Clarence White Brazilian Collings D1 mahogany 50 Martin D-28 Brazilian 48 Martin D-18 48 Gibson J-40 72 Martin D-35 72 Telecaster 60's Dobro resophonic round neck 38 Gibson Centry of Progress with mother of toilet seat fret board, this is a hell of a blues guitar 38 Kay orchestra model bass 85 OME Juggernaught 5 string Stew Mac kit 5 string Kentucky a model mando Kalamazoo a model mando 2 fiddles one German, one French 39 Kay Kraft Venetian florentine with bolt on neck and mother of toiet seat head stock overlay, very cool old bird Martin mahogany uke no name art deco uke black with mother of toilet seat head stock overlay and fret board and cool scroll decals on the body Regal guitar with cactus' and cowboy stensiled on the body no name plywood guitar with palm trees stenciled on the body. The last 3 are not players I think they're cool and I just like to keep 'em in my living room to look at. I never saw and guitar that I didn't want to own. The dang things just keep following me home! Whew, I think I need a meeting!

Hey Sylvia, I have a 3" that I made out of some 4-5 oz veg tan and it is lined making it thicker and it is a lot more substantial than those soft chrome tanned straps. I have a Tele that would be close in weight (but lighter than your Gibson), but these days I mainly play some acoustic dreadnaughts rosewood and mahogany and they're all much lighter so I don't have a problem with the strap getting uncomfortable across my shoulder. If that's you with the little parlor guitar, that should sure be light enough, and sweet to play! Bill

Marlon nailed it, make a wooden or some kind of form the same size as your camera. Cut and shape the body of the case around that and sew the ends together, then cut your bottom to size to fit. Rememberto leave room at the bottom for the bottom piece to fit. Another way to do the bottom is to make it out of thicker leather and leave it flush and stich it at a 45 degree angle rather than making it concave like your example. Scribe a line at about 3/16" around the bottom edge of the body and aroun the edge of the bottom and stab your awl at an angle between those two guidelines, (if that makes sense.) a lot of cases are made that way. Bill

IMHO Sylvia is right about skipping the sheep skin. I've been a picker for longer than I want to remember and have had a lot of straps. To me the best ones are pretty wide, 2 1/2' or so and made out of softer/thinner leather. If you're going to tool it, 4/5 oz veg tan should be good. The besides getting matted down and "nasty looking," it's gonna be too bulky. Bill

I use woodbleach I got at Home Depot, which is oxcalic acid crystals. I mix it up in a quart jar and keep it on my bench because I seem to need it pretty often. I think I have been putting about 1/4 cup of the crystals in a quart of warm water when I mix it up. That may be way too strong? it sure works. Sometimes I use a sheepskin pad and apply sparingly to the whole piece and sometimes I use a wool dauber to apply it to small spots, I mean tiny spots, like pin point spots. Like I said my mixture may be too strong. I have been using it for many years but have never seen a definitive formula for the right strength. I think the less you can get by with the better off you will be. Sometimes the stuff has a chemical reaction with other finishing products, like oil, and can leave a slighty darker area. I have never taken the step of washing the piece off with plain water and that may be a good idea. I had never heard of doing that until I just read it here. Like I said, I apply it pretty sparingly, just enough to remove a spot and stop. Bill