TwinOaks

While browsing a store today, I found something called a "doll needle" and it looks like it could have some potential. It was an assortment of needles ranging from about 1.5 - 3.75 inches, and there were also some that were 5 inches long. Good sized eye on them makes them a consideration for the handstitching crowd.

Nice job! I think it looks a little out of place to have the border on the BW stamp on the sheath body, but not the retainer....but hey, it's a first piece, AND an original design.

Roadtrip?

(generally) The shutter speed is also referred to as the ISO. With some of the better digital cameras, and probably most digital Single Lens Reflex (SLR) you can go into manual mode and adust the ISO. On film cameras, other than point and shoot drugstore cameras, you have a setting to choose the film speed (ISO). That setting (200, 400, 600, etc) determines the shutterspeed. An easy light box to make is use PVC for the frame, and a white sheet for the diffuser. It's opaque and will allow light through. Oh yeah, unless you have a permanent location....don't glue the frame.

I don't think that's mex round braid. It looks more like two colored laces, wrapped in different directions, utilizing a repeating o/u pattern. The link to the two color M.R.B. produces a different pattern, as is seen in the pics.

The saddle folks are sure to chime in here, but here are my thoughts: Tooling on saddles was originally (waaaaay back when) a combination of aesthics and easy identification. A pattern or patterns on the saddle easily make it identifiable, and in a time when people rode everywhere on horses, extravagent tooling could also be seen as a status symbol....kinda like tricking out a car with 'Bling".

Hi Kain, and to Leatherworker.net! You've found the best site on the entire web, where experience meets novice in good ways. To start out, there's several paths to take- visit a store or order online are the two obvious ones. For "find out if I like it", you might want to check out some of the prepackaged beginner kits. They give you a limited, but good selection of tools to try out. To cut leather, start out with a good pair of scissors/shears and a razor knife. You can use a utility knife for some things, and an exacto type knife for others. Some basic stamping/carving tools like bevelers, and camoflauge will get you started, and some modeling tools will help things along greatly. I have done work with only a modeling tool and a swivel knife, and it turned out well. A decent swivel knife is a must. For coloring, pick up a multipack of dyes. Or, if you don't intend to do too much coloring, Sharpie markers work well. If you want to do stitching, needles and thread of course, or for lacing you'll want some lacing needles. THE basic tools you'll need are as follows: Swivel knife, modeling tool(s), beveler/cams, cutting knife/scissor, and an AWL. You'll use the awl to punch holes in things including leather, your fingers, clothing, expensive/nice furniture, etc. Do a search on how to sharpen one for some good reading. A general idea of how wickedly sharp your awl should be is that it should penetrate at least halfway through a finger or thumb before you feel it. If you'll be more specific in what you intend to try, I think we'll be able to narrow down your tool list for you. edit...apparently there was a lot of typing going on while I wrote this....

(also attributed to Donald Trump)

My suggestion is that it's a camera setting. If you're shooting with a digital (most likely), try manual mode for more 'exposure'. If you don't have that option, a light box may be the solution. I think the camera is being affected by reflections on the curved surfaces. A light box will difuse the light and make it more even.

I used to work for Walmart, and what your're decribing is fairly common here in the states. Preparations for the big holidays start months in advance. I had the onus of working in HELL the holiday/seasonal area. We had everything in place, just in case any hallow's eve critters wanted to go as Kris Kringle. Of course, everyone knew that the best time to buy wrapping paper, decorations, or anything related was in the week after Christmas. Most merchandise was discounted 75-90% off. Squeeze every penny out of 'em.

Aww man...so many toys....so little money... Regis, if I had the coins, I'd have been over with quickness as I'm REALLY wanting one, and you're only an hour and a half away. But I understand that you have to get rid of it, so, it's a missed opportunity.

to Leatherworker.net! You've approached this with a good bit of logic, which is to be applauded. ...but Hilly's made some good comments too. To answer the question, go to the store to get things. Rdb is right about touching and seeing the tools. It's the easiest way to know what you're getting. Plus, you may not want all of the tools in the kit- it might be more fun to mix and match. If you get hooked like what you're doing, it's worth investing in the Tandy wholesale membership. It paid for itself in my first big order. My personal preference on this part: Don't worry too much about which type of dye is in the kit. For starters, check out the Ecoflo "all in one" dyes. They're easier to work with than other dye types, and are self finishing.

Possibly another source would be to to check with the Amish.

So, you don't think that the temperature from the plasmacutter ruined the tempering of the steel?

My method is a bit strenuous, but here goes: Place shoes/boots in water, then fill with water. Once the leather is good and wet, don the shoes and go play backyard redneck football in them. It's best to use the double sock method preferred by hikers to avoid blisters. Once the game is over, your footwear should be thouroughly stretched. Clean and condition afterward. Method 2: Only dampen the leather, then beat the hell out of them with a ballpeen hammer. ( It is strongly suggested to remove the foot from the shoe before using this method.) It helps break down the fibers of the leather, and they should be worn until dry immediately afterward.

Very nice work Brent. Excellent representation of the flower. BTW, re: the last PM.....NO, I've NEVER done that. EVER. "..that's my story and I'm stickin' to it."

Nice Rock. You've got a good start on the holsters. A few things I see are as follows: The stitching looks really nice. The edges could use a little more even burnishing. The molding of the pistol is not as precise as it could be. I say 'could' because some makers mold and bone the leather until you can just about see the serial #s, some don't bone it at all. Yours looks like a cross between the two- where it's boned, it's incomplete. Also, the stitching needs to follow more closely to the muzzle and dust cover, all the way down. Overall, it's a nice piece, and I personally place function above form. In that area, I'm sure it suffices, but with a few changes like tightening the stitch line to the pistol, it will be more secure in the holster. For the mouth of the holster, it looks like the leather has rolled outward a little; you already know a support band would help.

Check out KingsmereCrafts.com. The site has a lot of info on crafty items, and I have seen several types of button knots there.

Yep, you dug a hole. IF you do decide to go ahead and repair the bag, here's some suggestions of what to tell the boss: 1 It's old, the leather's in pretty bad shape, and you can't perform miracles. 2 The thread is probably rotting too,(since bonded nylon probably wasn't around when the bag was made) and that's why it's coming apart. 3 Restitching means restitching- all of it....see item 1. Opening up everything may damage the leather beyond repair, even after you try to restore the leather. It would be very bad, I think, for a few stitches to pull through the leather. Other options, if the bag will only be kept as a memoir, would be to try and match the thread color/type, then glue the edge with some Master's or leatherweld or some other contact cement. If you can match the thread, make a dummy stitch by poking the thread into the existing holes from one side only, and glue it in. That should be sufficient for taking off of the shelf from time to time and reminiscing. If the bag is expected to tote anything, I think you'd be better off to get dimensions from it and just make another from newer material. I believe you can get leather with that type of grain already embossed on it from Tandy.

Mark, as Johanna stated, that's one of her goals here. Instead of trying to work out the SEO on your site, how about linking up with Leatherworker.net? Maybe work something out with the admin/staff that allows your idea to be more of an e-store for this site?

hmmm.. It's ethically responsible to use ALL parts of an animal taken for human use... We wear leather and furs, eat the meat, and make tools or musical instruments out of the bones.... If we don't use it immediately, it rots and or has to be buried, wait..the dinosaurs were buried... There doesn't seem to be a time limit imposed by anyone for this.... Driving my 10 MPG pickup truck is recycling!!!!!

My abacus is feeling inadequate.

I really hate to contradict you, but you have some inaccurate information posted in the hardening process. Oil hardened is just another way to say oil quenched. Dipping/coating the steel in oil and then REHEATING it effectively removes any hardness you've imparted. Different types of steels react differently in the hardening process as a result of the percentage of non-iron elements. In basic steel, it's iron and carbon. You can add various things to the mix and get varied results. All these additions to the basic matrix causes subtle changes in the latticework of iron and carbon molecules (and to get technical, the way the martensite and pearlite crystaline lattice lines up). When hardening, oil is used in place of water because it cools (quenches) the steel at a different rate, which causes the steel to harden differently. Incidentally, better results are obtained by preheating the oil to 90-100 degrees F- you're less likely to warp things. Too rapid of a quenching can cause the steel to crack, so no cold water. Now that things are hardened, they need to be tempered so that the steel is tough, but not brittle. You can do that by soaking the steel (plain high carbon steel) at about 400 degrees for an hour (this means "clean it really well, and bake it using the timer on the oven). When you do this, it loses some hardness, but not enough to detract in a tool setting. Once the steel has normalized and destressed itself, you're good to go. Oh, after tempering it, just let it cool by itself. So, coating with oil and reheating is pretty much just a way to burn some oil. Please note, this is for tool making we're talking about here- I don't think leather stamps need to be taken through several hardening/annealing steps, or allowed to cool while pointed towards magnetic North. In other words it's for heat treating a stamp, not a Tim Lively knife.

It's a ghost/demon line, sent from the leather gods to punish leathercrafters who try to take shortcuts. It appears on the finished product magically, to ruin the piece, and frustrate the maker. It looks like some type of marker to me. Purple would be my guess, and the black leather has obscured the bluer tints.

When I use the Vin. mix, I 'paint' it on using a paper towel. I haven't tried any super detailed work with it, but it doesn't disturb the boning on holsters. Also, when I get everything molded like I like, I heat set it in a convection oven- about 125 for 8-10 minutes. That really helps to stiffen it.