TwinOaks

The heat sets the organic "glue" in the fibers. Moistening kind of "re-activates" them and lubricates the fibers. First you get them moist, then you get them hot - result is that you can shape it then 'set' the leather in that shape. Re-moistening the leather before heating it will re-lubricate the fibers and allow further molding......to a degree. If you've done any burnishing, you can 'undo' it with too much flexing. Please note that every wet/dry cycle will probably leave the leather a bit stiffer than the cycle before.

How much are you just selling them for?

Glad to help.

This thread has been moved to the "Used" forum.

Tinneal, like most of us, Johanna and Kate have 'day jobs', and as this site grows the challenges of running it grow as well. I'm sure your donation won't go overlooked, but it may take a little time for Johanna to catch up. Thank you for your contribution.

Good looking holster, but sadly, you're not the first to think of it. However....for thinking of the design, AND PRODUCING IT, without prior reference....KUDOS! Stitching and molding look good....very nice execution of the design.

How about this? The colors indicate the stitch lines - green for the small divider pockets, pink for a turned edge, blue for the outside edges. The panel on the right side is only attached at the right seam (edge of the piece), and is actually two panels that form a pocket of sorts to hold the back cover of the book. On the left side, everything is attached to the largest panel. The largest panel is only sewn on 3 sides, making a pocket behind it.. Do the horizontal edges first (pink), then sew the dividers (green), then the vertical edge on the right side of the panel (pink again). The blue stitch lines should be the last sewn, as they are what is holding all the panels to the cover.

Ah....that is more like a wallet, with the pockets on the left side layered like card slots. Let me do some digging.....in the mean time, go over to the wallet/purse forum and read the pinned topic by Kevin King on how he makes wallet guts.

I'd think that it'd be just like any notebook cover, with the outside panel and a shorter panel on the inside to tuck the covers of the driver's log into. If it's for one of the carbonless versions, there might be an additional flap to insert between pages to prevent writing on the next several pages.

I don't have the pattern, but I do use a log book. The log book (there are several sizes/versions) consists of a top and bottom page for each day. Some use a carbon transfer sheet between them, others use carbonless copies. The books are bound or stapled on one side. Carbonless versions have a fold over divider to put between the 'active' set of pages and those behind it. If you have a Pilot, Love's, TA, Flying J.....or any other truck stop near by, you should be able to find the log books there. ....or google 'driver's log book' for some pictures.

Beautiful job, I'm sure your friend loves it.

For starting out, click on the supplier links at the top of the page - nearly all of them supply belt blanks. The blanks are typically veg-tan leather, though you might find some that offer water buffalo, bison, etc. If you're new to belts, the blanks are a great way to start because they come pre-cut, some have the snaps already installed, and most are skived for the buckle. If you have a Tandy near by, they also carry them. If you're ordering a side and plan to cut the strips out, Herman Oak or Wicket and Craig are right at the top of the list for quality leather. I like my belts in the 8oz range, 1.5 inches. Dress belts would be a bit thinner, gun belts would be thicker. Plan on cutting your strips from the back, as the belly of the leather is sometimes a bit more stretchy.

Jimmy, the reason that stitching looks unusual is that it isn't machine sewn. That's a running stitch, and it's done by hand. I agree that the customer needs to be fully involved in the decision process, but I don't think you'll be able to do much with the appearance of the scratches. From what I can see, the grain of the leather has been damaged, and there's not much to be done about it except distress the rest of it to try and match. That's just my opinion, of course, and Bill may have some ideas about it that have never occurred to me. Regarding the missing pieces and severely damaged corners: I can think of two ways to fix that. First way is to cut some patches that will cover a bit more than the affected area and make decorative panels to cover them. They should be symmetrical and should look like part of the design. An old architect's saying is "if you can't hide it, show it off"....or something like that. The second way to fix the problem of missing leather is to cut the purse and make it narrower by an equal amount on each side. Good luck on the project, and keep us informed of how you repair it.

First off, you don't have to yell...:D A resist is a finishing step that prevents a dye/stain from being absorbed by the leather. The short answer is yes, you can use a resist with Eco-flo dyes. You simply apply something that will not allow the passage of the dye base. With Eco-flo, it can be a little trickier because it's water based.....and so are most of all the Eco-flo finishes. Having a common solvent (water) means that the water in the dye is going to be trying to dissolve the resist. You might consider another dye or resist formula. A lacquer based resist would withstand the water based dye much better...if you have something like that in Oz. We have several members from Oz on this forum; perhaps they can chime in to let you know what they use and where to get it locally.

A welt is basically a spacer that you sew through. In the case of a fixed blade knife sheath, the absence of a welt would allow the blade to contact the stitches, possibly cutting them. With the welt in place, there's a bit of leather between the blade and the stitching. For a holster, a welt is more of a spacer than a thread protector. On bags, I don't know that you'd need one. The way to do it is to cut a strip of leather, glue it in place, and stitch through it.

Do your stamping first. The stamping might cause the leather to 'flow' a bit (aka stretch). When you get done with the stamping, re-check the width and length. There's also the chance of your stamp bouncing and causing a shadow / double strike if you don't have the leather on a good solid surface. If the leather is doubled, you might see that bounce if you're doing a lot of tooling. From 1st hand experience, if you're making a thick belt, make it a bit skinnier - 1.25 should be fine. I've made a double layer belt at 1.5 and it wouldn't fit some of the customer's belt loops. If you don't have a spitter, consider tapering (with a skiver) the buckle end of the liner and ending it about 2 inches before you get to the fold and run a single layer there. Trying to fold 16-18oz of leather is .....interesting......but it makes quite a lump at the buckle. If you don't taper/split it, and run a double layer all the way through the buckle, you'll end up with 32-36 / 64ths right behind the buckle. That's half an inch thick. Add the tongue of the belt after it goes through the buckle and lays under the keeper, you'll have nearly 3/4" of leather stacked to the side of the buckle. If you can, get an oval hole punch to make the holes; it's a little easier to buckle, and it lays down better. As far as how big to make it.....put your CCW on with your CURRENT belt, and adjust it to fit correctly. Then measure the belt you're wearing to the hole you're using. You know that leather stretches, and belts tend to stretch and curve with time. Measuring as described is the most accurate way to ensure a proper fit. Once you have the measurement, and the hole, all you have to do is decide on how many holes on either side you want to punch.

This topic is from back in May, and the member selling the wood hasn't been active since late June. You might want to try contacting him via the email address he linked in his post.

Or are you referring to the pattern made by cutting intersecting lines with a swivel knife and punching all the intersections with a seeder? It makes the surface look like an old style couch or chair, with pleats and little buttons holding everything down. For 3D, you just need to bevel one or both sides of the cut lines.

If it's put on quickly and lightly - a thin coat - it should be fine. A heavy coat will crack when flexed.

You can probably get by with something like a Consew 206rb or a Cobra class 18......if you can stand to go down to a 207 size thread. It's still nice and chunky looking, but you can get an extra stitch per inch and it looks good. Those are both flat bed machines which shouldn't be too big of an issue unless you're going to do bags as well. Give Bob a call and see what he has in the 'used' dept. You might be able to find something like a Toro 3k on the used market. About a year ago, there was a gent in Florida selling a Toro 3200 (12 inch arm) for $1200, and I've seen Aerostitches go in the same range. In dealing with Bob, Steve, and presumably Ronnie, you'll get a machine that's been gone through, checked out, proclaimed sound, and ready to sew.......at less than a new one. I suspect you'll probably deal with Bob, since he's in driving range. Give him a call and see what he's got. If there's several interesting options, carry cash with you and practice the age old art of Haggling. Heck, if you're really pulling the trigger on a machine, take the Tippmann with you for trade in. Take your $1500, ask for $800 on the Boss (to leave some profit margin for Bob), and that should cover a Cowboy 3500, tax, fuel, and maybe some thread.

Glock... Get a diamond (cross section) awl, a pack of needles from walmart, and "How to Hand Sew". You can use a fork for your stitch spacer if you need to, all you're doing is making marks to tell you where the holes go. I have to agree that the "stitching awl" is not the best tool for the job. It's fantastic for making repairs where there were already stitches, but not for making the hole AND the stitch. However, unlike a sewing machine, it does NOT provide even tension for each lock stitch. Starting out, you need to learn how to hand sew - it'll teach you the value of proper construction. If you can't afford a thousand bucks for a sewing machine, no big deal. Katsass hand sews all his leather and it looks superb. On the layout phase, Michael had one part backwards - do your edges first, THEN layout your stitch line. That way even if you have to adjust the shape, the stitch still stays a constant distance from the edge. Read Hidepounder's tutorial on how do finish edges. Once you have all that done, give it a light coat of olive oil, let it get a sun tan for a couple of hours, and hit it with two coats of Mop-n-glo (wiped on lightly and let the first one dry before adding the second).

Saddle lac will do just fine....but don't spray it on if you get it in an aerosol can. First spray onto wool scrap, then apply (as in the vid) to the leather.

There's a little place called Beads and Leather on the southbound service road between Cottage Hill Rd and Government St. It's a small shop, and they carry mostly Tandy merchandise ...including the leather. Their prices are a bit higher than online order + shipping, but have the advantage that you see what you get and you get it right then. It's not my first choice for getting supplies, but I've used them when I needed something - now -. Other than that, there really isn't any place locally.