Kevin

I like the shape of your handle better than the original. Kevin

I always assumed it was done with a roll, but I got a surprise when I toured Wickett and Craig. The plate is wide enough for a side of leather , but only about 2 ft deep. They press the 2 ft and move the leather in and press the next 2 ft and so on 'til it's done. That takes some skill. Kevin

If there is glue on your needle, I don't think your glue is dry and the leather is comeing apart just enough to grab the needle. I have this problem when I have three layers of leather that I've dampened and tacked together (no glue). I think the layers kind of go their separate ways and the dampness for some reason makes the leather grippy and it will pull the needle right out of the needle bar. If I don't get to sew 'til the next day, no problem, well, that's one of my experiences. Good luck, Kevin

It also depends on the size of your stitch. A smaller stitch will pull down tighter than a long one. Kevin

Generally speaking, to take it apart, lift up the flap in front as far as you can. In between the flap and panel,if you pull the flap tight, you will see thread and maybe a knot, cut it , you may have to cut another thread after that one, but the pommel will probably just pull apart and you can just pull the thread out. I forgot, start where the sweat flap is sewn to the panel, pull them apart and cut the thread, this will all just pull apart. Now, you have the front apart, pull it away from the saddle and at the back of the flap you will see where the panel is stitched to the saddle, again, just pull so you have pressure on the thread, cut it and the back will start to come apart, it's just one thread so you can pull the thread out or cut it, but if you pull it out you will get a better idea of how it went together. There may be some tacks holding it together, but they are usually obvious and easy to get out. Next are the sweat flaps, usually just tacked on. If you might put it back together, mark the tree at the corners and top of the sweat flap so you will know where it came from. Now come the flaps, you have to remove the saddle nails and dees (fall down staples) and some times it takes some real digging to get these out. The saddle nails go through the tree and are bent down along the metal tree reinforcement, this is where you may have to dig it out. BE CAREFUL, you WILL either cut yourself on the nail or jab yourself with the tack puller, I promise. Same thing goes for the dees. Once that is taken care of, the rest is pretty easy to see what needs to be done, again mark the tree where the flaps go,if you put them back. Don't use your mama's antique tack puller, "cause you're going to end up hitting it with your hammer sooner or later. I hope this is kind of clear, because I'm sure not going to proofread it, Good luck and have fun, Kevin PS you're going to have tacks all over the place and you will track them even further, so you may want to take some kind of precautions.

Ken Chapman of Booth Co. sells Dixon tools, so he should have or can get your bull dogs. Kevin

I have rubber cement in one (temporary) and all purpose contact cement in the other (permanent). Kevin

I don't know anything about cobbler's wax, but for your thread, I would get a 2 oz. ball of no. 10 shoe thread and make my own. This is like a single ply of thread and you build it up to whatever size you want. It would probably be more authentic anyway. Kevin

Just use a piece of the leather you are already using, split it down nice and thin, fold it in half and add it in your seams. It is used to hide and protect the thread. I have seen it not folded in half, but I think it looks unfinished that way, so why even bother? That's just my opinion today though. Kevin

I won't do a belt if I don't have the buckle in the shop either. There are just too many variables. If it's a silver buckle made from sheet and has a swinging bail (for want of a better term), you measure the bail, but forget that there are rivets holding the bail on, the belt will fit fine on the buckle end, but the billet end won't go through the buckle because the rivets are in the way and it should have been 3/16" narrower. A three piece buckle set, the billet will go through the buckle, but maybe it won't fit through the keeper. I've also had the experience of using a 1" measuring belt and making a 1 3/4" belt. Turns out the measuring belt sucked into the fat more than the actual wider belt did and it fit on the last hole instead of the center, I ate that one. The only thing harder than a belt is a bracelet. Oh shoot, does the snap add or take away... Kevin

Backstitch at the beginning so it looks like the end. When I look at something, I don't want to see how it was done, I want it to look like it landed on earth that way. In other words, no compass line down the middle of a strap to mark the center, no leftover silver ink, no beginning, no end. Of course, it can't always be achieved, but you can sure try. We had a guest in the shop the other day and let him stitch a horn cover, no backstitch at the beginning and two at the end, it looked unbalanced to me. Just my two cents, Kevin

I have tried that and it worked, but all I have is a big hammer drill and it was just too cumbersome. I haven't been obsessed enough to continue experimentation, as I mostly set 14s and 12s on brass plates and if you get in a hurry you bend the rivet or scratch the plate. Good luck, Kevin

According to the English shoemaker we have at the shop, the white glue is PVA, which is water soluble and takes forever to dry, you just don't have to wait for it in the videos. Otherwise, he says they use the same type cements we use. I thin out the bristles on my brush and thin my glue for control. Latex cement that I've used never really dries and if you oil something later, the cement oozes out and is unpleasant. Kevin

I might be wrong, but I don't see how a kick press would do anything but bend copper rivets. I think you would need some impact or at least some wierd ultrasonic vibration to peen them. Kevin

Other than the fact that you are cutting halfway through the leather that you may have to depend on for your life, leathers are supposed to be rough side out. The strongest side goes toward the stirrup bar and iron. The leather used for stirrup leathers SHOULD be too dense to tool. That's all I can come up with right now, Kevin

I get a lot of this type stuff in our shop, brief cases; hat boxes; suit cases and guncases, the main ingredient is cardboard. Leather is impractical for these items, it won't hold it's shape and is way too heavy. I've had some items that were plywood, but its harder to work with and it breaks, the cardboard is more forgiving in working and in use. I don't know how they mold it into different shapes, but it lasts a long time. Some of the stuff I see is probably close to a hundred years old. One customer wears boots that are seventy years old and has a bunch of suitcases I've patched the corners on and replaced the leather "hinges" on the back. Kevin

In the US, Booth& Co, sells Dixon tools. The website looks like they only have leather, but keep looking, there is a whole catalog of tools. Kevin

The strap pricker is a particular size that is used for the stitching of billets on saddles and it is made by Dixon. They are made to punch all the way through. Kevin

Pilgrim, that's not the full name, I can't think of it right now. They sell the Puritan sewing machines. Kevin

If you can get hold of some old leather halters and look at the pattern of the stitching on the buckle piece, you will see how to do it. I have never stitched on a machine that lets you stitch all the way up to the buckle. You start on one side by the buckle and stitch across and down the other side down to the ring. Then start on the other side, stitch up toward the buckle, stitch across and end up by the buckle again. You will end up with a kind of curvacious V below the buckle. Do not look at an Indian halter as they are sewn by hand and are able to stitch up to the buckle. Good luck, Kevin

I use a fitting belt and tell them just buckle it up, don't look at it. My fitting belt is 1" wide and I have found it pulls tighter than a wider belt will, so you have to be careful of that also. Kevin

After I had a fire, a cleaners came and took everything I owned and took care of it. I had a pair of Indian made smoked deerskin mocasins and they even got the smell out of them. I believe they used an ozone room for that. It was not my local cleaners though, they were in DC and was a big co.

Beiler's may have both types. Kevin

Real English bridle leather the answer is no. I used to get French bridle leather and it was a little tough, but I tooled that a lot, but I haven't seen any of that in twenty years. I have read that Wickett & Craig are trying to reproduce some leather that Scholze used to make and that was really dense but toolable, whether that has come about or not I don't know. Good luck, Kevin

I don't know about dyes anymore, I think they're pretty safe. Glue is another story. Kidney and brain damage are big risks here. I had a customer that did not have a background in leatherwork that was redoing leather on a bunch of fancy fireplace fenders and ended up sick for a couple of months. He didn't pay attention to the warnings. Fresh air and some kind of down draft table would be ideal as the fumes are heavier than air. We have a spray booth to glue in at work, but you can easily rig up something home made, just be aware of the dangers. I've tried gluing outside, but still breathed too many fumes, you kind of need a stream of air. Kevin