paris3200

If your looking for some ideas check out Mulholland Brothers. http://www.mulhollandbrothers.com/category/wine Jason

I agree with Hilly that a head knife is the way to go, but cutting on a rubber backed board is not helping you. Your knife is probably cutting heavily into the rubber board. Try using a hard plastic board like the kind cutting boards for the kitchen are made from. I seem to recall a post not to long about suppliers for cutting boards. A quick search should turn something up. Jason

The wife was perusing the pages of White Flower Farm and came across a beautiful flower with the hefty price tag of $475. I could not believe that a FLOWER could cost $475. You can check it out here: http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/26685-product.html Jason

Harvey, Are you running windows? If so what version? A lot of times your music player can set an alarm. You could also use the reminder function on Outlook or a similar scheduling software. Jason

Looks good. I just finished one myself. Like you said all the ones I've seen have been made from Veg tanned leather. Whats the difference in that and the Bridle leather? Jason

Kate, Have you checked out Inkscape? It's open source so cost would not be an issue. Its available for Windows, Linux, and MAC. I'm not sure how the controls and interface compare to Illustrator but I imagine they can't be that different. Jason

Spider, Are you using Score! X? I'd never heard of it before you mentioned it. It looks like it would come in very handy for placing artwork onto design say for a box or case. I've been using QCAD. I previously used AutoCAD at work, but I don't have access to it at home. After not doing any CAD work for several years QCAD took me a minute to learn. However its very easy and inexpensive for the home user. Jason

I'm curious what shape everyone uses on the tip of their awl. I have always just polished my awls and used the sharp point that comes on them. However yesterday I cut off the tip and reground a chisel point on one of my awls. The difference was amazing. It cut through leather which I had previously had problems using a sharp point with like it was nothing. Jason

I stitched a concealed carry gun belt yesterday without having to use anything on my fingers. Last Friday I made another belt and was in pain before I was a quarter way done. Just goes to show if you can stick it out for a week your fingers will toughen up. Jason

It dawned on me yesterday that I could use CAD software to create holster templates. So today I fired up my CAD software and created blocks that contained the stitch outlines for my pistols at 90 degrees and various angles of cant. I also created blocks for belt loops. So now I can add a pistol block, 2 belt loop blocks, and simply draw the outline of the holster trimming where necessary. It takes me just a fraction of the time it use to. Just thought I'd throw that idea out there, maybe it will help someone else. I wish I had thought of it sooner. Jason

I've been making it a point to at least stitch a foot or two every day. I've been doing that for about a week now and I can notice my fingers toughening up. Jason

I keep telling myself that. I'm hoping that it won't be long before those calluses come in. Jason

After you slick your edges to you apply any kind of edge dye? I noticed the color of your edges match the rest of the holster. I've never been able to get an edge to dye as dark as the rest of the holster. Jason

I seem to recall Lou stating that he dryed his holsters around 110 degrees. I was watching the food network last night and they stated the lowest temperature a home oven could substain was around 175. Lou must use a warming oven. Jason

Absolutely beautiful. Sigh, I really need to learn how to make saddles. To me they are the perfect match of art and practicality. Jason

On another forum someone outlined a method for edging holsters with Yankee Wax in an old post. After conferring with him today he said he no longer uses it for that very reason. Jason

Anyone know where I can find a supplier for Yankee Wax? Jason

Same here. I'd also suggest removing the spaces from the file names and shorten them. That way when you want to tell someone a specific page it will be a lot easier. Maybe change Fisher Leather About Us.htm to about.htm. I'd also suggest using an email associated with your domain name instead of the hotmail account. Your host should provide at least a hand full of accounts free of charge. Just my 2 cents, Jason

Pattern Making The easiest way to make a pattern I've found is to use a heavy manila folder. I begin by tracing the outline of the gun. I then trace another line offset from the first line. The distance of the offset comes with trial and error. For a semiautomatic I start with 1/2 inch and go from there. I've never made a holster for a revolver so I don't know what to recommend you start with there. The offset line will become your sew line that defines the outline of your gun. Now all you have to do is fill in the shape of your holster. Don't forget to include your belt loops. Once you have a design that you like make a copy of it. Now using the manila folder for your material make a holster from your design using the copy you made. You can use glue or tape to hold it together. Check the fit of the gun, the cant, etc. If you don't like something refer back to your original and make a new pattern. This is lot faster than making leather mock ups and cheaper too. Continue to tweak it until your satisfied. Holster Making Take a look at this topic 346 post 8 and 9. He uses a press for the initial molding but the idea is the same with a boning tool. Hope this helps, Jason

Please forgive the ignorance, but whats the difference between a Bisonette, round, or western edger? I thought the entire purpose of an edger was to take the hard edge off a piece of leather and leave a rounded edge. So why so many different types? Jason

Sure its not just a child's violin case? They can be very small. Jason

Thats odd. I'm running Firefox with Linux and I can see it just fine without the plugin. Usually if a non standards compliant, i.e. written for Internet Explorer, is going to break it breaks on my machine. Jason

I can see it. Jason

That was it thanks. Anyone have any advice about choosing between the two or another maker to consider? Jason

Well my birthday is coming up and the wife is wanting to know what I want. For some reason she just laughs when I say a 67 mustang. Instead I was thinking about getting a new edger or two. Sometime in the past, maybe before the crash, there was a thread on edgers. I've done a search and can't seem to find it. I know a lot of people recommend Ron's Edgers. I also recall someone discussing another tool maker but I can't recall the name. I can remember that the tools had a little bit of decoration on the steel. I also believe that the maker did leatherwork in addition to making tools. Can anyone point me in the direction of this maker? Thanks, Jason