David

Johanna, Thanks so much for all you do. Today is your day, have a great one. Dave Theobald

That's freaking great! Dave

Hey John,Great to hear that my seats were so well represented at the Smokeout....I didn't realize I would have so many there. While that front lace LOOKS like it is intended to take up slack around the sharp bend in the nose....it is actually is just decoration. Thanks for looking at it. Dave Theobald Roger,The customer for this seat was delighted with it.Thanks again. David Theobald

Thanks Tom! This was my first joint project.....I think Roger has done several...but it was a good experience and I think we are both happy with the way it turned out. Dave Theobald

Looks great as usual Roger. Really nice job on the roses. I think I'd have had a fit too if my drill press spit oil on my leather.... It cleaned up great though. Good work Dave

No tutorial but if you can do the traditional round braid or Mexican basketweave, you can do the fast one too. For the fast version just go over the top everytime you would go under. Very easy. It is forward three and back two. Lace length....if you are doing something long like a bike seat....splice, splice and splice some more. David Theobald

The dye is Fiebings black edge followed medium brown followed by Sheridan antiquing paste. Dave Theobald

Some weeks back, I was commissioned to do a Bear Paw seat....I'll post a couple pics in case you don't remember. As I was finishing it up, the customer added a p-pad to the order. Well, that means a wet molded project which is not exactly my fortee (that means I just never do wet molding). So, I contacted the best guy I know for the job....Roger Harris... aka Beezachoppa. Here is our result for the project. Dave Theobald

Very nice clean work Skip. They remind me of the pommel holsters sometimes used by the cavalry for those huge Walker revolvers. I like your work. David Theobald

No one mentioned the Hippy Dippy Weatherman!....What a funny skit. I didn't agree with anything he ever said; but I sure did laugh at his humor. David

Hey guy,The effect was achieved with an airbrush and spirit dye. The edge of the seat was sprayed with black, then dark brown, then saddle tan and finally buckskin. When dry the entire seat was antiqued with Fiebings sheridan antiquing paste. That's about it.Any questions, just ask.David Theobald Troy,Believe me when I say your first seat is way better than my first one. I was fortunate in immediately getting orders that kept me working and improving....The secret is just doing it over and over and over....Dave

Thanks for all the comments. Encouragement is always appreciated. I'm going to get back on that bear paw seat soon. Gotta get that finished up. Dave

Beautiful work....let me guess on the bear.... you have a laser photo engraver. Again it is an amazing bag. It would still be an amazing bag even without that beautiful engraved bear. Dave

Must be the angle...all three are identical stitching on the nose....try looping over at the top and then lacing to the bottom... you can't loop the bottom also without ending up with a mess. dinner....burgers with swiss on the grill ... grill toasted buns...busch's baked beans....cottage cheese salad.....yum Dave

Purely decoration.

Thanks Crystal, glad you like them....the cigar holder is outstanding. Loved your design and no it isn't too girlie... Dave

Another rousing response, Here are the finished seats... Just have to ship them Dave

Well, the first post on this thread drew a rousing response.....lol Here they are after dyeing, antiquing and more pix come next. David Theobald

These will be getting their final dye job today. The seat on the far left actually has a dark brown kangaroo lace while the other two are black. I'll add a few pics when done. David Theobald

An admirable first seat Troy, Lots better than my first seat, which NO ONE saw....except my son.. I personally like to make sure that I have steel against steel when mounting the seat. Depending on how its mounted and what mount is used the leather could be crushed during the bolt down process. A full leather back looks great but may not provide the most solid mount. Good job. David Theobald

As far as a knife for cutting out leather I use my Tandy trim knife 35015-00. I never used my round knife and eventually just gave the thing away. So as you can see it is a matter of personal taste and opinion which you will use the most. Get some advice from someplace where you can try out the different knives and decide which you find easiest for you to use. Remember that trim knife is a draw knive so use accordingly. As far as sharpening, I agree wholeheartedly with the diamond hone and rouge board. David Theobald

I tie down my seat tops also, but a lot closer than Tom....I go about every 3 holes or so. You have to be a bit careful how you do the tie downs too. I put my first one in at the front, my second one in at the back, third one on the left side (at the lowest part of the seat contour) fourth one on the right side (also at the lowest point) Then I add the rest. One or two in front, then one or two in the back.....etc. until the entire top is held down. Then start your lacing. Dave

Beautiful work, I'm interested to see that you used W&C leather.... I'm using my first shipment of it now. I really like it, extremely clean. Once again an outstanding job, and thanks for showing it to us. David Theobald

Cute baby pic as requested

Good for you, very smart of you!! This looks like a good idea. Dave