YinTx

Donno either, but probably takes practice. And I have no practice doing that! YinTx

Thanks much, @Rohn! Appreciate it @billybopp. The back was done with the Sergey stamps. I had designed one in my mind after putting so much effort into the tufted look a while back, but then he made this so I gave it a whirl. Came out well enough! Thank you @battlemunky. I did a few practice runs, and a certain someone got upset that I was spending hours making something that was going into the garbage can, so I decided to practice on something big enough I could make something small out of it if it came out well enough. Here were the offending practice pieces: They came out ok, but the scrap pieces were too small to make into anything. YinTx

Tried a little practice piece, and decided to make it into something. Trying the new Robert Beard and Barry King and Sergey Neskromniy stamps. Here is what I came up with. YinTx

6577 sold YinTx

PM sent. YinTx

Wow, ok, looks like I abandoned this thread, but I didn't! I'm in South Texas, but anywhere in Texas is drive-able in a day or so. I'll be keeping my eye on the show to see if it goes as planned... Indeed, I am but my pocket book is kinda hollerin at me these days! Thanks for the compliments, and guidance. Thanks for the pointers. For the most part, I've used Craftools, and I have preferred the older ones for sure. I had the good fortune to have acquired a couple of Robert Beards, and I was really impressed, hence my search. I've been selling some of my Craftools to fund some of the buying, but they are definitely expensive! I ordered a basketweave from him long ago, and the wait was about that long if not more. Worth it, since it is the main basket stamp I reach for when I need one. Out of dozens! I'll likely be calling him soon to see about some tools that I haven't found that I want. I've been sending him some emails, hoping to get some tools from him very soon. Thanks for the pointer! I'd looked at his stuff in the past, but hadn't been to his site in a while. Thanks for the compliment. I'm far from an expert or a master, just a beginner in my opinion. Certainly don't think I'd rank if I entered a competition, but I can at least make something recognizable! I have picked up a lot of tools along the way, I have a collector's habit I am afraid. I've sold a few, and will probably sell some more since I have a lot of duplicates. Tools seem to migrate to my bench from all corners of the globe... Since I've put this thread out there, I've been able to get some of these tools, and I'll probably make a comparison thread for those that are interested. I'm still on the hunt tho! YinTx

I was sitting there stitching and really thinking about this question. There are a lot of tools I really like, some I really really like, some I use a lot, but how to choose that one with the "Je ne sais quoi" the others don't have? Then it dawned on me. I was sitting on it. Using it to stitch! Thats right, my stitching horse. It has been through a lot. Was in some saddler's shop in Tyler, rescued and renovated, moved half a dozen times since I've had it, been through a fire since I've had it, now it is 3 different kinds of wood, requires a cushion on top so you don't get an uncomfortable sensation in the derrière, is pretty finicky and once you get to know how to use it, works flawlessly and holds pretty much everything I have to stitch. It's pretty much become a partner in the process for me with some history, and if it was gone, I'd be unable to find an adequate replacement. Sure, I'd find a new stitching horse, but it just wouldn't be the same. YinTx

Indeed, nicely done! Very cool floral work. Did you do the design yourself? YinTx

Just stay away from the Craftool "Z" stamps. As in Z P260. These are the bottom of the bottom of the barrel of Craftool stamps. I have a set. They won't ruin leather in my house if I can help it. And I won't dupe someone else into buying it. They are wrapped up and in the bottom of the drawer. Might even make it to the waste barrel. There are some special "Z" stamps, limited runs that are labeled like Z260. Same quality as standard Craftools, just they didn't make a bunch. YinTx

Glad you got the letter, and look forward to seeing the final product! Your canes look awesome, so I think it'll come out just fine! Hehehehe.. no wait... thats not helping... YinTx

@OldLeatherGuy, a lot in your post. Let me start by saying thank you for your service, and your dedication to your family. I think there are a lot of individuals on this site that can relate to your story in one way or another. I have relegated myself to the realization that I will be unable to absorb all there is to know about leather in a single lifetime. I find myself delving down rabbit holes often and coming back out fired up, then realizing I have way too many things going on to have even contemplated what I thought I was going to do! That being said, I am certainly not the first one to do leaves in this manner. The cover is a bible cover that I donated for a fund raiser. The effect is created somewhat by using a smooth pear shader to contour the leather in the dips and valleys of the leaf, then literally slicing the leather with the lifter as far in as you are comfortable going. If the leather is wet enough, you will be able to stretch it quite a bit and actually lift it with the lifter. Yes, sometimes you will tear the leather. The limit is just something you learn with practice. Even if you tear it, you can make it look intentional, like a real torn leaf. The quality of leather will have a lot to do with how extreme you can get. If I recall, that was 5-6 Oz Hermann Oak. If you want to see an expert's work, take a look at Ed LaBarre's work. Infinitely better than mine. That set of lifters is the first and only set I have made, they have served me well, but I would probably do them differently in the future. I just used a file to form the end to the shape I desired, and sharpened them on a stone, and stropped/polished them well. They should be as sharp as a razor or better when you are done. As such, when you are practicing using them, you will discover you slice right through the bottom or the top of the leather as you are learning. Getting angles just right is important to get the effects you want. In the future, if I made another set I think I'd just cut off the end of the screwdriver at an angle, then start filing to get the final profile. It would be faster and have a more useable profile in the end. Also, there is no bend in this set, but if you so desired I suppose you could implement one. When you get the oak leaf just right, the effect in person is a bit astonishing. I've been asked how I glued the leaf to the leather! Here are some more images. YinTx

What @TSes said, also consider neatsfoot oil before anything. And take a piece of the same leather, tool out a bit of it, paint it with the same paint, and Experiment! Very important, unless you want unwanted surprises on your noseband piece... Seems there is an infinite combination of products, processes, time etc that will give different results until you are happy. YinTx

It is partly the effect you get from shading, also I made a set of lifters from some cheap screwdrivers that helped to create the look. The information you have asked for is basic order of operations for leather tooling: first case, then tool, then dry, dye, oil, resist, antique and finally seal. I don't do a lot of wet mould forming, someone else may pipe in for that info. As you get more experience, you may find cases where you might change some of the orders, like the dye and oil, and instead oil then dye, or you might need to skip a step, like resist, to get different effects from the antique. Hope this helps a bit. YinTx

Thank you kindly. I tried to use private messaging, but for some reason it won't let me send a PM to you. I see the new ones you have added, and have selected a few. The two I would still like to get are #327Y border corner stamp, and a single dragon scale stamp in the style of 354 then I will complete my order. Thank you again, and I look forward to using the stamps! YinTx

I see the Heart Of Texas Leather show is in Waco this August. I think it is closer to me than Wichita. Do you know if he goes there also? Is the show in Wichita Falls on this year? YinTx

Yeah, I get that. I find one or two occasionally, but not the items I am looking for. I have a bunch of Sergey's stamps in a basket, looking to buy them, and may just end up calling Robert Beard to see about getting what I want, just not sure what sizes of items would do the best for me. Mostly I am trying to find some bevelers and maybe some pear shaders/thumb prints. Was hoping to see him maybe at a show somewhere, but those seem to be getting cancelled, etc. I think there is a show in Waco that I could possibly make it to if they still have it. My tooling is kind of varied, so I am don't know what will work best. Maybe someone that uses his tools can suggest the correct style/sizes? I'd like to think my skills have gotten to a point that buying nicer tools isn't just a waste, if you know what I mean. Here are some examples of things I typically do: Long wallet Belt Knife sheath Cell phone cover

I am looking on your website leatherstamptools dot com, I would like to buy #381, but I do not see it there. Is it still available? If so, how can I add it to the cart? This is listed on a canadian etsy site... https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/809575423/tools-for-leather-crafts-stamp-381?ref=shop_home_active_22&crt=1 Thank you for your time, YinTx

The final product... YinTx

That is my work. How can I help you? YinTx

Those are fantastic! YinTx

Finally decided to muzzle the designer and get to toolin. Here's the results: Plenty of errors in my drawing, and the tooling, but I'm glad to have finished this portion. Time for the next step! YinTx

I am looking to upgrade my leather carving tools, so I am looking for some Robert Beard, Barry King and similar tools for the right price. Let me know what you have that you are interested in selling. Thank you, YinTx

Probably not a lot of experience putting Bick 4 on the rough/flesh side of leather. Pure NFO used sparingly will darken the leather, but it should lighten up some over time. The best way to answer this will be for you to take samples of the leather you are using, and experiment. Every piece of leather responds differently, and any conjecture on my part as to how a 20 year old side might respond to different treatments would be folly. YinTx

I recently purchased a press as well, from KamSnaps, and it dramatically improved my ability to cleanly set snaps. I have the dies for the double cap rivets, but haven't tried it out yet. I think I wrote up a post about it, and that I preferred the older style dies to the new ones, as they had sent me both. The customer service was top notch. YinTx