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

Any word back? YinTx

These are pretty nice. I've had bad luck with double cap rivets, they don't always set right for me and I've had them pull apart. Others seem to have pretty good experience with them and say they hold well. I like solid rivets myself. If you stick with the solid rivets, you could consider adding a thin liner over the rivets to protect the equipment, similar to a holster. YinTx

Really nicely done! That'll last a while to boot! Imagine you will get a lot of comments on it when you start to use it! YinTx

Ok, finally got a chance to sit down and finish! I tore out the first notebook pocket and replaced it, much better now. Finally used a set of 7 SPI Blanchard irons that I have, they required a bit more attention to the use of the awl than my other irons, but I liked the way the stitch came out. 432 Fil Au Chinois linen thread. I think the lining leather is a boot liner, worked pretty well. YinTx

Seems to be no worse for the wear! Surprised the heck out of me. I think I tooled 3 oz leather, which soaked through pretty thoroughly when it got wet. And I must say I like the beeswax/mink oil idea. My coasters have been in daily use for over a year, I'm sure some of the finishes have worn off, and I did not put anything on the backsides, which I imagine would help as well. YinTx

Colors are awesome. As far as finishes, I have topped tankote with 50/50 resolene with decent success, and it would help with the water resistance. I have several leather coasters that see daily use, and today one got soaked in cranberry juice, then dunked in the sink and came out soaking wet. This evening, thankfully, all seems well with it, despite being soggy enough to wet mold around my thumb. YinTx

This is truly a sad state of affairs. I have been drawing on this for almost a year and a half. Still not happy with my sketches. : YinTx

Sorry, didn't mean to break it to you like that. But, it's art. Hang it in an automotive shop or the garage, and call it an intended pun! Kinda like the lame one I put at the start of this response...only better... or maybe I'll just shush for a few now... YinTx