MADMAX22

The prefinished leather shouldnt cause a issue. I finish most of my leather before stitching. I think the biggest thing to consider is awl size compared to thread and needle size. I am with twinoaks on this one, I only need pliers when I am back stitching. I found that having to use pliers all the time became very time consuming and ended up just not being much fun. It seemed to double the time it would take to stitch say a belt or something which would put you from 2 hours to 4 or so. Another thing with hand stitching is remember to do it the same way for every hole. This will lend to more uniform stitching. It took me a while to get this down but I realized even if I started out with a bad habit or doing it slightly wrong to just keep doing that till it was done and it would still turn out looking pretty good.

Over all they look excellent. Great coloring and carving. Cool design as well for construction. One little pointer I would suggest, on the inside liner make a half circle at the bottom that is cut out. Then shorten the liner by about a quarter to half inch shorter overall length then the wallet body. When you put it together dont stitch the little half circle cut out. This will help with the bulge that can happen when you fold them in two.

Excellent work Ed, love the colors and the browns all go very well together.

Some more great looking stuff Tina.

I have tried using many different finishes in my learning process and to be honest the best one I have found so far is the old school mix I made myself. Melted parafin wax, bees wax, and some oil together then let it cool. Once it cooled it was similer to sno-seal (which I also really like). It leaves a very nice mellow sheen and can be reapplied as necessary over time. If you dont feel like making it yourself then you can get several similer items on line or locally. Ones that seem to work really well are picards leather dressing, sno-seal, bees natural. I use to play with trying to use a sealer per say but found these protect the leather, look really good, and are relatively easy to use.

As Hilly has said there are several threads on this same question. Ill add my thoughts as well. The harbor freight setup is very cheap, you get the brush and accessories as well as the air compressor. It is not the highest quality but will work for over all coloring and shading some. Now that being said if you plan on doing a bunch of detail work and if you know you are going to be doing this for a while with lots of work then IMHO I would go with a little bit nicer of a setup. It will cost more initially but in the end it will last just about forever if you keep it clean. May have to replace orings and the needle and such. There are many good brands, badger, paasche, iwata are just a few that ring a bell.

Those look really good and thats a great way to make the holder for them. What did you use on the back and what do you seal them with if anything? I am thinking that something like a set of these (my own design ofcourse) would be a great gift to go with another project I have to start soon.

Looks great, really like the colors and construction wise it turned out very well.

I have been using the osbourn awls that tandy sells with some success. You will have to polish them though and make sure the point is nice and sharp and probably reshape them a bit to your liking. I did anyways. Also when stitching thicker leather like on a holster or sheath I will stab some bees wax about every 4 hole or so. This helps it glide in easier. For really thick leather I must admit I will resort to a small drill in a dremel to aid in getting the holes done up correctly. As far as nicer awls there are several that I want to get in the future but they arent cheap as far as awls go but from what I hear worth every penny.

Great job man, really like the lettering and the coloring you did on it. Turned out very well.

I hand stitch with linen thread and use the above back stitching method with the internal knots if you wanna call them that. After backstitching 2 or 3 times I trim the thread as close as possible and then use my stylus to push the ends into the awl hole just a tad. Never use any glue or anything but my stitching has never come loose or unraveled. Granted I have only been doing this for a few years but all my old projects are still holding together just fine. I assume they will for many years to come.

For the spray on stuff I stick to 3M either 77 or 99 I think they are. I have tried several different types of the spray on stuff and have consistently had the best hold with the 3M stuff. Its really not much more expensive then some of the other brands but always works. Just make sure you actually let the two sides get a little tacky before you press them together.

Wicket and craig is also very nice leather. The two leathers I can recommend are wicket and craig and herman oak. WandC also usually have sales going on where you can get sides for about $100. I do not know which I like better, they have there own appeal and I enjoy using either brand of leather.

Looks great Tom, I like the red and black as usual but that silver one really looks kickass as well.

Im with busted on this one. I prefer either sno seal or my own wax oil mix. I am more of the opinion lately that sealing the leather with a actual sealer works great for a little while but in the long run reapplying a oil/wax type sealer works the best. It is something that does not crack and over time since you can reapply it, it will keep working. The only caveat is that you have to make sure you or your customer actual reapply s it on a regular basis. After reading several of Chuckbarrows links he has posted here and on other forums the leathers of long ago lasted a very long time when they were cleaned with a type of saddle soap and then reoiled on a regular basis. This is for leather items that are used on a regular basis rather roughly.

One wicked looking setup. Kind of modern old school look.

That looks way cool. Would love to see it with the actual gun in it.

HAHA thats cool man, good one.

Thats a wicked cool looking seat man. That braid came out really nice.

Very nice. Love the old school feel that you inpart on your projects. Very nice detail work.

That is very cool looking. Great job. Would love to see it with the bow and arrows in it.

Great looking seats. That is alot of backgrounding.