MADMAX22

I did this bear paw on one of my rifle slings and liked how it turned out. I used a B802, 836 on it. I beveled intoward the paws. Kind of makes it seem like the paw is coming out toward you sort of.

That sounds alot easier then trying to put the stuff in the fridge David. I case with water and a few drops of dawn and it works great but I can hardly ever get a project finished in one day. I have been wrapping them in saran wrap and throwing them in the fridge. Ill try letting them dry between goes at the leather. Great info all. Also Redbeard thats pretty interesting way of doing it. Have to try that out one day.

Agreed. Edges are one of the first things I look at now that I have become a little more educated on leather work and I must say I can spot a painted on edge right away and it instantly turns me off on the product. Just IMHO type thing however its what I see. I would gladly pay more for a edge that was hand done and that I know is gonna last compared to a painted on edge coat that may or may not last very long.

Just wondering Knothead but what was wrong with vista? Ive been using vista 64 premium since it came out and since the first service pack it has been outstanding. Far better then windows XP ecspecially XP prior service pack 2. Windows 7 is not that much different then vista and in all reality I doubt would be anything much more then a vista service pack3 and a face change. Ofcourse everyone has realized that they need to upgrade and the drivers are all ready since they are the same ones from vista with a few tweeks. It wasnt slop, just a change and since XP had been around for so long it was a very hard change. Vista paved the way for 7 to make a easy transition.

I would like to add that I havnt made one yet but everyone that I see for the most part seems to be about 6oz.

OK really quick. Leather thickness will vary. As will types of leather for what your doing. Ill let someone else thats more of a pro jump in on that. Personally I would not go less then 6/7oz. Stitch or lace the leather together but attach it to the seat with rivets or staples. I prefer rivets with washers. Here is a link to a great place to get foam and such http://www.closedcellfoams.com/neoprene.html I like neoprene and most poeple that I have heard of like using just neoprene or use it as the base then add a softer foam over the top. Thefoamfactory is a great place and has great quality stuff. G/L LOL at mendedbowl. I do the same things alot of time

Looking good so far. Ive only done one of those and they can be little buggers. Good luck with the VA and getting your medical taken care of. I know it can be a real hoot sometimes.

OK Ill give my advice even though I havnt really done to many seats but a year and a half ago that was the reason I made my first trip to tandy. I wanted to recover the seat on my new motorcycle. Well I still havnt done that but I am getting close lol. Read as much as you can thru the seat section here. There are so many good examples of seats and several tutorials or atleast pics thru the process. David likes taking pictures as he goes thru the building process. Also check poeples links for ideas. Most of the seat builders here have there websites linked in there sigs. There are different types of seats which result in different challenges. The chopper style seat pan which is a little easier looking to put together (not saying its easier to carve lol) and then there is the larger cruiser or crotch rocket seats which are the big guys and can pose a little more of a challenge to get them to look right. I would say go for it. Careful and dont let your self get sucked into a agreement right now and end up wishing you could charge more later if you strike a deal with a shop. However I would get down there and talk to her and maybe get a couple of different seat pans to play with. Good luck and have fun, Im sure the seat gurus will be along shortly to get you more info.

I think its the tannery. I use to think that maybe its tandy from having the stuff out in a store but I dont think thats usually the case. Ive gotten that a few times but usually in smaller areas and honestly trying to clean it doenst really help atleast in my case. Its like its something from when it was tanned so theres not much you can do for it. Ive only scene it in there thicker stuff (8/9). That is also the only leather that I have scene the spongy problem I had with a few pieces. One thing I would like to add is that you will probably have a problem dying it as well. Even if you get it cased properly.

Great job on that seat. Really makes the bike IMO.

Very nicely done, I like it.

Thanks for the compliments guys, and yes Bree she loves it. Its still gotta break in a bit, she was use to a thin Ariat belt that wasnt shall we say very sturdy. I actually got this one off of ebay. Its a BTS buckle. Not sure if that company is still in business or not, gotta look them up. Its pretty darn nice buckle, all brass and made in the USA which I like.

Im interested, dropped ya a pm. Ive been looking around for a new knife.

Thanks, Just wondering but do you not wax or use prewaxed thread. Im not sure how well that stuff would dye. Have not tried it though. The biggest thing with this sewing job was that it was a different style for me, I was trying to use the "proper technique" which meant a little change in how I did it. Its a little more difficult. Definatly gonna need some more practice and a better stitching apparatis. I am using a pony when I really need a horse lol.

Hey guys well I finally got around to making my first belt. The body is 8oz, the liner is 3-4oz. I hand stitched the whole thing, the outside stitching I thought looked ok but on the inside you could really see all the errors. I stabbed the holes all on the table but stitched the rest with the classic way so it was a learning experience. I freehanded the design with the stems cut and beveled then I stamped random leaves and flowers. I put those rhinestone rivets in the center of the flower stamp. Dyed the outside with feibings mahogany and sealed with atom wax and then some sno seal. The inside I did a quick name (for the girlfriend) and then tried to do a quick antique on the name part just so it would stand out but forgot to put a resist on the inside. Ahh well so had to go over the whole inside really quick to get the same color and let one spot sit to long and it left a off hand stain. Still figured the inside would wear this out eventually. The belt buckle I got off of ebay after we were all done with the belt. Thought they looked good together.

Looks good to me so far for your second one. Cant say too much as I have only made a couple myself but stitching looks great, good lines and such. As stated get the edges cleaned up a bit. I cant seem to tell if I would like the reinforcement to have rounded corners or keep the pointy corners, either way I think it looks good. Keep going on them and refine your technique.

Looks great, nice and simple and will probably last her near forever

Very cool looking, good job. What did you use to color it with?

Outstanding, nice job on the seat and congrats for getting it published. That is a cool looking bike as well.

Looking good, I really like that bracer, nice colors and design layout.

Whats the bicks again?

Sad part is most of them rave about there stuff. This is one instance that you gotta go USA for quality. Not saying other places dont produce it but what gets imported to the US is the mass produced junk, they seem to keep all the good stuff they make and sell it locally or something. There are a few places you can get good biker gear online, fox creek leathers are where I got my chaps, nice leather and good workmanship but they werent cheap either. Two to three times the cost of the thin junk you could get somewhere else. There are very few local places to get anything that isnt imported. Infact I know of only one place that is somewhat close that a lady works at and she makes pretty good stuff.

Thanks for the info Rob. Trying to envision it and I think I have a good idea. I know what you mean by those little clamp type things, saw those and wasnt sure I wanted one bolt holding the bag on there. Im running into the same barrier where you did with how to make it follow the contour and it may make sense to not do that lol. Thinking Ill have to take another look at his bike and see what I come up with.

MMMMMM well cant say for sure the correct answer for your first question but there are some styles/types or mechanisms that are copy righted so you gotta be careful. most of the holster makers tend to post in this section regardless. The show off will get moved down here after a while but guess the holster guys like to keep it in the group lol. Also post some pics and lets see it.

Guess I should have used a different term lol. Ive scene the ones you are talking about and in the end may go that route, however I remember seeing the same toolbag design that is used on the front forks for the windsheild bag. The thing thats getting me is how to cut the body of the bag. EDIT: http://www.bikeremporium.com/Products-Windshield_Bags.html OK I see the longer ones and I guess the multi bag setup is what was used to wrap around the inside of the window. It looks like most sites that I see make the bags short enough so that you dont have to worry about the curvature as much. May end up having to do that.