Windy

I have a messed up mind.I wonder if I can make something out of leather to help it get back to normal if it ever were normal. If anyone here has come across this afore I would be open to any and all suggestions. On fixin my head not anything else. WINDY

You were suppose to close your eyes. WINDY

I am going to tell you but y'all in law enforcement close your eyes for ten seconds. I am the local crack dealer. It is not a glorious job but hey it is simple and filled with thrills. I mean where else can you make fast money and get to shoot the competition. Okay I admit it that is my dream job. My real job is baby sitting grown men who claim to be bricklayers. Me and my brother have a bricklaying business. WINDY

Ed, Try your local hardware store or Lowe's and look at electrical boxes.The old style are metal and they have round knockouts about 3/4 to one inch diameter that might work for you.They are easy to knock out with a screw driver and a pair of pliers. WINDY

Well now I am trying to imagine your kitchen once you installed 38 $900 handles that are 15 inches long. I believe you would have a funny looking kitchen unless you are the size of the jolly green giant. I believe they are selling these more as a piece of sculpture not something mass produced. There are people out there who will pay for quality and I believe there are at least two leather workers on this site who will tell you that to some money is no object. I do believe it was on this site where a guy said he sold a belt for 16 grand. I have never priced anything from Peter Main but I am guessing it is not cheap.When I see things like this I do not think wow that is high priced. I think one day I will be getting those prices for my work. WINDY

Tandy sells a conversion kit that enables one to add a screw back concho to a snap. WINDY

The best tool for the job is the one that when you use it , it does the job. Some people can never get the hang of certain things whether is using a head knife or a sharpening stone. Every person has a different degree of mechanical aptitude and eye hand coordination. I know men who never have managed to drive a car with a clutch. If you can not get the hang of using a certain knife just find one you can use. If it is sharp it will cut leather if it is dull it will cut leather, just a little rougher finish will be left. WINDY

Besides, when they get rid of the cows to protect us from global warming, there won't be any leather to work anyway! We will have all the chicken hides we can carve. WINDY

Ed, Being as I had the afternoon off. I took some leather back in the woodshop to play around with your idea. Well the planer worked real nice on an old belt. I worked out from the middle to the belt tip and buckle end.On the ends when the front shoe of the plane leaves the leather it cuts a low spot about an inch in from the end, in woodworking terms this is called snipe. If you are going to try it, make sure you have about two inches extra on the edges to allow for the snipe.I ended up with a finish just a wee bit longer rougher than suede. With a new planer and nice new sharp blades you may get a smoother finish.I did not have any wider leather I wanted to make thinner so I did not get to try it on anything wider than the old belt. It will probably work on wider leather as long as you hold the planer firmly against the leather to keep the leather flat while planning it.I meant to ask my brother about the belt sander finish when I talked to him today alas it slipped my mind. I probably should have tried the belt sander while I was in their messing around ,I just was not in the mood for anything dusty. Since the batteries for my Trident air thingy are both rundown.Thanks to the Christmas present build off. WINDY

I was watching Bill Nye the science guy the other day. He made a statement I found very interesting, he stated that cows are responsible for 20 % of the greenhouse gases. More than all the cars and trucks in the world combined. If you want to read more about it Google cow gas 20 % of greenhouse gases. I guess instead of giving up my truck I will eat more chicken.I just had a vision of all the cowboys out west riding around herding up all them chickens and branding them.Snicker snicker snicker. WINDY

Thank you and yes I was born a 100 or so it seems. WINDY

Ed, I own both of these and never tried either one. I can tell you my brother has sanded the back of some leather to get it smooth and it worked for him. They make small belt sanders nowadays that would be easier to control. You could try a random orbit sander which would be easier to control. If you try the hand held planer I would suggest you start in the middle and work towards the outside. If you try and start on the edge you will more than likely pick up the edge and suck it in to the planer thus ruining your leather and probably your pants.The hand held planers are very fast and very aggressive. They work great on wood. If I had to do what you are planning I would buy a small belt sander with a fifty grit belt and work to finer grits till you get the leather the way you want it. Like always this is just my most humble opinion. You have got my curiosity aroused , if I find time this weekend I might try planning a piece of leather. WINDY

What kind of a woodworking tool would one need to carve that kind of a groove? Router? I was thinking of cutting off about 3" of some turning stock and doing something similar. Ed Ed, If you look close it appears that they started with a standard slot cutting bit and then rounded it with as a previous poster said with a file. One could use sandpaper wrapped around a dowel if they were only going to make a few. You could come close to the same design by doing like the cheap nylon one sold by most leather supply stores. Take a simple round burnisher cut in half then attach it to a fancy handle.If you wanted to make it like this one you could turn a larger diameter burnisher on a lathe then cut in half and then slice it down to the width you want and using a file just follow the groove round to the flat sides.and you will have the same thing they have. Of course after reading what I just wrote it would probably be better if I had drawn it out instead of trying to explain it in words. WINDY

I need a round object with a diameter of 30mm to 32mm to use as a cutting template. If you happen to stumble across anything that fits the bill will you let me know? I think I'll head to the supermarket tomorrow with my calipers. Seriously. Thanks, Ed Why not a tool store and look at sockets. Or why not call a wood worker and ask him to turn you one on the lathe. Or the hardware store to check the pipe and pipe fittings. If you were to find the right pipe you could sharpen the end and make it a hole punch. You could even get a compass and make your own pattern the exact size you need. WINDY

I get mine here ...... http://www.goosebaylumber.com/ WINDY

We eat Standing Rib Roast for Christmas at my house.Seared then baked to medium rare. Nothing like it in the world. B.T.W.....nice hat. WINDY

Ed, When you work cheap tools hard they fail fast. The bearings will probably give out afore you are done with the job. If you grind a wee little bit at a time and do not force the work into the grinding wheel you may not wear it out.Using a cheap one on hardened steel will more than likely wear it out. Just my most humble opinion. WINDY

I bet they did something silly like I do when confronted with such problems. I just take a piece of paper of appropriate size and draw a corner till it looks right to me. Then I make a pattern from the paper onto some poster board. I know this is a simple solution for the tech savy crowd. Sometimes the simple way is the easiest way. Least wise it has always served me well. WINDY

I beleive that is the best looking edge I have ever seen. Great job. WINDY

Now that is a nice looking hat. WINDY

OOOOOOPS .... you sure it is not a mustache? WINDY

I do not recall Elvis with a mustache. WINDY

Looks like a power rotary cutter. Here it is for 49 bucks plus free shipping.Shame I am done with battery power tools. Specially when the battery is not replaceable.Although this looks like a good tool.Nope just can not talk myself into. I hate it when I can not talk myself into a new tool.Darn my luck. http://www.skilshop.com/?ref=googawe&kw=%7Bkeyword%7D WINDY

Great idea. I will have to give it a try. Why not make a handle for you file so you need not worry about the tang embedding in your wrist. WINDY

Josh, Hmmmmm a leather worker asking for a premade leather apron. WINDY