opus56

Thickness ended up at 5 millimeters. I did break up the stitching. The straps are the two top 2" wide sections, and the 2 lower 1" wide sections. When I stitched each sandwich together I used two lengths of thread each starting in the middle of the bottom edge of each strap. Even trying to stitch one of the 2" wide straps w/ just one length of thread would have been a pain.

Made a couple of updates to the backpack after my son (8th grader) had put some miles on it. First, I made new shoulder straps, the single thickness straps weren't beefy enough for as much stuff as he carried around. I sewed two pieces together to make it double thick and made them 2" wide where they ride on the shoulders. Then I stitched two 1" wide pieces together for the bottom portion of the strap. Second, I added some grommets and drawstrings to pull the top closed. Third, if I were to make another, I'd double the thickness of the handle as well. He uses the handle a lot to quickly pick up / move the bag, and the single thickness handle is showing some significant wear. It's still holding up, but a double thick handle would be a lot better.

Yes...I did.

LOL...no, the shop I have was arranged for building guitars, but turns out it's a good work space for leather work too.

The oil tanned leather I buy from a local dealer in Utah runs about $95 for a side that'll at least 2 bags of this size w/ some left over. Then the rivets are a few dollars (from Tandy) and the double prong roller buckle was $4 from Tandy. So probably all said and done w/ thread, glue, and needles, I'd say $60 total in raw materials.

No glue...the straps hold it all together.

I made another one w/ a few modifications. I added a pen holder and a small pocket to the interior, tapered the front flap and a closure.

Hey TBoyce, here's the template for the smaller bag. Some dimensions: Front flap = 6" x 4 1/4" Main body = 8" x 9" Overall length = 13 1/4" Strap is 1/2" wide - everyone can make it whatever length they want First slot measuring from the bottom of the bag starts at 3/8", then spaced 1" apart

Thanks everyone...it's my pleasure. tboyce did all the hard work! Here are a couple of shots of a small 6" x 4" x 1" bag I did as a proof of concept. No adjustable strap nor did I sew on the front flap....it was just all cut as one piece. If people are interested in this smaller bag, I'll get template info to tboyce and he could whip up another pattern for everyone.

Sweet! Looks great.

Absolutely...go for it. Here are a few dimensions/notes: Overall Dimensions – 14” x 11” x 3” 5oz – 6oz Oil tanned leather Buckle – 2 in Rivets – your discretion Straps – one 28” (for buckle) and one 52” Front flap – 14” x 14” Bag – 20” x 25” Sew front flap to bag w/ 2” overlap 11 slots - 1st slot (from top of bag) starts 3/8” from top edge

Thanks everyone!

Sure...I'll write something up in the next few days.

Thanks...it's such a cool, simple design that was a lot of fun to make.

It's oil tanned cow hide about 5-6 oz.

Made this for my daughter...now I think I need one too. Pattern located here

Thanks everyone.

They look awesome. Maybe someday I'll try some shoes. I'd love to have some bespoke dress shoes...

Looks great.

Thanks! The removable front pouch is held on w/ 4 snaps...in the picture above they are hidden by the front flap straps. The top snaps ended up being integrated in the buckles for the front flap. Approx. dimensions are 16" x 12" x 5.5". Thanks Rohn.

It took a while to get this done...a lot of time spent putting together the pattern, figuring the layout, and what step should be done when. But I'm really happy with how it turned out. I made it for my son as a school backpack and it should last him through graduation.

Got my inspiration for both bags here: http://www.instructables.com/id/Leather-MD-Briefcase-Doctors-Bag/all/

Only the bottom is lined. I glued a thin galvanized steel plate to the bottom so it would keep it's shape, then glued a piece of 3oz leather over the metal. But that's it...no other lining at all. The sides are 3oz-4oz and the front, back, and bottom are 7oz-9oz.

Color is Fiebings British Tan. I made the frame. Bought a piece of steel bar from a local metal supplier. It's an 1/8" thick by 1/2" wide and used Chicago screws to hold it together.

Thanks!