maxdaddy

Great suggestions!

I once rushed out a piece, that had a vinegrooned strap, without 'neutralizing/balancing' it. The rivets and buckle that I attached to it started oxidizing very quickly... like within a few weeks. Ouch. I assumed that it was related to the PH of the leather due to the process. I've done it both ways but nowadays I only neutralize it when there will be metal in contact with it.

I've made similar designs but I like the way the pipe tool is integrated in yours. That's a great idea! Where did you buy that tamper tool from?

Chuck, the waxing technique that I've settled on is: Melt the wax in a double boiler setup Pour some liquid wax into the mug filling it up about halfway Tilting the cup slightly I SLOWLY rotate the mug around, letting the wax level slowly creep up the sides toward the opening. While rotating the mug, keep it angled over the pot that the beeswax was melted in. As I'm rotating the angled cup around I keep increasing the tipping of the cup so that eventually the wax is up around the opening. As the wax is depositing itself at the opening of the cup I begin to let it pour back out into the pot while continually rotating. Repeat as needed until the desired thickness is achieved The mug shown here probably had three sets of these steps performed about five minutes apart. I like to have a nice thick coating of the wax and each successive operation binds new wax to the the existing wax adding thickness. That's 10 oz skirting leather. That's awesome!

That turned out great. It's especially impressive because without a pattern you're pretty much improvising every detail.

OK, everyone's experience will be different, but I've made dozens of beeswax-lined tankards, mugs, tumblers, cups, etc.... over the past several years and never had an issue with the beeswax degrading due to the alcohol content of the liquid. I've used them for booze on the rocks, neat booze, booze cocktails, beer, milk, iced-tea, and even wine. In my un-scientific experience, full-proof liquor is not a problem for pure beeswax. I still use a 6-year old mug quite regularly. Damage and ruin to the beeswax has only ever happened because of physical trauma, like dropping. Although I've never used it, I've always assumed that brewer's pitch was better than beeswax in terms of the physical strength properties (resistant to dropping). I would never have assumed that something called brewer's pitch would be less able to withstand alcohol than good-old beeswax. Is this really true? Very hot liquid is another matter, I once did an experiment with hot coffee in one of my beeswax cups and it was not pretty. Although my test was not scientific in any way, I did confirm my theory that 'hot' liquid can ruin the beeswax (duh). Be aware that some of the 'food-safe' epoxies might not be recommended for constant contact with a liquid as would be needed in a cup or canteen. For example, I experimented with a product called Envirotex Lite, which the vendor says is safe for food 'contact' (i.e. cutting board) but not for immersion (i.e. cup or bowl). I made a few shot-glasses and a tumbler with it just to get the experience of using an epoxy, but compared to beeswax it was very difficult to work with and if it were my only option I would have given up on making drinking vessels due to how hard it was to get a good finished product. As soon as I get my workshop back in order I'll try making a canteen/bottle.

Those are beautiful! Wow. A coating of beeswax and then brewers pitch? That's interesting. I'm curious as to why you think the beeswax is needed. I would think that the pitch would be tough on it's own. Also, if you don't mind me asking, who are you buying your brewers pitch from? I've had trouble sourcing it from sellers who keep it in stock .

Yeah man, wow! That center detail is amazing.

Sorry to off-topic this thread... but dang Dwight, I winced when I read that story. Ouch! The meek will inherit the earth..... but they will not make any more wedding gifts.

That's a very interesting design and I like how you did the snap for the cap. It took me a minute to figure out the purpose of the split tip at the bottom, though.

HaloJones, those look great.

Thanks Halo. Did you make the pattern that they call 'Summer 2'? Sheilajeanne, yeah that's true. I suppose that would always be a risk with shoes that can't be tried on, though. I'll buy a kit from Tandy and give it a whirl when I get a few big house projects completed and have some time for leather craft.

Hi folks, Tandy just released a new kit that I think is pretty cool. It's a pair of outsoles and insoles and size-specific patterns to assemble a pair of sneakers. The price seems a little high, but I can still see this being a good-selling kit for them. I've tried a few different sandal and slippers and the results have always been unhappy with the results in terms of comfort and wearability. It would seem that this would give novice leatherworkers a good first-time experience which may lead to deeper dives in the shoemaking world. https://tandyleather.com/products/sneaker-starter-pack https://tandyleather.com/blogs/tandy-blog/sneaker-starter-pack I am not interested in hearing any Tandy-bashing, but I would be interested in opinions from experienced shoemakers on the forum about it.

Heck yeah! Here's some of my improvised end punches. The larger one, on top in this picture, is 1.5".

I live just a few miles from you down here in the flatlands and I'm wondering what inspired the mountains in the background? It's always a nice treat seeing your creations. Please keep sharing them.