Wolfsax

I should be good then, cause I have those tools in my tool rack. I'll try to post pictures as I go along

And the next two parts. I'm going to reinforce the area with the worse damage (around the deer head) by sewing on a piece of leather to the back and adding a thumb loop while I'm at it. But yeah, this is what I'm replacing. I'm making the new strap a bit wider up at the top. The client wants it in the floral style (no basketweave, which would have been easy lol), his full name on the sling, and possibly a deer head. He's ok with the deer head being the Craftool stamped one with maybe a bit of decoration. But as I said before, I've never done the floral stuff before and it's a bit harder for me to 'envision it' to carve it.

Here are some pictures of what I'm replacing. The first picture is an 'overview' of the sling, and the next three are close ups. The top is the view of the top deer, which really shows whoever did this didn't do a smooth bevel. As you can also see, I did a rubbing of the sling just to get an idea of what the general design of the floral part looked like.

I really need to find my camera to show what I'm replacing. It was pretty rough. I've been running a ton of saddle soap on it trying to get it clean (turns out there are two deer pictorials on it rather than just one which I initially thought). Hoping to oil it soon, reinforce his 'grip spot' and add a thumb loop. As for meeting up, we're out in the middle of next to nowhere lol. And it may be more 'floral' rather than Sheridan style. I'll try to get something uploaded (goes to search for camera)

Thanks for the reply. And he's really not paying me enough, and I think anything I do compared to his old sling he'll be impressed with, honestly. First thing I noticed on it was every bevel hit was distinct. I'm charging him $100 and hoping I can call in a favor later to help make a work bench. He can't afford much else (economy and such). He also knows people and I'm hoping it'll bring in more interest so I can start getting stuff made and sold (I'm unemployed, but fiancee is not, so we're not desperate, but fun money would be nice lol). I figure if I use the money to expand my knowledge base and buy the dye for the project it'll be ok if I don't make a lot of profit out of it. As for the tools, while I understand I won't have some, I'm not looking to do a spectacular job, adequate (wow, really hate the way that sounds). I also acquired a bunch of my father's old tools from the 90's craftool line, and he did do minor sheridan style work (I'm pretty sure it's from a class at a local Tandy back then), so I think I have enough to get a decent job done. Now if I could find that dang camera....

I've got a buddy that came to me recently wanting a rifle sling made for a new gun. He brought me his sling to me from his old gun, which has carving on it, but it's in rough shape (the saddle soap and oil is doing wonders getting it not so stiff and worn looking). The issue I have is I've never done Sheridan carving, I've done mostly stamping, celtic carving, and one or two pictorial carvings. I (mostly) managed to do a 'pencil rubbing' to get an image off the old sling and try to work from there, but I'm not impressed with how some of it's done on the sling (the top flower especially looks off). He's also wanting a slightly wider strap than the previous one. So, I'm considering buying Sheridan Style Carving and Floral Design Drawing for the Artistically Impaired (cause I'm not the best drawer, and I've never seen a pattern for Sheridan on a rifle sling yet). Are these good choices or is there something else I should consider? He is also wanting it all one color (to my knowledge so far) to match the "Missouri Walnut Stock", but I'm not sure what would be the best to match this. I'm considering Eco-Flo leather dye colors Bison Brown and Java Brown. Any other suggestions would be helpful. Suggestions on finish would be helpful to. I haven't been super happy with how Super Sheen has been working recently. Sorry for lack of photos, my camera is MIA

So, a buddy of mine dropped by yesterday with and old sling and wants me to make a new one for his new gun. (Apologizing in advance for lack of pictures, I'll try to get some up later) The sling he brought with him is a single piece of leather with carving and it has defiantly seen better days. Well worn aptly describes it. The back is nice and soft, and I was hoping to just oil it a bit to spruce it up a bit, but there seems to be a few issues. First off, it's starting to crack quite a bit and two, he's got one spot where he grips it a lot and pulls/pushes the sling away from his body. Where this grip spot is the leather seems to be actually trying to flake off. Is there anything I can do to save it (he wants to keep it for the old gun) or should I try to convince him to get a new sling for that too? As for the other new sling, what are some suggestions for reinforcing the area where he grips it. I'm kinda thinking about adding 'wings' to the pattern then rolling the wing edges to the back to make a rounded grip. Or should I see about doing a two piece sling (or even three?). I've never made a sling before and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'll try to get picts up later today.

Was browsing a few sites and came across http://content.photojojo.com/diy/how-to-create-coloring-book-using-photos/. Now, it is for converting Photos to a coloring book page to occupy kid's times, but my first thought was "patterns". Hope this helps!

Here's my suggestions: 1) Use Vinegaroon ( http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=14946&st=0&p=180140&hl=vinegaroon&fromsearch=1entry180140). I started using this after seeing the tutorial and I don't think I'm ever going back to black dye if I have a choice. And it's cheap! 2) Dampen and case the leather. The leather probably is soaking up the dye and drying at different rates. Those are my suggestions. Hope that helps

The design is acrylic paint over vinegaroon. Then sealed and Antique stain.

I decided it was time to replace my $6 cell phone case that was falling apart so I ordered Tandy's smart phone case (even though I have an LG Xenon and not a an actual smart phone). I'm in the process of 're-learning' leather work and I know there's quit a few mistakes on his piece. For one, I wanted magnets instead of the included velcro tabs, but I didn't cut out a spot to put them in and instead opted to glue in a lining. The lining has buckled a bit, which i'm ok with. And I ended up using the velcro anyways b/c the magnets either weren't strong enough to go through the leather or weren't lined up properly. Oh well. As for the design, I'm hoping it'll be an eventual logo. I wanted to keep the "wolfsax' name, but i've outgrown the sax part as I no longer play saxophone. Fortunately, I like the Sax (Saex) knife look and it seemed to just fit. The overall design is celtic/tribal, and I managed to hide mine and my fiancee's initials in the design (plus a few other personal designs). Anyways, critique is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Here's what I would do: It has a tag, so it's legal. Make your goods, but file the tags (maybe take picture of items created with the leather and file that with the tag and final consumer info). Then if for any reason, in the future, it comes up, you can go "here's the CITES tag" and you'll hopefully have more than enough documentation to cover yourself. Whether that's the way to go or not, I'm not sure. Hopefully someone that works more with exotics will reply and give you more input.

No expert by any means, but my degree is actually Wildlife. I believe what you are referring to are CITES tag. "Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Many wildlife species in trade are not endangered, but the existence of an agreement to ensure the sustainability of the trade is important in order to safeguard these resources for the future." As for what to do about the tags and the goods, I suggest checking with USFWS and your State wildlife agency. Might be a good idea to check at least your state's wildlife page to see about exotic leather? Hope that helps

I had this issue as well, but got it fixed. Try right clicking on the video and if your "settings" isn't grayed out, disable hardware acceleration. If not, hit the popout option to get the video into another window, and you should be able to click it. Hope that helps

Awesome tutorial! Would love to see this pinned please :D

Amazing work! Can't wait to see more.

Thanks guys! You've given me a lot to think about, including some things I hadn't considered. Hopefully this is doable for me. Right now the plan is to put it on the second floor of a basement home. We live on the first floor, my workshop and his "man cave" on the second, with opposite porch access to both. We're HOPING the second floor will have a way to drive up to it as well, and we can load up stuff as needed (he DJ's on the side, so some heavy equipment). Again, thanks for the advice and I can't wait to see more

Hi guys! Thanks in advance for your help. My loving boyfriend and I are planning on building a home next year. To prove how loving he is, we're planning on having a designated leather workshop for me. A big upgrade from the uninsulated shed/shared counter top in the already packed trailer. I'm hoping the new space will also allow me to start a home workshop and business. So, what I'm asking: What features would you like in your home workshop? What size room should I consider? What layout would you suggest, etc. I'm just trying to get an idea of what we need to incorporate into the plans for the house. I'd rather try to think ahead about the space and stuff instead of renovating later, especially considering we'll probably be doing this on a budget. I know for example I'd like a work area, possible display area, and I'll prolly need a separate area to store unused leather (right now it's rolled up on the loft area of the shed). I'm also considering a small utility sink. So, if you could create your perfect workshop, what would you include?

Glad you're joining us!

Hi all members of deviantArt. After a 6 month hiatus/absence, the Leather Artisans club is up and running again. We have a brand new group set up, new name, and we're excited. We are currently accepting new members. If you were a member of the old club, you will qualify for admin positions. We welcome people of all skills and we're hoping to start getting more tutorials set up. I'm entirely open to all suggestions at this point. So, head on over to http://leather-artisans.deviantart.com/ and check it out. -Wolf

Ask Leatheroo. She's got some GREAT masks! There's a few tutorials floating around as well.

Sometimes the karma just works out right :D Hope everything works out!

Tandy just put Stohlman's Personal Patterns Portfolio Pattern set one on sale. I can't testify if it's got what your looking for (I don't own it), but for $15, it might be worth a look for you. http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/home/6057-00.aspx?feature=Product_3