Chief31794

Thanks Rohn, I appreciate the nice comments. Thank you sir, Thank you Ma'am! Thanks, I drew this out on Inkscape and had Blackriver Laser make me a template. It is based on the Cobra Sling and the Tandy Sling Kit. The problem with the Tandy Sling kit, besides the leather, is that the sling is only 37" long. That will fit BB guns, most .22 cal rifles and maybe an AR-15, but it won't fit .30-06, 7MM, .270, etc. The pattern here will fit just about anything, I haven't had one not fit a weapon yet. Thanks, Chief

The big one is two layers of 7/8 oz Hermann Oak laminated together, the Ruger .44 Mag has a 10-1/2" barrel. I don't think he was wanting it for concealed carry. The two Taurus 9mm are two separate pistols, the one with the wide holster has a laser sight attached below the barrel, other than that they are the same. The star inlay is Sea Snake (dyed blue). Chief

I get more action on these than any other item I make. It is made from 8/10 oz Hermann Oak, 44" long and hand carved. I think this is the first one that I carved oak leaves on. That's all he wanted was some oak leaves and acorns. Chief

They are typically used for the same item which is a tool that makes slits (either 3/32" or 1/8") for lacing. At least I've always called them thonging chisels, I could be wrong, that happens a lot lately. Chief

The only time I experienced some shedding, I didn't have the needle perfectly aligned it was close. I made a tool that fits in the eye and then I can tell if it's perfectly aligned. Chief

X3 on the Tandy 3780-00, It is one of their newer tools and does a great job on corners, I have one that I use very often and it works great. Chief

Really great work Bob, Perfect!!! Chief

I made this one for a customer a while back. Pretty simple, it's 8/10 oz laminated together to make 16/20 oz. The design I just drew out, they wanted extra support in the lower back so I added it. Not much to making the pattern, it's basically a really think Ranger Style Belt that's really wide. Chief

Ray, I'm old enough to remember when Tandy and Radio Shack were the same company!! They had some of the first computers, TRS (Tandy Radio Shack) 80's. Both were great companies at one time, them days is gone. Tandy quality stinks and Radio Shack is filing bankruptcy. Back in the 60's the guys in the Tandy stores were excellent leather crafters, teachers and knew how to run a store and service clients. I'm glad Tandy was around then cause that's where I learned what little I know about leather crafting, I'm afraid they won't be around much longer, but like some of the others, I don't think they'll be missed much. They aren't providing much of a service and even elite pricing is way over priced. Chief

Had some other folks that wanted one but waited too long to check and I didn't have time to make them. Don't get a lot of call for carving much anymore, so it's kind of fun to do one of these. Chief

Clear Lac is available from Springfield Leather Company. Chief

Excellent craftsmanship. Chief

Ditto what Camano Ridge said, he's an expert on these things. I normally line the holster, I don't wet form a lot, I do some times, but not on this. If you're worried about the thickness of the holster and want to line it, use 2 oz less thickness leather and line with 2/3 oz liner or divide the thickness in half and laminate two thinner pieces together (i.e., if you're wanting 6 oz, then laminate two 2/3 oz pieces, when I laminate, I normally use less total thickness because the resulting leather will be "Stiffer" than a normal piece because the two pieces act against each other when bending or giving (probably not the right technical language but works for me). Also if you line the holster, you will need to stitch it all the way around the circumference not just on the closing seam. On these two holsters the 1911 is lined and the derringer is not, I don't remember them that well (this is a older post), but I know that because the 1911 is stitched on the top and bottom and the derringer isn't. Chief

I don't recall ever seeing any liquid Saddle Lac, I am confused about it being the same as clear lac, clear lac is the exact same as the old neat lac, is made by LCI. I have used it or Neat Lac almost exclusively for a long, long, time, and I never have any issues with it not protecting or resisting. I highly recommend Clear Lac. I do use Angelus finish from time to time on some applications, but not very often. Chief

How long did you let the resist dry. A minimum of 12 hours and even better at 24 is normal. If you put a stain on before the resist is totally dry, it won't resist. But if it is completely dry, it should block the stain. There are a lot better resists than super sheen, it is probably the very lowest quality resist available, just my opinion, I wouldn't put Super Sheen on anything, particularly as a resist. Chief

Springfield Leather Company has camo printed on leather, it is very durable and very well done. Why not just get with them and buy the leather you need for the quiver? Here's what it looks like. Chief

Inkscape is an open source vector graphics program that does a great job. It's not hard to learn and has all the capability I need to layout templates. Joyce can use the Vector Graphics Files (.SVG) straight from the program. I also use it for some more temporary templates, save them as .PDF and then print them as I need them and glue them to poster board and cut them out. But I predominately use BlackRiverLaser.com for anything I'm going to be making several of. She's great to work with. You can find all you need to know about Inkscape here: https://inkscape.org/en/ Since it's open source and free to download there is no cost of any type. Chief

I design mine in Inkscape. Chief

Many of the leather workers here should be able to accommodate an order like that. I've made one, but it's not one of my main lines. Chief

Very nice, great job. Chief

Toledo Industrial Machines (Cowboy Bob) has them, I think that just about anyone who sells 441 clones will sell you the needles for them. Chief

I don't use a creaser for making grooves for stitching, I use them to make decorative creases along borders. It isn't any easier to control than a good stitch groover, the one posted from Tandy does an adequate job and is a lot easier to control and less work for the same result as a creaser. There are other more expensive ones as well from some of the tool makers. Chief

Fiebings makes a good product called "Aussie", it is a Beeswax/Neetsfoot Oil compound that will seal against water and snow. There is another product called "Sno-Seal" however, I've never used it. I'm assuming the boots are leather, if so the Aussie will do a great job, apply it liberally, heat it with a heat gun or blow dryer until it starts to liquify, then wipe off the excess. It can be reapplied as needed. You can buy it from Tandy or Springfield Leather Company online and probably from other places as well. Chief

Depends on a case-by-case, I did this one not too long ago, you have to keep the holster "looser" than I normally like so that it doesn't turn the laser on when inserted. He also didn't want a safety strap, his choice, not mine. I assume you are asking about a laser sight, after reading it seems you may be talking about a flashlight attached, that I haven't done. Chief

Leather has to be dampened when using a creaser, it must be dampened for any kind of impression (with the exception of pyrography perhaps). Therefore, in answer to your second question the answer is no, once the leather has a top coat finish on it, that prevents it from taking water so it wouldn't hold the impression. A good crease is burnished into the leather and that is accomplished by having the proper moisture content in the leather (dampened well and then allowed to return back to nearly it's natural color, not too wet, not too dry) and then using the creaser to burnish a groove in the leather. Chief