ThatGuyFromReno

Thank you both. Mark

This is the latest belt I made for a friend. Just thought I would share. If the pattern looks familiar, it's because I am still waiting on my mail order art degree from Nigeria and have not drawn one of my own. Mark

Stumpy, An easy place to start (and where I started) is Tandy. While their leather and tools may not be the best, it is a good way to get familiarized with everything, and learn where you want to go with it. The people at my local Tandy have been helpful enough. They are pretty widespread, so you may be close to one. As far as your questions about leather, thread, and quantity, I will leave that for someone else, as I am still fairly new, and someone else, can likely give you a better answer. When it comes to cutting leather with a laser...I've got nothing... Best of luck. Mark

That looks great, I love the detail. Mark

Thank you Wild Bill. Mark

I got some of those Watt buckles a while back, but haven't used them, I definitely will put another set of spur straps on my to do list including those. I had a feeling they would look pretty good, and they do. Good job. Mark

I had the idea to try out some wood stain on some scrap leather today, and after I did it, I found this post, so I thought I would share the results. I used several coats of classic gray 271 by minwax, followed by 3 coats of acrylic resolene. The results weren't all that impressive. It looked a whole lot better on the wood. Mark

Thanks electrathon, I have more than enough of that stuff lying around from woodworking projects, so I will give it a shot. Mark

Makes sense to me, Thank you both for the input. Mark

Thank you TinkerTailor. I appreciate the input. I would like to keep my tools in the best condition possible, so they may serve me for as long as possible. I will look into that. Mark

Thanks colt, I'll give that some thought the next time I try something like that. Mark

That looks great, I like the progression of the project shown through the photos. Mark

I'd like to post full resolution, but the 1.48MB limit cuts down on the quality quite a bit. Mark

I did this pictoral carving a few months ago. I had never tried pictoral or landscape stuff before, so it's a little rough. It's supposed to be a scene from the Ruby Mountains here in Nevada (one of my favorite places). A mountain reflecting off of a lake in the foreground. I am not entirely sure what I want to do with it as far as color goes (or if I even should). I think color might make it look a little better (if I don't completely ruin it). I thought I would share, I am sure many of you have done this type of thing before, and I am hoping I can get some tips on, at the very least, what not to do. Mark

Thank you snubbyfan. Mark

Thank you for your input. The neatsfoot oil makes perfect sense. Mark

That's pretty slick, I like what you did with the cover. It gives it a nice unique look. Mark

I am looking for a way to clean, store, and preserve my tools (especially knives). My first thought is something like Rem Oil, and I am curious if anyone has any thoughts on this. I store my round knife in a leather sheath, but I am worried about rust spots developing over time. Immediately something like Rem Oil comes to mind, being that a person would use that to clean and store firearms. My only hang up with this is that the residue may harm the leather when using the tool, something like causing it to not accept dye or finish. Obviously I wouldn't soak the blade in the oil, but give it a good wipe down like a person would with their guns. If there are no unwanted effects on the leather, I can see this being a great way to care for all metal tools. Any input on this would be greatly appreciated. Mark

That looks nice. The color of the stitching and leather go together very well.

Thanks mlapaglia. Mark

Thank you Rohn. Mark

First picture post. I started leatherworking about 5 years ago, didn't start making more than about one or two things a year until this year. I thought I would share, and welcome any critique as I am still in the early stages of learning. Thank you. A belt I made over the weekend. -1 1/2" with a smooth thin strap sewn to the back -Antique Dark Brown over Cordovan Background Mark

I am a new member to this website, and also a fairly new leatherworker (about 5 years or so). Admittedly this is also my first forum post of any kind. Let me start by saying that I think this site is a great idea, and has been extremely helpful to me (which is why I decided to sign up). The amount of knowledge so freely shared here is amazing. I can't thank everyone who contributes enough for that. The topic I propose is this (forgive me if I am doing this wrong, or this isn't an intended purpose): From reading through posts, I have noticed a lot of tools, techniques, tricks from multi-talented individuals. What I propose is a discussion about innovation. I do not have the means or the tools to produce new and innovative tools, and quite possibly techniques. I would like to get a discussion going about tool and technique innovation going. Perhaps someone has an idea for a new tool that would be useful, or a technique that they would like to try, but can't because of limited means (no machine shop, lack or the tools to try it). What I see coming from this post is this: New ideas: A tool that someone cannot create but may prove useful that someone has the ability to make, test and ultimately gain use from, hopefully manufacture at some point. Seemingly new ideas: Something that seems fresh, but someone has tried before, but didn't quite work as expected. Perhaps they can provide some insight as to why. A technique using current tools: A what if question, but maybe someone doesn't have the tools to do it, but would like to know what might happen if they did. The results that may come from it. I apologize if this post is too wide reaching, feel free to direct me to a post that may have already covered this (I tried to look), or flag it as needed. To start it off, I bought a roller beveler from Jeremiah Watt. I like the idea, but wondered if a tool with interchangeable wheels, like embossing or overstitch, with different patterns (crosshatch, lined, smooth, different angles/sizes) similar to the multiple beveling stamps available would be something useful. The problem I see, on top of it not being quite the same as a fully stamped piece, is depth and contrast. Any thoughts, contributions, criticism is welcome, and I appreciate it. Mark (I promise any future posts will be shorter)