Sheilajeanne

Leder, the pain in my fingers helped reduce the pain and bruising I got on my arm from that bowstring, so it was worth it in the end! (This is obviously NOT the arm guard I made, and yes, I'm a southpaw...)

My archery arm guard and leather finger tabs were the first leather work I ever did, back when I was 12 or 13 years old. Both were made out of a pair of old leather calfskin gloves, For the tabs, I just cut the ends off the fingers, and for the arm guard, I sewed the palms together to get enough length, and attached it around my arm with elastic sewn to the leather. (You know, the sort of elastic used in waist bands and sleeves, not elastic bands!) I used to whack myself on the inside of my elbow, so the guard was full length, and the elastic above my elbow had a dome fastener in it that I snapped closed for a snug fit. All of it was hand-sewn with my mom's sewing needles and some button thread... A thimble came in VERY handy for pushing the needle through the leather! I wonder if I still have them tucked away in a drawer somewhere... :D

Amen to that!!

Machine is sold and now (FINALLY!) in its new home.

So, am now the proud owner of this machine: Thank you, Ferg! Will post a picture when I finally get it set up in my shop. It was great meeting you, your wife, and your Sheltie collies!

Reposting this, just for you!

You know, I decided to buy a cutting mat the other day. Tandy only had the one size, 24x36, and I thought it was a bit too big for my tiny perfect leatherworking nook, so I went to Staples instead, and got a smaller mat for much less money. The following week, I was at Tandy's again, and saw they now had their mats on sale, and the price was a lot cheaper than any of the other stores that stocked this kind of mat. I took a look at their mats, and they were much thicker and more substantial than the one I'd bought at Staples. They also weren't quite as hard and slick, and would be kinder to whatever knife you are using for cutting your leather. I am sure they will also stand up to more wear and tear than the other mat too! I paid $59 (Canadian) plus tax, brought the mat home and it fitted my work space PERFECTLY! And Staples was happy to take their mat back, as I hadn't used it.

Yup, both Tandy. One is their regular Craft tool stitching chisel, the other their Craft tool Pro!

Jake, had to Google 'tin cloth'. Had never heard of it before. Wow, as my hubby used to say, 'It's a bad day when you don't learn anything new!" It was invented in Alaska by a company that outfitted loggers: https://www.filson.com/tin-cloth.html

I've had the business pricing almost since I started with Tandy, because of my kennel business. The kennel is no longer in existence, but they never bother asking me to reconfirm my tax ID information! Maybe one day, if things go well, I'll get another business license for my leather working...

Here I pay .05 for grocery bags, and I do it willingly. I use 'em for dog poop, dog hair, regular garbage, etc, etc. and don't know what I'd do if I had to go to the reusable ones. Guess I'd be buying Glad Kitchen Catchers instead! Next time I need to replace my shower curtain, I am going to save a big piece of it for dyeing and gluing my leather work. Waxed paper just isn't big enough to cover everything, and if you use several sheets, dye can leak through the gaps if it spills. Oh, and I have a ball of cheese wax from some Edam cheese that I use to wax thread ends when I'm sewing and they start to separate on me! Also works for waxing bow strings!

Make it yourself? If you get seriously into this hobby, your collection of tools will very quickly outgrow whatever roll you buy. I've been at this about 2 1/2 years now, and already have around 70 stamps, plus assorted awls, punches, knives and bevelers! If you look at the "Show Your Shop' thread you'll see most of us store our tools in a wooden rack of some sort with holes bored into it.

i use a granite floor tile that I got for $9 bucks from Home Depot as my surface for tooling. Had it for going on 2 years now, and it has yet to crack or chip. And if it does, I can replace it numerous times for what a marble slab from Tandy would cost me! Bought 3 glass shot glasses from Wal Mart for mixing dyes. The clean up really well when I'm finished, and so far, I've yet to knock them over, as the bottoms are nice and heavy! Before that I was using the disposable ones, and they were so light in weight I had to be REALLY careful not to knock them over.

What a shame you are so far away! I am sure many of the people on this board would love to have some of that leather!

Everything in Canada, too...

Nice edges on the card slots! How did you finish them?

Hey, another '53er! And I live in a house that was built sometime in the late 1800's so no, 1950s does NOT qualify as 'super old'!

This post is worthless without PICTURES!!

Hah...someone ELSE who doesn't like having to sit on their stitching pony! Once I get my pony resized to the height that works best for me, I will probably do something similar to attach it to my work bench. The problem is lack of light when I move away from my work bench.

Oookay, so you know the old adage 'lefty loosey, righty tighty'? And when you are looking at a clock face counter clockwise is when the hands are moving to the left? Mhmmmm.... I don't know who wrote the user manual for this tool, but they obviously need to understand that when you are trying to loosen the collet, you are going to be holding the tool IN YOUR HAND, not facing it, therefore counter-clockwise is to your LEFT!! When I had a go at the dremel tonight, with a proper open-end wrench this time, it suddenly hit me. MAYBE I was trying to turn the collet the wrong way!! So, I turned it to the right. BINGOO! It loosened up with only a moderate amount of pressure. I now have the darned thing put away in its case, not without some difficulty, as the extension and the power cord both wanted to turn into snakes, and escape the box. And I have searched my supply of odds and ends for a bolt that will fit the burnishing wheel. No luck - I do have one the right diameter, but it's not long enough. So, will need to make a trip to the hardware store. I did try the bolt I had in my drill, and it fitted very nicely. Just need to get a longer one, and I'll be able to burnish to my heart's content!

Any veg-tan in there?

I dyed my latest project with Fiebings Pro oil dye, and didn't have that problem when bending it: So, the dye may well be a factor, too.

So, I've had this dremel for a long time. I don't even remember if it belonged to me or my husband, it's been around that long! (He's been gone 13 years now.) I did try using it once to unclog a drainage pipe that was plugged up with ice, and that meant attaching the flexible extension to it. Other than that, it's been sitting in its box, gathering dust. Most of the attachments are still in the original plastic bags. So, tonight I got it out, wanting to use it to burnish some edges. It turns out the burnisher i got from Tandy doesn't work - the hole is too big to fit any of the attachments. Now, the flexible extension has been keeping me from putting the dremel away in its handy storage box. So, I looked at the instructions to figure out how to get it detached. It says to depress the yellow button until the collet locks, then turn collet counter clockwise to unscrew it. Well, I have tried everything, and I can't get the collet to unscrew. The little wrench they include in the kit is a joke. I bent it, and now it keeps slipping. I can turn the collet a quarter turn with a pair of pliers, but after that, the yellow button just pops back up again, despite me having my finger on it. Help, anyone?

You're too funny, Robs!