fredk

On hand stitching I go back over the stitches, using the same holes. I go back about 3 stitches. This locks the thread, then I cut it off neat to the leather surface and rub in a wee bit of wax. I think the same can be done with machine stitching.

As long as the picture put here is clear that is from the book and says it comes from it then it would be allowed as it is bring used for 'reference or research'.

I have a small number of basic starter leatherwork tool kits for sale These are left over from some classes I held a few years ago. All these kits are brand new, never used The items are in a small tool box and include 2 craft knives [colour may be different to the ones in the photo] Bees wax block; approx 16g weight Brass lacing needle, x1, small size Correction fluid pen; for marking leather Flat lacing needle x 2 Glovers needles – 2 sizes, x 2 of each Harness needles – 2 sizes, x 2 of each Groover/edger Light hammer Measuring tape Pen Plain scratch awl Rotary hole punch Scissors – medium/heavy duty Slicker, wood, 'carrot' shape 3 different sized grooves Small spring clamps Steel ruler – 10 inch long Stitch marker, rotary, spiked wheel, (also known as a pounce wheel) Thimble ring Thonging chisels x3 : 1 prong, 2 prong, 4 prong [2mm wide prong at 2mm spacing] UHU glue Wood lolly sticks 6 beads Magnet Tool box plus I usually throw in some pieces of different types of leather and some thread so the recipient can have a practice The value of the individual items is between £40 and £50 - depending on where you buy the items from I'm looking for £22 per kit which includes postage within the UK

A. the notebook covers are very nice. The same but each slightly different, true OOAKs B. clever way to cut the circular holes C. What are 'Challenge coins'? Not something I've come across in the UK

This is my old car, with No.1 son driving it. Its a 1930 Austin 7 Ulster, a road-going racing car. Engine capacity is 847 cc - about 52ci - or put it another way my whole engine capacity is about equal to 1 cylinder of the above cars. The Austin is 10ft 3 inches long and 35.5 inches wide. Top speed is about 50mph. It has only three gears. Brakes are on all 4 wheels, 6 inch diameter drums and 1.25 inch wide. With them its a case of applying them a week before you need to if you want to stop. No.1 has a collection of old cars, including a 1978 model Cadillac Coupe DeVille and a number of old Skodas and BMWs. He has maybe about 20 - 25 cars in his collection.

Looks well. I concur. No more to distress it. When you think it needs 'just a wee bit more' - thats when to stop. Less is more

We all have our own ways of working. What works for me may not work for someone else. When hand thumping I use a brass headed hammer, weighs about 1Lb 5oz, heads are 30mm diameter. This is easy to use on bolt heads. I use 'coach' bolts. They have a head about 25mm or greater diameter and having a curved/domed head they are dead easy to hit when 'walking around the clock' When doing a single small stamp I don't bother with the full casing. Wipe the leather over with a wetted sponge, get me bits n bobs ready for stamping, clear the stamping block, then stamp away. About 3 minutes from wetting leather to stamped. I've successfully stamped fully finished veg tan long after its gone away. Come back, want name or initial put on it afterwards. Even fully finished leather is never totaly water proof - water can still get in. Question: is your stamp letters? or a design of thin lines or does it have broad areas? Thinner lines give deeper sharper impressions than broad areas.

Presuming your stamp has a handle (?)** 1. Strke once with stamp flat. 2. Holding the stamp in place, tip stamp slightly to the left, strike again 3. Tip slightly to the right, strike again 4 & 5, tip to top and bottom striking again each time If your stamp is large enough, say 40mm or over 6, 7, 8, 9. Tip to each corner and strike each time You can mix these and 'walk around the clock', eg left side, top left corner, top, . . . . . Veg tan leather should always be damp to slightly wet for best impressions Heating the stamp is usually for Chrome tan leather Moisten the leather all over - more wet where the stamp goes, less in the other areas to avoid tide marks. I usually dampen on the flesh side, this also avoids tide marks ** If not drill and tap a hole in the back of the stamp, if its not already provided, and screw in a 4 to 6 inch long large headed bolt for a handle. My brass stamps come with a M5 tapped hole in them

Shurely there are a few of our Cannuck members which might take this on

Nice wee item agree, a Chicago screw, but with a daisy head so it can be unscrewed with a thumb. The ring will loosen up

That is nice

More: the strap on the ends are to hide the seam and to re-enforce it. The strip across the top sides I think covers a metal bar which makes the side shape and holds it. These bags are commonly called 'Gladstone' bags and have a metal frame within the tops of the sides

You can see the stitching for the zipper along the top on the outside. You can't see it on the inside because its covered by the lining

On thin people and women I add about 4 inches from the last hole. On big guys and fatties I add 6 to 8 inches from the last hole, depending on just how big they is

Depends who you Pm'd. Northmount and Wiz respond pretty fast. Johanna can be fast too Is the mod you PM'd active? I usually look to PM a mod who is currently, or recently been, posting.

1. a lot of men going west after 1865 carried their arms from the War between the States, aka the Civil War. These were mostly flintlock rifles and basic revolvers of ball & powder loading. If they had holsters for the pistols during the war they kept them. 2. In the early movies very many of the 'cow boys' were actual working drovers and used their own equipment, bought during the 1890s and later 1880s. The main makers of the leatherwork for the early movies were the same people supplying those drovers in the 1880s - 1890s. They continued to make for the films and embelleshed their work for the 'stars'. There is a direct lineage to the leatherwork. 3. Contrary to the movies, a ball & powder pistol is not accurate. You can hit a barndoor at 30 paces. You need to be only about 10 feet from a man to hit him. A rifle is of more use. On cattle drives drovers carried rifles and the chuck wagon carried the pistols in case of need, as well as extra rifles and ammunition 4. Each region had variations of holster work which could identify where the wearer was from or where he bought it. 5. Wearing pistols with butts forward is not necessarily 'cross-draw' but it could be what was called 'the troopers twist'. J.B. Hickok wore two 1860s butt forward but drew by 'troopers twist' . If you have a pistol handy, try it. Butt forward. Use your hand on the side you wear the pistol. turn your hand palm outwards, grip the pistol, draw and turn it as it passes your belly, to present and fire. I've timed it and drawing one or two pistols this way is actually faster than 'cross-drawing'

Use silk. Readily available for lining clothes. Bond it with iron on heat activated sheets of adhesive. Forgot what thats called. I'll add it later if I remember or someone else will name it.

A couple of books to look out for are the reprints of Sears Roebuck catalogues of the late 19th C. They have sections dealing with firearms, hardware, holsters, ammunition, holsters etc all with prices. The above book is worth its price, but not readily available in the UK. I bought mine off someone on here and it ended up costing me about £120 - customs and VAT got their share!

Lemon juice is a mild acid. Its good for cleaning and degreasing. It will cover up unwanted smells for a while. Its also a good for a person body wash to remove smells, eg if you've been working around farm manure, food waste or in a chip shop etc, but on materials its only a temporary smell blocker Smells are carried on oil and grease particles. Remove these oils and grease and replace with fresh new ones and eventually the unwanted smell will be removed. Remove the smell carrying grease on the human body, the body usually re-oils naturally. On leather remove that smell carrying oil and replace with nfo in a good leather feed.

yup, the modest onion has many good properties. Its juice is a natural antiseptic. Odors in your fridge or cupboard? cut a fresh onion in half and leave in there and the smell will be gone. Painting a room? use onions cut up around the room to get rid of the paint smell. Clothes rinsed in a diluted onion juice will relieved of strong smells such as smoke smell from bonfires or barbies or caused by sweat or working around farm manure

I would suggest washing them down a few times with a strong water / vinegar & onion juice solution and allowing them to dry in a sunlit place where a lot of fresh air can get around them. Apply the usual leather feed and oils after drying

After 10 years its probably been archived or culled

I have. No results to show you cos the item went into the scrap bin. Don't think 'baby blue' nor 'french blue' but think of a dark 'royal blue', just a bit lighter and brighter than a navy blue. I could not get it any lighter than that despite everything I tried - thinning and dipping, thinning and spraying, thinning even more and trying. With the thinning I had to do multiple coats/dips to get the colour even, then it was dark again. I ended up buying a bit of factory pre-dyed pale/light blue leather for the job - which was similar to yours, a customer wanted a light blue shoulder bag PS; I may have something with this blue on it, or maybe not. I'll look

I also have this jig. Its made of 4 pieces of 3mm thick clear acrylic. Three bolts are not full tightened, the one on top right is a wing nut, or butterfly nut. Loosen that to pull the four pieces of acrylic to the size of the letter stamps - in the picture they are 1/2 inch size. Tighten the wingnut and its all solid. afair this cost me about £3.50 to make.

I also have this jig. Its made of 4 pieces of 3mm thick clear acrylic. Three bolts are not full tightened, the one on top right is a wing nut, or butterfly nut. Loosen that to pull the four pieces of acrylic to the size of the letter stamps - in the picture they are 1/2 inch size. Tighten the wingnut and its all solid.