Dwight

The saddle you describe sounds like the old Jumbo saddle I have on display in my shop. If this is similar, . . . PM me and I'll get whatever pics you need off of it. I bought it out of a pawn shop in Denver, . . . just wish I could sit down with it some day and let it tell me some of the stories it knows. May God bless, Dwight

I struggled with the same problem Michelle, . . . until one day I really watched what I did, . . . I was not carefully placing my stamp under the arbor press, . . . I was just "putting" it there. Once I really began to make sure it was straight up and down, . . . straight right and left, . . . straight forward and backward: VOILA, . . . the impressions began to be really good. Long and short??? Take your time, make sure your stamp is correctly centered in that arbor press, . . . make sure it is straight, . . . and I mean STRAIGHT, up and down, . . . make sure your leather is properly cased / wetted, . . . go down easy on the press until you get bottomed out, . . . and then hold it for a good 10 to 15 seconds. Make all the difference in the world on my stamps. May God bless, Dwight

There are some smaller ones than I use, . . . I think the terminology is "Line 20" snaps, . . . I use only line 24 snaps, . . . they're kinda beefy, . . . work well for all I do. Just do not use the snap setting tools that Tandy sells, . . . they are hard to use, . . . and don't set as well as the tool I have, . . . bought it at Hobby Lobby. http://www.hobbylobby.com/Fabric-Sewing/Sewing-Quilting-Notions/Fasteners/5-8-Heavy-Duty-Fastener-Plier-Kit/p/109268 You have to get your first bag of line 24 snaps, . . . and some scrap leather, . . . and practice setting them. This tool does a great job, . . . but you cannot "hog" the thing, . . . just squeeze it and let it do it's thing. You'll waste $10 or $15 worth of snaps, . . . but it'll be worth it when you "learn how to do it". May God bless, Dwight

USMC, . . . Here is THE pattern that I like the best, . . . it can be made out of one piece of leather, . . . fold it on the dotted line after you have installed the snaps, . . . sew the edges, . . . voila you have it done. There should be zero concern for "scratching the mags" as the piece holding the male part of the snap, . . . if it is installed correctly, . . . will be imbedded far enough into the leather that it should never scratch. To relieve your mind, . . . when you apply the finish, . . . put a couple coats of Resolene 50/50 down inside the mag carrier, . . . it will not scratch them. But if you are still worried, . . . after you put on the snaps, . . . line the inside with 2 or 3 oz pigskin, . . . but that is overkill in my estimation. Cut the pigskin large, . . . contact cement it in place, . . . trim it to fit your veggie tan leather. The first picture shows the placement of the snap parts. The second picture shows dimensions, . . . you should be able to cut it from them. NOW, . . . that is a mag carrier for a 1911, .45 ACP, . . .you may have to adjust it for any other magazine. The third picture shows a variation I like. Instead of folding on the dotted line, . . . you cut the dotted line. Then sew it so that the opening for the mags is up at the end where the straps snap. This works especially well if the mag holder has to be taken on and off during the day. The reason for two straps, . . . it can then straddle a belt loop, . . . making sure it does not slide around on you. May God bless, Dwight

He's within 50 miles, . . . sent him PM, . . . waiting for answer......... May God bless, Dwight

Just a couple of quick comments: 1. By only putting in 5 holes, you force your customer to not be a weight gainer / loser. Many people will gain or lose enough in the seasonal change that they will need another hole punched in one end or the other. I personally build mine so there are 7 holes, . . . it makes the overall belt 2 inches longer, . . . but gives them 3 inches of adjustment in or out, . . . 5 holes only gives them 2 inches. 2. The belt keeper is too narrow. In a relatively short time, it will become a floppy, loose, useless addition to the belt. 3. The belt keeper was not burnished properly if at all. 4. The burnishing technique you used on the brown belt was hit/miss. Above the tongue end in the picture, there are dark spots on the burnishing, caused by erratic pressure on the edge during burnishing. Either be very light and do not get any discoloration, . . . or pour the pressure to it, . . . darken it uniformly from one end to the other. BUT, . . . overall you have a good start, . . . and think about putting a liner on your belt. Even a thin liner adds to the attractiveness and overall utility of the belt. May God bless, Dwight

I never knew to search "line art", . . . did the wolf and eagle, . . . did not get what I wanted, . . . "line art" had it on second try. Thanks, my friend.............may God bless, Dwight

AND, . . . the most important part is that your colors are 95% of the time absolutely repeatable. Sometimes a piece of leather will take the dye different that another piece did, . . . but generally stated, . . . using the same process time after time, . . . standardized, . . . makes for better results whether it is cutting, stitching, or dying. May God bless, Dwight

If I felt confident enough to use a SAA for my CCW, . . . I'd borrow the design and all, . . . and do one for me. The only thing I would change, . . . is I would make my belt tunnel between the two sets of Tee nuts, . . . As it is, . . . I barely feel confident with my 1911, . . . so I don't think I'll rock this boat for now, . . . But I am gonna think on it. I'm thinking shades of McCloud's, . . . cloud, . . . are wisping over me right about now May God bless, Dwight

I have a special job to do, . . . and I need three patterns for it: I need a wolf's head, . . . as though he is looking right at you, . . . plain, . . . not menacing, . . . just looking. Also need an eagle's head, . . . quartering from the left and one quartering from the right. Could probably use the same one and just reverse it. I have to make the wolf's head about 5 inches in diameter, . . . the eagles will be slightly smaller. The eagles will be placed to the right and left of the wolf, . . . as though they were behind him and looking at him. Any help y'all can give will be appreciated. This is for the decorations on a piece of Romanesque armor. Thanks, may God bless, Dwight

Another thing you can do, . . . put on a dye with a dauber, . . . and then wipe it back off. It will stay in the low spots, . . . but you can wipe most of it off if you are quick enough with the wiper hand. It's great for darkening the background and adding some depth to your work. AND, . . . practice a bit, . . . you can do two or three tones, . . . daub in on the outside of the holster or sheath, . . . wipe less off as you near the edge, . . . it can look pretty neat. The most important way for you to learn these "tricks" is to take that scrap leather you have been hoarding for a rainy day, . . . tool some stuff on it, . . . then mess with your dyes, . . . paints, . . . you'll be surprised what you can teach yourself. Just remember to write down how you did it if you are far enough along to be "memory affected". . . . lol May God bless, Dwight

Awesome............. May God bless, Dwight

As many others have said, . . . "Thanks", . . . this WILL be made at least once. May God bless, Dwight

Very nice............... May God bless, Dwight

Good job, . . . simple, but yet good looking. Good job especially on the edges. May God bless, Dwight

I had to go out to the shop and look, . . . it is not cast, I don't think, . . . and it is an Osbourne. My cousin refinishes antique furniture, tables, etc. . . . it was laying in the bottom of one of those pieces that he got, . . . and he just gave it to me. I break the drywall knife blades in half, . . . use it till it gets dull, . . . pitch it. I tried one of the wooden ones once, . . . not my cup of tea. But this one, . . . I think anyone can use it. The worst thing about it is sometimes it is a bit tough starting the piece through, . . . I just grab a pair of pliers in my left hand, . . . grab the leather between the gauge and the blade, . . . and away we go. May God bless, Dwight

I have used one like this for long enough that I can't remember how long. Still works great, . . . May God bless, Dwight http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-DRAW-GAUGE-Professional-Leather-Strap-String-Belt-Cutter-Hand-Cutting-Tool-/111727918535?hash=item1a0380bdc7:g:s8wAAOSwLVZVtcXI

Ohio still writes em by hand, . . . carbon copies, . . . all that stuff. I know, . . . OSHP followed me about 4 miles earlier this summer, . . . I'm doing 45 in a 55 with my trailer on back, . . . with a tractor on the trailer. He gives me the lecture for going too slow and impeding traffic. May God bless, Dwight

Keith, . . . both of those pieces were done with Feibings British tan, . . . cut 50/50 with thinner. I dip dyed them (as I do with all my leather work). May God bless, Dwight

That would be the time I would have read her the little note on the front about legal tender for all debts private and public. When she said she'd call the cops, . . . I'd have give her my card, . . . and told her to have em call me, . . . no need to chase, . . . I'll meet em where ever is most convenient for them. Then I would have walked out. May God bless, Dwight

How long is the barrel? Does he want a 50/50 or a flat backed? May God bless, Dwight

Yes, . . . I have tried the "order without seeing" thing from different suppliers, . . . and was basically disappointed every time. I go into the Tandy store, . . . search through the piles, . . . buy the piece that works for me, . . . and I'm on my way. No shipping costs, no waiting three or four days, . . . and NO big holes, blemishes, scars, etc, . . . such as I have gotten before. May God bless, Dwight

The first thing I would suggest, is quit buying leather at Hobby Lobby, . . . it is way too expensive, and the leather you bought is really not conducive to a beginner learning how to make much of anything. Buy some vegetable tanned leather, . . . cement all your edges together, . . . the first two absolutes. Next, . . . clean up the edge, . . . bevel, sand, burnish, . . . get it "nice". Then if you have wing dividers, . . . slightly dampen the leather in the area you want to sew, . . . make a crease line 1/8 to 3/16 inch in from the edge on both sides. Use that same set of dividers on the "beauty side" and mark off your stitches about 6 or 8 at a time, . . . set your length at 3/16 of an inch. Do not use a multi pronged punch to learn with, . . . that is an advanced tool. Start with an Awl, . . . slowly push straight down on a table surface with another piece of leather under your project, . . . when you fell your tip has probably gone through, . . . turn it over and make sure it came through on the line on the back side. Had you done that on the first wallet, . . . your stitches would not have wandered like a drunken sailor. Getting the hang of hand stitching is easy as falling off a wagon, . . . getting the hang of it and it looking really good, . . . takes lots of practice. You might even just make a couple of strips an inch wide, . . . bevel the edges, . . . sand em, . . . burnish em, . . . mark em, . . . and stitch em, . . . maybe 15 or 16 inches long. Do 3 or 4 inches, . . . quit, . . . go get a cup of coffee, . . . call a friend, . . . then come back and do another 3 or 4 inches. Keep stitching, . . . breaking, . . . stitching, . . . breaking until you get it done. Make some of the breaks a day or two long. By the time you have gotten to the end, you will easily be able to tell which is the beginning and which is the ending part. You already have the best talent you could ever get, . . . you want to do it. Now just make it come to pass. May God bless, Dwight