JoeSnuffie

I made this a couple days ago. It's a letter stamp jig and could probably be modified to work with most stamps. It's working great for me. Since the materials are cheap and easy to drill, someone with more talent than I have could probably make jigs for letters on a curve or in a circle.

I cut a strip from a cutting board, sanded the surfaces smooth, cut it in half and glued the two pieces together with contact cement. I then scribed a center line and, using a wing divider, marked the center of the holes. After marking the holes it was time to drill. Make sure the material is thick enough so that the shaft of the stamp is completely enclosed in the jig, with none sticking out. You want the jig putting even pressure on the stamp and if any of them are sticking out the back, the mallet will hit the stamp and not the jig. I used a 6mm bit and the holes go all the way through, which makes it easy to pop out the letters with a dowel from the other side. !!!IMPORTANT!!! When drill each hole, after the first, of course, you must place one of the letter stamps in the previous hole. If you fail to do this, the plastic will bend and the hole will not be large enough.After drilling the holes, I countersunk some screws with nuts on either side to keep it all together. You can see that I marked mine to show the orientation and placement of the letters. I did it this way because I hols the jig with my left hand while my right hand holds the mallet. To use, I place the letters in as far as my fingers can press, making them as straight as I can. Then I smack them in with a mallet and use pliers to carefully straighten them. Because the shaft of the letters is tapered, they will be pretty tight once you set them in. I stamp the first word and then pop out the letters by pressing them out from the back with a dowel. They pop out pretty easily. I did this for 1/4" stamps but this could be modified for other sizes.

Yep, this stuff. I've been using it for the past 2 months and I love it. I dilute it with about 25% water to thin it out and allow it to penetrate the leather better.It's an off white cream and when it dries, it's water resistant and can be biffed to a beautiful shine. I don't use it on sheaths and holsters, but I do use it on just about anything that bends a lot - bracelets, wallets, belts, etc. I use it after I've dyed and buffed the leather. I apply to both sides and it really makes the flesh side smooth and beautiful. I've found that if I buff really well after I dye, this stuff is all I need to prevent This is especially great with the thin goat skin and kip skin I've been using for wallets. The dye can be really harsh on those thin leathers and the Kiwi Leather Lotion puts the life right back in. It's cheap and can be found at Walmart, by the way. All of these color swatches are finished with only this leather lotion and other oils or sealers. They look great, feel great and the dye doesn't rub off.

Aluminum will still oxidize, but not nearly as damaging as with iron or steel. Usually you just get a light film that can be buffed off. I'm no expert but I've bought chrome tanned leather several times and each time the salt content is different. Once, I had to wash it to remove the insanely heavy salts, and other times there have been no detectable salts, but I'm sure they're still there in tiny amounts. Another reason I wouldn't use chrome tanned is because it doesn't always keep it's shape when molded, though I've had some that got very stiff (this was the one I had to wash to remote the salts) and I had some that was so soft it will never hold a shape. Maybe you're not looking for a shaped case, but if you are you might have better luck with veg tan. I've always read that you shouldn't mix chrome tanned with metals but there are experts here who can give better advice.

I've been playing around with the 'hand rubbed' look and have settled on a method that is quick and easy. I thought I'd share it with anyone wanting to try it. The results are very consistent and can be reproduced over and over as long as you use the same dye colors. I'm able to get nearly identical effects from both cow and goat. I start with Tandy Eco-Flo All-In-One in Desert Tan and finish with a darker color or spirit or oil dye. I wet a sponge (wet all the way through but not dripping) and apply a couple dabs of the dye to the sponge. I fold the dyed side of the sponge over on itself and make sure the dye is squished in pretty well and not clumped on the surface. Then I rub this into the leather, using a lot of pressure and circles that are the size of the 'hand rubbed' color variations that I want to produce. I do this a few times until there are no high contrast streaks, but not so much that I have a thick, even coat. I'm not trying to get an even finish, just enough so that it sticks and provides a little resistance to the final dye color. I apply a little more dye as I need it. I let this set up for a couple minutes. I'm not letting it dry, just letting the surface seal a little. Then I get final dye ready. In the pictures you see, I used Fiebing's Pro Oil dye in Walnut. I use a wool dauber an cover a section at a time. The size of this section depends on how well the Tandy dye sealed. I want to make sure the dye doesn't soak right in, rather, i want it to sit on the surface a bit so I can rub it in. In the picture of the wallet shell, I was able to cover half of the piece at a time. After the second dye has been applied, I use a folded paper towel and some pressure to rub this in. The alcohols in the second dye will dissolve the Tandy dye a little and cause them both to mix and form a thicker dye. Since the Tandy dye was applied unevenly, and the rubbing also spreads the dye unevenly, you get a beautiful uneven 'hand rubbed' look. Don't spend too long in one section, though, and rub a little onto the other sections to make sure it all blends nicely. That's it. Just finish the pieces however you want and make something beautiful.