Trauma

That's awesome work Roo, great job!

What is the purpose of the muzzle? There are several situations requiring muzzles, and they each need to be matched to the right muzzle. Is this a commission job? Or personal? If it's a commission job, find out more details and make sure you know exactly what you're making. Liability might be an issue here if the customer is ordering the wrong tool for their task. If it's personal, talk to a dog trainer or behaviourist first and find out what type of muzzle you will need. A professional will be able to tell you exactly what you need. (if they know you're a leather worker you might even get referals )

Thanks for sharing John, I think I've learned and developed my own skills more from observing what you've so generously shared, than anything I've learned from a book. I once heard it said that a true craftsman is never afraid to give up their secrets, if only because that will give them more competition to prove themselves against. Thanks again John, you're a boon to this forum

I felt the need to separate my response to Kevinjohnson from my response to Noah. As i said in my previous post, you have a hell of a juggling act on your hands. I wouldn't recommend roadkill as a leather source. Even if you manage to find one without tiremarks straight through, the bacteria that starts at the moment of death will be a problem. If your g.f is ok with shoes, maybe try broaching the subject of reducing waste, assure her that every scrap of leather will be put to good use, and that as little as possible will go to waste. My fiance had issues with me taking up leatherwork, until we discussed it and I explained that the leather will be produced anyway. It's an established industry. And that if nothing else, i make use of as much of the leather as possible, throwing out as little as i can. Please ignore the crappy responses, for the most we're a good bunch. Good luck

Kevinjohnson, You might do well to 'lurk' here a while longer and learn what this board is really about. As I see you don't really get it at all, we have all walks of life here, from seasoned bikers wanting to make their own gear, to hobbyists, to professionals wanting to see what everyone else is doing, while sharing a little of what they've learned along their own path. The one thing I haven't seen so far however, is the sort of sickening response you provided to what I perceive to be an honest approach to a difficult situation. Sure, he's got a hell of a balancing act on his hands, but personally i applaud him for trying to strike a balance. And then I see the crap you offer as a response. You disgust me. Grow up.

I'm eagerly awaiting the PETA sponsored gallery exhibition featuring recreations of some of Edward Gein's pieces. "I wonder how the artist got that puckering effect on the lampshade?" "That's a belly button." They could sell tanned and stuffed keychains made out of fingers and toes in the gift shop. Kinda like rabbit's feet, but not. Cos that's cruel.

Replace the notebook with a marble slab, make the compartments a little bigger, and I can see this being a portable leather carver's briefcase. Just the sort of thing I'd want to take to the inlaws' with me when I want some quiet time Beautiful work

I have had almost this exact same scenario happen to me, almost down to the lack of O2 almost doing me in. Up until now I'd always figured it was me just being impatient, but your comment of holding your breath until turning blue while trimming here and there 'just until it works' described me to a T. I really can't explain it. All I did was practise cutting the pieces out from linoleum until I had it perfected and it's worked without an issue.

Hi Bob, There are a few different ways to do a DS case, did you want it to open across the wider side? or across the end like a mobile phone pouch? Did you want it to close with a snap or with a magnet? A few more details about what you are looking for would be helpful.

What do you mean by plastic-y? Does it feel like a decent piece but doesn't tool? Not quite sure what you mean. I'm in Australia so have had no dealings with Tandy, but is there any way to return it? Or is it a case of 'you picked it.. stiff luck.'?

I've found most apps, if you print 1:1 will print it to the right size. I typically use paint or Windows Image and Fax viewer if i'm at work. If in doubt, go File> Print preview and eyeball it for size, then use scale to adjust to what you want to make. The fat bag or belt bag scales nicely.

I've been stencilling my own t-shirts for a while now, and can vouch for x-ray file being awesome for making stencils. I've found if you can't get xray film, a good alternative is overhead projector sheets, they're available in different weights and are pretty cheap, i pay about 20cents a sheet.

I've downloaded the belt pouch, zippo case (still gotta stitch and block, but lost my lighter ) and also the watch bands. Best $3 i've spend so far. I used a stitch spacer rather than the marked rivet holes, and each job has turned out faultless! A misleader on the page though, the 'fat bag' listed in one of his multi packs is the belt pouch standalone pattern. i'd recomend the multipack of patterns, just because they include the standalones. if the descriptions had been better, i would have grabbed a multipack the first time and saved a few bucks on getting the other patterns

Those are fantastic! I love the straight profile, I couldn't pick a single stand out of place and can completely understand how Noah thought you might've been using a braider. I hope when I get the balls to try braiding the whip I'm planning, that I've got half as much patience and skill as you do.

I love making flask covers, they're so simple to put together, and provide a nice flat carving surface to play with.. I've never glued mine however. I always make mine a few mm shorter than the length required to wrap the whole flask, I then tool, dye and burnish, then stitch it up over the flask. I've found that that way it bridges the curve on the inside of the flask, but the bridge sort of suspends the flask over the thigh (if carried in a hip pocket) without digging into the leg. A benefit of not glueing is that the cover can be removed when the flask needs to be washed or polished. I'm loving the navy blue and black, they set each other off really well, top job! I'm also really liking the nice clean lines you got with the "A" flask, makes me eager to get some antique finish to play with.. I love the notated degrees and other notes in the diagram, it shows a high attention to detail, but doesn't make it look cluttered at all.