battlemunky

@ABHandmade, another stellar bit of work Sir. When I read the title I was sure you were the bravest person I've ever met. Glad she didn't kill you or cause you any other type of harm! It looks awesome and I can't wait to see the finished product!

I'm green with envy Sir! Looks great. I agree its a shame to have to dye it black.

Welcome from out of the shadows!

I really like that pony!

Looks great! Sorry the pressure mounted and took some of the fun out of it, that happens to me too.

I use Q-tips for that all the time but have started using a paint brush lately and I think I'm starting to lean more toward it. Just cheap craft store brushes, nothing major. The allow a bit better targetting and control over Q-tips when you are needing to keep it between the ditches. Looks great though. I am playing Red Dead Redemption 2 right now and that holster looks like some of the legendary bull gator things you can make in game. I dig it!

lol, ok, I'll post whatever it ends up looking like, likely an example of what not to do though.

Welcome! Look forward to your experience

Well, if turning something to "high" is the problem then they shouldn't have "high" as a setting I agree with @NVLeatherWorx, those entry level units are pretty crappy.

Lots of practice on lots of scrap leather. You get better with time. I'm still nowhere close to where I want/ought to be.

Both knives have fitting clothes! Love the bird and trout knife but the stacked leather and antler looks like my kind of knife. I like them both Sir, well done!

You sure shot for the moon on your questions Sir! These plague newbies and veterans alike; don't feel bad for the struggle! Cutting: thin leathers stretch a bit when you cut them and different tannages stretch even worse. A sharp knife or scissors are your friend here. You can get a strong plastic bar or metal bar and clamp your leather but I find that a bit unnecessary since being careful and slowing down will help immensely thick leathers stretch less but can still move on you, I use a snap blade so I have an inexpensive sharp blade each time cut of the leather matters too; bellies stretch quite a lot keep at it but try to slow down, use sharp sharp sharp blades and plan/know what you are expecting and try to see it coming also, drawing lines and staying on the line helps a bit but isn't foolproof, especially on thin leathers Edges/burnishing: leather type is a huge driver on this vegtan seems to burnish up pretty nice even at 2 oz even though it requires some clever approaches like laying flat and hitting each side independently and then hitting the edge other than vegtan still eludes me here sanding is your friend, work through a few grits from low to high and it almost burnishes for you and when you do hit it with a burnisher it is almost zero effort edge paint maybe that this is the fix for thin leather. I don't use edge paint since a nice burnished edge looks better most time IMO although I have seen some folks make edge work that you had a hard time looking at and seeing a difference between them I've seen the edge paint roller at Tandy and its supposed to be ok. Heard of people using a pencil tip as a roller and also have seen a scratch awl being used. I hope this helps. There are far more knowledgeable folks on these topics on here and hopefully they'll chime in shortly. Post some pics as well, we can glean a ton of info from pics and may be able to push past any issues specifically as well. Good luck and keep at it!

It doesn't look bad at all @gengado. Main thing I can see aside from the edges is to get the tension on your stitching right when using soft leathers like goat. It tends to bunch up when its pulled too hard. This comes with some practice and feel and time. Looks good for the most part, keep it up!

Looks great! I know what you mean on the belt, I'm having a love/hate thing with a passport wallet right now. Basketweave. Gets me everytime. Doubt I'll be posting it either.

Looks good for a first go. Definitely gonna need pics of the knife

Welcome. I have a similar story. I had a really cool knife I wanted a sheath for but didn't want to spend the 80 bucks for a good leather sheath. >$1,000 in tools, leather, patterns, and supplies later, I have that sheath. I also have a hell of a hobby that is getting close to paying for itself.

Looks like it all worked out @Rockoboy, nice belt! I hope your son likes it

I tend to agree but think it should be tried to see. Just let him know the odds of being a robust thing are small.

That basketweave is outstanding! The whole package looks good but the basketweave is really well done.

Annnnnd, I can't find it again. They were pretty cool looking. They were wet formed and had an outline of a nail on the tops. Can't find them to save my life now.

Sno-seal or homemade dubbin and a hair dryer is where I'd go first but only out of near complete ignorance.

I think I may make one of these. Looks cool.

Commenting so I can see how this gets answered. I got zero info for you though, sorry to be not helpful.

I'm pretty ok with my fingertips but the outboard joints of my pinkies get pretty sore so I made some sleeves out of some scrap. I've seen a guy on Youtube sewing with some leather fingertip protectors. I'll see if I can find it.

Not the cheaper ones @bikermutt07, those literally have some paperboard with a cheaper than hell leather (sometimes) casing. The nicer dress belts will have a raised center with a core of some other leather, at least in the handful of YT videos I've seen. Before I knew better, I had a belt with the paper showing at the end from pulling it to get the buckle tongue into the right hole...glad those days are over.