jeeperaz

A few weeks ago I went to a feed & tack store and noticed a whole wall of finished leather goods with Weaver's brand name on them. Today, I went to Petsmart and noticed a whole section of dog collars from Weaver. I have a huge problem with this. I cannot support my 'competition. Weaver has seen their last penny from me. Even if they do not sell the same product as you, one has to wonder if it's only a matter of time. Would you still buy parts and supplies from them if they sold retail finished holsters, belts, boots, saddles? Am I missing something here... why shouldn't we as leatherworkers have a serious issue with suppliers selling finished goods? Especially this one who does it at a retail level.

Check a Michaels craft store if you have them local to you. I found a great silver pen there. I don't see a brand name on the one I have.... sorry.

Good stuff! Looks like it will last a lifetime or two.

The search function can be your friend. Bob Douglas makes quite possibly the finest awl available.

Many people thin it with water.

saliva/water and a small piece of denim or canvas?

I have some of it and I'm not as big a fan as most seem to be. I find it too 'greasy'. I like sno-seal better.

They are no longer one of the places I purchase from. Several months back, I called a few times and spoke to a number of people there. I was hoping they could recommend a type of leather to use. It was very difficult to get someone on the phone who seemed to have any knowledge of leather.... or else I would get someone who barely spoke english. But the kicker is when I finally got one of them to give me a suggestion (their DIamond Tan)... I asked for a sample and they said they would have to charge me for it. You can't just send me a small swatch, I asked... nope, they have to charge. I forgot how much they wanted for a sample but it was some absurd price (like $15 maybe). Thank you... I'll be glad to spend my money elsewhere.

Thats what use... or similar at least. I use o-thane from http://www.campbell-bosworth.com/ They sell it by the foot (a buck per?).... they also have the connectors. I love the stuff... seems to make the machine run more precise.

http://springfieldleather.com/store/ - $10

US Suppliers - New lasts: (they may or may not want to deal with single/small orders) http://www.jonesandvining.com/index.html http://www.globalfootwearsolutions.com/ Used Lasts: (you'll probably have better luck going this route) http://www.panhandleleather.com/ - they don't show them on the website .. $25 a pair last time I checked. http://www.shoedo.co...pairs4sale.html http://www.walrusshoe.com/ http://www.thornappleriverboots.com/ I think I heard that this guy sells them as well... http://www.kimmelbootcompany.com/ Ebay - lasts frequently show up. Sorry, I'm not sure about European lasts suppliers. http://www.goetz-service.com/ ????

Are you looking for 1 pair or whole run of sizes? What style of boot?

Rather than me trying to describe, how about a picture? Scroll down just a bit on this page and you'll see one.... http://www.brettunsvillage.com/leather/tools/tools.html Most leather shops should have some form of this tool... it's most frequently used to set tubular rivets.

A rant if you will.... Early last month, someone posted a picture of an item they made. I replied with my admiration for the piece. I then sent them a PM to ask more info about a type of rivet they used. A few days went by without a reply so I posted again to the original thread in case they somehow missed my PM. Well, with the new software here, I can see that the person has indeed read my PM and obviously chooses to ignore my very general inquiry.... about a brass rivet for god's sake. I wasn't asking for their source... I just asked him if he could tell me more about it and if it's hard to set. I guess what bothers me most is this person's contribution on leatherworker.net is almost entirely made up of them asking questions or seeking info. Luckily, this place is full of people at the other end of the character spectrum.

I like it. Impressive for a first try.

I sew wallets on mine. For $50, why not try it out as you can always get rid of it without taking a hit on resale.

There are a couple of types of lacing hooks... some are easier to set than others. For this type below, there are pricey dies that can be used in a press but I bet if one were crafty /skilled, they could get away with a simple hand-held splash tool and a piece of steel to back the rivet while setting. http://www.zackwhite...ome.php?cat=687 For 'speed' lacing hooks like found on the bottom row of this site, all you need is small rapid/jiffy rivets and the rivet setting tool from tandy. http://www.warkov.co...c0ae69393a9bffb

I've purchased from them on Ebay several times.... all small parts. Good prices, No problems.

http://www.campbell-bosworth.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=73

Hint to tool makers.... we need these in the US.

Hopefully this search works... do any of these look like what you are talking about: buckle search

Very nice!

Thank you! I sure wish they would get a website.

All, I have some very dry and 'boardy' leather that I think could benefit from the addition of some type of solid fat worked into it. I've tried using neatsfoot,evoo and various beeswax based solutions.... not much luck. I'd like to try dubbin although I've never used it and not sure it would work. So I need a US supplier and/or other ideas/thoughts on what to try. Thanks, --L--