BearMan

Hi Everybody, When I moved to South Carolina, I wanted to find a good "local" leather supplier. I always like to deal locally if possible. As it turns out, the closest supplier to me is Zack Whites. With my first order, I called & talked to Tim, & told him what I was looking for in the leather I like to use. I just happen to like a fair amount of "fat" marks in my leather. Tim has sent me exactly what I wanted everytime. We only had a small situation one time,,, actually I recieved too much of a good thing. When I called Tim, the problem was resolved,,, quickly,,, & more to my benefit than his. I expect to have freight charges on anything I get shipped in. Just the other day I needed a small lathe part, that cost $7.00 from a tool company,,, & the shipping cost was about the same as the part. That happens whenever it's a small order,,, a lot of the time, the shipping seems high,,, but thats with lots of suppliers, not just Zack White. I've had good dealings with Tim & Zack White, & I'll continue to use them. There are lots of other good companies out there,,, but Zack White has worked well for me,, Besides,,, being so close,,, I get things quickly. Ed the"BearMan"

Another thing to consider,, the noise factor. With the compressor going, & the noise from the "tool",,, that's a Lot of noise! If you live in an apartment,, I'm sure your neighgors would just Love you. Ed

Hi Everybody, It's great to be back from Christmas visits!! Here is a picture of an original Bob Beard Maul I got several months ago from a personal collection. As far as I know, it's one of the only "new un-used" Bob Beard mauls out there. It's a 16oz, that was originally bought over 10 years ago, & has never been used. I was VERY lucky to have been offered it. A couple years ago I was very fortunate to have met Bob Beard, & talk to him about my mauls. After showing him what I had believed to be the same material that he used to use in his mauls,,, he tested it, & told me "That's the stuff"! He gave me his blessing to tell everybody about the material & that it is the same as what he used to use. He also told me that he's just not interested in making mauls for a couple reasons,,, the cost & availability of the material it self,,, & he just is too busy. Bob has the #1 "Bob Beard Special" mauls I make, which I made unique, just for him. Bob sends people to me quite often, telling them, if they want one of his old black mauls,, they need to get with me, because it's the same material. Thanks Bob!! Here are the picturs: Ed the"BearMan"

Good Morning, I believe it's suminagashi. Basically, it's where inks are floated on the surface of water in a shallow tray, & then manipulated to get a pattern, & then the object is slowly lowered into the pattern, transfering the pattern to the object. Take Care,,, Ed the "BearMan"

Good Morning Bob,,, Great work,,, but of course,,, that's all that we'd expect from you!! hehehe Have a Great Christmas. Ed

Hi Dustin & Tina, I'm getting ready to start making a few of these. Just contact me through PM,,, Ed

Hi Dustin, Thanks!! Next week after Thanksgiving,, I'll probably put some up. I've been using a Key Fob, similar to these for about a year now. It's pretty handy,,, makes it easy to find the keys. The lay out tool is something I use just about everytime I draw on the leather,,, or trace over a design. Now that I think of it,,, for those that are using "Craftaids",,, the smooth end would work very nicely on those. This lay out tool is the first one I've made with the Gold color,,, so I'm kind of anxious to find out how long it will stand up to the wear. It's done in a heat treatment process, so it's actually part of the metal. Thanks,, Ed

Great Find!! How appropriate that you find these patterns!! I'm sure You put them to great use!! Ed

Hi, It's actually pretty simple. First it needs to be smooth & polished, Then heat it with a propane torch slowly,,, you will see it start changing colors,,, first will be a chrome color, which will change to a gold color. Once it gets to the color you like,,, quench it in some water quickly,,, & leave it in. That will lock in the color. Keep in mind, that the color is VERY thin,,, & will wear off with use. Also, this stainless is 304 or 817 stainless. I'm not sure if you will get thsame color change with other qualities of stainless. If you like a varigated color,,, when it's the color you like,,, you can sprinkle it with water,,, which will give it a varigated effect. Good Luck,,, & Be Careful!! Ed the"BearMan"

Good Morning, Here are a couple new things. I'm constantly being asked about some more key fobs,,, so,,, here's something new. They are about 3 1/2" long, not including the ring. I've included a faceted "jewel" in the end. Some have either a real Garnet, or Saphire. Plus,,, there is a hidden compartment inside, big enough for some rolled $20.00's They are Cocobolo, with black poly heads. The lay out "spike" is another one of my designs,,, used to draw your patterns on the leather,,, & if you make a mistake,,, the other end is an eraser. Well,,, kind of,,, it will smooth out the line, so that you can re-draw over it. This one is made with Curly Walnut,,, & a special heat treatment, to make the spike look gold. Although I'm sure the gold will wear away some with use, it will have a nice antiqued appearance. Please let me know what you think.. Ed the"BearMan"

Good Morning, Is this something like you're asking about? The layout tool, looks gold, but it's actually stainless steel. Ed the"BearMan"

Hi Everybody, I just got back from the "Big Lots" store, with something worth looking at. I saw that they had some 12 Led Headlamps on sale for $5.00,,, so I figured for the price, I'd get one. To my surprize,,, it's actually pretty good! It has the 3 strap design, with a strap that goes over the top of the head, to help support it. It has 4 differnt lighting modes, either 4 led's, 8 led's, or all 12 led's. With all 12 led's lit up, it actually seems a little too bright. For the price,,, it "ain't" bad! It's probably not as good as a "tec-light" , but so far, it looks like it will work just fine. I just thought I'd pass that along. Ed the"BearMan"

Hi Everybody, Thanks for all the wonderful compliments!! I really do appreciate them. I have been talking with a couple groups / people about possably doing a one day class on coloring. I know most people are kind of like me,,, in that it's difficult to get to an instructional show sometimes, so I'm also considering a book, or DVD. I believe that most everybody has the ability to tool & color. It just takes some good "lernin" & lots of practice, patience, & the attitude that it's Ok to mess up, sometimes,,, because that happens to all of us. I've never claimed to be the best,,, far from it,,, but I've figured out a lot of the easier, simpler ways to do things. Doing an overall color job on a piece will take about as long,,, sometimes longer, that it did to completly tool the piece. Sometimes the toughest part, is figuring out, how the recipient would like it to be. Muted colors,,, more vibrant colors,, stictly natural with some hi-lights,,, or just coloring a few parts. A small bit of chemistry is involved,,but not much. Some instruction on brushes, & how to use them. A good eye for not only color,,, but an eye for layers of transparent colors, is actually something that can be taught,,, although a lot of people are already good at it. It's actually simpler than it sounds here. Thanks again,,,, Ed the"BearMan"

Thanks Dustin & Tim,,, Tim,,, Sorry, I'm affraid my Christmas list is too big already!! Now,,, only,,, 5,,or 8 more to go, most of them a lot smaller though. Thanks for looking,, Ed

Hi Everybody, Here is another Christmas project done. It's a notebook for a Project Planner notepad. All my usual tooling & coloring, with some air brushing done on the inside panels. Please let me know what you think. Thanks for looking! Ed the"BearMan"

Hi Marlon, Very nice job! Your coloring is getting better all the time! Everything looks very clean & crisp. I really like your lacing job,,, I need to do more of that. I'm sure I'm way out of practice. Thanks for sharing! Ed the"BearMan"

Hi Randy,,, Very cool!! Lots of hours involved I'm sure. It's one of those things that the closer you get, the better it looks!! Thanks for sharing,, Ed the"BearMan"

Fantastic!! Thanks for sharing!! Ed the"BearMan"

Hi Ozzie, Here is something that might be just what you are looking for: http://www.hidestoart.com/hides_to_art_web_014.htm it's a nice wooden tool box made by HTA. It's not cheap,,, but it might be what you need. Ed

Hi Ken, Just a regular propane torch works fine. Just be careful to not get it too hot. Once you see the it's getting hot, just rub it with a fine wire brush, & the chrome will come right off. One point you need to be wary of,,, some of the newer tools, are made out of "sintered" metal, which melts at a very low temp. Sintered metal is made by compressing metal powder. So if you are going to do adapt a tool,,, it should be an older one. Ed