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oh, ok... I got what you mean. If that's the purpose it will not be needed. The blade will be closed on itself when in the sheath and there will be no contact of sharp edges with the leather or the stitch... a very neat idea for when I venture into making a field knife sheath, though!! Again, thank you very much!

Thanks a lot for your comment Brian. I hadn't thought about a welt... would it be needed to keep the blade from bending downwards? The side of the razor was a particular issue when I was thinking about how to do this. If you notice, there's a sort of bevel on the right side of the picture that will help to keep the whole razor tight within the sheath... but not so tight that it wouldn't go in or come out. That's why the stitch line parts away from the razor on the side of the razor's hinge. Would this welt be under the sheath on the side of the blade?... I'm trying to picture the whole thing...

Hi, everyone!! I hadn't been around in a while... you know how it is, busy with the day job... boy, does that take up a lot of time!!! Anyway, I just wanted to share a new project I started working on for my barber: a holster for his trade tools. He wants something the likes of a shoulder holster, resting between the ribs and the arm, with straps crossing on the back... I don't know what these are actually called but I'm sure you get the idea. He proposed the idea, and it started to tumble around in my head. I'm very sure it has been done before, but I didn't want to get influenced by looking for holsters made specifically for a barber's scissors and straight razor. I remember having read around here about wet forming and I started off by making a sort of cast out of a couple of slicing boards. First, I traced said scissors and razor, pasted them on one of the boards and cut around with a hand saw: I then proceeded with sanding off the edges of both the negative and positive halves of the cast to give room for the leather. I wet the leather (around 6 oz, natural color, veg tan), inserted it into the cast and kept everything in place with a few hand press and vises After it was all dry and properly formed (roughly a week after because of very bad weather when I started) I dyed both sides of it: brown on the rough side and black on the side that will be shown, just to have the borders shine a bit diferent than the rest of the piece... it doesn't show in the picture, tho. I already punched the holes for the stitch. Anyway, it's all I have done for now. I'll keep sharing the progress as the idea keeps taking shape. There are decissions still to be made about what fasteners to use, the thread color, what kind of rivets I will use, etc... so, I'm open to ideas!! Have a nice day everyone!! it's nice to be back after a loooong while!!

ah, the dreaded answer... so, sanding, and burning to a matte finish is the best I can aspire with chrome?

Hi, everyone! I read the tutorial and it is quite straightforward. I applied to one of my veg tanned leather project and worked wonders... not to the level of Bob's finishing, but close enough for me to call it a success. However, I hit a bump when trying to apply this same process to chrome tanned leather. For one, it's way more flexible than veg tan and I had a rough time trying to keep everything in place when using the burnisher. So far, I've had to settle for a matte looking finish when using this type of leather. Are there any tips anyone could share for burnishing chrome tanned leather? Thanks in advance!!

Thanks a lot, man!! The Maine thread is a delight to work with. I have the chance to compare it with Tiger very recently and they are quite diferent, but I don't know whether it's fair to compare these two particular threads. For one, the Tiger thread I used was somewhat thinner than the Maine. They both run very smoothly, have just about the proper amount of wax (Maine is a tad more waxy). They do look different. Maine looks rougher, whereas Tiger has more of a fancier look to it. The only aspect (other than the price, of course) where Tiger stands out is how it withstands the rough handling on the point where it meets the needle. On very long stitches, Maine tends to become undone in the knot you make on the needle. This doesn't happen with Tiger.

I really appreciate it, Joel! Thanks so much!

thanks a lot, Eric! I really struggled to put those scars in a nice place because the scar was a bit slanted relative to the longest straight edge I could get on the side I got, which meant a potential for lots of scrap in the form of little triangles. In the end, I managed to get some of the smaller pieces out of those triangles and minimize scrap. Thanks a lot, Todd!

that's for sure... I'll just have to repurpose the backpack... maybe for a computer... a desktop computer... LOL

It is a Hercules, no doubt!! Even so, it's waaaay more light and manageable than that beast of a backpack. Thanks a lot!

Sure, no problem. The one in there is from a Tenba messenger bag I had. The thing with that one is that the last time I checked (about a year ago) they didn't sell those separately... very weird!!! Instead, I got one from Amazon. The brand is Koolerton and there are lots of sizes to choose from. I thought before of having one made by an upholsterer or seamstress, but I haven't been able to look around. This is an alternative for me because here in Mexico I can find someone to make it for under 30 dlls, which is at least what it would cost me to buy a cheap one in Amazon and have it delivered in Mexico.

Yes, they do, Jack. But, actually, I found a problem: it's either they're too tall or the leather I was using is too thin. The result was that the stud wiggled too much. Here are two pictures that show the solution I came up with. On the black piece of leather you can see the stud set directly on the piece that holds the strap. On the brown one, I installed the stud on a separate piece of leather that went underneath the external piece, so that the stud post would hold be shorter and a better fit for the strap. I bought these ones at the Buckle Guy. THe part numbers are B1020-0A-BOCR2-LL and B1414-0F-YP (the stud and the holding pole are sold separately).

thanks a lot, Billy!

Thanks a lot, Jack! The leather is 6-7 oz... somewhere about 2-2.5 mm thick. It's all chrome tanned except for the shoulder strap. The sewing is all saddle stitch, two needles. I finished up two reels of 0.040 Maine Thread, although I wasted about half a reel in those two pieces I messed up. Also, there are some very short seams that meant a lot of thread was used in the remnant needed to be able to move the needles.

Hi, everyone! I finally had the chance to wrap up th eproject I showed in here a few days ago. This project was a bit challenging because I had no previous experience sewing things on the inside nor with piping (which I almost skipped altogether). Considering there were almost no do-overs for individual pieces, I can brag about it as a success... I did however messed up two major pieces, which in turn led me to consume all of the leather I bought for this and this kept me from making a couple of straps for attaching stuff to the bottom of the bag... anyway, there is more time than life and I'm sure it won't take me that much of time to get a couple of straps when I embark on my next project, whatever that might be. As I said, I had never made a bag before which was sewn on the inside, so, before I started I roamed about the Internet looking for ideas. I wanted something rugged, light and functional for something that could double as an everyday camera bag and the eventual carry-on luggage. So, I picked up the ideas, began drawing, decided on a color, bought the hardware and thread accordingly and I put my heart, my hands and my future arthritis into it. I'll describe some of the less obvious features in the pictures below. All your questions and feedback are welcome. Here's the whole bag, side pockets, shoulder strap and all. The side pockets are removable, as you will see in the following pictures. Main flap and handle (the "brand" was laser printed, but I'm considering to have a stamp made for future projects). Here I show the two sets of dees for the shoulder strap. This is an idea I got when viewing one of the reviews of James Crane's Youtube channel. The pair of dees on the back of the bag is used when you're carrying the bag cross-body style. The other pair, when carrying on the same side where the bag rests. Here are the bottom and the sides of the bag. Here are two sets of dees just hanging from the straps that close the bag. The straps on the sides are used to attach the pockets seen above. And here is a view of said pockets dettached from the bag. The two cross straps on the pocket rest on top of the two straps on the side of the bag. The same straps used to attach the pockets are used to close it down. You may have noticed that I used a double dee closing mechanism as well as a stud button for all the straps. The reason is that I'll be using each system separately at different times. The button studs are there for an "on the fly" closure. The double dee is used for a more secure closure. And here are several pics showing the contents of the bag.

I'm sorry... I just understood what you meant: lining as in pasting and sewing a second layer instead of A-ligning...

Thanks a lot!! Thank you, Monica. I didn't quite get the comment about lining up the straps... they go all the way around the pocket, if that's what you mean...

Not a problem, Bigfoote. Opinions -specially different opinions- help in getting better.

Thanks a lot, Mike!! I want to see how those look on the finished bag before making a decission. All the straps in the bag will be dettachable and will double as a cargo straps for additional stuff... you know, tripods, water bottle, blanket, whatnot... that's why it didn't bother me that much at the beginning, but, now that the elephant in the room has been noticed, the comments make sense.

that's a great suggestion. I was thinking of a couple rounds of carnauba-let dry-polish. This is because I've noticed that when carnauba dries out it leaves a farily hard texture on the leather and eases up the sanding work. That's actually how I burnished the edges that are seen in the picture. I'll explore this issue in good depth these next two weeks, which is, give or take, my estimated date of finishing. thanks again!!

smoothing them down... that'd be an interesting way to go and keep things as planned until now. Thanks for the suggestion!!

hahaha!!... I might!! But it's not really that big... I think. The main compartment will be about 10x14x6 inches... with the pockets attached to it, the 14 inches become about 20, though...

Man!! That's an issue that floated around in my head a lot before actually deciding to go with it. In the end, I went for ease of use and whole pieces... I didn't like how it looked sewn together and twisted around in the middle... although that joint could be easily hidden behind the keepers... something to think about, anyway. There's still time before I finish this baby. Thanks for the feedback, man! I really appreciate it.

thanks a lot, Billy!! I'll keep posting as I advance through the assembly.

Hi, everyone!! This project is far from done, but I just wanted to share some progress. This is one of the pockets that will go on the side of a new camera bag I'm making. It is my first attempt at piping and inside sewing. I mafe the piping myself from the same leather I used in all the project. I'll share my process once I'm done with the rest of it (I have yet to make another four stripes: two for the other side pocket and two for the bag's main compartment. It's all coming together rather nicely, I tell you!!