Stetson912

So my next question is, has anyone ever offered you fair compensation to sell your product? I would imagine that's fairly unheard of lol. Maybe one day I'll have a product good enough people will want to try and rip me off too! Haha

Oh, you mean you DONT like putting in 8 hours on a whatever-it-is and have someone ask to sell it for twice what they pay you for it which is a quarter of what you should/could get for it because of your noted and displayed craftsmanship and quality and then not being recognized for the work you've done in the first place? Hehe... Sounds like my job... Stupid Walmart lol! I bet it gets frustrating. I haven't had the privilege to sell much of what I make. I've only done a few things for sale for friends so, I can't really relate. Sounds like a nuisance

Haha, it did turn out a bit smaller than I thought. But I also didn't want to make a huge bag for my first one.

Here it is with the strap. Thanks for looking and for the ideas.

Ahhh i see it now. It's a big gear with little gears over it ok. That's cool! Idk how I missed that. You don't have to worry about lining it. It's not necessary just an added touch for a cleaner finish, but steampunk gears n such aren't always clean now are they? So no it works as a total package.

That's different. I haven't seen much like it with the straps as struts n such. It's pretty cool. I'm not very good at tooling but I think I would have done the entire background with a backgrounder or bar grounder and dyed it to help the cogs stick out more. I also would have lined the inside of the flap to hide the rivets. But It's just a personal preference. I think it's a unique concept especially with the straps again. Keep at it and welcome to the forum. There are some tool makers on here too, I hope one chimes in to help you with that.

Ugh that's so obvious haha. Why didn't I think of that! I'll have to find some and retry the bag. I'm certain it would come out better.

Very cool!

Thanks @garypl. I'll have to try that. Thanks @AdamGadut. The ring strap is both stitched and riveted. The bag calls for a zip closure but I couldn't figure out from the instructions and pattern how to do it. It also had the magnet closure so I just used that instead. I'll definitely do improvements on the next one. The leather for the liner is really soft cowhide but is still a bit thick. I would usually skive the binding down but it's too soft for me to do that so it bulges a bit. I'd like to try kangaroo or even fabric on the next one. Thanks for the input.

I'm finishing up a bag for my wife. I just have to do the straps. I learned a lot on this bag. It isn't perfect and is a bit rough in places but I'm still happy with it. Critiques welcome. And a special thanks to rocky Aussie for his inspiration and previous help and ideas. It's my first bag and first bound edge as well. The edge could use improvement but still looks ok. I need help with lining the bag still. I think the garment leather was still a bit too thick. I did a pocket with zipper, that's another first for me. The blue on the bottom inside are strap ends for later when I finish it, I just set them in there so I wouldn't lose them haha. I'll update with the final project. Thanks for looking.

Very welcome. Bob part is an amazing artist and knows his stuff. Many people use his method and it gives a glass smooth edge every time. Takes a bit of work if you don't have power tools set up for it (like me) but the result is worth the elbow grease. Keep it up

Indeed... I still manage to get my hands dyed some color here and there but not to the extent I did that day.

When I first started I shunned gloves thinking they were sissy and a little dye never hurt nobody. Que a black dye job... I was using sponges n paper towels ect and literally dyed my hands black... Both palms jet black. I used a pint of acetone and nail polish remover (my wife's nail polish remover just to clarify) and still had gray hands for two weeks haha. I now praise gloves...

What are you using to burnish? And what's it look like after a few hours of drying time? Im no expert by any means but these are my observations based on my past projects and what I use. A wood slicker tends to darken the edges as the grooves wrap around the edge. You may also be using too small a groove when burnishing, this causes just the sides of the leather to darken instead of the actual edge. You may be able to even it up by doing more burnishing on the other side. The water will darken the edge as well, so let it dry completely before trying to correct anything. I tend to use denim more often than anything else now. I like to wet the edge a bit and burnish with denim scrap that I rubbed/charged with saddle soap. Glycerine saddle soap is better but I don't have any so I just use the regular feibings soap. Then when it's slick I will dye the edge and repeat the process and touch up the dye. I finish the edge with paraffin wax and a wood slicker to rub it in. Then buff the edge with a soft cloth just to polish it. I recommend reading the edge burnishing guide by Bob park (hidepounder). You can find it in the pins on the how to section. Hope his helps.

That's awesome man! Congrats

Not sure how I missed your replies but thank you both for your input. I agree with you Ron, the pattern isn't mine but downloaded from leathercraft library for a Tandy bag. Not that that matters I guess. I don't do as much tooling as I like too but I will definitely have to practice more. I pay too much attention on trying to follow a line that I miss the adjustments I need to make. And I didn't think about the odd number cuts. That makes sense though. Grumpy, I do have Bob Park's book and have been to Paul's site but I didn't see where to download what you're referring to. I will check again. I would have to say that while there are a great many good artists none seem to captivated my attention like Hidepounder's. He is probably my favorite artist. Again thanks for the input!

That's odd. It shouldn't stick like that. I would check your setter. Maybe it's defective? I'm not sure just a thought

Very good, glad I could help. I think you're off to a good start. I've done paracord too it's a lot different than leather that's for sure, but the principal's are the same. Once you get the beveling down everything will... Dare I say "fall into place."

Howdy 2canknot, welcome to the forum. Lots of knowledgeable people here. I highly recommend Bruce grants Encyclopedia of leather and rawhide braiding if you don't already have a copy. There is some information on turksheads and beveling I think. To touch more on beveling(as I don't know how you have attempted it so far), I recommend looking up bernie46 on YouTube. He is no longer with us sadly but his videos have a ton of knowledge and are well worth the watch. Anyway, he was an Australian whip maker (one of the best) and shows a quick but effective way to make a strand beveler out of common materials. This is the video but, I emplor you to watch his other as well. He shows how he preps his lace and such as well. If you don't wish to make a beveler you can buy one. They aren't necessarily cheap, you can look at y-knotlace.com. I also have never personally seen pre beveled lace. To touch more on turksheads, I would recommend snooping around the braiding section here. Also, there is a Facebook page/group you may consider joining called "the mighty turkshead" and that is a very good place to look (especially the files section). It's essentially a forum for just turksheads and all the wonderful interweaves and variations associated with such a wonderful knot. Hope this helps, cheers!

Thanks battlemunky, it was a fun project. I've never been a big fan of the minimalist thing but it's growing on me. At least in the wallet area. It holds enough of the stuff I need and is a lot thinner.

Awesome!

Thanks for the update.

I retract my earlier statement about the leaves. It looks good like that. I love shoe polish! Works so well and is cheap to get lol. That's what I use on a lot of things. Great job !

May be worth the investment. It would fit in really well.

Hahaha!, it would definitely work billybopp