hidepounder

Nice job on the belts! Clean lines, good flow, clean work on the filigree! Bobby

anester05, If I understand you correctly....you are not going to line and are concerned about leather stretch. There are a couple of methods where you back your leather and not have to deal with cement residue on the flesh side. You can glue to acrylic using Barge cement on the acrylic only....apply the leather to it while the glue is still a little wet. I have done this successfully on several occassions but really don't like doing it because I get such a messy glue build-up on the acrylic. Also, If I don't apply the leather to the glue at just the right degree of wetness, the leather can release during tooling. Another method which I have never tried but have heard toolers talk about is to apply packing tape on the back of the leather and then glue the piece down to a backer using rubber cement. The tape protects the flesh side of the leather. Packing tape can leave a slight reisdue but not enough to be of any concern. I think this sounds like a good method and I'm going to try it but I haven't so far. To answer you question more directly....8/9oz will still stretch. I would design my pattern to allow for some stretching where you can adjust for it along the margins. In other words, make you margins a little oversize with the thought in mind that you will be trimming them back to get to the desired size. If your piece warps horribly you can always re-wet the piece and place it under weights (books, etc.) to hold it flat until it dries. Try not to re-wet too much as it will affect the tooling. I hope this helps.... Bobby

Somawas, I strongly disagree with what they told you at Tandy. In my opinion you don't want any bounce from anything when tooling. When beveling, you are trying to learn to walk your tool along the cut. This is something that takes a little practice and it is accomplished by applying pressure in the direction you wish to travel. You want to advance about a half a tool width with each strike of the mallet. Experiment with leaning your tool slightly to help accomplish the walking effect. Once you begin to "feel" it, it will all come together. It is best to work on cased leather. If the leather is too dry your impressions will be faint and too wet and you'll drive through the leather. I agree with the others....you may need a maul, however I suspect that the stone your using to tool on isn't heavy enough to absorb the strike. Bouncing is very undesirable, both from the mallet or the stamping block. Hope this helps.... Bobby

Tim, The case looks good. You did a good job of lining up your borders and the basket stamping. Good job. Bobby

Mike, I have a set of Weaver punches and they work, but are not nearly as nice as the old Gomph punches I've been picking up to replace them with. If you call Bob Douglas he can set you up with old Gomphs or Osbornes. The old Gomphs are pretty pricey! Douglas Tools 307-737-2222 Sheridan, WY Hope this helps..... Bobby

Ray, The only hunting dogs we've ever been around were leopard Catahoulas...........they just hunt cows! At the moment we have an ACD.....he is one of the smartest and most fun dogs we've ever owned. Bobby

Nice job, Storm, I like it! Bobby

Ross, You did a beautiful job! The colors are great and the twisted fringe really makes them special. Bobby

Barra.....I'm so glad to hear that he is finally home.....so long over due! I had the priveledge of being involved with training the JCRC teams that recovered our lost. God bless him....we will NEVER forget!!!! Bob Park 7th SFG Abn, '72-75

Great looking wood Ty! I love the in-skirt rigs as everyone here knows. Basket stamping and rope border all look good too! Bobby

Good looking wood, JW, as always!!!!! Bobby

Grumpy, There are a couple options for you here. The first is that you need to clean your leather with oxalic acid before you antique. This removes the dirt and oils left on the leather from your hands which is one of the big reasons your antique turned out the way it did. The second option is to use a resist (sealer) like NeatLac before you apply the antique as some of the others have mentioned. You don't HAVE to use a resist, but if you are not going to it is very important to use the oxalic acid (leather bleach from Tandy. Also called wood bleach) to get the leather clean. Hope this helps.... Bobby

Jim, Sorry to be so long in responding.....with the new forum format I keep missing posts! I had two poundo boards that I glued together back in the 70's and I can't even remember why I did it....it doesn't seem necessary, anyway, I still have it and that is what I use for punching. I just punch right into it. It would probably be better to put a piece of scrap under the leather I'm cutting, but I don't. Hope this helps.... Bobby

Hi Angel, Sorry to be slow in responding....I missed the last couple of posts. There is no magic to the design....I just drew a scallop that looked the way I wanted it to and then made a pattern. I traced half of it out and then flopped it over to trace the second half so that both both ends would be the same. By using a pattern it made it easy to transfer to the leather and cut it out. Also it made it easy to duplicate the scallop when drawing the tooling pattern. If there are small adjustment sizes needed I lengthen or shorten the ends. If a big adjustment is needed I would re-draw the scallop. The bead border was made by first cutting a very light line with a swivel knife. I then use a hand beader....placing one edge of the beading tool into the light cut and then with firm pressure I follow the cut and create the bead. Thanks for the compliments....I hope this helps.... Bobby

Hi pburges, Sorry it's taken me a while to respond....I missed your post. Anyway, I do all my lettering on a word processor....enlarge it to the size I need and then print it out, trace onto tracing film and then transfer it on to the leather. There is a whole world of different fonts that you can download for free. I don't like using letter stamps. Hope this helps..... Bobby

skyblast, This may be helpful to you..... Bobby Edging (PDF.pdf.pdf] Edging (PDF.pdf

bran7347, You did a very nice job here especially for your first dayplanner! A couple of things come to mind when looking it over....all of them minor adjustments which I think will improve the project. I would have liked to see the border against the scalloped binding the same width as the other three sides and I think you should have dyed the scalloped edge to match the rest of the edges. I would have eliminated the elongated seeder on the inner border....I don't think you needed it. It is also a good idea to take a modeling tool and smooth out the nicks that are on the inner border which occured during the tooling process. I agree that the checkered beveler detracts from the border....I would use a smooth beveler there. Also I feel that your edges could use a little more work. Try to avoid the use of edge paints and work on burnishing the edges smooth. It will lend a more professional look. Lastly, I would have rounded the corners on the dayplanner just a little bit. I think it would look better. These criticisms are just personal preference of course, but they are what occurred to me. Overall...good job! Bobby

Sorry Dustin....I have never even heard of it...have you asked Tandy about it? Bobby

I have used the lightweight pig skin in the past and really like it, however these days I am using a 2oz calf because it is so clean and I like to add finger carving to my interiors. Bobby

Hello and welcome to the site! When it comes to lettering I'm a strong advocate of tooling all lettering. I feel that the stamps give an amatuerish result and it is difficult to get them straight and even. I find it is very easy to use a word processor to to select the lettering style I want to use and to size the lettering properly. I simply print out what I want....transfer to tracing film....transfer to the leather. Lettering can be manipulated is some programs to create an arch or taper on the ends.....the variations are limitless. Applying lettering in this manner really makes your project look custom....because it is! I hope this helps..... Bobby

Thanks everybody for all the nice comments. They are always appreciated! Bobby

Thanks Jana! These are going to a friend of mine who is a Cowhorse trainer. I wanted to make them them really fancy but he wouldn't have any of it. He's afraid I'll make him look like a Western Pleasure trainer, LOL! Bobby

Thanks Ken, This material is sure new for me. I'm more accustomed to a stiffer, heartier material. These wouldn't hold up a week down here in our Mesquite thickets, but they are going to a pro horse trainer so they are just going to see a lot of dirt and sweat. I'll bet you're right about the break in time though, they are soft and supple and a little stretchy. I've been told the material is tough. Tim K said me he has seen several pair and that they wear well. Time will tell...... Bobby

Another great looking rig, Steve! Is this one for a customer? I have never seen the romance in a ruff-out saddle. I guess that should be expected from a tooler...right, LOL? But what do your customers say....do the like them because they are stickier or maybe they think they are punchier looking? Just curious.... Bobby

Those are beautiful mauls! Ed really does a great job! Bobby