Tom Katzke

I am sure the company is great. What I was asking is if there is a place to go and look to find companies. One thing I find interesting is the company you recommend gets server space from one place and sells domains for a second. The company that provides servers space looks like a registrar. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

They all say they do that. The problem is with the unmanageable numbers of them out there how can someone tell if they will do what they say? They can allocate bandwidth so looking at any of the referred pages (if they provide any) is no good. There is no easy way to tell if a so-called web host is a reseller of someone's else's service, like Yahoo is. I guess your answer is, no way to tell other then taking a chance that you get what is promised. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

This question is for the few web geeks out there. For the rest of us we may learn something. With about a billion ads for web hosts how should someone go about finding a good web host? Other then using the dart method and just picking one, or doing like everyone else does and use the one recommended by someone, or having your service provider host your page. Is there a better way? I have tried to search for rankings but they seem to all be based on how much they pay to be included on the list. Is there a good place to look to find real unbiased information on picking a host to meet individual needs? Or how about meaningful test results? There has to be a better way other then just taking a chance. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Well we finally finished and delivered the holster. I wish to thank Clay B. and Jim Simmons for there help. Jim went out of his way to help us out with his pattern pack we bought from Hidecrafter. We learned a few lessons. 1 Never make a holster with out having the gun to fit it. 2 It is a lot easier to start and finish a project in a few days then to have interruptions. 3 You can never have enough hardware around. The explanations for 1. It would have been a bunch easier if we had the gun. Unfortunately the gun was several hours away was needed by the owner. Jim's pattern pack was invaluable for the strap design. We had to use a different pattern because the gun the holster was intended for was much larger then the patterns in the pack. I knew this going in but thought we could make it work. It turned out the pattern we used to cut the holster required thicker leather then we used. We had to line the holster after we started to put it together. We found this out after we begged the gun for fitting and drove 5 hours one way to get it. For point 2. It just is. You forget what has been done. On an item you have never done before you have to remember what to do next. In our case it was caused by not having all the materials we thought we had and needed. Part of that was caused by an out of stock situation with a supplier. Part of it was from a cutting error. For point 3. The design of the straps required "d" rings. We got shorted by a supplier and had to beg some from a saddle maker friend. I ended up one short, because of point 2 above. We were lucky enough to have a wire keeper that we could use to replace one of the "D"s that was used as a keeper next to one buckle on the pattern. We also wanted to use Chicago Screws like in the pattern to attach the straps. Never had a need for them before this. Again the supplier was out of the size we needed. We just happened to have to drive by the Leather Factory 3 hours from here so picked some up. They were out of the 10 pack so had to get 100. Well hope you can learn from our experience. I think I will go back to leather art and leave the holster making to the rest of you. In case you would like to look here is a picture. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Clay, I usually do not do this but nice job. To make me feel better. Is that a blend of hair techniques from Robb and Jan? It may be the picture but it looks different then what Robb did. Tom Katzke

I do not think you will see Artisan at the show in Pendleton. The show is put on by Ferdco and from talking to them and other people they limit the vendors so there is little competition. Yop should be able to find a list of vendors by contacting Ferdco by phone or email. It is a long drive to go there blind. I also seem to recall that they were considdering some classes this year. Do not have any Idea what they would be. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Yep it was. I remember they were using air bags or something like that. I will look to see if I can find it. Dont yell at me if I am wrong but I think it was before 2000. Tom Katzke

I can recommend Jim R Simmons patterns from Hide Crafters. I looked in my old catalog but did not see a single pattern pack for just holsters unless you are looking for a shoulder rig, I can recommend that one. I think Yeehaa may have the information you need. Hope Jim can chime in and let us know. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

I had a really good reply almost done and my mouse slipped and it is gone. One thing I do not like about this forum, that replies can get dumped so easy. I will never be able to recreate it so I will say yes you got the correct books. You need to study on casing leather. Too much water and you are in trouble and too little you will never get the depth you need in the stretch. You do not need to use hard wood. I have done forms like you are referring to in soft pine and even plywood. One thing to consider is to ease the inside edge unless you want the hard line that will show. Make sure that the bottom of the form is flat and has no bumps or holes as they will show in the leather. I would not make pieces to use inside the form. Just get or make some ball modelers to use to work in the detail you want. Just to make sure you know steel and wet leather do not like each other. I am not talking about your gun because you will protect it or not leave it in contact with the leather long enough to have a problem. Steel if left in contact with wet leather will turn it black. Fillings are the biggest problem, so keep the wet leather out of any area you will be working on metal. You should be able to remove the gun after forming the holster. Once the leather is stretched it will keep its shape while it dries unless you mess around and mush it. If I remember anything else that got lost I will post again. If you have any other questions just ask and someone will answer. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Well I looked and our favorite book is out of print. I will defer to others that can refer you to a book that is available. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Ed, there is a bit of a difference. You can, with some work, do 3-D leather work like you did in Chain Saw work. One advantage is you do not have to work around defects in the material as with wood. I have seen brands, tic marks and a few other things but I have never seen a knot hole in leather yet. As far as what tools to use and in what order that is up to the individual. I suggest you get a few books to look at or visit a local leather supplier that deals with hobbyists. One book that will serve you well is Leathercraft Tools by Al Stohlman. If you want to continue doing figure work then I suggest Pictorial Carving and Figure Carving Finesse also by Al Stohlman. If you do not have a leather supplier near you then I suggest Hide Crafter in either Fort Worth or Denver. You can find them on line at www.hidecrafter.com. They have the best tools in my opinion and they also have created many videos as well as pattern packs. They will have the 3 books I suggested. I have attached a picture of one of my Wife's projects. It is the only one I could find on my computer. If you have any more questions please ask. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Will look to see. We have a very good one but it is out of print. I will see what else I can recomend. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

A nice piece of work. One thing I can see is on the bone ends. You need to have the lines taper to nothing that make up the knobs of the bone. The way you did it they look to be the same depth and just stop. They should not just stop but blend or disapear into the bone shaft. If you look at the drawing you can see the lines come to a point. After looking hard the only other thing is to watch what side of a line you bevel on. It looks like the teeth may have been beveled on the wrong side. It could be just the picture. Teeth are in the bone so the bone should be on top. Over all I think you did a great job.

Stropping is used to keep a blade in shape. Stropping does not sharpen a blade as much as it helps keep it sharp by polishing it. The ideal is to strop your swivel knife every time you pick it up. My favorite strop is a paint stick with very fine emery paper on one side and red rouge on the other. Here is how I make them. First you need to get the stuff together. A paint stir stick from the hardware store and a sheet of very fine emery paper like 800 or 1000 grit. If you can not find it at your hardware store try an auto parts store. This is the paper that is black or very dark grey. Red rouge or white polishing compound. Some of the thin cardboard that comes in some packages or on the back of a spiral notebook. You can use a cereal or cracker box if that is all you have. Rubber cement is preferred but you can use any glue that will not be lumpy under the paper. I think putting it together should be easy to figure out. Cut a piece of the emery paper and a piece of cardboard to fit the side of the stick you are using. Glue the emery on one side and the board to the other. You will see why the rubber cement is suggested as you use the strop, easy to peal off the paper and replace later. Apply the polishing compound to the cardboard. Red sticks better then the white. All you need is enough to color the board. It does not need to be thick. A note about using cardboard or leather. I know leather is traditional for strops. The problem is very firm leather is needed to keep it from giving under the blade. That give will round the edge as you strop. The cardboard solves this as it is firm. It is hard enough to keep all the blades we use in leatherwork sharp. Best to use materials and techniques that will keep them sharp for as long as possible. Also the back of a business card can be used as a strop in a pinch Now the tough part, using a strop. The emery paper only needs to be used on blades that are in tough shape but not quite bad enough to pull out a stone. The emery can also be used on a blade that has just been stoned to polish it before stropping. The important thing is to hold the blade so that it is at the same angle as it was sharpened. Hold it at that same angle as you drag it across the strop. The biggest problem people have is putting wrist action into stropping. Do not bend your wrist while pulling the blade across the strop. If you do you will round the blade and it will not cut well. If you have any questions just ask, Tom Katzke Central Oregon

I agree with what Bruce says. I have been able to leave a project for a few days but for some reason it is important to not let the plastic rest on the top of the leather. I use zipper bags and blow air into them before sealing. I do this on every project as I like to case the old way. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Thanks I never found that one. I did find one that I was going to use. Ran into some trouble so did not get it done in time for the fair. I ended up putting a horse on a hip flask last minute. Nothing like last minute changes and finishing a project the hour it needs to be delivered. Thanks also for the comment on the PSLAC write up. A correction is on the way. The fish and the braiding box were both made by my wife Sheryl. Now I can explain the trouble I ran into on my fair project. No suitable leather to cover it with. A problem when more then one person is using up the stock. I will still post pictures when it is done. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Nice simple clean designs. Notice I did not say easy. Have you ever considered doing them inverted? Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Accepted totally. I guess I could have changed the story and made up a test using a bowling ball or something but it would not have had conveyed the same impact of a small dog doing the damage. I just have to wonder if the maker of the original collar did any kind of testing. I can remember a story my Father told of staying at a camp ground on a business trip. The guy next door had a mongrel dog tied up to his rig. It barked all the time my Dad was around. He cooked a steak that night and wanted to make friends with the dog so he tossed (not threw) the bone at him as an offering, along with the usual hear doggy be my friend speech. The dogs owner was away at the time. The dog must have thought my Dad was trying to kill him as he took off running the opposite direction busting what ever he was tied with. If we are making items intended to restrain animals we need to make sure they will do the job. If I saw you with your new Rot on a lead I would have been happy to see your lead and collar would have restrained the beast. As a finish to my Father's story the dog was home the next day with a really stupid look upon his face. All's well that ends. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

I never wanted to get into the discussion of dog training. You do what works for your dogs. I can tell you that my dog understood the reason for being restrained. She is a completely different dog today then she was yesterday. Could be the difference in bread. Large breads take longer to mature then small breads do. I can tell you that this dog would laugh at your pennies in the can trick. This dog understands what "kick your butt" means and she has never had her butt kicked. She just knows if she does not stop doing what she is doing and I ask her if she wants me to kick her butt then she stops doing it. This works when NO has no effect. It is the last resort used. Dogs are just like kids, some are smarter then others. They escalate until they know they will be in real trouble. It is part of growing up. Once the boundaries are set in a consistent manner then they know what is accepted and what is not. You do what works for you and I will do what works for me. This is dog number 4 in my adult life and all of them have been better trained then 90% of the dogs I see including the ones that have gone to school. Next time you want to take someone to task do it privately. This was only an example of how hardware can fail if not from a trusted source. Lots of hardware is out there with no description of materials used in construction. Lots of hardware is out on the second hand market as well. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

The attachment is a picture of a D ring that was used on a dog collar we (my wife Sheryl) made. I am not 100% sure where it came from but think it was taken from a commercial collar we bought to strip the small hardware off of. If you have ever tried to find small hardware for poodle sized dogs you know it just is not out there. The D ring was solid until our 5 month old pup decided to get in trouble and I put her on a chain to teach her some manners. I find that about an hour gives the right attitude adjustment needed. She has been fine today. Back to the D ring. The pup is just over 20 pounds. Circumstances arose where she decided to take off on a full run. I was waiting to she what happened when she came to the end of the chain and SNAP the chain came flying back along with the D ring, the dog kept going unaffected. My first thought was Sheryl used a split D ring. The D ring turned out to be solid but cast. I think it is the most common metal used for such items, Zinc. We normally use solid brass hardware but it was hard to find 1/2 inch or smaller hardware when we last ordered. The lesson is make sure you know what hardware you are using. If it is not up to the task you could have a very unhappy customer or friend. Just imagine if this was a nice purse snatched by a burly crook at a full run. Kind of hard to explain why the D on the handle just snapped so easy. Me I am glad this happened in the confines of our back yard. No more stripping hardware off of commercial gear for us. If we can not find hardware we know the quality of then we will not make the item. Quality solid D rings are not that much more then cast Zinc or split D's. As far as I know they are available in Brass, Stainless, Bronze, Chrome over Brass, and Nickel over Brass. The only problem is finding them in the smaller sizes. It may require you to change the design a bit, or just not go that small. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

Hide Crafter in Denver or Fort Worth. They have a web site at www.hidecrafter.com . One thing to consider is to take the Home Study Course. It gives a great basic grounding on leather work. The course is offered different ways from complete with tools and supplies to just the course. I am not sure if it is mentioned on the site. You may need to call or email and ask about it. I recommend it from my wife's personal experience. Saves time and $ over just reading and watching videos because you send in your work. Your work is returned with comments and suggestions. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

I found all my tools and recoated the gritted wheel of our Razor Sharp Edge Making System. The tools I used were a stiff glue brush, an old artists paint brush, and a Grinding Wheel Dresser. Because I never did use the wax and the wheel was in bad shape I used my Grinding Wheel Dresser to clean the felt wheel down to fresh paper. I do not think it is a needed step but now I have a true wheel to work with. If you do not know what this tools is I think you can still get them from Sears. Next I used a stiff wet brush to spread the glue on the wheel. The brush I used is one like you can get at a hardware store for applying solder flux. I also have used them for applying glue in the shop. Don't forget to put down a big enough piece of paper to catch the extra grit in this step. When the wheel is covered with an even layer of glue, pour on the grit while you rotate the wheel. Caution during this step. (The grit is fine and light so it could get in you grinder if there are any vent holes near the wheel. If in doubt remove the wheel or cover the vent holes to keep from getting abrasive in the bearings of your grinder.) After I covered the entire wheel I tapped the side of the wheel while rotating it to knock off the extra grit. I then coated it again to make sure all the glue was covered. I used a flat piece of steel pressed against the wheel to roll the wheel and push the grit into the glue. Now it is time to clean up and wait for the glue to dry. Tap of the wheel again to get any loose grit off. Use an old artist paint brush to brush off any grit spilled on the grinder, don't forget the washers and nut next to the wheel. Put the grit container on a second piece of paper. Carefully pull out the paper and pour the extra grit back into the grit container. Use the same brush you cleaned the grinder with to make sure you get it all off the paper. If you spilled like I did move the grit container to the clean paper that was under the wheel and pour any spilled grit into the container. Put the top on the container and move to a safe place. Put the paper back under the wheel and when the glue is dry brush off the wheel and grinder once more. Now the grit wheel is good as new. Just watch out as it will cut much better then it did before. Happy sharpening and don't forget to use the wax once and a while to get the most out of all this work. Tom Katzke Central Oregon

That is what I thought but did not want to make a mess of it. Thanks, Tom

Great to see someone else does this. When people ask what we think of there work we need to take Thad's advice. Tom Katzke Central Oregon [quote WHEN ASKED TO CRITIQUE ANOTHER'S LEATHER WORK, I JUST POINT OUT THEIR MISTAKES, THAT'S HOW I LEARNED. THEY ALREADY KNOW THE THINGS THEY DID RIGHT.

Yep found the way to change it. I like the Blue better. I guess when you live someplace that is Brown most of the year a chearfull color like blue is nicer to look at. As for new colors how about seasonal colors? Tom Katzke Central Oregon