gtwister09

The eBay plans are directly from a google Book on making Farm Woodwork by Louis Michael Roehl from the turn of the century. That is a nice harness maker's stitching horse. I love the Curly Maple. What is the contrasting wood for the plugs? Regards, Ben

VERY Nice Indian Larry logo and inlay! Regards, Ben

To all the wonderful people at leatherworker.net, Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year. Regards, Ben

Ron, I saw that Bob Klenda has started selling patterns in LCSJ. His website is below. Klenda's Patterns Regards, Ben

That's understandable about the research!!!! Regards, Ben

Rayban, Several years ago (2000) I purchased all their patterns. Of course they do have some new additions to it. They have some great ideas for patterns and they allow you to use them and sell your work as well. I believe that there were several previous posts on pattern finds with Irish's work...In fact I believe that there were some before the meltdown. It's good to alert people to Irish's resource. It also helps searching the site as well because there are TONS of great resources available here in previous posts. Regards, Ben

Andy, Please send some more detailed photos if you can. Like the ones you provided of your hummingbird saddle. Thanks. Regards, Ben

Some of Bob's edgers dropped off of the catalog list more than a year ago. Actually they were still listed in the catalog but were marked as unavailable. I was thinking of filling out my set BUT when I went to do that they were no longer being made as Darcy said. So it was back to the drawing board and then to figure out what the next best alternative was. Great tools and a sad thing to see them fall by the wayside. Regards, Ben

Elton, Bruce and Kate both hit the nail on the head! Did you ever look at the filigree punches that Hidecrafters carried at one time? They had a TON of different sizes and shapes. Of course it looks like you are doing well without them. Regards, Ben

I would have to double Ditto what Darcy said for sure on the Osborne and Douglas items. Bob's gear is WELL WORTH the money spent. I would have loved to find them first beforfe I started hand stitching. It would have saved some (actually a lot) of frustration. Regards, Ben

If you are really interested in security here is a free download from the Secunia Security group to run on your machine. Download - Secunia Personal Software Inspector (PSI) 1.0 You might be surprised to see that there are security issues with Java, Apple iTunes and Apple's Quicktime players, Flash Players, Zip utilities like 7Zip, WinZip and Winrar and plugins for the various browsers as well a myriad of other applications. As well as security checkers like this you should also use a good antivirus package (check out VirusBulletin for a review of virus checkers with regards to catching viruses) and some form of anti-malware utility. Some form of firewall either software or hardware is also needed if you have any type of broadband connection. Regards, Ben

Kate, Check this out. . It is someone that might be able to help you. His web site is McClellan Saddle Page. Regards, Ben

Amen to the club Bruce... Regards, Ben

Don't use laminated glass... Use tempered glass if you can find it. Regards, Ben

I likewise slick away from me. I had an old Osborne glass slicker that was dropped and unfortunately chipped when we were moving. So I bought a piece of glass, polished it and made a wooden handle out of some lignum vitae in a fashion similar to the Osborne one. I likewise found that I had less rounding in tooling if I performed the slicking multiple times in the same direction or in a criss-crossed fashion so I only slick one time towards me with a slight overlap of each pass. With that said I have been known to double slick something that I perform geometric or basketstamping on. Another thing already mentioned is the lighter leathers and slipping the top layer. You have to be careful of that. Regards, Ben

Elton, VERY NICE chaps! The hair on does provide some opportunities. I did some on some bags, mirrors and furniture. I took some horse clippers and started shaving like Bob did to make it a little easier for the gluing. It worked fairly well. I rigged up a vacuum attachment for the clippers. However I got to thinking that if you did it a lot of this that the Flobee vacuum trimmers might be a neat investment.... Unfortunately the shortest length that the Flobee will do is 1/2 of an inch. So it would have to be modified to trim any closer. So it was back to the clippers and vacuum attachment. Regards, Ben

JW, Many years ago Bob Dellis shared with me exactly the same thing that Steve shared concerning round versus square skirt saddles. I used to have a bunch of sketches that Bob made of all types of saddles from various angles. I have misplaced them. It was his portfolio sketch pad as a saddle maker. He also had some from Pohja and others that he kept at the time. Aesthetics and basics in designs are timeless. Thanks for the reminder Steve. I forgot the name of the shop foreman's name at Porters that he attributed that tidbit of information to. Of course it was a different time and as he said it took him years of working there to gain some pieces of information. One of the reasons why he was always so willing to share information. Regards, Ben

Outstanding work! Great mix and composition of stamping and tooling. Different look with the hide on hair mix on the rope bag. Welcome aboard. Regards, Ben

Ed, This is what you want... A center finding gauge. Drac's Center Gauge. It is a standard piece of equipment for woodworker's. I have a couple of plastic and a metal one. Manual method is to measure the dowel and divide by one half and make a mark. Turn the dowel 90 degrees and repeat the mark. Where they connect is the center point. Regards, Ben

Ed, The same belt works. You will notice that there are a number of stepped pulleys on the motor and on the quill side. Most of the time when you raise the top the manufacturer will have a diagram of pulleys/speeds. My son used this setup for a while. He used it with some success and you have to make sure that you have the chisel adjusted correctly. Generally a chisel cuts above the center line and a scraper goes below the center line. If you are set on particular sizes then I would make some scrapers of the size you want but if you are only going to be doing a limited number of cuts then the smallest size chisel will cut all the smaller ones by moving the tool back and forth. I would suggest cutting yourself a template to check against so that you know how much to take off or use calipers if you have them. You can find many woodworking sites on google that can help you in chisel selection and use in cutting. Regards, Ben

Ed, I would have normally said that you get the best tools that you could afford. However over the past year I have seen about 9-10 people that bought the Jet Midi (some even with extensions), Nova or Oneway chucks, Crown, Sorby, Ellsworth tools (gouges, skews, etc) with Tormek or Wolverine sharpening systems and they are now getting out of the hobby. Some of these guys spent over $2-3K on a small lathe, chuck, centers, tools and sharpening system only to find out that they didn't really enjoy it. OUCH! Only you can gauge your desire and such to determine if you could get by with low end gear from Harbor Freight or step up and buy the better gear. Another thing that I noticed is that some of them chewed up some awful good tools trying to learn how to keep them sharp. In fact a couple of them burned up some great tools trying to make and keep an Irish grind on tools. These people would have been better off learning how to GRIND on some cheaper tools but I digress. Just a word of caution.....Those sweet smelling woods are known to create problems for people. The dust is considered to be toxic (to breathe it and to touch it). Several of the older woodworkers that I know that weren't allergic in the past have developed allergies so be wary. At least use a mask and wash your hands afterwards. If you do much then dust collectors are a GREAT investment. I know that when I bought a gondola of mixed exotics and separated all of the species that my hands itched slightly from all the dust. Nothing dramatic but there was between 1/2 and 3/4 of an inch of fine dust in the bottom. On another note, here are some pictures of some older slickers that I have and the new one that I made. I had the older ones made before I bought a Mercury Mini lathe. When I made mine I downsized the slicker, inserted a lag bolt (3" - it is in the material about 2-1/4") for the shaft and reduced the number of slots...just my personal preference from using these others over time. The chuck does chew up the wooden shaft over time and has to be lightly turned down or as you can see one one of them has a copper sleeve. As I said the new one uses a 3/8" lag bolt that is Gorilla glued in. It has had lots of use with no ill effects. Regards, Ben

Check these two topics out for where it got it's name and the responses of those who use them and don't use them. Nightlatch Topc 1 Nightlatch Topic 2 Regards, Ben

I use traditional Gorilla glue (They have a super glue as well as a new wood glue) a lot but not on leather. As Marlon stated it has two issues. It doesn't dry clear and it expands. There is also Weldbond that a lot of people use. It's water soluble and not flammable. I have also thinned it and used it as a primer. The Magna Tac is defintely flammable and has to be thinned with acetone. Check out the glue selection from the Magna Tac people here (Craft Glue Slection) and Weldbond here (Weldbond) to determine what fits your needs. I am sure that there are others. Regards, Ben

Karl, Stretching exercises - Rest Periods Hilly is correct that stretching should always be included as part of the regimen. We can never underestimate something as simple as stretching. Bad on me for overlooking the obvious that generally comes from your doctor. Make sure and don't stretch too far into a point where there is pain. Only you can tell where the stretch and burn positions are because they are different for people. Don't overdo it. Likewise I have to reiterate the rest periods as well. Make sure you take them when you start to feel the burn. Heating Aids Likewise some people use cloth gloves to hold heat in order to keep the affected areas warmer. With leather these cloth gloves would always have to be clean if you did use them. I do know of an older lady with arthritis that does this for her leather work. In fact she has went so far as to get some gloves that are thicker and heat them in her stove as she works. Last time I checked she had 6 pair that she swaps out about every 20-30 minutes. She swears by them. I also know of some deburr workers that did this as well with some benefit. Holding Work Another item that I thought of last night that could be a contributing factor is holding down your work. Several people have complained of hand cramps because they are trying too hard with downward pressure by the hand to hold their leather down to keep it from walking around and gripping the tool at the same time. Quick fixes for this could either be gluing it down (some use glass or plexiglass) or making some shot bags to hold the leather project stationary. An added benefit of the glue/glass method is that it can help prevent stretch. Sorry that I didn't mention these earlier. As mentioned before when you try one of these make sure and determine if they had a positive impact. If I think of others I will try to add them in. Good luck! Regards, Ben

Jordon, Thanks! Had to chuckle on the either or job reference. I am actually more of a jack of all trades. Style to me is subjective to the task at hand. Business proposals and such are a completely different approach than ergonomics and engineering. I grew up on a ranch and farm where there was lots of work. Worked from 16-24 as a ranch hand and heavy equipment operator. Attended college for 4 years after that while I worked at a car wash, managed apartments and consulted for a weight equipment manufacturer (Samson Equipment). I helped them with process improvements with manufacturing and designs. I literally helped them go from a stick figure on napkins as a working drawing to full CAD drawings, persepctives and cut lists. I earned 3 associates , 2 Bachelors (1 in CAD/CAM and the 2nd in Mechanical Engineering), and also earned a Masters in Industrial Engineering/Business Administration during those 4 years. Hectic times to say the least but was GLAD to be out. Never to return to a learning institute except to teach for the first semester after I graduated. I started a computer consulting business at that time as well. Worked as an Industrial Engineer for the next 8 years in a machine shop for a large defense company where I spent time doing CAD/CAM work, plant layouts, work measurement, ergonomics and Reengineering. During that time I continued my mixed consulting business which created Adobe/Truetype fonts, built computer systems, repaired systems, desktop publishing and other odds and ends with work measurement, drafting and some process improvements around manufacturing. For the last 12 years, I have been doing computer consulting exclusively as an independent consultant. Starting out doing some reengineering/automation of some IT processes. I then moved into database and systems administration and then into architecture and executive consulting for several telecommunications companies, a couple of software companies, a financial firm and various small businesses like doctors, lawyers and such. So you can see why I list myself as a jack of all trades. Thanks again for the complements and I hope that someone can use the information as a starting point. Regards, Ben