Mulesaw

A friend of mine asked if I could make a saddlebag for his sons 1920 Indian Scout. he wanted it to look pretty similar to one he already had for his 1934 BSA. I took the overall measurements and made the saddlebag a little bit different using some slightly thinner leather (5 oz). The older one was something like 12 oz, and seemed too stiff and clunky to my taste. It wasn't an original saddlebag either, but one he had someone make some years ago. The reason I only made one was because we hadn't agreed on any price etc. so I told him that he could show it to his son and if he liked it I would make a second one and if he didn't like it - it would be OK with me. I hadn't treated the leather in any way, so he felt that it was very light in appearance. I gave him a couple of small samples of the same leather with some neatsfoot oil on it, so he could see that it would darken once treated. I haven't heard back from him since I have returned to the ship, so I am still not sure if he wants it or not. I had clocked my time and it took me 6 hours to make it. There is roughly 4 sq. feet of leather in the bag, and a bit of hardware.

Hi Tom Thanks for the heads up on the book, I'll try to see if I can locate a copy of it somewhere. learning something new (old) is always fascinating. Brgds Jonas

Hi Tom Sorry for the late reply, but I have just returned to the ship, and I never take the time to sit at the computer while at home, so I have just seen your comment now. Thanks for the very kind words on the halter :-) I haven't got a clamp onboard. I have often thought about making one, but never taken/found the time to do so. So I just hold it in my hands and accepts that it takes a bit longer to sew out here. Sadly the halter didn't fit if the browband was attached. It is funny since I made it according to the measurements in the book, so I guess that Bent's head is a bit larger than a standard riding horse in those days. But the rest of the halter fits nicely. Anyway it was also mostly a project meant to occupy my mind while sailing, so I have no problems with the headband needing to be a little bit longer. I can make another one some day when I am in the mood for it :-) Brgds Jonas

@tsunkasapa Sorry for the late reply, but I have just returned to the ship again, and I didn't find time to visit the net while at home :-) That is incredible to make 27 sets of harnesses! But I bet it is even more incredible to be pulled by a team of dogs. Brgds Jonas

Looks really interesting. My wife is physiotherapist, she used to do manual therapy but I think she has gravitated more towards Mulligan lately. I don't know if she has ever seen/used a belt like that, but I sure wouldn't mind trying to make one. It seems like a great project, and if it can help someone with back pains - well then it is a SUPER project.

Anything more than 3 lanes is scary I think. And especially if it is near a city where there are exits and merges everywhere.

@TomE What a cutie!! If we had a colt like that I would probably not get anything done during the day - save for watching him and feeling his soft muzzle all the time. Foals are just so adorable with that little fluffy tail and those long legs. Is the mare one of your Caspian horses?

@Handstitched Thanks, so far we are lucky with the weather. The pandemic is the worst obstacle for us since all the different countries have various rules and regulations. 3 hours drive to the ocean is far from someone living in Denmark where the maximum distance to the sea from any point in the country never exceeds 65 km :-) I actually dipped my toes in the Magellan Strait, when we were in Punta Arenas - just to have done it. (It was actually freezing cold). @TomE Hi Tom, I'm not on FB, so a post here would be super nice I think. I checked the Maefield Farm homepage yesterday, but there was just a lot of pretty horses, and no adorable foals :-)

@TomE I don't think I could part with a foal if we had one :-) A foal is just like a puppy, it makes me want to hug it and stroke it over the soft fur all day long. Maybe a small post in this part of the forum with some pictures at the end of May? (pleeeeease) @tsunkasapa I had to look it up to see what Iditarod is. A sleigh dog race would be so cool to see. Alaska is pretty high up on my list of places that I'd like to visit. @chuck123wapati I haven't been in Oakland, so It could be that they have hid the ocean pretty well over there. Normally it is a lot easier to find the sea outside of cities, being a country boy - big city traffic sort of scares me. I feel most comfortable in places where I can make a U turn if I need to or a three point turn if the road is narrow. And I find it a lot more comfortable to ask for directions out on the countryside compared to in a city.

House to barn 3 times sounds pretty good to me :-) That would give a chance of touching a couple of soft muzzles and that is a mighty fine thing in my book. Yesterday we passed through the Beagle Channel going from Punta Arenas down here. Glaciers and sealions all over the place, It is hard to complain about such a view.

Not really leather work related, but kind of a big thing for a sailor. It is an overwhelming experience to be at "the bottom of the world" on a place that has claimed so many lives of sailors past. We were incredibly lucky with the weather today, sun and a light breeze so most of the day has been spent gazing at the fabled and feared Cape Horn. We passed the Horn twice today, first westbound and then eastbound. From the South Atlantic into the South Pacific and then back. We are heading for Ushuaia in Argentina now for a crew change, and then in a couple of days it'll be home to the family for me :-)

Looks really good, thanks for sharing the tip. I even think I have an old book binder press stashed away in a corner. :-)

I buy all my needles from https://www.nadel24.de/ They also carry thread and sewing machine oil and what you might need. I have ordered from them four or five times and always been happy with them.

Looks really good!

Hi Carol I think you will find more response if you post in the Help wanted section of this forum. A good idea is if you could describe a little bit more precise what kind of help or service you are looking for form a leatherworker preferably in the heading/title of your post. E.g. Customized dog collar and leash for Tibetan Mastiff (or what it might be that you need help with). Brgds Jonas

Riskin it for a fiver You can hardly get a pizza for that kind of money, so super great deal (almost a steal) The only thing that springs to mind concerning the goat skin would be to make some gloves of it. I think I have read somewhere that goatskin is excellent for making gloves, but I guess it is normally done without the hair on. perhaps if you make them with the hair on the inside they could work as winter gloves? Maybe a ladies vest of sorts. Cheers Jonas

I would love to see that junction. We have a small village on the island where I live. It is technically just a straight stretch of road with houses scattered with lots of space between them, the length is maybe a mile or so. People felt that the speed of the cars was too high, so the politicians had some planners helping in finding a solution. They ended up making some chicanes every 150 m or so. The problem is that those chicanes has actually increased the speed of the cars, because everybody is hitting the throttle to make it to the next chicane before having to stop for a car coming the other way. I have to admit that I do the same. That solution was most likely not invented by someone with a car.

That is really one of the few things that most city planners seem to have no clue about. In a lot of Danish towns the general hope is that people will buy from the small shops/boutiques in the town center, because it gives some life to the pedestrian streets and that southern Europe feeling. But then they change free public owned parking lots into weird non functioning plazas, and people are left trying to find an overprized private parking spot nowhere near all the small shops. Next the politicians can't grasp why people suddenly decide to move all their business to mall areas outside the tons where there is free parking and lots of it. An educated guess from my side is that most of those city planners are types that lives in apartments and use a bicycle for their commuting. Well I quite often find myself driving with a boogie trailer or a horse trailer hitched to the back of the car, and If I need to make a stop to buy some groceries - there are really only a couple of shops that have a good parking spot for that. So I try to support those places even when I haven't got the trailer with me. By the way, this is a great rant you have started

I haven't tried to replace the elastic on a girth, but I have replaced or repaired the buckles a couple of times. If the leather is in good working condition, with the inevitable scratches that comes from use, I reuse it. I also do handstitching using the old holes if possible. Depending on if you are doing it for yourself or a customer, I would look at how much a similar girth would cost from new. Even if I can repair it, I always feel better at telling a customer if the price of a repair job will be somewhat equal to the price of a new item.

Ah, nothing like a redevelopment of a city.. Those redevelopments always seem to be planned according to some smart people who thinks that this or that looks great on paper, and when it is finally done in concrete and tarmac. Well it doesn't work as they had hoped anyway. All city planners in Denmark dream about making that southern Europe feeling with plazas and pedestrian streets that are crowded with people in the evening. The problem is the always forget that the reason why it works in Southern Europe is because they actually have a climate that makes it nice to stay outside for an evening. Even in the late summer. We on the other hand normally have cold summerdays with lots of rain and wind, and that doesn't go well with sitting outside and enjoying a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. Good idea with a cup of chocolate actually :-)

When I clean our saddles (European style), I normally use grated soap dissolved in luke warm water. I thin that saddle soap is more aimed for general maintenance cleaning, and not something that needs to be brought back from years of storage. I use a dish washing brush with soft bristles, and dip it into the soap water, then "scrub" the saddle in circular motions. I normally take a small area at a time say 6x6" or some natural defined small area. When I have gone over that I take a damp cloth and wipe the soap water and dirt away. The cloth is wringed to remove the dirty water. Then I dip it into a bucket of clean water and wring it again so that it is now "clean" an damp. It might be necessary to go over the entire saddle a couple of times depending on the amount of grime. When it is clean I let it dry and once dry I apply some neatsfoot oil or some other type of leather nourishing oil. The lambs fur underneath the saddle I would probably try to clean using a wet type vacuum cleaner. But for that I'd use either shampoo or wool washing detergent. Massage it into the fur with your hands and then remove it again with the vacuum cleaner (just like when you are cleaning a carpet with a wet vacuum cleaner)

Great job. I really like the detail with the closing strap that it forms like an "acorn" on the end. That really looks good.

Looking good. My only concern is the metal "feet" on the bag. A bag of this size will often be put on a table or a desk, and if it is a polished surface, chances are that those feet are going to leave some marks. I guess that if the feet were made out of leather, in theory some small grits of sand or stone could embed in them as well, if the bag was put on the ground. However this doesn't look like a bag that you'd put down at e.g. a bus stop, so that might not be a problem. Brgds Jonas

I'd just like to say a huge thank you to all the moderators keeping this site up and running. I think you are doing a great job in keeping this forum neat, tidy and friendly. So thanks for all your moderating and help. It is highly appreciated. Brgds Jonas

Congratulations. And welcome to the forum :-) It looks like a mighty fine machine! Brgds Jonas