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BriarandThorne

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Posts posted by BriarandThorne

  1. Posted · Report reply

    25 minutes ago, Spyros said:

    Look, at the end of the day all I can tell you is that I've bought a couple of mid-price strap cutters, and you put the leather in one end, you pull, and a perfectly strait strap comes out of the other end.  I am unsure what else the original strap cutters does on top of that, you'll have to ask Nigel.

    Yep. Thanks again. Ordering the Weaver model based on suggestions here and in the other thread.

  4. Posted · Report reply

    13 hours ago, Spyros said:

    It's a couple of sticks with a blade... it really takes some effort to get it wrong.   

    We said in the other thread a couple of things to look for, other than that they're all pretty much the same.

    I appreciate everyone's input. Apologies for not searching for the previous recent thread about this. I'll seek it out. 

    Not to argue, or belabor the point, but for the sake of clarification, here's Nigel's quote (while holding the ubiquitous "same old" strap cutter):

    "There are a few of them on the market...... You need to buy one that actually says "Strap Cutter" on it. ALL the other copies are inferior. I'm not gonna say who makes them but they're not worth the money." 

     

    Thanks again for all of the info.

  5. Posted · Report reply

    Tandy, Weaver, Buckleguy, etc. all have the basic wooden strap cutter for sale. They all seem to be the exact same tool. But I recently subscribed to Nigel's secrets of the workshop series and he mentioned that the one labeled "strap cutter" was the only one worth a damn and that the others were crap. Can someone point me in the right direction for a basic, quality strap cutter?

  6. Posted · Report reply

    On 11/26/2021 at 2:58 AM, Klara said:

    Something that hasn't been mentioned yet and which I didn't know until recently: A well-made strap is supposed to be cut in the direction of the animal's spine, not at right angles to it. Which is why double shoulders, even if the measurements look good, don't work - the length is in the wrong direction (does that make sense?)

    (I'm saying "supposed to be" because I have a double shoulder and a double butt and various pieces where I don't know and I'm using them however I get the needed length and so far everything has worked out fine. But I'm only making things for myself at the moment...)

     

    Thanks for that info. I was wondering about that exact thing. Very helpful.

  9. Posted · Report reply

    1 hour ago, Spyros said:

    They're all different but generally yeah.  You'll find there are significant differences between english bridle from an American tannery and english bridle from England, not necessarily better or worse, but different.  Sometimes there are differences even between colours of the exact same leather, if you get tan sedgwick bridle it's a different beast than black sedwick bridle.  And sometimes differences between hides of the same thing... leather is all organic, nothing is ever exactly the same :)

    Thank you for the info. I've been slowly working my way down the leather rabbit hole. Bridle, strap, harness, skirting, etc. It's a lot to take in!  

  10. Posted · Report reply

    11 hours ago, HandyDave said:

    Looks alot better then mt first belt as well. And it has allready been said but it is much cheaper in long run to buy bigger pieces of leather and cut your own straps if your doing several. I started off buying precut belt blanks and didnt take long to see the money i was throwing away buying the precuts. And just like most things the bigger pieces you buy or the more you buy the cheaper it works out in the end.

    Thank you. I've been looking around at some bigger pieces since I posted this. Being new to this, I'm not sure where all I should be looking but I found some bridle double shoulders on Springfield leather. Are those a reasonable option? A side is a bit out of my price range at the moment but some of those weren't outrageously priced. I'm slightly confused by bends and backs and cullatas but I'm sure I'll get it figured out. 

    10 hours ago, PastorBob said:

    nice belt.  Definitely a fun hobby / business (if lucky).  Where in MO are you located.  I am in Carthage.

    Thank you. I'm in Jefferson County. Hello neighbor.

  12. Posted · Edited by BriarandThorne
    Quote marks     · Report reply

    15 hours ago, Spyros said:

    I like sedgwick english bridle for belts, it looks great, it's very durable and it doesn't need any finishing or dying

    Now that you say that, I realize that the straps I'm referring to in the OP as "pre-dyed" are, in fact, English bridle. So that leather burnishes like natural veg tan? 

  14. Posted · Report reply

    I recently made my first leathercraft project. I was in need of a belt, so I decided to try to make one myself. I bought a veg tanned natural tooling strap from Weaver, along with all the hardware, some dye, neatsfoot oil and tan-kote and I'm now the proud owner of a handmade mediocre looking leather belt! All the flaws and goofs aside, this was one of the most fun projects I've ever tried. I'm hooked and looking forward to learning and doing more.

    I've decided to make some belts for Christmas presents this year and I had a few questions before moving forward. In shopping online for straps, I'm wondering about ordering one of the pre-dyed straps from Horween, or Wickett & Craig, etc. instead. With those straps, do you just edge bevel, and carefully edge dye with a similar color, then burnish as usual? Would there be any need for something like the tan-kote when using those straps? I assume not but I don't know how those differ from the natural veg tan strap that I used. Are there any other differences or considerations when using those straps? Some of them look quite beautiful, and no doubt, better looking than my ham-fisted first attempt at dyeing.

    Also, forgive the lack of edge-burnishing on my belt keeper. I will be replacing that soon. :D

     

    IMG_20211121_132939668_HDR.jpg

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