MarshalWill

Looking good. Those leaves look just right. Enough background showing to set them off.

This is a good design. Don't zippers like to work flat? The zipper where you put this one has no stress on it. I would think the zipper on the side might be a point of failure unless it is much like this one just moved closer to one edge. I also would like to see how it would be worn on a belt.

Looks great! Nice work.

Thanks, guys. Interestingly enough, where most other makers of the time would stitch a toe plug in a holster like this, M&W never did toe plugs, or at least as near as I can tell they didn't. Hey! After 14 years, I'm almost up to 30 posts.

I've always liked historic pieces so I decided to make a copy of this Main & Winchester holster. I had to make a new pattern so I modified one I already had on hand. After the piece was done, the pattern got a few adjustments so if I make another one, it will be even closer to the original. I didn't have a maker's stamp big enough so I went around my stamp with a border tool. It came out OK.

Looks good. Sometimes nothing is better than oak leaves.

Looks good. I like BW stamping done parallel to a side or edge. The side snaps look different in the finished photo. Did you change those to magnetic or something? I've done that. It's an annoyance for sure but it doesn't take away from the overall effect.

Thanks. It looked that way but I wanted to verify that.

That new one is beautiful. Certainly a step above the putty knife. Is it sharpened on one side or both equally?

What about other knives? Anyone use others? My favorite is one I made while working in the saddle shop. I copied the one Charlie Miller had made and used for just about everything. It does more than most.

It's been a while since I've been on the forum. I figured this thread was as good a place as any to post again. I haven't been overly enamored by round knives, having not used one much in the past. 10 or 15 years ago I made one just because I didn't have one. I made it out of a saw blade and it cuts great. I'm still not sold on it, though.

I suspect the only thing that could happen with stainless wool is that the vinegar would clean it. In food processing, they build stainless machinery so there won't be oxidation (rust) contamination of the food. No rust = no oxidation = no vinegaroon.

After the baking soda bath and rinse has dried completely, I put EVOO and Lexol conditioner on it. A light coat of EVOO seems to help neutralize the acids in the leather. After that, I think it's mostly personal preference.

I keep mine in mason jars. I never really tighten the tops but I suppose I could. The stuff gives a nice, rich black for over a year. I have some that's a couple of years old. It produces a medium grey which is fine as a base for a nice dark brown color. I can rejuvenate it but it's nice to have the grey so I just make more when needed. Yeah, it is magical. I don't use black dye anymore unless it's with leather that doesn't take the color.

You have a picture of that toolbox? I've been planning to make a new one and am looking for ideas. Thanks.

My favorite swivel knife is a Henley. By far the best one I have. My favorite cutting knife is one I made from a sawblade. I never got used to a round knife because the saddlemaker I learned from years ago showed me his knife he made. I copied that one. Here's a picture. The lighting makes the blade's edge look dark, but it isn't.

I agree that they will make great background tools. Especially when you have a lot of area to cover. Good designs.

I also took advantage of the Christmas special this year. They're great stamps and for the price, you probably won't be able to match them. They're a good selection to boot. I've also bought a few extra stamps from Ellis at full retail price and they're still worth it. I do intend to dip them in touch-up bluing to seal the steel so they won't rust.

A friend gave me one that a friend of his made. It's interesting because the jaws rotate to any angle. The drawback is that the head is actuated by a 1/4" steel cable and there's no stretch to it. I put a spring in the cable and it works better but needs a stiffer spring. It's very useful to have the roatating jaws. Notice the peg on the back of the jaws that goes through a hole in the head and into holes in the seat. He also put a holder on the right jaw to hold a cake of beeswax. This thing is well thought out. Maybe it'll give you some ideas.

I did a stint building machinery. More often than not, there was loud music playing on both sides of the shop, never the same type and I worked in the middle. Usually Mexican folk music battling it out with hard rock. Both sides turning the music up so loud they didn't have to listen to the other. I got tired of being surrounded with noise. Now I enjoy quiet while I work. I suppose some good music would go well but I just don't think of it. I like having iced tea on hand. Maybe I'll try some music one of these days.

I've been making my own stamps since I first went to work for a saddlemaker back in the 70's because that's what he did. I made my own leather knives, again as he did because the shape wasn't available commercially. If I can buy a stamp, I will. When what I want isn't available or if the lead time is too long, I will make my own. Some of them look fairly nice. Others are less than beautiful but the tip is what matters. Most have been made from old bolts because that's what was on hand when I needed to make one. I don't have many stainless ones but the steel doesn't make dark impressions when used. Just to be sure, I stamp a scrap a few times to clean the head before using it on a project. I've only had one tip corrode. That one got dipped in Birchwood Casey Super Blue to seal it after cleaning. I'm thinking of dipping all of my hand made ones to prevent that from happening in the future. Here's a pic of one of the more, shall we say, functional ones. As you can see, I didn't have to texture the barrel for ease of handling.

Howdy, Panhead. I see you made it over here, too. Welcome from one newbie to another.

I've used Chuck's method of making vinegaroon for a couple years, now. I clean the steel wool with lighter fluid then shake out most of it and burn off the excess. When it's cool enough to touch I put it in the vinegar. One of those big 0000 pads in a quart of vinegar works great. I never strain it or anything. I suppose I should but it never occurred to me. I can get a beautiful rich black in a couple of days with a new batch. Here's a picture of a holster done with it. Oops. Wrong pic. Here's the right one.

Those both look good. I like the basketweave pouch with the sides left plain. Nice work.