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Thanks @dikman I'll take care about that. I really appreciate people like you who are so helpful and give me the guidance to learn new things. And do not treat me like I am senile because I am sometimes absent minded. I have been so since I was a teenager and if I had been discouraged like another here is trying to do, I would have not achieved anything at all. So thank you. @chuck123wapati Hahaha. You make me sound like I am ready for a hospice or already living in one. Absent-mindedness, I believe, is a mark of brilliance. . You might not understand that. As for the rest, I spent my life doing medical research, interior design, computer programming, running a tech company, among other things. All white collar stuff. Now I want to do things with my hands... so learning. I will be learning new things until I die. Going to professionals is not an option because I want to learn and do. Until now, .I did not know how to use tools because I never had reason to use them. I had plenty of people to do it for me. Now I want to learn. That is the fun of life. Learning something new all the time. I bet all the old timers here had a time when they were new as well. I hope no one told them, that they forget and are therefore unsuited to do whatever they want to do. Youngsters forget as well. When young certainly, but then, they were not busy spending 18-20 hours a day doing medical research in the field and in the lab. We all can learn and do some things, not all things throughout our lives. The trick is in always learning, not stagnating and not saying 'I know.. I know!' but instead saying, "What else can I learn". And that is all I am going to say about that.

IKEA visit this week-end and they have some very nice hair-on hides. Beautiful finish and soft and supple. I checked Tandy immediately after and not as good but more pricy. The colors in IKEA are much better too, warm and rich. The finishes will naturally be different as the IKEA ones are ready for use as rugs. But has anyone cut them up to make other items from them?

@dikman I will probably have to start using electrical instruments. I cannot possibly do everything by hand. That would leave me with little or no time for actual leatherwork! Come to think of it, I think I do have an electric buffer somewhere. @chuck123wapati I used to use vinegar earlier but once the rust is gone, if I don't take the tools out in time, they stain. I always forget. That is why I stopped.

@jasj electrolysis is really effective, I agree. I used it some years ago to clean all my old iron pots and pans. I might need to set it up again if I keep getting old tools. Once set up, it is much easier to carry out. @bruce johnson yes it is a few minutes, but I am notorious in my circle for forgetting things on the stove. A couple of dishes have even been named after that, something to the order of 'spicy burnt potatoes'. So anything cold is best, I think.

LOL. Right now, the rust and paint or whatever it was, is mostly off. Some of the tools have come out of the handles, most have not. So maybe lemon juice.. have plenty of them for fresh juice. Let's see. No hurry. The polishing. Have absolutely no idea how to polish.

@dikman but then, how do you get out the molasses? Especially from inside the handle? It is very sticky isn't it?

Okay.

Oh. I wonder why. Do you think multiple layers of protection might work? I mean some oils or waxes and then Vaseline?

@bruce johnson . That will save a lot of time. Thank you for the tip. I'm notorious for forgetting things on the stove What happens if I forget and the Evaporust comes to a boil? I hope it will not damage the tools. I'm wondering whether to use Evaporust or lemon juice as I hope the metal parts slip out of the wooden handles without too much of an effort needed. Lemon juice will not damage the wood, but Evaporust does, is it not? Maybe both.

Thank you @Tastech. I do have Evaporust and lots of lemon juice. and either will work, isn't it?. I will get the wire brushes. Hopefully the tools will get to some kind of clean state. Not shiny but clean at any rate. Once done, I will put up the pics. I have a dozen half-finished projects that I have promised to post. I do them in a round robin. Keeps things interesting. It's nice, how you pick up things. I have not experienced that as yet. What I do notice and love however, is how everyone who hears about my working with leather gets the same look as children get when they hear about chocolate. Everyone loves leather apparently. People are really nice in this forum. I absolutely agree. It's a pleasure reading the threads here sometimes, where you see people going out of their way to provide good information and help.

Oh. Okay. Will do that. Thank you @fredk

@fredk Yep. I'll do that. But first, need to get them out of the wooden handles.

@Tastech you describe very eloquently how I feel about old tools, and not just old tools, old furniture, old well-used recipe books, and so many other things, lovingly made or used. I will do as you suggest with these tools. I will clean them, wax them (I make a blade wax which keeps my blades free of rust in the high humidity that I live in, so evidently effective) and admire them (which I do anyway). I got these for a song. I do not pay eBay prices, they are ridiculous except for rare instances. My tools will stay with me my entire life. After that, yes, to someone who will love and care for them. It must have been wonderful talking to the Hungarian gentleman. All that knowledge! I hope you picked up a lot of information from him.

@Tastech I do not have any of those tools or space to work with acids and other chemicals. I need to do everything by hand, at home. Leatherwork is a new hobby for me. So it will have to be things like spirit and steel wool to get them clean. I should be able to separate the handles - f not I can request my friendly neighborhood cutler. I will probably have to go the primer, paint path since I do not plan to make shoes but I will get inventive. Old tools, especially leather ones, are unfortunately difficult to resist. Then caring for them is another issue altogether. But I think you understand where I'm coming from, since you apparently also have a collection that you rarely use, in spite of being a shoe maker. Your tools look lovely, by the way.

Thank you @bruce johnson. These are cobbler's tools, so I will be able to use them only when using thick leather or I will need to get inventive. But i do plan to use them. @DieselTech Here is a pic of some of the tools. I just cleaned and dried them, then applied blade wax. The paint, as you can see, is patchy on all except one of them. I will probably be able to get some of it off. I do everything by hand, of course, so it will take a bit more time. I doubt I will be able to get it all off though. I might need to do as @fredk suggested and use Hammerlite directly. Or maybe a spray like @bruce johnson says - Ace or Rustoleum. Does humidity affect any of this? The ambient humidity is really high here, right now at 65%.

They forecast rain this week but dry as ever although the air is very humid. I have the leather ready. I live in hope!

The brand on one appears to be Mahlen, on another it seems to be Koritsor or Koritson. The names are not very clear so just guessing a bit. The others are not clear at all. Cannot find much on them. Do any of you have an idea about these brands? The paint will preserve better but until I get some, I will probably just use a blade wax and add them to the list of items to check twice a month. It is so humid here, sometimes the bare floor feels damp inside. I have dehumidifiers and monitors galore with the leathers and tools.

I found some old tools recently. Nice ones. They all have what appears to be black paint on the metal, except for the actual working area. I was thinking of replacing that paint, since it has become a little patchy. I will need to strip off all the old paint first, isn't it? What do I use to do that? And after that, what paint do I use? Is it a good idea to replace the paint or is it better to strip off all the old paint and use a good metal wax? I would love some advice.

On veg tan leather, Fiebings Oxblood becomes a bilious pink. I tried a very diluted form - still a bilious pink. No idea why it's called Oxblood. I gave up trying to get a pink. Will watch here, I hope someone knows how to get a good pink on veg tan. @Littlef I did not get a red, I got a pink - a deep pink or a light pink. Maybe it was the leather. Beg tanned leather has various shades.

I have discovered that, as @zuludog says, more than how expensive a beveler is, it is the sharpness that matters. Even more important is getting the angle correctly. Most videos use firm, thick leather which even a newbie can bevel but when we get down to projects which might use leather of different thicknesses and tempers, it is a a different matter. I keep scraps of everything that I make and try to bevel those well. If I cannot, I don't bother to bevel. Rather an unbeveled edge than a badly beveled one.

You could try dampening the leather with a spray bottle. That gives a more consistent casing. Also you could check to see how deep the water has penetrated. Look at the edge of the leather; you should get an idea. It should penetrate to about half the depth of the leather. More and it might become soggy, less and it will not take a good stamp.

Applying a thin layer of Neatsfoot oil onto leather before dyeing helps the dye spread better, in my opinion. We were just talking about block dyeing in another thread. Have you seen the Tandy video?

@Chipster99 it is exactly the same thing. I would look at the Springfield video but I found all the Springfield videos rather too long - this one in an hour and a half!. Like a movie! I never watch movies as I tend to fall asleep when watching them and the same happens here. Instructional videos longer than 30 minutes tend to do that. You are evidently fine with it, so if you could let me know the relevant time on the video where they actually show something of substance, I would love to look at those sections. However, Tandy has an excellent video which teaches block dyeing in detail, AND it takes less than 15 minutes! The main difference is that I use a big piece of crumpled cloth or large sponge, Tandy wraps a sponge in an old T-shirt. I am trying that the next time. It might make the process easier and give me more control., especially when dyeing sections like in the Tandy video. For the whole thing, like I did, it does not matter as much. @DieselTech you might want to check the Tandy video..

@NatesLeatherGds thank you.

Yep. That is how we humans control the weather. Another way is to get the car cleaned and waxed - it is sure to rain that day - did so even in bone dry Nevada!