Hidepounder Tools

[Ben00]

Hello, I’m looking to get better at leather edging. But I want to learn from the absolute best, as my intention is to eventually sell my work. I heard Bobby Park (Hidepounder) is the standard for clean professional looking edge work. And he appears to use very specific tools for his work. But I have noticed he is not active on this website for a few years now. Does anyone know where to buy his specialty tools. That he says help him make such great results. I will attach his edge breakdown below. 
 

thanks again for any help.

[bruce johnson]

He has bought and referred people to me to buy Gomph round bottom and Gomph common edgers from me. 

[Ben00]

Bruce, do you happen to sell the felt marker that I hear he uses for dyeing burnished edges? 

[bruce johnson]

11 minutes ago, Ben00 said:

Bruce, do you happen to sell the felt marker that I hear he uses for dyeing burnished edges? 

No I don't sell the markers, and since he wrote this tutorial he has started selling the felt marker blanks and an edge slicking solution himself. 

[Ben00]

Yes exactly! 
 

I’ve heard about this so I’m wondering where I can buy the stuff he sells it doesn’t appear he has a website to buy from. 

[chuck123wapati]

all i see you need is a good quality edger, a belt sander and a burnishing stick. i have seen the refillable felt pens online.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Felt-Tip-Pens-Pen-Refillable-Refillable_60825135024.html?spm=a2700.7724857.topad_classic.d_image.2c504fa9YmEXa8

https://www.amazon.com/Molotow-Empty-Marker-Chisel-729-100/dp/B0148VCT4Q/ref=sr_1_3?crid=YZH3TZTT112A&keywords=refillable%2Bfelt%2Btip%2Bpen&qid=1656331187&sprefix=refillable%2Bfelt%2Btip%2Bpens%2Caps%2C182&sr=8-3&th=1

[Tugadude]

Here's Bob's contact info:

https://www.facebook.com/Bob-Park-Custom-Leather-131291347030087/

[chuck123wapati]

i found this too with his links to some of the products. Good luck friend!!!   https://www.rmleathersupply.com/pages/bob-park-method-of-burnishing-edge-finishing

[TomE]

Another method is to burnish with water and canvas then apply hot beeswax with a burnishing iron. French sellier Jean Luc Parisot has some beautiful examples on Instagram. Duane Watts sells a lollipop burnisher for this on Etsy.  

  

[Ben00]

On 6/27/2022 at 7:56 AM, TomE said:

Another method is to burnish with water and canvas then apply hot beeswax with a burnishing iron. French sellier Jean Luc Parisot has some beautiful examples on Instagram. Duane Watts sells a lollipop burnisher for this on Etsy.  

  

Hi, Tom t

thank you for the tip, when u say burnishing Orin I assume you mean the electric ones online? As they don’t seem to look like the one in the video. Although this looks like exactly what I need, please elaborate thank you. 
 

BN

[TomE]

6 hours ago, Ben00 said:

Hi, Tom t

thank you for the tip, when u say burnishing Orin I assume you mean the electric ones online? As they don’t seem to look like the one in the video. Although this looks like exactly what I need, please elaborate thank you. 
 

BN

The burnishing iron/edge iron is heated in a flame - alcohol lamp or propane burner - or on an induction hot plate if you have a ferrous metal tool.  Similar to heating a creasing iron.  Beeswax is softened and spread on the edge then the warm burnishing iron is used to work the wax into the leather.  Hard to find the old burnishing irons.  I ordered the brass "lollipop burnisher" from Duane Watts on Etsy and am waiting to try it out.  I learned about this method from an article by Cary Schwarz in the May 2022 Shop Talk magazine (I think it's Cary in the video I posted).  Cary says he learned about it during a visit to sellier Jean Luc Parisot. 

[Ben00]

Thank you Tom 

I noticed in that video the edge is quite wide obviously since your burnishing a saddle I looks like. But my leather is only a few ounces do you know if the burnishing iron does all edge thicknesses even if the leather is a bit flimsy or will it end up looking kind of messy? Thanks 

[TomE]

I think a burnishing iron is too big for your work. The lollipop has a 1/2 inch wide U-shaped groove. I’m planning to use it on tack made with 1-3 layers of 8-10 oz leather. I don’t know anything about the electric heated burnishers but think they are for light weight projects. 

[bruce johnson]

The old Dixon irons with the olive shape had a different groove on each side. I did some 5 oz edges with the smaller side that worked well. They were OK for bigger stuff up to about 12 oz. but once I sold them out - hard to find in the US. The advantage of the edge iron that Cary had made was having four faces each with a different sized groove to suit a particular thickness. Once his machinist stopped making them and no longer available  I repurposed some copper head soldering irons. I started by cleaning them up and then working different grooves and they worked well too. The heads have a lot of heat mass and hold a good temperature. 

[chuck123wapati]

11 hours ago, bruce johnson said:

The old Dixon irons with the olive shape had a different groove on each side. I did some 5 oz edges with the smaller side that worked well. They were OK for bigger stuff up to about 12 oz. but once I sold them out - hard to find in the US. The advantage of the edge iron that Cary had made was having four faces each with a different sized groove to suit a particular thickness. Once his machinist stopped making them and no longer available  I repurposed some copper head soldering irons. I started by cleaning them up and then working different grooves and they worked well too. The heads have a lot of heat mass and hold a good temperature. 

that's what i was thinking, get an old iron and a couple of files wouldn't take an hour to make.