Differences In Tools

[srbonner]

I'm still working toward getting a Barry King basket stamp, but not there yet. What I'm wondering is there a differance between the ones you can buy at Tandy versus the ones you buy at SLC?

[mlapaglia]

Most of the Craft Tools sold at Springfield Leather are from Tandy.

[Tzalabak]

I only have one basket weave each from Tandy and Springfield, but of those, the one from Springfield is considerably "sharper" at the corners and in the details, making for an overall crisper bit of tooling.

Edit: Admittedly, they aren't the exact same pattern. I haven't seen the one from SLC at Tandy or in their catalogs.

Edited August 3, 2012 by Tzalabak

[RWB]

Don't buy cheap tools. Don't do it period. It will only cost you more in the long run and make you cuss at all the heartache and misery they bring. Barry King make a very nice Basket Stamp for I think $45. While that might seem like a lot up front, the fact is that they will last you a life time. The stamp is cleaner, sharper and far easier to run than a cheap tandy tool. And after you spend the 10 bucks or whatever it is to buy the tandy tool and ship you will still end up buying the King tool. I've had a Barry tools that I bought 15 years ago and it still works as well as when it was new and I use it a LOT. At $45 a year for 15 years that $3 a year. And I make far more off of it than that in a year. My two cents.

Ross

[Cyberthrasher]

I don't remember the brand name, but Springfield does sell some other tools that aren't Tandy. Give them a call and ask about what they have. They've also been getting in a lot of other tools lately too, so it's good to check with them to see what's going on. I would love a BK, but just can't justify it right now.

[TwinOaks]

IIRC, the tools from Hidecrafter are a better quality than those from Tandy.

If you can't spring for BK tools, don't overlook other good tool makers like Hackbarth, and Gomph.