Is This Worth The Money?

[rschreck]

http://springfieldleather.com/29324/StarterSet%2CProfessionalProject/

Is it worth the money? As in the tools that are included?

[radar67]

There will be many tools you seldom use in this. It is a Tandy Kit that Springfield sells. Decide what you want to start ot doing with leather and pick up tools just for that, then you can expand as your interest expand. ie, if you just want to sew leather pieces together to make items, there is no need to get carving tools to start.

[Sylvia]

Schreck. I would price out the pieces then make your decision. The shipping on this will be pretty high because of that slab of marble, so factor that in as well. (you can get a slab cheap or free at your local granite counter top place that will likely be a lot larger than this one)

I like the Tandy Deluxe set, but the tools in these sets are cheaply made ones that tend to break or bend. In addition I would only buy it at their clearance sales after the new year. I think I got one last year at $69 and there is a $10 discount if you've not bought/ordered from them before.

[Chief31794]

Agree, you will probably eventually use all the tools if you stay with it. However, it may be years before you use them all. If you priced it individually it would be higher, but you probably don't need it all at once. On Slabs, Springfield has it in their bargains this month for $15.00, that's a pretty good buy. However, if you have a funeral stone shop near you, you can probably pick up a nice peice or marble or granite for nothing or very little. I agree with Sylvia that the deluxe kit is a better deal and it's on sale at Tandy now, you might think about getting a gold or elite membership as well, that will save you quite a bit, the kit is on sale right now for $129.00 and if you are elite it is $79.00, not sure how much Gold price is because my web site only shows me retail and the elite price since I have a business membership. Gold should be somewhere in the $109.00 range I would think but not sure. If I were starting out today, I would take some classes, find what I like to do, get guidance from the instructors on what to get and go with only what I need. If you feel compelled to get a starter kit the deluxe on sale now is my recommendation.

Chief

[rschreck]

Thanks everyone. Just going to do more research and spend my money on quality tools. Again, appreciate the help!

[George B]

If you have a Tandy store near you, go on in and talk the salespeople there. Ask a lot of questions about the tools you have in mind. Also, Tandy sometimes has free classes on the leather basics, normally on Saturdays, sign on up and use their tools first to see what you like and need.

If not, pick up a couple of the books Tandy sells on leather working basics and get a little idea what tools you might need for the projects you plan on doing.

I have quite a few tools I use very little so researching a lot now will save you from buying things you don't need and regret buying every time you look at them.

I still buy some tools from Tandy but not many, I normally use them for small items, buckle sets, some dyes and things like that.

[smudley]

I agree with the other posters here. The tools in the Tandy beginner sets are worse junk than their regular stamps. The older Craftool stamps, however, are pretty good for the most part. Hit your local flea market to look for tools, books, tooling stones, etc, or go to eBay. Hit your local headstone place or counter place for stones. You can find sink cutouts of granite or Corian relatively cheaply. I use a 8X14" Corian slab in my travel tool box as it's about 1/2 the weight of the same size granite stone and works just as well for most stamping.

If you go on eBay to buy, make sure you look at the tools carefully for condition. Look at the faces of the stamps for rust, abuse, and excess wear. When looking at hand tools (edgers, overstitch tools, etc), make sure they are in good condition and can be re-sharpened (edgers, head/round knives, sewing awls). I bought a Weaver round knife (because it is a Weaver) that had been sharpened so much it was only about half the original size, thinking I could just run it over a stone a few times and it would be fine. WRONG! It took a LOT of work and wont hold an edge long. Just guessing it is down past the hardening.

I have bought a LOT of old Craftool stamps on eBay and am very happy with most of them. Some of the newer Tandy stamps are pretty good, especially for modifying. And, I have bought many just for that purpose, both old and new, since I can't afford many Barry King or other high end tools. I always look for the tools with the best face possible to make the best detail impression when i buy new or used tools, then modify as needed to match what I want/need. I was told once that Al Stohlman always said Craftool stamps are very good tools...as long as you have files to make them work how you want them to, and I agree.

One last thing, and the most important of all; DON'T SKIMP ON A SWIVEL KNIFE BLADE!!! Get a good blade, the best you can afford, keep it sharp and stripped, and practice every day if you can. You can use a cheap swivel knife with a good blade a lot better than a good knife with a cheap blade! Remember, the swivel knife cut is the foundation the rest of your tooling builds on.

[LeatherSmith68]

I bought this exact same kit. WOW I had a lot of things missing and there were no patters to trace out for the projects that come in the kit. I was VERY disappointed and I bought this kit from SLC. Granted I will probably continue to buy other things from SLC, but I sure would suggest you go a different route than buying a kit from them.

[Sylvia]

that's a good point leathersmith. I would think that the term "Professional" would assume you've been doing the work for a while already. But who knows what Tandy is thinking on that one.

To the OP... the one time I went to the Boise Tandy for the "Open House, Everything's on Sale." I got hugged which was kind of cool. But more importantly, I was eyeballing the "Pro Set." And the Manager of the store said. You probably have everything that's in that already. I was stunned but looked at the contents and indeed... I did have most of it already.

I agree with those who buy USED tools. Though a lot of times the bidders on Ebay just flat get nuts and bit them up way past where the price should be. So use caution (and an auction sniping tool) It took me a long while but I finally got my coveted vintage F926 for a fair price. ($5 shipped) where if I had purchased at some of the used tools shops it would have cost me $20 shipped.

Pro tools can be very expensive. I figure if I have to save for more then 2-3 months for a tool, it's probably priced out of my price range and I should probably sent that money to Cobra Steve instead.

[shtoink]

I have to second the whole 'searching for a funeral home or counter top sales place' thing. There are quite a few locally, for me, and a couple that just take the 'scraps' out to a bin marked "FREE". The scraps come in various sizes, colors, and shapes, but if they are free and usable, does it matter?

[HellfireJack]

That's not a Tandy kit as far as I know. Tandy's pro leatherwork tool kit is completely different.

http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/product/pro-leatherwork-tool-set-4899-01.aspx

Tandy also probably wouldn't put non-tandy brand cement and dye in their kits so there's no way Tandy would hock Master Cement in any of their kits over their own Tanners Bond brand. Since SLC carries crafttool and other tandy tools they can put together whatever items they want into their tool kits.

By the way, the Tandy Deluxe kit is on clearance right now for 79.99. http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/department/beginning-leather-kits/55510-00.aspx

You can probably save the most money by purchasing only what you need with a membership card. Even buying a membership card and then the kit will save you money.

Figure out what you need to start to do what you want to do and then go find the best deals you can.