Tandy Leather Expedition Briefcase Kit

[Hooper26]

Has anyone put this kit together? If so, did you like it?

http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/special/44427-00.aspx

The kit is typically listed for $259.00, but I see that Tandy has it on sale for $159.00. If it is still on sale next week when I get paid I will order it. That is unless I get feedback that it is not a good kit.

[WScott]

Could you just get the pattern and buy your own leather?.......you would get better quality leather that way

Just saying as the kit leather I have seen has been thin and low quality

JMHO

Edited January 23, 2013 by WScott

[Hooper26]

Are there any pattern books out there you would recommend for someone who is looking for their first leather bag project?

[WScott]

Sorry, no I've made my own patterns so far. It is a good looking style of bag though.

So maybe the kit would be a good starting point for you if you go in with the mind set of getting it for the patterns, practicing on the Tandy leather and upgrading to nicer leather on bag #2.

I hope I am wrong and they send great stuff with the kit....just saying to go in with eyes open.

Go for it and keep us posted!

Edited January 23, 2013 by WScott

[bluesman1951]

No I would not do this . Making your own pattern is very rewarding .Easy as well. A good hide can be had for about 120.00 leaving plenty of money for buckles and stuff . In fact if you call "The Hide House in California you can get English bridle leather for 120 a hide from wicket and craig 8/9 oz ask for Jen . Its a saddle colour so no expense is needed for dyes . In general Tandy kits suck . Pattern making is easy if you send me a Pm Ill help with that . I would rather have a side of that english bridle leather for my money than that kit ,and change to spend too. Do as you please ,love to hear how this story turns out . If you call the Hide House ask for Jen ,say Bill from Albuquerque said to call. You will have plenty of hide left to make other things for profit after making your bag . Bill

[billymac814]

That's a pricey kit.... I've recently did a few kits with my son trying to find something he can do on his own and haven't been happy with any of them, mainly due to the gigantic holes for stitching. I never did any prior to that as I've always made my own patterns. I would hope for a kit that much money that it would be of higher quality than a change purse kit. I would definitely check it out in person before dropping that kind of wad, even with the sale price.

You could always buy the kit and do that as practice and save the pattern for the next one. I haven't yet seen a pattern from Tandy that I'd want to keep however I will give them credit as it seems they are trying to go with some higher quality stuff lately and that brief case looks like a nice design in the pictures.

If you plan on just making one briefcase and not much more the kit would probably be a good choice, by the time you spend money and time on leather, then source all of the thread, hardware, and whatever else you may need, then spend time designing it you'll have more money than in the kit and a lot more time. If you plan on continuing to make them or at least similar items in case you end up with a bunch of hardware and leather I would make it yourself.

And you can deal directly with Wickett and Craig too, I buy all my leather from them. I usually get 3-5 sides at a time but they'll sell just one.

Good luck and shoe is whichever way you go.

[WScott]

If he is starting out, a kit may be less overwhelming than ordering by mail and sourcing all the stuff out.

Maybe a smaller handbag or something that is a little less pricey?

Not sure of your experience level or if you have your heart set on this style bag

Don't get overanalysis paralysis. Tandy gets a bad rap, but they are a good starting point

Edited January 23, 2013 by WScott

[Chief31794]

That is awful pricey even at the $159.00. Agree with Billymac about the holes, makes an otherwise nice project look a little tacky compared to normal hand stitching. You are paying for the cutting and pattern, there is less than $60.00 worth of leather (and that is the price for Hermann Oak), say another $25.00 worth of findings (hardware and such), the remainder of that is profit for Tandy (nothing wrong with that, businesses are allowed to make a profit) and that is money you could save by buying the leather, cutting your own straps, and buying your own hardware. You'll have better leather and the sewing will look much, much, better. The only element is the pattern. If you like this pattern, then it might be worth buying it and using the pieces to make a pattern for future use, then building the kit for experience. It will still make a nice piece, just can be done better for less money. One more caution, the leather may be very nice in the particular kit you buy, but it is a gamble, regardless it will still provide a good pattern. Last thing, then I'll shut up (yeah what's the chance of that), This is a pretty basic design, you can probably get the size measurements from the Tandy site, they normally provide them. Then layout on poster board, a front piece, back piece that is taller to an amount that you need to fold over and close, and a two piece gusset at the proper width, cut out the pieces, line them with suede or pigskin, sew them together and you have a custom case that you designed. Al Stohlman's three volume set on making cases is a good source of reference material on how to make cases.

Chief

[Wishful]

I agree that it is pricey, even on sale. The best place to get patterns for a case like that is Al Stohlmans "the art of making cases vol 2 & 3" you can get them at Tandy or online at the leathercraft library. The books are great and have similar type cases.

[billymac814]

I looked at the picture again today a little better than I did last night, the holes do spear to be the really large holes that they do on the smaller kits. These are about the same size holes I use to lace items together.

I do agree with what someone else said though that it depends on the OPs skill level, if you're very new you may have a better outcome with the kit despite the large holes and usually inferior leather.

[WScott]

I agree that it is pricey, even on sale. The best place to get patterns for a case like that is Al Stohlmans "the art of making cases vol 2 & 3" you can get them at Tandy or online at the leathercraft library. The books are great and have similar type cases.

I have all three of these books and they are awesome for technique tips BUT IMHO the projects are kind of out of date....the style of the items and such.

They will teach you to make practically anything under the sun from up to the '80s, but you will be doing your own design and pattern making for modern stuff.

There are patterns that you will have to enlarge and modify to use. Again this is JMHO, and the books are of amazing teaching value don't get me wrong.

For a rookie, hacking up some Tandy leather in an all inclusive kit isn't a bad idea as a starting point in bag making...it's not that much $

Let us know what you decide to do!

Edited January 24, 2013 by WScott

[billymac814]

I agree that the Stohlman items are out of date in those books, the techniques are still good like you mentioned. But you never know when you need to make a case for a Poloroid Instamatic.

I bought the first two, I should pick up the third, I didn't think it seemed pertinent to me but you never know.

Its ashame that there really isn't anyone making these types of books anymore. Well none that I know of anyway, maybe there is??

[WScott]

Get the third so you have the full set....you might need to make a cowboy golf bag!!

The techniques that the Stohlman's show in the books are priceless and applicable to someone with creativity.

Apparently their Lazy A ranch was a stone's throw to the town where I grew up....never knew until last year.

[Jax]

I gotta admit, Im a Tandy kit junkie....but I mainly buy them for making patterns from & only when they are on sale!!! Some of the new kits look really nice & whats more up to date fashion wise, but even on sale they are way outa my price range, I intend to sit down at some point, study the pics & dimensions given then try to work out my own patterns for some of them. Good luck with whichever way you choose to do your project

[cjdevito]

Last fall I did my first entirely from scratch project using the Dispatch Rider briefcase pattern Tandy has up in leathercraftlibrary.com and it came out okay, but lots of things about it I wasn't happy with. Thought it was a good learning experience though and was planning to do another in a few weeks to see if I could improve upon it now that I'd made it once.

But I ordered this kit when it came on sale the other night. It's basically the dispatch rider bag updated and modernized, and I really want to see where and how exactly they've changed the design. I mostly want to use it to make templates off the pieces and use it as another learning experience. I do have Stohlman's case books and had considered trying to use what I've learned from them to lay out a briefcase design of my own, but I'd be lying if I said I'd rather do that than just try making adjustments to an existing pattern.

I'm sure this kit will have all the usual shortfalls of Tandy's kits - crap leather, large holes, etc - but for me looking at it as a physical lesson in design & pattern making instead of as just a briefcase, the price they want for it is acceptable.

[billymac814]

Ill get volume 3 with my next order. That way ill have the set, I have most of his other books too, I buy them and then sell them in my shop, or at least they sit in my shop for sale. The only one I seem to ever sell is the handsewing one.

Cj, good luck with the kit, be sure to post pictures when its done.

[cjdevito]

Funny enough, the package arrived tonight. Haven't had a chance to do much more than glance at it yet, but the kit parts are probably the nicest leather I've seen from tandy. Which still doesn't make them anything to write home about, but nothing like some of the really awful pieces I've gotten in some of their other kits. Of course it could just be my luck... next person to get one might end up with the typical lower quality they're known for.

[billymac814]

I would hope for the price it is that they would at least give decent leather. You would think it would be better than a 7 dollar cell phone case. If they would offer kits like that unpunched with decent leather I think it would be a viable option for certain projects. Sure you'd pay a little more than making the patterns yourself and cutting them but the time saved would be make up for it in the end if your selling it, especially if you're only making 1 of them, if you're making 10 I'd probably opt to cut them though.

[billymac814]

On a somewhat different but related topic It annoys me that when Tandy offers these sales that anyone can get them for the best price which is cheaper than the wholesale price. I'm a wholesale customer and sell a few of their basic tools and kits and if an item goes on sale I can't even match the price because unless I got it on sale its less than I paid for it. Half the time I wait until something goes on sale to buy it. That just doesn't seem right to me or those who pay for gold and elite memberships.

[WScott]

Funny enough, the package arrived tonight. Haven't had a chance to do much more than glance at it yet, but the kit parts are probably the nicest leather I've seen from tandy. Which still doesn't make them anything to write home about, but nothing like some of the really awful pieces I've gotten in some of their other kits. Of course it could just be my luck... next person to get one might end up with the typical lower quality they're known for.

Make that sucker up and take some pics while you're doing it for us to see

I would like to see their gusset design and hear your opinions on the overall kit

Scott

Edited January 26, 2013 by WScott

[cjdevito]

I'd hoped to snap some photos of the kit for you WScott over the weekend but I've been ill and just haven't found the time. I'll try to describe the gussets for you, though....

First, it's a double gusset. From front to back you have the front of the bag, then the first gusset, then a divider, then another gusset, then the back of the bag, then a full size pocket on the back of the bag. Each gusset is three pieces, two sides and a bottom. The sides pieces actually wrap around the bottom corners of the bag and cover a couple of inches of the bottom on either side. Then the bottom piece of the gusset attaches between them, and probably covers about 75% of the length of the bottom (with the reamining 25% being the wrap around ends of the side pieces).

As for an opinion on the overall kit, I'm not sure yet. Just as an FYI, counting straps and tabs there's over 30 pieces of leather in this box. It's a degree of complication far beyond anything else from Tandy I've seen. I think at this point my biggest reservation about the kit is that lots of slots and rivet holes are already cut, locking the purchaser into using the exact arrangement of straps and tabs and anchors that the kit intends (unless they're willing to cut other pieces of leather to duplicate the pattern parts without the slots etc). Most of that arrangement is fairly sensible, but I've noticed a few things I wouldn't have done on my own that I'll have to live with if I make the kit as-is. Chief amongst them is an alternate fastening point under the handle to turn the briefcase into a backpack; not a feature I'd ever use.

It does include a couple of tooling patterns. A fish (that doesn't appear at first glance to actually fit the dimensions of where it's supposed to go), a geometric design and a flaming skull. Because nothing says you're a professional like a flaming skull on your briefcase, I suppose

[WScott]

I bought an I pad case on sale from a Tandy kit a couple years ago when I first started out. I found that it was not quite what I wanted (a sleeve rather than a book style case) so I just used it as a size template. I rob that kit every so often for leather scrap and such; it served well as a start point for me.

Found the same thing with big holes and everything pre-punched so design wise you are fixed.

We have to remember that they make kits for all skill levels and with minimal tool requirements. We want more people interested in leather work so Tandy's catering to beginners is not a bad thing.

Love to see what you come up with from this kit...Remember flames make everything go faster and look cooler!

Cheers, Scott

[billymac814]

I vote no flames:-).

Its definitely a good choice for someone who is just getting into leatherwork. a bag that has 30 pieces would be a bit overwhelming for someone new. The large holes make it easy for a kid to sew together, my 9 yr old is able to do it fairly easy. I just personally hate seeing assembled kits posted for sale on either Etsy or eBay and marked as "Custom" items.

They should sell just the patterns for these items, that would seem to be a more viable options for either intermediate leatherworkers or for someone who is trying to keep the costs down by eliminating all the design time that goes into a custom item. I'd probably be interested in a few in that case, it would allow a base pattern and allow for alterations to be easily made.

[cjdevito]

They should sell just the patterns for these items, that would seem to be a more viable options for either intermediate leatherworkers or for someone who is trying to keep the costs down by eliminating all the design time that goes into a custom item. I'd probably be interested in a few in that case, it would allow a base pattern and allow for alterations to be easily made.

I agree with you. If someone out there wanted to try to put together patterns or even more advanced kits (say, unpunched base leather pieces cut to the pattern & instructions) I'd likely be first in line to buy them.

Unfortunately for me there's no tandy closer than several hours away, and no local leatherwork resources I've been able to find in my area. So for me the learning process is just read then try to do and learn from experience as I go. So anything that provides a sort of 'guided learning' experience is worthwhile in my book.

Edited January 28, 2013 by cjdevito

[stelmackr]

Here is a inexpensive pattern I found on the Internet via a Google Search:

http://www.bighousedaddy.com/attache_case.htm

Hope this helps.

Bob Stelmack

www.pslac.org