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[Debbie K]

Funny, I just bought some leather about a month ago, too. My first "job" was working in a head-shop apprenticing to do leather work. I came across a belt I made in the seventies while cleaning out my parent's home of more than 50 years prior to them moving to a retirement community. I've kinda wanted to do this again myself. I'll look around and if I locate the belt, I'll post a photo of it.

On the positive side, once you learn to carve leather, chasing and repoussing metal is a snap. If you pound too hard you can always flip the metal over; leather not so much.

Debbie K

[jakesrocks]

Debbie, it'd be great to have someone join me on this thread. I just put a belt blank in a tub of water to soak, & hopefully will get started on it tomorrow. I wanted to start on it sooner, but we finally got a few dry days. Lawn has to be mowed before I have to call a neighbor to cut & bale it for his horses.

[Jhon P]

Good you are getting back in to cutting and pounding on dead animal skins. I do a little leather work to mostly knife sheaths but I have made purses, belts, gun belts and holsters. Here is a pic of the sheath and knife I did for a friend of mine.

[jakesrocks]

Very nice Jhon.

[hummingbirdstones]

Those are really nice, Jhon!  Love the eagle on the sheath.

[wampidy]

Those stitches are very even, do you have a machine or stitch by hand? Seems like I remember a tool that has a roller wheel like a star that can be rolled along the line to space the stitches. Very nice work and I like the added black to make everything stand out.
Jim

[jakesrocks]

You talking about these Jim ?

[wampidy]

Late to the party, sorry. Yea, that is the one. I think I had one at some point in my life but that was over 40 years ago. Slowly picking up a few tools but doubt I will ever do and tooling again. A little braiding, lacing and making medicine bags or a rock carry bag when my old one wears out from it being too heavy and I drag it for half a mile through the sagebrush and rocks I did not pick up.

I added a little leather to my last stick but so far I have only posted it on the other forum. I will post it here eventually.
Jim

[jakesrocks]

My leather work is at a standstill for a while. Too much outside work to get done before the heat really sets in. Add to that our heat pump is on its last leg & will be replaced in the next week, and the house has to be reshingled before winter sets in again.

I have ordered material to build a custom rack for the tools I've been ordering from Bulgaria. I can work on that at night in my basement wood working shop.

[wampidy]

It sounds like Bulgaria makes the best leather working tools since you are getting them from so far away. Will you put up photos when you get the tools?

I have been doing my outside work early in the morning because it is getting really hot here  late in the day. Supposed to be 96 today and it got up to 94 yesterday. Don't like it that hot but it is better than freezing cold.
Jim

[jakesrocks]

Here ya go Jim. These ain't cheap. The heads are solid brass, each cut on an engraving machine one at a time. The shanks are stainless steel.



For a special project.

[jakesrocks]

Some other tools I recently bought. Kelly special edition tools from New Zealand. (I furnished the box). Kelly tools are gold plated to prevent  rust.

[jakesrocks]

And these are tools I've picked up on ebay bids. (A few were bought new).

[jakesrocks]

Also a new head knife & a few other new Osborne tools.

[wampidy]

WOOOOOW. You do not mess around when you buy tools. I had  very few stamping tools so I had to do it the hard way with a swivel knife, wedges and a small assortment of other necessities. If I had all those stamps I would not get anything done because it is too many choices and all my time would be spent trying to figure out which one to use.

The tools I had all came from Tandy which is more of a hobby store than a professional store. Tools are long gone. I usually take up a hobby and work it to the point of mediocrity then move on to something else.
Jim