The Frugal Leather Craftsman

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Ebbtide said:
Let'r rip tater chip!

:D :D :D

I'm looking forward to this.
Mother said "We're not cheap. We are frugal."
;)
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Sorry for straying from the subject which I love and look forward to but....my dad once said of some guy he worked with, that guy is so tight, you could put a lump of coal up his butt and a week later pull out a diamond.
 
Thanks for the offer! Always eager to learn new stuff. If I can bring some of my personal experience to the table, will be glad to help!

:thumbup:
 
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I own no dedicated leather working tools. If you watch Youtube vids you gain great insight. Then look in your kitchen or tool press to use or modify tools.
I use a fork to space stitches,Utility knife to cut,Ice pick and drill.I have B50 dacron frm my bowmaking days to stitch with. I use smooth spots on my old wooden tool press to burnish. I would say my sheaths function perfectly and look maybe a third or half as good as custom. I can live with that
 
Thank you! That is exactly the spirit I am working towards here! :)
 
.... as good as what? :confused:

The first installment of the Frugal series is up and getting filled in! I'll get back to it during breaks today. Please feel free to add in info and suggestions! Questions are welcomed as well! :)

EDIT to add: I will be adding a "step up" to the list as well. Something that doesn't cost much but makes the job so much easier. I started out with much of nothing, those little additions make all the difference in the world because I know what it was like to get that new tool in hand and think WOW!
 
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pfrsantos said:
I'd say they look as good as...
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Thank you very much but I confess the pic is a little blurry

Here are the differences as I see them
The front stitching is perfect but the back stitching is all over the place as I cant keep drill level
The burnishing is not good enough
I cant get the edges as good as a pro as I don't own an edging tool
 
I can address all those in the ongoing series! :D

If you have a Dremel or one of their clones, they make a little drill press that will make it so much easier to drill straight holes and not a whole lot of money out the door. My first drill press was that Dremel thing, I like my full size drill press a little more but its not that much more loved. :D

Edger's arent that expensive, but not totally necessary. With a little patience and sand paper you can get the same results as an edger. I did one away from my tools with just sand paper and a steady hand, it is possible,

Burnishing, well, its give and take. If you sand your edges nice and smooth with no noticeable voids there is very little burnishing you'll have to do. Its all in the prep work, and a few different grades of sand paper. Burnish a rough edge and you end up with rough burnishing
 
You mean there are other tools to cut leather than knapped obsidian, to burnish the edge than a piece of smoothed bone and a rock to do the sanding? :eek:

I say BRING IT! :thumbup: :D
 
elof_alv said:
You mean there are other tools to cut leather than knapped obsidian, to burnish the edge than a piece of smoothed bone and a rock to do the sanding? :eek:

I say BRING IT! :thumbup: :D
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Yeah , people here don't realise that we only just electricity here down in Australia .
Up until last month I burnished my edges by rubbing them on the dry skin on my feet , killed two birds with one stone , burnished the edges and gave my myself a pedicure at the same time . :)

Ken
 
knapped obsidian? Pffffffffffttttt........all we have around here is shale....sharp as Hell, brittle as FF....
 
I started out on a wooden filing cabinet in my office with a marble block and a poly mallet I got on sale from Tandy for 20 bucks with a coupon. I beat on that cabinet tooling and setting snaps and such for nearly a year til it collapsed. I certainly made sure I got my moneys worth out of that thing.
I've made or modified my fair share of tools over the last few years when needed. I've also learned when to just buy a tool that is readily available and save myself alot of time and aggravation.
While I am kind of on the other end of the frugal spectrum because I like 'tools and gadgets', I am always looking for new tips and tricks to add to the tool bag. I have cheap tools, expensive ones, and custom ones, I use them all.
 
Hey Sky! Good to see you again! Where you been my friend?

We need to get you back on the sheath maker list!! Just let me know if you want the old post back or make a new one.

Please add your experience when you see the need!

I'll be adding more in the way of tools and supplies today if I can break away from work long enough.
 
leatherman said:
.... as good as what? :confused:

The first installment of the Frugal series is up and getting filled in! I'll get back to it during breaks today. Please feel free to add in info and suggestions! Questions are welcomed as well! :)

(...)
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I was commenting on thatsaknife post, when he said "my sheaths function perfectly and look maybe a third or half as good as custom".
 
No worries, just wanted a little clarification. Sometimes whats not said speaks volumes, other times it makes people want to fill in the blank. See what I mean? :D
 
Great idea. I use basic tools for my sheaths. I'd like to see if yours are very different between the simple and easy method (expensive).
Looking forward to this WIP
David
 
Hey Dwayne, Been a ghost for the last few months while I finish the shop and hopefully get the new site finished this coming week. I went ahead and made a new post in the makers thread. Looking forward to your series, I always enjoy watching other people work.

leatherman said:
Hey Sky! Good to see you again! Where you been my friend?

We need to get you back on the sheath maker list!! Just let me know if you want the old post back or make a new one.

Please add your experience when you see the need!

I'll be adding more in the way of tools and supplies today if I can break away from work long enough.
Click to expand...
 
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