Tooled sheath

Amy - Like your sheath and knife - Could you comment on dye and did this spend some time in an oven?

Thanks. I used Fiebings pro dye, Light Brown. I also only put Neatsfoot oil on the tooled area (as opposed to the entire sheath like I normally do), in an effort to make that area appear darker. Not sure if this is a bad idea or not, you or some of the other seasoned guys will have that answer, I'm sure. I'll also be conditioning with Snow Proof. This did not spend any time in the oven.
 
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That's a nice clean looking sheath! I think that with basket weaving you typically offset your stamping to give the 'weave-y' look to it. Something like this-
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That being said, it still looks good as it is! I watched Chuck Burrows' sheath making DVD again over the weekend and he said something to the effect of "There are wrong ways to do things, but there can be plenty of different right ways to do them too."

Found a pic of the above one when I started it, if it helps make more sense. It helps if your first line of stamps isn't as crooked as this one started out.:D
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Thanks! I actually was trying for the more 'weave-y' look, but will admit to continually getting confused on tool placement (even after watching some videos and practicing before starting the project)---what you see is the only way I could wrap my mind around it enough to get it done. (My first attempt was a complete disaster) I'll probably give it another whirl this coming weekend and we'll see how it goes (practice, practice, practice!). I appreciate the input and the tool placement example above--very helpful.
 
Amy, One additional thought. Are you stitching by hand ? If so, once you make your holes, dye the backside of your holes with a small paintbrush, hole by hole. Then you stitch the sheath. It makes for a cleaner look. See your second photo. You can see the un-dyed leather sticking out of you stitch line.
 
Amy, One additional thought. Are you stitching by hand ? If so, once you make your holes, dye the backside of your holes with a small paintbrush, hole by hole. Then you stitch the sheath. It makes for a cleaner look. See your second photo. You can see the un-dyed leather sticking out of you stitch line.

Yeah, I saw that after I took the pictures. Since your eagle eye caught it to, I'll go back and touch it up (I normally inspect for things of this nature, but did not in this case). I'm actually machine stitching, but it's still easy enough to fill in the un-dyed leather holes when using dark thread. I also need to replace my machine needle, which may also have contributed to more of the un-dyed leather showing than perhaps normally would.
 
I think that's the best sheath I've seen from you. They are getting better and better all the time!

Todd
 
Amy you're getting some good tips here. Keep playing with that basketstamp. I dislike dyeing leather and your pics illustrate one of the main reasons. If ya look at the back of your sheath between your makers mark and the belt loop ya .see those hairline cracks? Just don't see that much when ya use warm oil. No absolutes but there they be. I agree with Todd, better and better and better.
 
Amy you're getting some good tips here. Keep playing with that basketstamp. I dislike dyeing leather and your pics illustrate one of the main reasons. If ya look at the back of your sheath between your makers mark and the belt loop ya .see those hairline cracks? Just don't see that much when ya use warm oil. No absolutes but there they be. I agree with Todd, better and better and better.

Thanks, Dave. I def. plan to continue practicing with the basket weave tool--lots to learn there on execution and consistency for sure. The tips and feedback are why I keep posting (and sometimes putting myself out there) as I progress with my skills--I would not be as far along as I am without the input from the folks here on the forum; ya'll often point things out I had not considered or otherwise wouldn't know what to do about.

And now that you mention it, I do see those little cracks. Hmmmmm.
 
Bad dye bad. I just about won't dye a sheath anymore cause of that.
 
From what I've heard, the Cobra is an excellent machine. You can stitch just about anything you can dream of out of leather.
 
From what I've heard, the Cobra is an excellent machine. You can stitch just about anything you can dream of out of leather.

Yes, I believe it. I still have some learning curves to work through, but i'm getting there with it. I'm hoping to add a Cobra 18 in the near future for detail work.
 
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