Don Tai (Canada) Blog

Hhere are some interesting leather working links, all from Instructibles. They have some great tip on making near anything. These are leather related. Leather is an excellent material to use, being all natural. Mankind has a long history of using leather to survive, and rightly so. If taken care of leather will last a lifetime and keep its suppleness as well as protective properties.

• Make a leather watchband or bracelet: This is really a Leather 101 course because it covers leather prep, stamping, rivets, staining and finishing. This is an awesome instructible. (KentsOkay)
• Leather Bookbinding: Not so difficult, but the instructions are very clear. (gmjhowe)
• Make leather stamps: He calls them leather tooling punches, but these are leather stamps. I will need to try this but won’t use a nail. I will probably use a bolt instead. Then again the nails he uses are quite thick. Still, pretty cool how he makes these. (cbm104)
• How to Peen a Rivet: from a nail. Beginner’s guide to tradition riveting

I will add to this list as I find more leather projects.

Something happened at my local Tandy Leather, Scarborough, Canada and the manager Ryan Wright was removed, the store taken over by head office. I’d like to get into contact with him and ask him what happened. Ryan is a very nice guy and I wish him well.

Ryan Wright, Mount Albert (just north of Newmarket), Ontario. Leather worker, blacksmith, archery, metal work and primitive arts and crafts, larper (live action role play) with Epoch Toronto.

“eirikthered” from PaleoPlanet.

eirikthered@hotmail.com

If you ride a motorcycle you know you take more chances on the road than if encased in a steel and glass condom. An obvious question is how to reduce a rider’s risk? The answer is multifold, but starts between the rider’s ears: Develop that innate “spidey sense” that a dumb cager will do the idiot thing, move out of the way, and then watch as life unfolds, with the rider safely out of harm’s way. Another tactic is to increase your conspicuity: Wear a bright pink bikini bunny suit with a reflective vest. That might work. Or not. Yet another tactic is to wear personal protective equipment, or what bikers call “gear”. Of course thick leather is best, but in the heat of the summer you could pass out from heat exhaustion. Mesh is very popular and affordable, but does it protect you in a crash? A common impression is that mesh will melt against your skin during a crash, causing you more pain and suffering. One needs to ask “Does mesh really melt in a crash”? In short, mesh does protect you in a crash, and in general mesh does not melt in a crash. Last Update: May 12 2011.