gun cases - work in progress

Londonshooter said:
Well, this is tedious.
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Should be finished this weekend and will update then. Maybe a before and after in a new thread for others to contribute their projects - as VictoryXC suggested.
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Looks like you're doing a good job though. I used to make pistol holsters and other stuff with harness leather and have logged lots of hours running a sewing awl.... it's a good way to get sore fingers!
 
Its been quite a learning experience, Falconflyer. For instance, I thought I would avoid the cheap tool sets from Amazon and instead get a basic kit from Tandy leather at 4x the cost. 1st trial effort with their awl and I bent it into an 'S' shape on one thickness of leather. So went to Lee valley where everything is great quality (right?). Then it became clear that diamond profile awls, at least from these two sources, are sharp at the pointy end, sort of, but DAF - dull as fudge - on the edges. 30 minutes of work on the edges and made an awl that would actually cut - what a difference!
 
It's always fun to learn new thing though.
I have the Tandy sewing tools as well and I really had to work over the edges on mine too and your right, what a difference. I never had a proper leather vise so I was putting the piece in my shop vice with a layer of leather to protect it from the jaws, the third hand makes a huge difference. I also experimented with gluing the leather together before sewing to ensure the edges were aligned, this worked well when it came to sewing 4 or 5 pieces together, maybe not the way a professional would do it but it worked for me.
 
Almost done. Used two-part threaded rivets (Chicago screws) to affix handle to case so that's a bit of a compromise. These ones not quite long enough so its back to the fastener department. Happy with the dye job though.
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Londonshooter said:
Its been quite a learning experience, Falconflyer. For instance, I thought I would avoid the cheap tool sets from Amazon and instead get a basic kit from Tandy leather at 4x the cost. 1st trial effort with their awl and I bent it into an 'S' shape on one thickness of leather. So went to Lee valley where everything is great quality (right?). Then it became clear that diamond profile awls, at least from these two sources, are sharp at the pointy end, sort of, but DAF - dull as fudge - on the edges. 30 minutes of work on the edges and made an awl that would actually cut - what a difference!
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When I sew sheaths for the knives I make, I lay out my stitch pattern, and use a finishing nail in a drill press to make the holes. You may need to try a few to find the right size for the thread you use but it saves my fingers (and loads of time). I agree on Tandy, when I started I bought all my stuff from them, but quickly realized most of their stuff is low grade junk.
 
Thanks for the feedback and input, everyone. This project has been a rewarding undertaking. My stitchery and technique have room for improvement certainly, but some lessons learned to carry forward.
 
That mess to the left of the lock is the remains of a shipping label. I love to see vintage cases plastered with these from their various rail excursions but in this case with only a couple of words legible am thinking the case would look better if I scrubbed it off. Any thoughts?
 
If more of the sticker was visible, then I’d leave it on. But given that most of it is gone and what looks to be only remanence of the glue remaining....I’d take it off.
 
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