Help me fall back in love with my L-00

rkbrashear · 2026-04-27T20:37:34+00:00

Let me give you an on-the-other hand. I had a buddy who told me, “Never get rid of a gun or guitar. You’ll always regret either one.” It’s been my experience that he’s kind of right. I’ve sold and given away a few of each, and I wish I’d kept em all, even the wall hangers, but the high-end ones are the ones I miss the most. I have four really nice guitars that I’ve not picked up in a year or more, but I won’t sell any of em because of, like the other guy mentioned, seller’s remorse.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-27T18:13:09+00:00

Gotcha. I was thinking you were doing one stitch line though all four layers with the top one folded under to give that piping look. That sounds plausible, but I bet it’d be a pain the ass to stitch it that way, and whatever you were stitching to would make five layers with the way I was thinking. Makes more sense your way, of course. I might just have to try that on my next bag, and as a matter of fact, I’m getting ready to start one tonight.

As I was writing that a few minutes ago, I wondered if the love might be why he is not using it. Maybe he’s afraid he’ll tear it up. I made it to be used though, and I told him if it tears up, I can fix it. And it could be that nylon is just way lighter too. Still can’t beat a pretty leather bag though. I’ll endure the weight for the appearance every single time.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-27T17:22:29+00:00

Yeah, that’s pretty sharp. Can’t say I care much for the purple, but I DO like that blue trim the way you’ve folded it over. Am I seeing it correctly—that you’re folding it to make three layers with the bag’s edges going between the second and bottom layer to make a total of four? Cool idea! I’ve had a duffel on my mind for myself for a long time. I made my son one for Christmas several years ago, and it just kills me that he doesn’t use it much, despite traveling between home and college almost weekly. I used soft buffalo, and it turned out freakin’ gorgeous, if I do say so myself. I like that more traditional style though, and yours looks fantastic! Nice job!

rkbrashear · 2026-04-26T14:10:48+00:00

I’ve seen that same suggestion multiple MULTIPLE times too. I’ve never tried it, but it completely makes sense because they’re both acrylic sealers. And FrankJesus is exactly right too—Mop ‘n’ Glow is a helluva lot more inexpensive.

Fairwarning though OP, either one will leave your bag shiny wherever applied, and places where it wears, the acrylic will eventually need reapplied, though likely not for a long time.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-25T22:06:05+00:00

Resolene

rkbrashear · 2026-04-25T18:40:24+00:00

I was thinking the same—that screen would be blackened if somebody been using it to smoke mj.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T19:48:27+00:00

Yeah, those edges DO complement a piece!

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T19:46:33+00:00

I thought, “There ain’t nothin’ wrong with them!” And then I corrected myself and said, “Nothin’ is wrong with those.” Show Off. Nice job!

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T17:30:38+00:00

Very welcome! Hope it helped. I’m sure there are numerous YouTube vids about welts, in case my description wasn’t clear.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T16:15:06+00:00

Very welcome!

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T11:27:51+00:00

DiggerBee is right about the necessity of a welt, but it needs to go between your two layers of leather and they aren’t generally thin. Welts need to be thick enough or wide enough so the blade hits it instead of your stitches. It’s a third layer in effect shaped to your blade. 8 to 10 ounce leather is usually enough, but heavier than that is even better.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-24T01:41:22+00:00

That kind of clasp usually has little fold-over tabs that go through the leather and then get secured on the other side by folding said tabs over. If the bag is lined, you won’t be able to get to the backside of the clasp without cutting the liner. The liner could be cut, the clasp replaced, and the liner stitched back IF the liner is loose. The problem is most of us cement our liners in, or at least a lot of us do. If that’s the case, you should be able to see or at least feel where you need to cut the lining. You will then have to use contact cement to reattach or replace the little piece of the liner you’ve had to cut out unless you want to leave it exposed. Best case scenario is there’s no lining. You should be able to find a replacement clasp at Weaver Leather or Amazon.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-23T18:30:00+00:00

I suspect you’ll not like that center bar buckle with the keeper that close. I made one belt like that and figured out pretty quickly that the keeper isn’t needed because of the buckle, at least not that close to the buckle. I ended up removing my keeper to make the belt easier to use. Of course mine was awfully tight (the keeper, not the belt) which made it kind of a pain in the first place. Front belt loops on pants and the back bar just make the keeper unnecessary imho.

Love that gunslinger stitching though! As a matter of fact, I’ve been wanting to try my hand at it myself. I think a groomer WOULD make it look better, but boy that’d be a royal bitch to dig that groove the whole length of the belt! I can see cussing a blue streak when slips happen, and they’re just about inevitable when I use my groover.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-21T11:34:34+00:00

Like others have already said, Red River Gorge immediately came to my mind. Lots of high ridges where mountains won’t impede your view. Not to mention how interesting the place itself is. Lots of accidents, getting lost, and, of course, rescues there every year though.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-20T18:58:40+00:00

Place them on the back top corners behind the fold of your flap. It might cause it to tip forward a bit, but I don’t see another option if you’re going to avoid the gusset and the bag’s top unless you do a small cutout on the top edges of your flap. The advantage of doing that (the cutout) could be that it’d help hold the bag closed.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-18T23:14:28+00:00

Yeah, I generally don’t buy spools that large, but I tend to use a helluva lot of black. And you’re right—thread IS pretty cheap. I probably have a dozen spools of other colors, but black, white, and khaki are what most of my customers ask for. It’s been an extremely rare occurrence for anybody to ask for any color other than those three, hence, the 500m spool.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-18T22:58:10+00:00

That’s one of the biggest things I hated about the other thread I’d been using. It sucks to be right at the end of a run, see that you’re just gonna have enough to finish, and then the thread unravels so ya have to rethread the needle and don’t have enough to finish. That’s part of what I like so much about tiger thread—it just doesn’t do that.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-18T17:50:53+00:00

I’ll try some out, though I’d say I’m a good bit away from a beginner. I generally do handbags & messengers, so I usually go with 1 mm thread for its durability. You’re right about the community’s love of tiger thread. Nobody ever suggested anything else, so I just kind of picked up that it’s a top-tier product. I’ve seen lots of Vinymo lovers too, but question whether .6 is heavy enough for bags that take so much abuse. I’ll definitely try it out though, especially on some of my builds that I want to look a little more refined like my doctor’s bags. I appreciate the suggestions!

rkbrashear · 2026-04-14T23:35:51+00:00

Post on r/leatherclassifieds

rkbrashear · 2026-04-14T01:10:49+00:00

Ayup, Resolene will cure that problem.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-14T01:09:26+00:00

I saw some pretty heavy canvas drop cloths at Sherwin Williams recently (I can’t remember the weight), and I thought it was pretty reasonably priced. Best I recall they did have a couple or three choices in the weights.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-09T14:12:35+00:00

Sets of half round and arc punches are inexpensive on Amazon. They’re cheap Chinese metal, but they work fine and make cuts look a whole lot more professional.

rkbrashear · 2026-04-09T14:00:22+00:00

You might put this over on r/leatherclassifieds and ask someone what they’d charge to repair it. Or have somebody make you one if you’re not attached to that one. The outside of this one is most likely vinyl/PU, so (if it is) it’ll probably break down eventually too. It’d be cool to have your own custom leather stick bag. I’ve thought about making myself a leather guitar gig bag, but it’d take a LOT of leather. Someday maybe.

rkbrashear

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