belts, a spare plane & life long dreams

 
It seems my interest in a new belt has taken on a wonderful life of its own. I am working with the third batch of cast bronze buckles now, and have a few castings that are not yet spoken for.

The finished belts are $675 Cdn + actual shipping costs (around $25 in North America, Europe around $50). You choose the color of leather strap, the type of Chicago screws - low profile brass, nickel plated, or fixed rivets, and I can supply a diagram to show how to measure the length. 

I have continued to experiment with a fully fabricated buckle. The first prototype is on the left, the second on the right. I changed the orientation of the side profiles - which I like (my friend Luke suggested it). The buckle on the right is not actually stainless steel... but rather made from custom Damascus steel - photos of it below. 

A few shots to show the difference between prototype one and two. Lots of major changes (side orientation) and lots of minor ones too. Playing around with tapers, the size of chamfers etc... feels a lot like making planes... just without the infill :)

I am quite happy with how the Damascus turned out. It was an experiment for sure, and going forward, will make a few changes with the hopes of having the pattern more visible on the top surfaces (more rift sawn than flat sawn).  I am currently talking with a local blacksmith about making some more Damascus. It will take some time, and a lot of careful consideration with regards to pricing... this is labor intensive and a very specific and unique application.

I have a spare K5 available for sale. It was made along side a K5 for a customer ,and this was a set that I was dying to see completed. Some very old, East Indian Rosewood with a bit of curl and wonderful, rich color. 

here are the specs;

- 5-1/2" sole
- 01 tool steel sides and sole
- stainless steel lever cap and screw
- 1 1/2"wide, high carbon steel Iron - 52-1/2 ̊ bed angle
-  SOLD

Send me an email if you are interested in the K5 or the cast bronze buckle belts; konrad@sauerandsteiner.com

(photo by Jameel Abraham)

The last blog post was May 2019... a lot has happened since then. At that point, the thought of ever owning a 911 was a pipe dream. I think it was the second item I ever put on my bucket list - after building a canoe (which I still have to do).

Riley and I had just been to Iowa visiting friends with Porsches (911’s and 356’s), and had the trip of a lifetime driving these incredible cars all over Iowa. Little did I know that before we left, I had already found what was to become my own 911. The 1981 silver 911 SC pictured above. There is a very long story behind how all this happened, and will save it for the next post - in the next few weeks.