Found a stash of cigar bands...

[panamag8or]

I'm gramma-sitting for the week, and was digging around the 3-car garage that Grandpa perfected his pack-rattiness in. I found a box with about 40 apparently unused cigar bands from Hav-A-Tampa.
Well, you know what I had to do.

The clip is hiding the seam where the ends meet. The wood is cocobolo on a Mesa kit. This was an experiment, and I want to see if I can soak the bands and separate the paper into two plys, to make it thinner. I have a dozen coats of CA on it (including 3 of thick CA), but you can still feel the band. It ain't perfect, but it's pretty cool, and I have lots more bands to play with.
There are also gold Tampa Nugget bands.

 

[plantman]

I'm gramma-sitting for the week, and was digging around the 3-car garage that Grandpa perfected his pack-rattiness in. I found a box with about 40 apparently unused cigar bands from Hav-A-Tampa.
Well, you know what I had to do.

The clip is hiding the seam where the ends meet. The wood is cocobolo on a Mesa kit. This was an experiment, and I want to see if I can soak the bands and separate the paper into two plys, to make it thinner. I have a dozen coats of CA on it (including 3 of thick CA), but you can still feel the band. It ain't perfect, but it's pretty cool, and I have lots more bands to play with.
There are also gold Tampa Nugget bands.

:embarrassed::island::turtle: Here is a little trick I use when I have a decal, paper lable, or sticker that has been used on a pen. Take any smooth round object such as a screwdriver shaft and carefully role it over the edge of your band to burnish or reduce the sharp edge of the paper. You could also buy a burnishing tool from a leather shop that's made for this purpose. If the band is embossed (some parts raised) you could burnish the whole band. The idea is to roll the shaft over the band with pressure and not to rub across it. You can do this before you glue your band on or after. This should give you a smooth feel on the edges of your band. I think you need a little longer barrell to match up with your band size or a cigar kit itself. Nice looking work !! Jim S

 

[panamag8or]

So, I posted this on a local cigar store's FB page, and now they want one for a charity auction... my first real public exposure.