Shop Talk! June 2022

Happy Anniversary ShopTalk! Friends! It’s been five years since our family business, Burns since 1876, acquired ShopTalk! magazine. Have I ever told you how that came to be? It all started with a prior business acquisition. Back in November 2015, our very own Nick Pernokas was in California on a trip for ShopTalk! He happened to be interviewing the Stanton family, former owners of Sunset Trails, the iconic western heritage silver company. Our family had just purchased the business and had a team of owners and craftsman in the shop at the same time. They were learning as much as they could from the Stanton’s before loading up 82,000 pounds of machinery, equipment, tools and dies to haul back to Utah, the new home of the company. Nick introduced himself to the…

GENE FOWLER A writer and performer based in Texas, Gene Fowler has written for Cowboys & Indians, Oxford American, San Francisco Chronicle, True West, and many other publications. His books include Maverick, Border Radio, Crazy Water, and Metro Music. JÜRGEN VOLBACH Jürgen Volbach is a trained goldsmith and engraver. At the age of 14, he started his apprenticeship and has now been working in artistic crafts for 45 years. He lives and works in his workshop in Cologne, Germany. He made his first works in leather in the 80s, on his Harley, and over time more and more requests came from friends for saddles and accessories in leather. At big Harley meetings in the US (Dayton, Sturgis), he gained inspiration for floral and pictorial leatherwork. On a trip through Texas, he ended up…

Mad Dog is synonymous with a signature, waxy, crunch-style pull-up finish that never seems to go out of style. But make no mistake, this is the Original Mad Dog leather! Others have tried, but no one can come close to the unique tanning and finishing methods used by the English tannery, Tusting & Burnett, for over 40 years. These are 100% aniline dyed, top grade, vegetable tanned African Goat skins, stuffed with loads of natural waxes and oils in the finishing process to give this leather that distinct and highly desirable pull-up and vintage attributes. This gorgeous leather can be burnished, polished, and distressed to create various looks and styles to suit whatever your needs happen to be! The unique finishing process showcases the natural grain and character of the leather…

ShopTalk! has learned of the passing of several top saddlemakers over the past year. R.D. Mork, Bob Moline and Bob Marrs all made their mark in the saddle industry. All three were also cowboys who had lived the cowboy dream astride their own creations. Roger Dean Mork was raised on a family farm in northeastern Iowa. The family had work horses, R.D.’s first experience with the horse business. Eventually, R.D. went to work for noted horse trainer Jack Brainard in Wisconsin. There he discovered the Quarter Horse business. Monte Foreman was a friend of Jack’s and frequently visited. R.D. was impressed with Monte’s forward seat, bulkless rigged saddles, made by Fallis Saddlery, and the things that Monte could do in them. The mid Fifties found R.D. working for all-around hand John Ed…

Keith Pommer, 77, of Sioux Falls, SD passed on to rodeo heaven on Sunday, March 20, 2022, at the Dougherty Hospice. Keith’s celebration of life was held on Thursday, April 14 from 11:00 am – 2:00pm at Miller Funeral Home-Southside Chapel, 7400 S. Minnesota Ave., Sioux Falls, SD, and was followed with an interment ceremony at 3:00 pm at the South Dakota Veterans Cemetery, Sioux Falls, SD. Keith Gerald Pommer was born April 17, 1944 in Watertown, SD, to Clarence and Irene (Olson) Pommer. He attended Castlewood High School until 1962. He knew then he was to live the cowboy life. He rodeoed, and worked around the country as a ranch hand and on horse racetracks, until he joined the Army and was stationed in Vicenza, Italy from 1965-1967. While in Italy, he…

Many leatherworkers travel across the country (sometimes around the world) to attend leather shows for a number of different reasons. Often, it’s to buy products and see old friends, but among the biggest draws for many of these events is the opportunity to learn from those that they admire. These instructors who offer workshops have typically spent a good portion of their career building their name as both an artist and a teacher, forming their personal brand. If it works for them, why couldn’t it work for you too? Maybe most of us won’t be teaching a master class on advanced saddlemaking any time soon, however, there are endless opportunities to make yourself known and establish yourself as the local expert in leatherworking by offering a class or two. Teaching can…