To make a leg mount conversion.

[Venividevenatio]

Converting a tag from tailmount to legmount.

At some time, you may have to use a leg mount instead of a tail mount. A useful item for the hawking box. Here I hope to show how to make the attachment.
You will need:
leather..... kangaroo or Panel hide, but avoid clothing and furniture leathers.
thread... 3/25 or 3/18 linen as used by saddlers is best, but dental floss should be OK, or 'Button thread'
Scalpel or similar craft knife
ruler and pencil
stitch marking tool, but sharp pointed pencil and a ruler will just about cope....not as neat end product.
hole punch
awl
needle
beeswax is helpful, but not essential.


First measure the circumfrence of your tag tube, by using a pice of scrap leather preferably from the piece you will use for the job. Use thumb and finger nail to make the marks, then measure with ruler. Add 3/16" to this measurment, and for convenience make it up to the nearest 1/8 above. ( ie if your measurment plus 3/162 = 1 and 7/16", make it 1and 1/2")

[Venividevenatio]

Next measure the length of your tag, from wher ariel joins to top of cap. Cut out a strip of leather that is the width of your circumference plus measurement ( above) and 3 times the length of the tag barrel plus another 3 inches. Use a straight edge to cut against if that helps you. Keep fingers out of the way!

[Venividevenatio]

Now gently bend leather in in half, and make a mark with a pencil, that is in the centre of the width, on the point of the bend. The mark is therefore at the centre of the work. Next select a punch that makes a hole that the size of the aeriel, at the point where the aeriel joins the tube . Test this on your piece of scrap.

[Venividevenatio]

Open out the folded work leather, and punch the hole at the mark. Check the fit with ariel.

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Then fold leather back in half again. Trim both the corners at the bend. That means trim!! Take off about 1/16" to 1/8". For guidance the pic shows one corner trimmed on a piece of leather that is 1 and 1/2" wide.

[Venividevenatio]

Now put the aeriel through the hole and bring the 'wings' of the leather up the sides of the tube. Pinch a mark on to the leather at the oint where it meets the top of the cap.

[Venividevenatio]

Now remove the tag and open out the work. Make pencil marks at the marks left by your pinching above.

[Venividevenatio]

Now using a stich marker,--- *****ing iron or wheel (or even a pencil and ruler -- -8 /inch) mark from the pencil mark to just before the corner that you trimmed earlier. Mark stiching about 1/16" to 1/8" from the edge. Repeat on opposite side of the same flap. It may help you to stich if you match the sides together, and pre awl through the stich marks. A VERY thin line of impact glue along the very edge, may also be a help

[Venividevenatio]

If you have some beeswax, wax up some thread. Stich the surfaces together. The pics show double hand stiching, but if you are just a 'in one hole and out of another sticher', then go back and fill in the gaps, and either finish of by a discreet knot on the inside, or go over again so that you have 3 complete stiches---back and front--- with 2 threads in each stitch finishing on the 4th. Knotting off will then not be necessary.

[Venividevenatio]

Using a pencil, open up the pocket you have now made. Then try the tag and aeriel to see if it is a fit. Hopefuly, it can be fitted in and out with minimum pressure. If to tight, wet leather, and use a suitably sized pencil etc to expand the pocket a little. Allow to dry, and retry.

[Venividevenatio]

With the tag in place, fold one of the flaps over the top of the cap and dot leather with pencil where leather is over the centre of the cap.

[Venividevenatio]

Now remove tag. Tuck unmarked flap out of the way and punch a hole at the mark. The size of the hole is dependant on the width of the leather. In this example the width was 1 an 1/2 " and a 1/82 hole was used

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Then lay work flat, with both flaps together. Make a mark approx 1/2" to 5/8" from the first hole. Punch through BOTH flaps.

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Then fold the flap with 1 hole out of the way. We now have to scallop the flaps so that one flap can be passed through the hole of the other. The rule of thumb here is that the centre remaining part should be 1/2 the origional width. So take the width measurement, divide by 2 ( that is what needs to remain in centre) and then divide by 2 again. ( that is what must be scalloped away from each side of each flap. So using a pencil measure and dot as per the picture, free hand the curve, and use a ruler to do the straight edges. Repeat with the other flap.

[Venividevenatio]

Next carefully cut away the scallops to leave the centre piece in both flaps.

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Now take the flap with 2 holes (tuck the other back out of the way) and measure 3/8" from 2nd hole, line across with pencil and cut. The corners can be cut across as before by about 1/16 to smarten it up a little.

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Now bring the other flap back underneath the one you have just trimmed. Mark where the two meet on the single hole flap. Then mark again apprux 5/8" from that line.

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Now with the 1 hole flap, trim between the 2 marks to make a tapered point. Place the tag in the pocket, pass point through the first hole of other flap and pull through till the hole on the pointed flap meets the matching hole in the other flap.( As with a traditional bewit) A cable tie is then used to attach the assembly to an Aylmeri grommet. The angle of attachment can be fixed by tightening the cable tie. The assembly can also be used on a tail mount, adjusting cable tie as necessary.

One small tip... do not leave tag in the pocket, the salts in the leather may cause corrosion over time.

[Accipter-Gentilis]

superb,thanks for that pal very informative.

[Wilfred]

To me it is also far too complex. Has it any use to pack the sender in leather? And what about the aditional weight of the sender in that case?

I myself just have senders with a clip and attached them with cable ties till now. But friend of mine he uses leather kind of bewit with a button also only attaching the sender to leg only when hunting. I have to ask him some example and exact sizes because I want to use this with falcons and gos and so on in future in case i use the leg mounting for senders. Will post some picture sometime.

[Tim Laycock]

Exellent thread :supz:

[FlameHairedFalconer]

Brilliant thread - have used something similar myself in the past (with a button bewit rather than cable tie) :supz: :supz:

FHF

[Venividevenatio]

To me it is also far too complex. Has it any use to pack the sender in leather? And what about the aditional weight of the sender in that case?

I myself just have senders with a clip and attached them with cable ties till now. But friend of mine he uses leather kind of bewit with a button also only attaching the sender to leg only when hunting. I have to ask him some example and exact sizes because I want to use this with falcons and gos and so on in future in case i use the leg mounting for senders. Will post some picture sometime.

The 'pocket' I made for this thread weighs just under 5grms. I suggest that this would be insignificant to hawks over 1lb /450gr weight?

Your point about cable ties is taken. When I have seen these in use, the cable tie with the 'eye' has been glued with epoxy resin, or the 'sender' has been specificaly designed to be leg mounted. Not always enough time to allow glue to 'cure'??
The purpose of this 'pocket' is, something to be kept in the hawking box, to be used in unexpected circumstances, and with the knowledge that correctly applied, the tag can assume the safest angle, and revert quickly to a tailmount, and that it will not fall out!
Also something to do during the moult!
But thanks for you obsevations.

[Ladyhawk]

WOW another good thread! Well Done.

[Venividevenatio]

As requested, leg mount attached. Some positioning adjustment can be obtained before tightening cable tie. Cable tie lock can also be tightened in a position to allow passage of flying jesses. Could also be fitted to a hole punched in leather of Aylmeri.