Fragbob Report post Posted May 24, 2014 (edited) Alright, might as well get this out of the way. I'm brand new to the leather working world and am looking at diving straight in. If I'm not mistaken this will be my first post so bear with me if this idea seems somewhat outlandish and/or if it just won't work. So I've been assembling my tool kit, and have decided to pick up a set of nice pricking irons via Goods Japan. I've been lurking here, reading a ton, and watching absolutely insane amounts of videos and I think that these style irons will best suit me as I dip my toes into the leather world, both due to ease of use and due to reading great things about the quality of their tools. The fact they're able to be used to actually punch through leather also kind of caught me, as it seems they will lead to less overall mistakes than an actual awl when used with stitching wheel. The downside being that if you don't have your tool virtually straight up and down that your whole row of stitches on the back would come up out of line. So I had this idea... What if one were to drill a hole in the center of a cheaper Arbor press with a set screw inserted into the side to hold the pricking iron? This would guarantee both that the iron was always in the correct position as well as offer finer control over how deep you would be pressing the iron through the leather. It seems like it would offer the advantage of the precision of using a drill press (which was kind of where I got the idea to begin with) but still offer the clean, neat holes and no blow out on the back that I read the drill press seemed to have. Has anyone done anything similar? Are there existing tools out there that already offer this type of functionality? More importantly, does it sound like this is an idea that might actually work somewhat decently? I'm coming to the leather gurus yourselves first in order to just make sure this isn't a fools errand. Feel free to let me know! Edit: As an aside, I just realized I'm an idiot. I had poured through the tool forums here a week or so ago and didn't see anything matching my question, so I decided to make this post. It appears, however, that a couple of days ago someone came up with a thread very similar to my idea here! Edited May 24, 2014 by Fragbob Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LTC Report post Posted May 24, 2014 http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=55856 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fragbob Report post Posted May 24, 2014 http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=55856 Yea. Check the edit I had made on the above post already. Thank you for linking it, however. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
St8LineGunsmith Report post Posted May 24, 2014 arbor press or a drill press is great for punching stitch holes in thick leather however IN my personal opinion you should learn how to use a stitching awl for projects using thinner leathers. a pricking iron is basically used for starting a stitch hole then the awl is used to complete making the hole to be stitched even when punching through leather with a press you will find the need for an awl to open up existing holes. the more you work with leather the more you will learn about what does and dont work. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fragbob Report post Posted May 25, 2014 arbor press or a drill press is great for punching stitch holes in thick leather however IN my personal opinion you should learn how to use a stitching awl for projects using thinner leathers. a pricking iron is basically used for starting a stitch hole then the awl is used to complete making the hole to be stitched even when punching through leather with a press you will find the need for an awl to open up existing holes. the more you work with leather the more you will learn about what does and dont work. Appreciate the heads up St8Line. Would you mind explaining the benefits of using a stitching awl vs using a regular awl to open up your stitching holes and then using saddle makers needles to actually thread your stitches? As I've said I've been doing a lot of reading and watching quite a few videos but I don't think that's something I've had the benefit of coming across. It seems like most of the people I've seen working just go ahead and do the saddle stitching with the 2 needle method. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
St8LineGunsmith Report post Posted May 25, 2014 well a stitching awl blade is diamond shaped and the hole is punched through at a 45 degree angle this will give you the staggered stitch. a stitching awl blade is sharper than a round awl blade therefore will push through the leather easier. I mark my stitch line then punch a hole, make a stitch. Punch a hole, make a stitch, etc.... and yes I do use the harness needles if I am making stitch holes in thick leather like a holster with a thick welt I will use my drill press on slow speed using a round awl blade but before making the stitch I will stab the round hole with my diamond shaped awl blade, stab a hole make a stitch, etc. I hope that makes sense. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fragbob Report post Posted May 25, 2014 Ahh! Ok, I thought you were talking about a sewing awl, not a standard diamond awl, like this one: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidL Report post Posted May 25, 2014 Some people use regular round awls for stitching, it makes for an easier stitch. Stitching this way will have a less slanted stitch and the stitching can be perfected in a 2 months because there are less variables. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
St8LineGunsmith Report post Posted May 25, 2014 this is the kind of stitching awl I am talking about Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
St8LineGunsmith Report post Posted May 25, 2014 Some people use regular round awls for stitching, it makes for an easier stitch. Stitching this way will have a less slanted stitch and the stitching can be perfected in a 2 months because there are less variables. That slanted stitch is what I want you can also get that slanted stitch with a round hole by knotting the stitch I have to disagree about ease it is easier to push through leather with a diamond awl than a round blade from my experience. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidL Report post Posted May 25, 2014 pushing the awl is around the same difficulty. There is no angle needed for the round awl, and the pulling of thread is easier because the holes aren't slanted and the pulling is different. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidL Report post Posted May 25, 2014 (edited) heres a link to a topic where there are two Custom machines one with the awl and the other a pricking iron. Where you can find these I don't know. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=47962&hl=%2Bdrill+%2Bpress#entry303856 sorry, Ive done that a few times before Edited May 26, 2014 by DavidL Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fragbob Report post Posted May 26, 2014 I appreciate both of you guys' input! Though I'm afraid I don't see a link in your latest post, DavidL. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
papaw Report post Posted May 26, 2014 I don't know being new to leather work I look at it as you should learn to use the tools of old before you try to learn short cuts. Kind of like starting off with a sewing machine before learning any hand stitching. Some of the craftmans skills are lost, not everyone cup of coffee just my thought, learn and advance with skill level. You may need the old way at some time. MY .02 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fragbob Report post Posted May 26, 2014 (edited) I don't know being new to leather work I look at it as you should learn to use the tools of old before you try to learn short cuts. Kind of like starting off with a sewing machine before learning any hand stitching. Some of the craftmans skills are lost, not everyone cup of coffee just my thought, learn and advance with skill level. You may need the old way at some time. MY .02 Completely understand where you're coming from! I've actually already assembled a (very) basic tool kit, comprising of a pretty nice diamond awl, an over-stitch wheel, and a home built stitching horse. I took two 12x6 pieces of 5oz'sh scrap veg tan and laminated them together. I then ran the over-stitching wheel over roughly the whole surface, with stitches running around half an inch a part just so I could get a ton of practice in doing it the old fashioned way. I can tell a huge difference between the first stitches and the last! That being said, I was just looking for a way to tidy up and give my work a little more professional appearance, as I've had the awl punch through crooked a few times and if I can find a way to make that not happen, I'm all for exploring options! DavidL - Thanks -a ton- for the link you provided! The video that jonasbro posted in there gave me some wonderful ideas to tinker with when I next head up to a member of my family's metal shop. Edited May 26, 2014 by Fragbob Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
St8LineGunsmith Report post Posted May 26, 2014 running the awl through crooked is a common mistake everyone makes especially starting out. making square/ straight stitch holes comes with practice. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
