justinwilliams

Great, thanks! I'll treat it as such.

Hi all, I bought this piece of leather from a reputable supplier a few months ago, and am just now getting around to turning it into a project. When I bought it, it was advertised as "single shoulder," but now that I look at it, well, hrm, that would be a huge shoulder! It's 3 feet wide and 5 feet long, Which leads me to believe that either: 1) it's a double shoulder (in which case, the long, rough edge on the left is the animal's neck), or; 2) it's actually a single bend with belly attached (in which case, the long, straight edge on the right is the animal's spine). Trouble is, I don't really know how to tell 'em apart. Are there any telltale signs for whether it's a single bend or double shoulder? I wouldn't normally fuss about this kind of difference, and I'm not considering sending it back or anything like that. Mainly, I just want to make sure that I cut the straps along the spine to increase strength. Any guesses about the what I'm looking at here? Any good ways for figuring this out? Alternatively, am I overthinking this? The leather is 4 oz bridle, and I'm goiing to double and stitch the straps. Thanks for any help!

Ok, thanks all. It sounds like this is pretty straightforward, so I won't overthink it. Thanks, oltoot, for the tips on sewing the gusset from one piece of leather and the notches in the corner. I plan to glue, which should help to keep things lined up. I'll post when I actually get this thing off the ground. Justin

Thanks for the reply, Palermo. This wouldn't be for a customer, so there's no real concern there. As far as aesthetics go, I like both styles about the same. So that's a wash. Do you have experience using both kinds of gussets? What have you noticed as differences?

I'm new to the forums and to leatherworking. Hello all! I was hoping for some help with gussets. I'd like to build a briefcase/satchel/messenger type bag, and in looking at design possibilties, it seems like there are basically two broad categories of bags: single gusset and double gusset (there are, to be sure, many more, but these two seem like standard construction methods). I have two questions: - How should one choose what kind of gusset to use? Why choose single gusset over double gusset (or vice versa)? Is it simply an aesthetic difference? Does number of gussets influence how the bag drapes, folds, compresses, and the like? Past a certain depth, is double gusset preferable? - Are there any tutorials available for hand stitching double gussets? It seems pretty straightforward: stitch the two gussets together, and then stitch the whole unified double gusset onto the front/back (easier said than done, I'm sure, but still not unduly complicated). Am I missing something? Thanks for your help, Justin