TRM Report post Posted July 16, 2007 I have come into a large number of leather craft tools. How or what is the best ways to organize these tools. (I am a beginner) I now have them in a pile, when I need a certain tool I have to pick thru them till I find the one I need, by the time I find the tool, I have to rewet the leather. Any suggestions on how to bring order to this mess? Ted Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beaverslayer Report post Posted July 16, 2007 Ted, I would sujest that you take a piece of Oak or some other wood (preferably a hardwood) and drill a mess of holes into it. That way you can arrange the tools in such a way that they are more organized. Like tools in one row with smaller to larger. Ken Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Luke Hatley Report post Posted July 16, 2007 I have come into a large number of leather craft tools. How or what is the best ways to organize thesetools. (I am a beginner) I now have them in a pile, when I need a certain tool I have to pick thru them till I find the one I need, by the time I find the tool, I have to rewet the leather. Any suggestions on how to bring order to this mess? Ted HEY THERE, IF YOU HAVE WALL SPACE , I USE PEG BOARD WITH THE HANGERS TO PUT MY TOOLS ON. I LIKE TO KEEP THEM IN SITE. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cjbleather Report post Posted July 17, 2007 Ted, i assumed that these are stamping tools. Then the suggestion on a series of holes is correct. However, if you are not familiar with the tools, get yourself a catalog from Hide Crafters or tandy. This will have all the tools presently being made in order. This will give you an idea of their relative use. You would want the backgrounders (A Tools), the bevelers (B Tools), etc, together I would also check this catalog for tool holders. You might find one that is sized to meet your needs. Carl Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolvenstien Report post Posted July 17, 2007 What cjb suggests is exactly what I did when i got into leatherwork. I bought the Tandy Ultimate set that comes with a mess load of stamping tools. I got a 4x6 block of wood and tried to pattern the holes I drilled into it after the tool block tandy sells in the catalog. I wrapped it with a pig skin split. I then used the catalog to catagorize the tools by type and put them in the holder. Works great... On a side note.... were you kidding about having to rewet the leather after finding the tool? If you were not kidding there is a problem there in and of itself... I am guessing it is not taking a few hours to find the tool and that your house or where ever you are tooling is not overly hot and dry..... You should wet the leather by imersing it and allowing all air bubbles to stop raising from it then lat it dry out back to the original color but when you touch it to your CLEAN cheek you can feel the moisture. Then it is ready to be tooled and shouls hold the moisture for several hours given that it is not in a very dry hot place. Personally I have recently done several 3x3 inch 5-6oz leather pieces that I had to leave in the middle of tooling and 4 hours later when I got back to them they were still moist enough to get good carving in them. Mike Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Johanna Report post Posted July 17, 2007 I have not seen too many people immerse leather, usually a spray bottle does the trick. YMMV Johanna Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Major Report post Posted July 17, 2007 I have not seen too many people immerse leather, usually a spray bottle does the trick. YMMVJohanna Ahhh the old Boy Scout methodology of immersing the leather. I remember those days. Since finding out too much moisture is bad for tooling, I have been using a spray bottle with dawn in it. Now when I tool something to a certain depth I know it will stay that way. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beaverslayer Report post Posted July 17, 2007 I agree with the Major and Johanna as well. I learned from one person to immerse, then when the person that taught me pretty much everything I know now first saw me immersing a piece of leather...his 16 oz mallet almost took my ear off. needless to say I use a spray bottle now with Dawn soap added...just a few drops. Ken Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pepin1948 Report post Posted July 17, 2007 Back to the original question: I have a few different size tool racks (wood blocks with holes in them) from Tandy, and I DO NOT organize the tools in alphabetic/catalog order. I organize them according to how much I use them. Yes, I do put all the bevelers together, but I have the pear shaders right next to them in the front row of the block. I put all the flowery tools (i.e. roses and leaves) in one section, all the "cutesy" little animals (i.e. cat, dog, butterfly) in one section, etc etc. As to the submerging leather issue: when I teach, I tell kids to NOT soak the leather too much or we'd be there all day waiting for it to dry enough to use. We swipe it across the top with a (water) wet sponge, and they begin stamping. These, of course, are small projects. When I personally am doing a large piece, I will submerge it first, then let it dry overnight, then re-wet the top before I begin working on it. Just my .02 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolvenstien Report post Posted July 17, 2007 Sorry, I did not mean to steal this thread or divert it from its original path... Here is a new thread to talk about casing.... http://www.leatherworker.net/forum/index.p...wtopic=1357&hl= Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Peter Ellis Report post Posted July 17, 2007 I have not seen too many people immerse leather, usually a spray bottle does the trick. YMMVJohanna On the subject of tool organization, could you point TRM to the thread with the pictures of people's work areas ? I found the shots of Verlane's and (darn, spacing the other person's name) studios to be quite inspiring. Excellent examples of how top pros organize their gear. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
barra Report post Posted July 18, 2007 (edited) http://www.petermain.com/parent.htm Go to studio workshop 2 words. I wish. Barra Edited July 18, 2007 by barra Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gtwister09 Report post Posted October 16, 2007 Ted, Here is a tool rack design that you can modify for your stamping tools. It allows you to rotate the tools at 2 different angles as well as providing the ability to carry your stamping tools and your swivel knifes. If you are interested in other types of tool holders, then consider pegboard organizers. If you go to the Marble slab thread you will see some PDFs on a workbench that you can tool on that allows you to sit or stand. It also has pegboard organizers on one side for various tools. Regards, Ben A_Modification_of_Verlane_and_Dale_Tool_Racks.pdf A_Modification_of_Verlane_and_Dale_Tool_Racks.pdf Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ghstrydr164 Report post Posted October 29, 2007 Tool rolls are the only way to go with large pockets that hold groups of tools. All of the seminars I took with top carvers that's what they all use even at their shops. It's better to have only a couple of dozen high quality stamps rather a few hundred mass produced and plated stamps that will not leave good sharp impressions and the angles on many are all wrong for good results. The quality of tooling will be limited by the quality of the impressions left by the stamps. The best carver in the world will have his work suffer with the use of poor quality stamps. Some of the very old un-marked and un-plated craftools can leave good sharp impressions but they are hard to find. Most of the old timers I studied with made many or all of their own stamps. Cyrus Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
