Made uneven watch strap. Please tell me how to cut them evenly. Thank you

[NewYorkerInSydney]

Hello everyone. I have decided to try and make homemade watch straps. This past weekend I tried making my first two watch straps. Geez, they look terrible. The biggest problem I am currently having is making the straps straight. I measured well, but when I cut with the blade using the ruler I just dont seem to get all four sides straight. It may be a little narrower on one side or when I sandwich the straps they dont necessarily match up either so I have to cut again and then it looks terrible. Frustrating. Do you some of you use a special cutter or something? It would be nice to have perfectly cut and even strips. Any ideas, suggestions, etc?

Thanks in advance for your help. I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

NewYorkerInSydney

[katsass]

Hello everyone. I have decided to try and make homemade watch straps. This past weekend I tried making my first two watch straps. Geez, they look terrible. The biggest problem I am currently having is making the straps straight. I measured well, but when I cut with the blade using the ruler I just dont seem to get all four sides straight. It may be a little narrower on one side or when I sandwich the straps they dont necessarily match up either so I have to cut again and then it looks terrible. Frustrating. Do you some of you use a special cutter or something? It would be nice to have perfectly cut and even strips. Any ideas, suggestions, etc?

Thanks in advance for your help. I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

NewYorkerInSydney

Good morning Sydney. I don't make watchbands, or at least not yet, but I do have to cut strips of light weight veg tanned leather for cartridge loops fairly often. Found out long ago that a straight edge and a knife is not the way to go. What I would suggest it a strap cutter. I have two. One is almost 50 yrs old and the other has only a couple of yrs on it...they are almost identical. Invest $25 or $30 bucks, a little practice and some scrap leather and you should be on your way. Tandy and most leather supply outfits carry them. Hope this helps. Mike

[NewYorkerInSydney]

Hello Mike, thank you for your reply and advice. I bought a strap cutter at your suggestion and have been practicing all morning, but maybe Im doing it wrong but the cuts still dont seem perfect. Perhaps they never will be? Maybe I can sandpaper the sides or something. I don't know. I feel discouraged, that's for sure. Any other ideas? Thank you again. Kind regards. NYIS

[katsass]

Hello Mike, thank you for your reply and advice. I bought a strap cutter at your suggestion and have been practicing all morning, but maybe Im doing it wrong but the cuts still dont seem perfect. Perhaps they never will be? Maybe I can sandpaper the sides or something. I don't know. I feel discouraged, that's for sure. Any other ideas? Thank you again. Kind regards. NYIS

NYIS, good morning again. Maybe you are not getting the tool to work for you in the proper way. First, ensure that the blade is sharp, mine uses what looks like an old Schick Injector razor blade. When installed it faces you, between the upper and lower thickness guides. Set the thickness to just slightly more than the thickness of the leather you are cutting, and set the width of cut to your need then lock it down. Make sure you have a straight edge on the leather you will cut. This will act as your guide. You will need to make an initial (starting) cut in your leather to the left of that straight side....the width of your strap. It will have to be deep enough for you feed the leather between the blade and the tool, and then secure that end to something solid....a hook in your bench; a vice; someone else's strong hands. If you use someone else to hold the leather, have them do just that...HOLD the leather....they don't pull. You then draw the cutter towards yourself slowly, watching the right side (straight edge you cut earlier) of the leather ride against the left side of the cutter. Do not allow the leather to bunch (which should not happen if you set the thickness guide) or pull away from the left edge of the tool. The cutter should almost glide thru the leather. On thin leather do not pull and stretch the leather as this will cause a narowing of the finished strap. Cut long straps then cut those to length. A little practice and a calm attitude should get you there. Hope this helps you Mike

Edited October 8, 2009 by katsass

[Monticore]

NYIS, good morning again. Maybe you are not getting the tool to work for you in the proper way. First, ensure that the blade is sharp, mine uses what looks like an old Schick Injector razor blade. When installed it faces you, between the upper and lower thickness guides. Set the thickness to just slightly more than the thickness of the leather you are cutting, and set the width of cut to your need then lock it down. Make sure you have a straight edge on the leather you will cut. This will act as your guide. You will need to make an initial (starting) cut in your leather to the left of that straight side....the width of your strap. It will have to be deep enough for you feed the leather between the blade and the tool, and then secure that end to something solid....a hook in your bench; a vice; someone else's strong hands. If you use someone else to hold the leather, have them do just that...HOLD the leather....they don't pull. You then draw the cutter towards yourself slowly, watching the right side (straight edge you cut earlier) of the leather ride against the left side of the cutter. Do not allow the leather to bunch (which should not happen if you set the thickness guide) or pull away from the left edge of the tool. The cutter should almost glide thru the leather. On thin leather do not pull and stretch the leather as this will cause a narowing of the finished strap. Cut long straps then cut those to length. A little practice and a calm attitude should get you there. Hope this helps you Mike

[Monticore]

NYIS, good morning again. Maybe you are not getting the tool to work for you in the proper way. First, ensure that the blade is sharp, mine uses what looks like an old Schick Injector razor blade. When installed it faces you, between the upper and lower thickness guides. Set the thickness to just slightly more than the thickness of the leather you are cutting, and set the width of cut to your need then lock it down. Make sure you have a straight edge on the leather you will cut. This will act as your guide. You will need to make an initial (starting) cut in your leather to the left of that straight side....the width of your strap. It will have to be deep enough for you feed the leather between the blade and the tool, and then secure that end to something solid....a hook in your bench; a vice; someone else's strong hands. If you use someone else to hold the leather, have them do just that...HOLD the leather....they don't pull. You then draw the cutter towards yourself slowly, watching the right side (straight edge you cut earlier) of the leather ride against the left side of the cutter. Do not allow the leather to bunch (which should not happen if you set the thickness guide) or pull away from the left edge of the tool. The cutter should almost glide thru the leather. On thin leather do not pull and stretch the leather as this will cause a narowing of the finished strap. Cut long straps then cut those to length. A little practice and a calm attitude should get you there. Hope this helps you Mike

the strap cutter definatly works better on certain types of leather, thin, stretchy, upholstry leathers don't seen to work as well.

http://forums.timezone.com/index.php?t=tree&goto=2532389&rid=2003

i use a similar method to the 1 in this tutorial, i cut my strips wider than i need and then trim them to size once glued, with softer leather having it doubled/lined it keeps it from stretching, and makes my edges better. using a utility knife take some practice aswell, just make sure its sharp.alos make sure your ruler has a cork backing.

[DG Leather]

I ave learnt to cut a straight line on the hide. The to take the strap cutter ensuring I hold it evenly through the whle process. Anytime i lift it higher or turnit in the slightest i get variations.....also I learnt that my perfectionism is a hinderance to my creativity.....after all we are learning to do custom hand crafted art...there is no perfect...although looking at this site then my own work my ego starts to compare everything and chastize my work...even the way i cut leather...for me this is a detriment to my work. I am learning and only sharing with you my experience so far.

Take care

[xlr8tn]

NewYorkerInSydney,

I start off by creating a template out of card stock paper in the correct dimensions. I leave the ends and sides a little wider than the actual straps. Since I mostly work on alligator, I align the template over the hide and find a nice pattern and secure using the blue painters tape (tends to not mark the leather or leave a residue). Once this is done, I line up a ruler (corked backed like Monticore stated) and use a sharp new blade to cut one side. I then measure and mark again on the other side, making sure to leave about 1/2 mm or less to account for edge paint buildup. I tend to make the lug side closer to the exact size for a perfect fit and a little less towards the tip of the strap. This is to reduce the friction through the buckle and to prevent edge paint from getting messed up.

Hope this helps,

Brent

Cajun Straps

[Jordan]

A photograph would be helpful to see the problem. It sounded like your second post indicated a second problem ie. ragged edges? A little H20 an edger and a slicker to apply friction will smooth out and compress the edges. As far as a straight cut, the strap cutter with a sharp blade and practice is the way to go.

[NewYorkerInSydney]

Hello everyone,

Thank you so much for kind help and suggestions. I very much appreciate it. I am taking everyones advice. I understand now that I have to keep my hand steady and the leather steady when I use the strap cutter otherwise it is easy for the strap to end up being cut funny. I now see the difference in working with a ruler with a cork back vs without. Makes a difference. I also am finding it a bit better to cut the straps to the size I ultimately want by first sandwiching and gluing together. I do see that it all takes practice and patience and boy do I have trouble with the patience. I will keep at it and keep practicing. If and when I have a strap that finally looks like something I really like, I will post a photo. Thank you all again so much!

Cheers