How Do I Cut Straps From A Side?

[SimonJester753]

I've been buying latigo straps, and reducing them in width as needed with a strap cutter.

I bought a side and forgot to ask them to straight edge it for me. I just unrolled it. There are some odd "peninsula" shaped pieces around the edges. Should I just cut them off before I begin?

Should I cut the straps lengthwise, or from spine to belly?

When I'm done cutting what I need, should I roll it up, or hang it on the wall flat?

My strap cutter came with instructions on how to use it to straight edge a side, but they did not seem very clear to me, (I'll review them).

Would it be wrong to lay it out on a flat surface and use a utility knife and a long steel ruler to make a straight edge to work from?

In addition to some cuts that go through the leather around the edges, there's one or 2 in the center. Is this normal?

[mike59]

I've been buying latigo straps, and reducing them in width as needed with a strap cutter.

I bought a side and forgot to ask them to straight edge it for me. I just unrolled it. There are some odd "peninsula" shaped pieces around the edges. Should I just cut them off before I begin?

Should I cut the straps lengthwise, or from spine to belly?

When I'm done cutting what I need, should I roll it up, or hang it on the wall flat?

My strap cutter came with instructions on how to use it to straight edge a side, but they did not seem very clear to me, (I'll review them).

Would it be wrong to lay it out on a flat surface and use a utility knife and a long steel ruler to make a straight edge to work from?

In addition to some cuts that go through the leather around the edges, there's one or 2 in the center. Is this normal?

Simon,

Use a long straight edge and scribe a line the length of your side of latigo (or whatever hide you're using) from the top along the length of the back, or, along the bottom (belly) depending on the strap thickness you need.

You will now have a straight edge to work from with your strap cutter. When you have cut the strap material you need, roll the side up to store it. Depending on the amount, or length of strap you have use for regularly, I would always cut the strap

full length of the side, use what you need and store the remainder for the next project that requires that width of strap.

[roo4u]

use a long straight edge to mark a straight edge line on the side along the spine, trying to keep as much of the leather as possible. lately ive been using a drywall square as my straight edge. i mark my line with a utility knife, then once whole line is marked i use my utility knife to cut the line. once you have that use your strap cutter to cut your straps out. when you are done you can roll it back up to store. although what i do is cut the whole thing into 4" wide straps and store it in a tube, keeps it clean and keeps my dogs out of it. i make leashes so i dont do anything with the belly parts really. i use the weird shaped bits as protection for my tools and work surface when i punch or cut slits in my leather.

[dirtclod]

I use a 4 foot square just like the others said. But i take a yard stick and lay it beside the square towards the end of the square so i get the full length of the side. Some sides are cut so crooked it will look like their straight and you will run off before you get to the end that's where the yard stick comes in.

Simon i wouldn't cut any straps out of the belly . It's to streachie but like Roo said it can used for small things.

[SimonJester753]

I thought I had it worked out. My work bench is 8.5' long and has a laminate counter top, so I put the leather on the bench and lined it up with the edge to that what I wanted to cut off was hanging over the edge.

I put my stone slab in the middle to help keep it from moving, and I put "C" clamps on the ends.

Then I took my utility knife and held the blade flush with the edge and ran it down the length of the bench.

The leather rippled a bit in the middle, so I took about an extra 1/8" off.

Then I took my 3' long straight edge and flushed it with the bench and scribed a straight line the length of the hide.

I took the strap cutter and opened it up wide and tried to follow the line, (as they saw to do in the instructions that came with the cutter).

Either the blade was dull or the screws that hold it were not tight, because the blade popped out and the cutter wobbled a bit and so that cut was no good, either.

I also noticed that the strap cutter was marking the leather as I cut.

I think it's nap time. I'll tackle this when I'm not so mad at it. Maybe I'll wait till a friend comes over to hold it flat as I cut.

Edited September 5, 2010 by SimonJester753

[dirtclod]

Simon cut the scribed line with round knife or a sheet rock knife then use your strap cutter. The side needs to be on the table when your strighten it up. Get a cutting board and put that under the leather when it's on your table and slide the cutting board as you go along.

Are you using the wooden strap cutter ? If you are you probley need to open it up some more by the blade untighten the 2 screws and adjust then untighten the screw on the other end so it can open up to if it's making a mark on the hide. What weight leather you cutting ? I've used the wooden strap cutter to cut everthing from 2/3 ounce to 13/15 ounce leather and never had a problem.

[roo4u]

i know the instructions for some strap cutters say you can straight edge a side with it but i wouldnt. i tried that a couple of times when i started out and it does not work very well at all. i use a stanley utility knife with a good sharp blade ive never used a round knife but i know alot of saddlers and such do it that way. i dont have one so use what i have. i use a wooden table also. i scribe my line nice and deep and then as im cutting i pull the hide slightly off the side of the table so i dont cut the table. if you scribe nice and deep the first time your blade follows the line pretty well. if i have a little bit of ratty edge i cut a 1/8" strap first to get my edge nice and clean.

[mugwump]

in a pinch, you could use some cord/string/twine, and two push pins for a temp straight line.... it could also be used to make perfect circles.... and of your careful not to push or distort the tension on the string, you would be limited only by the length of the string... sorry, it was just a quick thought.... take care, good luck...

eric

[SimonJester753]

Thanks one and all for your help.

I let the leather sit on my bench overnight so it would flatten out more. That seemed to help.

I scribed a straight line, then put a cutting board under the leather and cut it with a utility knife. I then used the strap cutter to cut the cutoff down to a 1" strap, so I had little waste.

Then I took 1/8" off the side so it would have a more perfect edge.

Biggest lesson– If it's not working, back off. Ask questions. Take your time.