eminart

Well, alright, exacto it is since that's what you professionals are using. Too bad I'm 500 miles from home where I have several exacto blades. Guess I'll go to the store again. Thanks guys!

I'm new at this too, but I bought one from harbor freight as well. I don't know about for your purposes, but it works great for setting rivets and using punches. I think it was something like $8.

Stupid newbs asking stupid questions. I want to make some fairly intricate cuts all the way through my leather (4-8oz). Not knowing squat, I saw and grabbed a swivel knife at Tandy this afternoon. When I got it home, I realized that it's used for surface carving. Unless, there's another blade for it that's used to actually cut through leather? If not, what should I use? To clarify, I basically want to cut swirly holes through a piece of leather. I guess I could use an exacto, but I'm thinking there's probably a better tool out there.

Good point. I'd actually rather have a drill press because I often need one. It's just that they cost a little more. I was thinking the same thing you said about a guide. It would make some nice, straight stitch holes. That's true. Being the quintessential do-it-yourselfer, I hadn't considered a machine shop. I may look into that. Thanks for the help, guys.

Does anybody here know of a way to attach a chuck to a harbor freight arbor press? If not, I guess I could get one of their small drill presses, but from what I remember, they cost a lot more.

While struggling to push my awl through two layers of 7-8oz leather, it struck me how much easier it would be if I had a press. I saw the one that Tandy sells, but it's like $150. I can buy a simple arbor press for around $40 that would work great except there's no chuck or other way of attaching a blade. Are there any cheap presses out there that you guys commonly convert to use for leather working? I would assume they could also work well for setting rivets, punching holes, and all sorts of other things, so I'm guessing some of you have looked into this. A simple press with a chuck would be very useful for a lot of things.

Thanks, it's actually a rubber mat. I think I broke the first awl by just not knowing what I was doing. I went back today and bought an awl with removable blades, and three blades. One of them I got from Springfield Leather (I'm in Springfield for work) and it seems to be a little better quality. The awl I broke had a fixed, round blade and I was pushing pretty hard and got a little side torque going I think, which broke it.

Don't even know what one looks like. I was laying my leather flat on a cutting mat and pushing the awl down through it. So, sounds like I need a sharper awl. I'm going to drive back over to Tandy, for the 4th time in 5 days and get a new one and go get something to sharpen it with. Thanks, guys.

I'm just getting into this hobby. I've spent about $500 on tools and supplies this week. I'm starting out with a dog collar. The problem is, I promptly broke my stitching awl. I need to punch holes through 7-8 oz leather that is doubled over. What kind of awl do I need? The one I broke was this one: http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/search/searchresults/31218-01.aspx I was going to buy the one that has 3 or 4 interchangeable blades, but they were out at the time. Is it any stronger than the one I broke? Or is there another kind I need? I have absolutely no experience with this.

Awesome, thanks! As soon as my tax money comes back, I'll be ordering some supplies. I have a nice quality rotary punch, and some hand punches, but I'm going to order order all the other "essential" tools and some leather. I do have a kangaroo hide, but I'm saving that for my falconry gear. By the way, are there any better places to get stuff than Tandy?

Thanks! That helps a lot. I have now discovered that there is a sub forum specifically about types of leather. I'll do better with my post location next time.

Hello everyone, I'm a noob here. I'm wanting to get started doing some leatherworking. I'm wanting to start with some nice, custom dog collars, but I have no idea which kind of leather I should buy. Can anybody help me with the type and weight I should get? Are there any charts that show for example how thick 8 oz leather is? I'm thinking I'm going to double the leather and stitch it together, which will allow for more creativity with insets and stuff. So, I guess I'll want the leather to be half the thickness of what I want the collar to be. Also, what the difference between a dye and a stain?