Aven

Good on you Ferg! That's a lot of work. I spent a weekend making masks for my wife who has to wear them at work. I have to make some for me today. I have to go back into the office tomorrow. I can't imagine making 300 of them.

It depends. If it's two layers and they are uneven, I'll take it to the belt sander for a quick clean up. I think I've got a worn 180 belt on it at the moment. If its a clean cut edge and I don't need to do anything but a bit of clean up, I'll use 220 or 320 whatever I have on hand if I'm out of those two.

Those are awesome! Love it! Got the pattern.

Surface prep and application play a large roll in the success. I've found that applying a thin coat, allowing it to get tacky and then applying another thin coat is better than applying a thicker coat.

What thickness of veg tan are you using?

Thanks for posting this.

I have used Weldwood, Masters and Barge. They all worked well. Success is in the surface prep and the application. Its better to use two thin layers of contact cement than one thick.

Rocky Mountain Leather Supply has several clams to choose from.

You can also do a Google and Pinterest searchs for SCA & cowl. That should give you a good starting point.

Here's my two cents. Stitching is all about muscle memory and consistency. If you started with a clam and moved to a stitching horse, the you would want it to feel just like you were still using a clam. So the jaws would be at the same height and have the same cant as near as possible. You'd want to have to do as little relearning as possible. You just want to sit and stitch. If the stitching horse user had never used a clam, they wouldn't bother to go through the hassle of canting the jaws. Plans: Check out pages 98-104 https://ia802605.us.archive.org/32/items/farmwoodwork00roeh/farmwoodwork00roeh.pdf

If you are making moccasins, you'll need something with a soft hand like bison and relatively thick, around 8oz. If you are making something more structured, contact Nstarleather and see what he has available that will work for you. Understand that the stuff he offers is overage he gets when he buys lots for his business. He offers the overage, extra to us at a more than reasonable rate than we can get retail. https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/83215-haas-tanneries-large-scrap/ You can also check with Maverick Leather or Hide House. Hide House is in Nappa.

No, but I sew. You might ask to see what they having for suit lining material. You can cut synthetics with with a hot knife to stop the edges from fraying.

It does. It also comes in different textures. I doubt JoAnns is going to have a broad selection of silk. The ones I've been in up here stock mostly cotton for quilting or fleece with a small selection of other materials. You might find a better source in/around LA or online.

Scott, what kind of shoes are you planning on making? Lasted, unlasted, welted, stitch down? Thank you. I hope you and yours have a good year.

Scott, I used a sharp knife. It's helpful to pull the cutoff part away from the sole as you are cutting to help relieve the drag. You can get a helping hand from someone else or clamp it in a vise after you get it started and pull away from the vise as you cut. But the key here is using a sharp knife. I've cut crepe and other soling material with just a knife. A lip knife makes it a bit safer for the shoe if you are cutting after its assembled. Google "R. Murphy Curved Lip Shoe Knife"

Barber clippers, like Wahl. Pick the guard you need for the thickness you want. You may want to do it outside or somewhere with hard floors so you can sweep it up. Depending on how large the shearling is and how much nap you are cutting off, it could get rather messy. If this is a one shot deal, try to borrow a pair or get the cheapest you can find.

Check out C. H. Holderby's in Seattle. 206 622 6646 (800-431-6646) . They are at 150 12th Ave.

It looks to me the maker started with a piece for the plug is probably about a half an inch or so wider than what we see. Then the plug piece is cut so that it creates the plug profile we see, but it isn't cut all the way through. The bit outside of the plug is skived down so that there is a relatively thin edge/lip left. Just make it so it is flexible enough to folded down nicely, and have enough thickness and width to take the stitches around the top. Don't forget you need a strip that will be the side seam. Cut the corners out so it will fold nicely. No need to punch holes for the plug part prior to sewing. Mark/punch the holes in the side leather first. Glue it up on a form. It should be easy to punch though with an awl or even your sewing needles.

I appreciate you taking the time to put the tutorial together. Thanks for sharing.

Please understand I don't know these sellers or the quality of their wares. I'm just using them as examples of various styles of edgers. When you are picking one out you need to look at the profile of the tip to make sure that you are getting an iron that will do what you want it to do. Small tip creaser Longer tip creaser KevinLeatherTools I like Kevin's tools. It can take a while for things to get through customs, especially now, but the tools themselves are good. Another smaller tip The alcohol lamp isn't made by anyone in particular that I know of. The two creasers are adjustable and consequently, more expensive. I hope this helps.

Tardis86, I will tonight. I haven't figured out how to copy and paste links on my phone. The link gets truncated.

Congrats on the new daughter-in-law. I wish them both a lifetime of happiness together. She is going to love her Christmas gift. I was looking at the flap thinking that your edge treating options were really limited. You could do some sort of edge coating. But honestly, your only other option would have been to turn it over on itself like you did for the top of the body. I like the rustic look.

Well done Battlemunky. That turned out a threat. I like your choice of leather.

Yup. Totally. If I haven't done any skiving in a while and I need to do some, I'll grab some scrap of what I'm working with or the closest thing I have in the scrap box and take time to sharpen my knife and practice skiving for 10 ~ 20 mins., whatever it takes for me to feel comfortable.

It doesn't matter what skiver you use, there is a bit of a learning curve. The knives I was talking about are the first ones you linked. I have both sizes, but find myself grabbing the smaller one more often than not. That's not to say that the larger one should be avoided, not that at all. I don't have large hands and I have arthritis in my hands, so for me the smaller one is just more comfortable to hold. Check out Lisa Sorrell's Youtube video on skiving. It really is worth watching.