Birdman

Looks like it is available from Amazon UK? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Packing-Iron-Gunleather-Frontier-West/dp/0939549085

I suggest you start thinking of using No 3 or 4 'blunt point' harness needles, or for a finer thread and stitching, No 5 or 6 glovers needles. Suitable linen thread for the former, 4/18 3/18, 3/25. For the later, 3/18, 3/25, 3/40, or some very nice 'silks'. Stitching suggested from 8spi to 12spi, using a pricking iron to just that, prick, not punch! let your awl do the work! I hope this helps.

Head knife/Double Head knife/Round knife, working away from you and using the thumb to guide the blade along the marked leather. Mark made with soft lead pencil, hard lead pencil or score awl as appropriate to leather type. As advised in above answers, thicker leathers may require multiple passes. In this situation I use a light pass first. This makes a very visible line and 'slot' for the blade to subsequently follow with future passes. ie it reduces the chance of the blade going 'off piste' ! I hope this helps.

Hi Thor, You may have misunderstood re 'pounding'? I was referring to the pounding given to the hide by the cattle (above ground) by their hooves whilst the hide was buried beneath them, not by a pounding given to the skins of the cattle whilst they were still alive! The Masai are very good towards their cattle. They are currency and wealth. They also believe that Ngai (God) gave them all the cattle in the world and as such they should repossess any that were not already in the possession of Masai. The result was many skirmishes with other tribes. They had perfected formation fighting similar to the Romans, and were a disciplined, fit fighting force. The Masai were fearsome fighters on the plains, second to none. Regards.

Probably both! The pounding by the cattle may also have some effect in loosening up the fibres and allowing for better penetration?

I spent my teens in Kenya, so here is my kumi centi ( ten cents) worth! The Masai (Maasai) would have had access to many naturally occurring chemicals like potash of alum and sulphour/sulphurous componds. They controlled a vast area of plains that has active volcanoes and sulphur springs. ie Ol Donyo Lengai--- translates from the Masai as Mountain of God, and Mt Longonot and Hells Gate. In my time there I saw both Masai and their near relatives, the Samburu preparing hides. The one thing that sticks in my mind is that hides were buried for a few days, (having had the fats etc removed) in the cattle 'boma'. This is small enclosure walled with thorn brush, where cattle were kept overnight. The ground was well saturated with, ------well I guess you can work it out! Referring to the video above there is a brief sequence of a moran ( a masai warrior) having a tussle with a lion. I was told by the Masai boys I was at school with, that in the not to distant past, a moran who wished to marry, had to kill a lion single handed with spear, shield and simi ---a short stabbing sword. The lion was encircled by the moran warriors and bated. The moran who who was to kill the lion went into the circle and threw his spear, at the lion. When the lion charged, the moran had to hold his nerve and fall backwards as the lion jumped onto him, his shield held out straight arm to take the lion, and the simi is then thrust through the shield killing or severely incapacitating the lion. The moran would wear the lions skin as a badge of honour at ceremonial functions. But as a leather worker, the points I would like to offer is, when you have a lion on top of you, would you want to push a stabbing sword through rawhide, or something that had been made softer by tannage of some sort? Or did they have a battle shield and a lion hunting shield? Or could the battle shield have been wetted prior to taking on Leo? I spent six happy years in Kenya, I owe the country.

This looks very much the same as 'laced reins' which used where a rider requires extra grip. ie a handful of horse! A 23 oval punch is used for the holes. The holes start 18" from the billet end and end at approx 8" from hand end and 1 and 1/8th of an inch apart. The lacing is made from the same hide as the rein, then split down, stained and then polished in the usual way. This helps with the passage of the lace through the holes by getting rid of any roughness. The lacing is started by pushing both ends through the first hole at the billet end so that you have an even amount on each end of the lace. Begin the lacing so that the grain side is covering the grain side of the main body of the rein. The lace is held 90deg across the back of the main body and then each end is brought over the main body edge and then down through the oval hole so that the grain side of the lace is showing both front and back. The lacing is then passed over and round, going through the next hole on the same side and so on until you reach the end. Take care not to allow a twist come into the lace by checking front and back as you work the laces through each hole. The ends of the lace are finished off on the back by trimming the lace so that an inch of each are stitched to the main body, flesh side, laying the lace ends close together neat and tidy! If you are making reins, the maker would pull the lacing tight enough (when working along) to make the main body of the rein wrinkle into a corrugated effect. When the rein is used, it will pull straight fairly quickly and not leave the lacing slack. I do not know if this needs to be done with a belt----I suppose it depends on how much the belt is holding in! I hope this helps, but if it is still clear as mud, shout and I will do some pictures.

A couple of days ago, whilst researching something else, I found this article in the online 'Daily Telegraph' newspaper (UK). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/features/seven-things-you-never-knew-you-could-do-with-peanut-butter/ Scroll down to item 7 or here is the cut and paste----or should that be spread? 7. Clean your houseIf you're trying to use fewer chemical cleaning agents, peanut butter is surpisingly versatile. Fans swear by it for cleaning leather - simply rub the butter in, leave for a few minutes, then rub away with a buffing cloth - cars, and even for removing scratches from wood. Interesting I thought! So I have posted this to see if any leather-workers in the home of peanut butter and jelly sarnies have any comment ?

Doug, If the wax you are using is beeswax, it can be hard when cold. A little gentle warming by a few degrees will sort that. It could just be the difference between a warm room and a cold garage! Re colour, just keep your eyes open for a light coloured beeswax and keep it that way! Over on this side of The Pond, local beekeepers will often help out with wax foc. I expect, that similar to the UK, beekeeping is becoming popular in urban areas of the USA. So keep your eyes open for roof top beehives and honey for sale notices. Regards.

Wash your hands before stitching, especially if you have been using dyes and edge stains! Use clean beeswax when using light coloured threads. ie use a separate piece for light colours, and keep it in a container when not in use. I hope this helps.

Have you tried Abbey Saddlery? They have quite a range of 'weightlifter' and 'gear' buckles. They may also be able to get a 'one of' made for you. http://www.abbeyengland.com/ Regards. P.

This thread may help you even though your question relates to a Western bridle. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=39688&hl=%2Benglish+%2Bbridle May I remind you the 'hand' size is just a name to label a size and set of measurements. Get your 'overall measurement' and find the 'hand' size that suits it best, or use the formula. The buckles will then be in a straight line in the right place against the horses head, all using the middle adjustment hole. Regards.

In addition to the good advice above...... Remember that when using a hot creasing iron, the mark is permanent. Cold ----and it isn't a disaster if you slip! It can be 'rubbed out'. So bearing this in mind, you may wish to make a good mark cold. This may need several passes with the tool. This will give you a good 'tram line' to help keep the hot iron in place when going for the permanent mark. As suggested above, practice on some scrap and note how easily the iron will slip across the leather if the tool is to close to the vertical. The outer edge of the screw crease not only polishes the cut edge, it keeps the tool in place. A new screw crease also benefits from 'running in'. Its like a fountain pen, it gets used to the way you hold it and wears/polishes itself accordingly. So the suggestion of practice has two benefits. It helps develop your skill as well as 'running in' the tool! I will slightly disagree with gmace99 on the temperature of the iron. 'Hot enough to sizzle' will burn the leather far to easily, and will also require a fast (and skilled) action to prevent this. My own personal preference is so that I can just bear the heat as the tool is briefly dabbed onto the palm of my hand. Another tip. When doing a batch of creasing, say when making a bridle, the iron takes longer to heat to begin with because the heat distributes itself along the metal. So you need to top up the heat more often in the first few minutes than you do in the last few minutes. I hope this helps.

I have recently bought a couple of 'beeper' locator collars (for working dogs) that are made of Biothane. They seem to have a "memory" from being rolled tight for packaging/shipping. Does anybody know how to get the perishing stuff to lay flat? Thank you in advance..........

In addition to the above comments, I would like to point out that the leather is stronger the closer it is to the spine. This is important when making bridles from a Bridle Butt. The craftsman will take the (half pair) of butt, and by feel, establish which edge is the spine edge and which edge is the belly edge at the same time as finding which end is the tail end and shoulder end. He will then mark and then using a head knife,cut the first straight cut down the length of the spine edge to establish the working edge. I then take off a 3/8" strip with a strap cutter or plough gauge. This will get rid of any minor errors from the head knife action. This strip is used for loops. Now when cutting leather for a bridle, the rein lengths are taken first as these obviously require the most strength. A half pair bridle butt will make 4 'full size' snaffle bridles. If you know you are going to make four bridles and therefore know the widths of each length in advance, you can take all of the rein lengths off, working from the spine. But most times, you will only make one bridle at a time, so it is important that you cut the rein lengths first in each case so strength is maximised throughout the use of that hide.. With reference to the 'cross grain' issue, when using thin leathers that require strength and stretch resistance ( falconry uses) the stretch can be reduced by sticking two pieces together that are 'cross grained' ie second piece glued at 90 degrees to the first in relation to the head/tail line of the hide.

I am not quite certain that I fully understand your Q. But.... If it is how I think it is, have you tried using single tack stitches tied off over the top to hold the parts in place while you stitch along the length? Snip through the tack stitch and remove the thread as you get close to each one. The number and spacing of the tack stitches are dependant on the particular corner(s). This will stop the work 'creeping'. Tip. Use the awl and make the tack stitch in the same way as you would for the rest of the work or you will end up with a slightly wonky looking stitch where the tack stitch was placed! I hope this helps.

Yes.

Here we go... OK. Look at the pictures above. You will see that the rolled edge is actually made up of 3 pieces of leather. The middle bit is the bit that rolls. It needs to be thinner than the other two pieces. Its width is determined by the size of the filler that is placed inside this middle piece that is rolled. In the pics, the middle piece is about 1". that has produced a roll of about 1/4" >3/8". A length of para cord was use as the filler in the illustrated example, but you could use thronging, strimmer line, leather strips, thread etc You stitch together the edges of the 3 pieces of leather taking care to join them in such a manner as you wish to see the finished item. ie if you want all surfaces showing to be grain, then you join the grain sides and stitch from the flesh sides. Next stage is to put the insert over the centre piece. A tad or two of contact adhesive will hold it in place. Then dampen the grain side of the centre piece. Then you close the two stitched edges together and stitch. Use the existing stitch places, but, if say you stitched at 8/", do every 3rd mark---just enough to hold the edges closed but not so much as making a load of extra work. This will close the roll. Then re dampen the rolled centre piece AND the stitched seams and flip it so that the other two pieces meet and leave your rolled edge on the outside. Bingo! A rolling/rounding block can be used to further enhance the shape. This is a lump of hard wood that has had a series of half round grooves of varying widths routed into it. The wetted leather roll is laid into the appropriate groove (start with a larger groove) and tapped gently along the stitched edge with a tack hammer. Move leather to a narrower groove and repeat. And so on and so on....... This moulds the roll. Allow to dry. I hope this does not appear as clear as mud!

They are made inside out and then turned the right way. Dampen leather where it will be turned before turning. Use a rolling block to finish off. Attached pics are of the rolled edge on a falconry glove. Its been in use for 3 seasons, so apologies for not showing something pristine---but it shoes the work lasts! The pics also show how to finish the ends. Hope this helps.

I have no specific knowledge regarding this tool. But I can offer the following advice based on using my own splitter. You should make sure that the blade is sharp and that the side of the blade that is facing the roller is flat. The upper surface may be 'hollow ground'. If this is the case, any subsequent sharpening should take both of these points into account. The blade should be polished and rust free. The roller should also be polished, it is probably brass? The roller should run freely....suitable light oil/greasing of the bearing and other moving parts? There is a critical relationship between the roller and the blade regarding the horizontal distance/space between them, and also the angle between them. Your splitter probably has vertical and horizontal screws to adjust these variables as well as an adjuster for the height of the roller? If so, experiment. A likely adjustment is such that the blade does not cover more than half the width of the roller and is even along the length. Also bear in mind that every piece of leather is going to be slightly different. So before you do something terminal on a new piece of work, test the settings first by backing off the height of the roller/blade gap first and slowly adjusting it up until the desired thickness is achieved. THEN back it off a tad, as because the leather compresses slightly as it is drawn through the splitter, the 'one off' pull through is going to be slightly different from the several pull throughs you will do when setting up. I hope this is not as clear as mud and that it gives you some ideas on how to set up your splitter. Regards, P.

This should be set in stone somewhere on this forum! Brilliant and to the point. As I am UK based I feel able to answer sharkeyfinn some practical advice. Remember you are making/repairing items on which someones life will depend. Do you have the training and skills necessary to make judgements over what is safe and what is not? Perhaps your initial question re leather suggests you are not. And it is not only leather. Its thread and stitching and a whole host of variables. Just remember that repair you did to a rein/ girth buckle/head collar has a horse of perhaps 600kg traveling at 35 mph on the end of it! When you are sure that you are competent to make/repair tack, get yourself insured. You will be surprised at how valuable a horse can become when someone can be litigated against. And that doesn't even consider any human claims and lawyers fees......... Sobering thoughts? So get some training.

The above picture is of the first slip lead I made some 15 years ago. It is still in daily use. Hopefully it shows sufficient detail of the weave. Regards.

Hi Lin. It is just common sense really. I deliberately did not include any instructions as they tend to be far to exact. This is because although the principal construction remains the same, the precise measurements vary with the thickness of the leather and hardware used. The slits are cut with punched holes at the load end. The length of the slit varies with the thickness of the leather and hardware. Edge shaving burnishing etc are all as you would expect. Any instructor on a youth group project would already have sufficient knowledge to lead his/her class in the project. It is just a simple in and out weave that locks on its self. I will try and dig out (or take) some more pictures that shows the detail a little better.

This morning the Farming Today program on BBC Radio 4 ( in the UK) was about the relationship between the fashion industry and farming. There was some interesting stuff on the preparation of hides to leather and also why leather prices have risen so steeply! The link below is good for seven days (iPlayer) and you can also download it as a 'podcast'. It should work in the USA???? http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04j9ym3

Several pages on this site, starting here: http://www.kingsmerecrafts.com/page86.html They got me started making some gloves for falconry.