DavidL

Thanks for the reply excellent tips!

the tools and equipment i have are: vergez blanchard pricking iron 9spi 4 teeth 2 awls around 2.5mm and 3.8mm fil au chinois thread 532 .57mm thick standard knife and safety skiver garment leather about 2oz for practice 1.) in this video at 2:40 you can see the thread and stitch holes. the thread I presume is fil au chinois 632(.51mm) or 832(.42mm) and 9 or 10 spi. 2.) what thread size is more aesthetically pleasing for 9spi .51mm or .42mm for those who work in small spi. 3.) What distance is the stitch line drawn from the edge of leather, I have tried 6mm but it is far from the edge and looks odd and any closer to the edge on garment leather makes it hard to get an impression on garment leather. 4.)Thickness of the outside and inside pieces at 4/5 ounces for outside and 2 ounces for interior be suitable? (max thickness would be 4/5 ounce plus two 2 ounce pieces) 5.)My last question is when he cuts the excess leather with his Japanese and english skiver is that necessary or can the pieces be cut to size?

Brilliant design jess. I too am working on a wallet but had some difficulty with the thickness of the interior pockets. Do you intend to sell this wallet or is this a personal wallet?

Thanks for the replys. TXAG I found the stitching clamp under the name colt I must have missed it, but was looking for a more traditional clamp that would rest between my legs, I will have a go at flea markets when I have a chance.

I check sheridan leather for the stitching clamp and it doesn't seem like they sell them anymore. the vergez blanchard seems like the best one i can find but is double the price of the abby england. Is there a happy medium? 120- 150 for a good quality clamp that will last decades.

I am currently using a makeshift stitching clamp from scrap wood parts, but it is very uncomfortable and too short for me to stitch. So my question to you is there any supplier in Canada (where I live) or even U.S or U.K that sells stitching clamps for under $150 preferably around the 100 mark. The one I have found are the vergez blanchard from fine leather working - but is too expensive at 200 http://www.fineleatherworking.com Any one who knows a store that sells old clamps or any websites that offer reliable shipping would be appreciated.

hi everyone, I have been having troubles keeping all my stitches completely the same one after another. Some problems I have been having is pulling the thread with the same tension and keeping the awl at a 45 degree angle and perpendicular. This is nearly impossible for me to do. Soon I will be recieving a pricking iron and hopefully that will help with the angle but my the back of the leather will not have a slant and the front of the leather will look good, any ideas would help!

Thanks knasim I was going to buy from that website but would rather buy used for my tight budget

looking for vergez blanchard 9 tpi 4 teeth sewing awl 38mm edger size 2 (1mm) veg tan leather 2-3 ounce herman oaks or horween

I Like it! Looks very professional with the alligator skin. Btw, how many spi is this it looks like it is 10 or 11.

What is the difference between vergez blanchard pricking irons that have different "dents" are those considered teeth on the pricking iron? I would love to hear some feedback from anyone that bought a pricking iron or their sewing awl from vergez blanchard website. Thank you.

Thanks for the reply. I actually have a pricking iron from goods japan and im looking for a heavier duty one. Im from the east near buffalo

As im getting more and more skilled in leather work I am finding I need to expand my tools to fit my needs of harder projects. Currently I have very basic tools and am looking for brands and from anyone who has used these tools: a good pricking iron(looking for something in 6-8 spi) around $50-100 willing to pay extra if it is necessary edge wing divider or screw creaser (vergez blanchard $77) a knife that can be used for skiving knipshield bevel knife $70 Awl diamond shaped from vergez blanchard for $20 Edger ??? Appreciate all the insight of alternative tools. Btw these tools will be used to make small crafts like wallets and cases and a good quality veg tan brand would also help.

for people looking at this thread I came up with my own method of stitching, where I using a pricking iron to mark the holes and I pierce with my awl the next 4 holes. Why I do this is because garment leather stretches a lot when you pierce a hole and often when you stitch too fast the hole would be a different size when you pull it tight. I've done this with a project im working on and so far it works great.

thank you for your reply. I watched a video of a hermes worker stitching with an identical awl as mine and he pushed it all the way through, as a rule of thumb is there an ideal size that it should be or would the smallest sized whole that would fit the needle be best.

I fell for the tandy starter kit for $99 when I was new to leatherworking, so I refuse to buy from them again because the sales person convinced me they were the quality tools and were worth the price and I recently got a pricking iron awl and thread for half the price. Thats a good idea il try that.

I know that most projects are vegtan and all tips are for projects specifically on this type of leather, but what about garment leather? When I stitch garment leather with a 10spi pricking iron and .5mm thread (very thin) it is very hard to get even looking stitches. My awl that I use is also close to 3mm in width at the largest point. I suspect that the problem is that with garment leather the leather stretches more and it causes the stitches to look different every time.

im looking to make leather nike shoes where i take apart the shoe and glue on calf skin. Which store sells the best hides under $100 that is thin enough. http://www.brettunsvillage.com/leather/lightweightleather.html Black Nevada Grain sides http://www.fashionfabricsclub.com/p/HIDE19/Black-Leather-Hide http://www.fashionleather.com/flimerchandise/standard_lamb/.1%20black%20mimosa.html a bit pricey looks like the best quality If anyone has any other sites I would appreciate if

im looking to do watch bands and wallets, would a size 7 be used for that or could a #1 harness needle be used

I'm currently using the tandy large eye needle and they are absolutely terrible. What needle size would be the best for .5mm thread for 10 spi?

I couldn't find the exact size of the thread, Im guessing .5mm thread. Also, would it be good for 10 spi stitching?

What is the size of the thread?

I heard about some pricking irons used by leather fashion houses, like Hermes use pricking irons that make marks like \\\\\\ instead of ////// is there any benefits to those irons?

This probably is a stupid questions but I was thinking of picking up a pricking iron but saw that pricking wheels are cheaper. Does the pricking wheels have indents that are slanted? Also which are good brands of both pricking irons or wheels?