mchaney2003

Chrome tanned leather is actually perfectly safe to cut or engrave with a laser. That misinformation largely spread due to Glowforge's published list of dangerous and safe material. They simply didn't know for certain and so err'd on the side of caution. this video goes into great depth on the chemicals released and why it is safe: https://youtu.be/4_z2XHCtUtE I use chrome tanned in my laser every day. :D

Hi, Bert! I know you weren't asking me, but I'd like to chime in anyway. My laser has seen a ton of use recently, and it's completely redefined my leatherworking. I have had my laser for 1 year and 3 months. I'm just a hobbyist, leatherworking on weekends and occasional evenings. A working knowledge of vector design programs like Inkscape or Adobe Illustrator goes a long, long way to getting great results. However, you can also just buy designs or patterns from sellers on Etsy that sell vectors and Laser patterns pre-made.

Here are a couple videos I took when I first set the laser up.

OMTech has raised their prices twice since I purchased my machine. You can get these exact machines on Alibaba or AliExpress and save about $1000 to $1200 dollars. The thing is, you're taking a much larger risk in that situation. OMTech is basically just buying these in mass from China, fixing what comes damaged, and selling them. OMTech does NOT have good support. That's a known factor. That Facebook group is fantastic though - it was started by three guys who got into OMTech machines like a year and a half ago just before OMTech hit their big popularity boom and began jacking prices up every six months. An OMTech comes with a lot of work -, you will need to upgrade the Air Assist immediately imho, and install a ventilation system. I cut a six inch hole in my house and use an S8 for ventilation, basically eliminates the bad leather smell. Anyway, all this info and more is in the Facebook group. I hope OMTech responds to your email, but they are notorious for failing to do so. I love my OMTech machine, but it's not plug and play. I've had to replace a couple limit switches, re-level bed, my lens came installed upside down from the factory - but I knew to expect each of these issues and check for them because I did my research on YouTube and the Facebook groups. Depsite those issues my machine cut great on day 1 after flipping the lens - even then, it will cut okay with the lens upside down lol It has made me put out products four or five times faster. Oh, and in regards to your pdf comment, it depends on the pdf. Some PDFs are basically vector files so you can convert then with a program like Inkscape and import them into Lightburn natively. To make files for the laser, you need to be good with a computer - it is graphic design after all. OR, you can just buy premade files from Etsy for a few bucks per pattern. Do a quick search on Etsy for laser pattern and you'll see what I mean. I do a ton of graphic design and have since high school so for me, the laser was a natural shift since it is an intersection of several of my skillsets. For people who aren't comfortable with Photoshop / GIMP and Illustrator / Inkscape, there are lots of other places to source your laser files, many services that will convert a picture to a laser file for you for a few dollars, or dozens of YouTube tutorials so you can learn to do it yourself in just a few hours. It's super nice to be able to take a customers logo and engrave a perfect copy of it.

I purchased the OMTech 60W with a 20" x 24" bed. It has dual passthroughs, so I use it for making belts. It ran me about $2200 after shipping, and I put about 800 worth of upgrades into it as soon as I got it. I use a software called Lightburn with it, and I believe Lightburn can run on a mac. I use this for engraving custom designs into leather - I can find a cool pic I like on the internet, convert it to a vector in 15 minutes, and have it burned onto leather and cut out in no time. I can also set it to engrave and cut 20 small designs and just read a book while it makes me money. Its friggin great.

I cut chrome tanned leathers all the time. It is NOT nearly as bad as some uninformed folks say. There are several threads on the Glowforge forums about this as well. Also, do not buy a Glowforge. PLEASE do not waste your money. You will pay twice as much, for a laser with half the bed size, that cuts half as quickly. I am not exaggerating. You want to get a chinese laser, at least a 50W, hopefully a 60W. Do NOT get a 40W, these are basically shenanigans. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1364016877267714 <- This group has a lot of info and is a great resource.

This may be dependent on the strength of your laser. I use a 60W OMTech CO2 laser and have never had this issue; I laser cut every hole for my hand stitching. EDIT:: After re-reading the question I realized you said soot TRANSFER to the thread. Thats very dependent on the air pressure you have coming from the nozzle of the laser. I run about 25psi for cutting and have clean holes with no soot in them. I do still do a quick scrub afterward with some saddle soap or light dawn dish soap.

Thanks for the feedback!

Nikos, what sort of masking tape do you use? I've tried vinyl transfer paper (this is actually made of paper not vinyl, it's used for vinyl transferring hence the name), two different types of masking tape, and the adhesive paper that goes in the bottom of drawers and shelves, and I can't find any that will adhere well enough to survive the engraving process in good enough condition for airbrushing afterwards. Can you share any advice on this issue?

This looks perfect! Thank you SO much for this, it will definitely do what I had in mind and I didnt know about these.

I've seen some leather products at Ren Faires recently that have a hammered metal texture to them. Its obvious this is accomplished with irregular tooling, but its just SO well done I imagine there must be some trick to it. As best I can figure out, the artisan must have used six or so different, irregularly shaped stamps. The leather was probably very heavily cased to get those raised ridges, then perhaps antiqued with a paste and then a silver dry brush was applied on top. I'm not sure, though, and I'd love to hear what you all think. How do you think a texture like this could be best achieved? Example leather gauntlets from Benchmark Leatherworks.

I bought a two quart bottle of Gum Tragacanth a few years back. It definitely goes bad after a while. It will have the consistency of water instead of a thick gummy consistency, and it turns yellowish instead of white. It makes it much harder to apply to the edges and control where it goes, and it also greatly reduces how effective it is because it doesnt generate as much friction heat when burnishing. I threw it away half-full yesterday and bought a new smaller bottle. Gum T is definitely a product I will purchase in smaller portions at a time henceforth.

I've had my own stamps made via 3D printing. I had my doubts that the hard plastics (PLA or ABS) would stand up to hammering or leave a clean impression, but I decided it was worth a shot. Obviously this requires some existing knowledge of 3D modeling, some time spent learning, or paying a 3D modeler for some freelance work. I made my design in Google Sketchup, a free and simple program, exported it as an .stl file, and sent it to http://shapeways.com I got the design printed in ABS plastic for around $4 a stamp head, put them on my hefty hand from Springfield Leather Company, and I've had no troubles with them at all. They leave a clean impression, and work well.

I have no idea what thats all really worth, but I'm interested in acquiring it. Is the leather veg tanned? I don't really know a lot about the different types of leather, so if you could give me some details on it that would help out my own lack of knowledge. I'm trying to get into leatherworking now, so I'd like to buy it off of you. I know you put a lot more than this into it, but the most I can offer is $70. Let me know if you decide to sell it to me. Thanks.