billybopp

It is not a traditional technique, but this method does work, and can make front and back stitches look more similar than punching through at a single go. However, you need to make the holes separately before assembly and consequently you need to use extreme care to be sure that the holes in both pieces will line up when assembled. It's not easy! The traditional way is to assemble and usually glue your pieces together and then make your holes after all at one go. The upside of going that way is that it is generally easier and the downside is that stitches often look very different front and back (usually with the back looking much straighter, front much more slanted). - Bill

In nigel armitages video he demonstrates with these irons and punches all the way through. He does indeed. But there are some caveats there. Pricking iron teeth are "V" shaped. As a consequence of that, the hole that they make will also be considerably wider on one side than the other. If the leather is quite thin it's not of much consequence, but with thicker leather it can just be too much. They ARE designed to be used with an awl, but again, with thin leather it does not matter so much. Stitching chisel teeth have a sharp point, but the body of the teeth are more straight sided, making them ideally suited for making holes without an awl. For that matter, if you want or need to use an awl with a stitching chisel (sometimes necessary due to accessibility in one place or another) you can. You might want to do that when, for example, you've used chisels for most of a project, but need to sew a pocket into a bag that could not be done before the bag was mostly put together. You would want the stitching spacing to be EXACTLY the same as the other seams. Mark it in advance with the chisel, then use an awl to actually make the holes you need. - Bill

Here's a little trick that might help you. When you are going making your holes in a straight line, putting the last prong or two in the previously punched holes works well. The angle isn't changing, so it's totally un-noticeable and works really well. We're going to refer to that previous completed hole the reference hole. When you get to a gentle curve as you have here, that begins to cause some problems. Putting the prong of your two prong punch into the reference hole and punching through is at a different angle than the reference hole because of that curve, and it is noticeable because it "wallows out" the that reference hole (which is what it looks like happened here). One good solution is to put one prong of your two prong punch into the reference hole and press it LIGHTLY to leave an impression for where the next hole will go then move the punch to that mark and punch through your next two. A very well trained eye looking closely MIGHT detect that the holes are made in pairs .. Maybe. Nobody else will notice and the result will look really great! I totally agree with the above comment about starting from bottom-center to ensure that both ends are equal at the top. Just be aware that there is a bit of an optical illusion that the two end may not LOOK equal. That should disappear when you get thread in the holes, though. As the curve gets tighter, approaching ninety degrees, this technique doesn't work as well and other techniques are the order of the day. But that's another story for another day! - Bill

Very nice! It's not as busy as some floral work is, which is a really good look here,and you're really nailing the bar grounder background. - Bill

I do love using a cork from a wine bottle, both as a backer when sewing and also over the awl blade to protect it when not in use. You get to enjoy the wine then put the cork to good use as well. Additionally if you drink the wine and quickly enough use the awl and cork you might stab a finger, but you won't care! Your choice. - Bill

There are situations where chisels are just much more difficult to use than an awl would be. Because of that, it's a good plan to be at least reasonably comfortable using an awl. - Bill

That's likely to save you a few hundred dollars on shipping, with the added benefit of (almost certainly) some hands-on, one-on-one learning. Sounds like a win-win to me! You might even consider taking some bits of the leather that you use to try out and learn with. That should move you well up the learning curve. - Bill

Contrary to what some may say, blood on your leather work is NOT a value add feature. You will know that your awl is TRULY sharp when it goes through several thick layers, into your finger and you don't even feel it! And yes, for sure, happy wife - happy life. Take the beating and fake a few tears and ouchies - then walk away and grin! - Bill

Very nice indeed. Love the color combo and edges are fantastic! Thanks for posting progress pics. - Bill

I have seen camo printed leather in the past - at Tandy, if I remember right, so it does exist, so look around! - Bill

Wow. Yeah. That's a LOT of work! The result is spectacular, tho! - Bill

@Wanbli, Some pictures would be helpful, along with more description. How wide, how long are leather strips, etc.

I don't have a leather sewing machine at all, but I do read what others post on here. From what I've seen, the machines are essentially the same between Cobra, Techsew and Cowboy. Cobra Steve, Techsew Ron, and Cowboy Bob all three often pop up on LWN to help their customers, and indeed even help their competitors customers frequently (Which warms my heart and helps restore my faith in humanity). I have never seen any complaints about being unable to get parts or support from any of the three. When comparing them to buy, take a look at what is included in the package so that you are comparing apples to apples. I'd take a look at what shipping costs for the machines you are considering since that could be a big consideration. I'd also think about talking to your local sewing machine mechanic and find out if they have any preference. You'll get great support from any of the three above over the phone and online, but there are those times that you might need hands on your machine kind of help! Also, whichever machine you decide to go with - Use the links at the top of the page here and be sure to tell them you found them here on LWN! Help Johanna keep the lights on here! - Bill

http://wickett-craig.com

As mentioned by @zuludog Tiger thread is a synthetic, and will melt when heated which gives a good way to end a line of stitching: Linen thread is natural and will just burn, so has to be finished differently. Many folks will leave a small section between the edge of two pieces of leather un-glued, and put a knot in their thread between the pieces then glue after sewing is completed. Others will fully glue, backstitch/overstitch their thread, cut it really close and put a dab of white glue on the ends to hold it. Tiger thread is a woven polyester while linen is a twisted thread, so they do behave differently, as you've found particularly where locking the thread to the needle is concerned. Make sure to leave a considerably longer tail with linen and after locking it to your needles wax the daylights out of it to hold it together. A little white glue might to the trick there as well, but I've never tried that. Make sure, too, that when you lock your thread, you do that a couple of inches down from the eye of the needle (no matter what kind of thread you are using!): It makes getting the knots through the hole far easier than when it's all bunched up at the eye of the needle. As for wax, you'll find that Tiger is super-saturated with wax: Far more than even other braided polyesters. That makes it so nice to sew with, but it also means that for a given size it is a little plumper. 0.6mm Tiger is more like 0.8mm for most other waxed braided polyester threads. Most other waxed braided polyesters can benefit from some additional wax rubbed on it before sewing, and the same is true for Linen thread. Hope that helps, and the strap looks really good BTW - and your sewing looks perfect! - Bill

You may not be able to prevent this entirely, but try this: Before you dye your edges, burnish with water and saddle soap. Let it dry, then edge dye. That will lessen the dye absorption from the edge - If saddle soap doesn't do the trick, try a little gum tragacanth. I'd also suggest something a little firmer than a Q-tip - a small foam brush or a little piece of felt held in a clothespin. Make sure that whatever you use isn't too heavily loaded with dye: Just enough to do the job. Hopefully that helps. - Bill

We've always had problems with USPS packages arriving here in Philly. I'd estimate that I only get 90 to 95% of what is shipped, and far far less on time. And of course, they NEVER find missing packages. I expect that will get much worse. - Bill

If gluing isn't something you do all that often - Just open a window and put an exhaust fan there! - Bill

I mentioned above a jig for centering stamps on strips and belts and such - and found a picture of it to share with you. This is the prototype made of hobby plastic sheets - plastruct brand if I remember right, and chicago screws. I also put together an Adobe Illustrator file as a fancy version of this to try to get it laser cut, but it just never happened since the prototype did what I wanted it to do! I may still get a nicer version made from my drawing at some point if I can find somebody that can do laser-work for me! It's pretty simple, really. A self-centering jig within a self-centering jig. I should also make a center "arm" specifically for punching holes (and will at some point). - Bill

In my opinion, they both have their place in leatherworking. For big stamps, such as letter stamps (1/2" and bigger) the deadblow hammer is really nice. You can hit hard enough to leave a good impression without the "bounce" that a regular maul or hammer has so that you don't get an accidental double-strike. Those double-strikes make can make coins more valuable, leather not so much! For smaller tools a lighter poly or rawhide maul or hammer are more suitable, particularly if you need multiple rapid strikes such as used when tooling leather. A deadblow hammer would just cumbersome in that situation. - Bill

The difference is that if you make a tool like that, or a jig - you only have to take the time to get it just right once. If it's something that you do often the time and money spent will pay you back in time and money! I need to make something similar to that for my hole punching - I already made one to help me align letter stamps on straps out of thick plastic (I just don't have the tools to do metal). - Bill

An acrylic finish does a reasonably good job of promoting water resistance (as mentioned above, water proof is not really possible). You also mentioned that you do not want a shiny finish such as Resolene (probably the most popular acrylic finish) yields. A good alternative would be Tandy's Satin Sheen or Angelus acrylic finisher( available in high gloss, Satin, and Matte). - Bill

Every time I use my airbrush I clean it after using a cheap ultrasonic cleaner that I have. Some airbrushes are a pain to disassemble, others not so much. Thankfully, my Paasche and Iwata are both reasonably easy. Never a problem! - Bill

So glad to hear Ferg!! - Bill

I came across this today on YouTube, and thought some might enjoy it.