billybopp

If you look at the banner ads at the top of the page, you'll find "Leather Crafters Journal" .. I don't subscribe myself, but many do. If you search, you'll find (hope I get the name right) Russian Leather Craft, which is a Russian language online magazine which offers an English version. Sadly, traditional magazines are dying out. But at the same time, there's never been a better way for folks to share information than the internet and sites like this! - Bill

We've had a few thread threads on here asking the same question. The general consensus is that the Chinese thread is OK, but Tiger is better and generally worth the extra money. They are both a woven poly thread, and both are workable. Chinese thread tends to be a little thinner (what's sold as 1mm is closer to 0.8mm) and flatter, the color isn't always consistent, and it's waxed but not very heavily. It's still pretty decent to work with but I don't use it for really nice items - more for utility items. Tiger thread is thicker, rounder, and a bit stiffer, possibly because its much more heavily waxed. The color and consistency is spot on. So yeah, you get what you pay for. - Bill

Well done! You should be proud of that one! - Bill

Nigel Armitage recently put up a video for the Osborne 84 splitter .. Looks to be very similar to yours. There's a sharpening video too ... Hope that helps - Bill

If you're looking for the type of pricking iron that gmace99 is using, it is often sold as a "reverse" pricking iron but more properly known as a "portmanteau" iron. To the best of my knowledge nobody makes a diamond stitching chisel in reverse/portmanteau. And thanks gmace99 for this and your other videos! I had forgotten your "knot trick". Really handy to know! - Bill

I think that if I ever tried to count or calculate the number of stitches in an item, I'd never hand sew again. LOL. But, that said it eventually gets easier, faster, and even relaxing - you can listen to music or even watch some TV while you work. It's a lot like driving a car. Remember when you first started driving? It took ALL of your concentration every time you went for a drive. If you tried to change the radio station, you were likely to swerve all over the road. But, as time went by and you got more experience, you could relax a bit and sing along with the radio, change stations with ease. It all got easier and more automatic - you still pay attention to what you're doing but it's just not occupying your entire brain until you get to the tricky curve. You get to that point with hand sewing too, and it can be enjoyable! - Bill

If you look at the sponsor links at the top of the page, you'll see Bruce Johnson Leather Tools. Bruce is a member and sponsor here. Click on his link and give the site a little love! He has a tutorial page with instructions for sharpening edgers, including bissonettes. Just in case you're not seeing links, I'll post it here. https://brucejohnsonleather.com/files/1414/0658/3880/BruceJohnsonLeatherTutorialEdgeBevelerSharpening.pdf - Bill

Thanks Mjolnir! I knew there was a Norse equivalent Orobouros, but couldn't for the life of me remember - I even checked my Viking mythology books but couldn't find it at a quick look. There's even a Native American version and if I remember right a Hindu version. Commonalities in mythology throughout the world are a kind of startling at times! - Bill PS Please don't drop your Mjolnir on any airports when it's finished, thanks!

Unfortunately, there are a few instances of things that are pretty much leather only - edge creasers, bevelers, stamps, stitching chisels and irons, and a few others. Even with those, you can sometimes find a creative substitute. But fortunately there are also a LOT of tools and things that CAN cross over! Sharpening stones and strops don't much care what is sharpened on them - leather tools, straight razors, kitchen knives, woodworking tools - you name it. (now that I've learned to sharpen leather tools, I have to warn the family when I've been at the kitchen knives so as not to scare them). Cutting surfaces are more or less universal. Self-healing cutting mats don't care what's cut on them. While I wouldn't return them to kitchen use, a retired cutting board can be really useful. The same goes for silicone cutting mats - they're really nice for gluing as the glue peels right off. Retired silicone spatulas and basting brushes can be used for gluing as well and clean reasonably easily. Hobby knives (X-Acto) have too many uses to count. The usual #11 blade is a little too flimsy for leather IMHO, but the #2 scalpel blades work great. Same knife handles either way. Good for leather, wood, paper, fabric, even occasionally in the kitchen. For the most part, a ruler is a ruler is a ruler. Same for a square and any number of layout tools. I'm fond of combination squares, and have a few different sizes. They do excellent double-duty as square AND ruler. Being metal they are also excellent for guiding your knife as you cut. Utility knives have all kinds of uses, and most everybody has a few. Worth noting, however, disposable blades such as these and hobby knife blades are OK from the package but can be improved with some stropping! More or less, mallets, mauls and hammers can cross over easily. Same goes for chisels. So there are a TON of possibilities. - Bill

Contact cement of one sort or another is the way to go. As Mutt mentioned, Barge or Weldwood(technically a wood contact cement) will work very well. Some have been reporting very good results using Renia Aquilim GL and 315 which are water-based contact cements. It's a little hard to get in hobby quantities in the USA, but it's a German brand and may be easier for you to get there! - Bill

I've seen similar on eBay being sold as hole punches for leather. - Bill

Uh oh. NOW you've runed it! - Bill PS .. Lookin' really cool!

I've thought I'd give bissonettes a try, and they work nicely on thick leather, but not so hot on thin. They're kinda wide, and to get to the edge you need to prop up the leather on something. They aren't so easy to sharpen IMHO. So far, my favorite is an old unbranded set, similar to the round-bottom Tandys. I'm still looking for "the right ones" tho. - Bill

If you're using linen thread, you can run into some problems with really long runs as the thread will wear a bit with each stitch that you pull through and eventually will get ragged and break. With poly thread, such as Ritza, that's not a problem and you can do very long runs with a couple of caveats. The thread will wear a little bit around the knots where attached to the needles making it a bit harder to pull through the holes. To deal with that, just make your thread a couple of feet longer and re-thread the needle when it gets raggedy. Lighter colored thread can also pick up dye and dirt as you go along and start to look a little dingy, but that's not a problem with darker colors. Probably the hardest thing to deal with on really long runs is when the thread gets tangled and knotted. For that, it just takes a little extra time and care. Watch the thread as you pull it through and look for tangles and knots. They're not all that hard to deal with before they are pulled tight, but a real pain after! Taking a little care to keep your thread separated on each side of your work can help prevent the nastiest knots. It's also a good idea to keep your work area very clean where the thread lies on the floor or work surface to keep it from getting dingy. I've done several belts and guitar straps in a single run with poly, so it can certainly be done. Hope that helps! - Bill

I've been using ziplocks too ... 2 gallon for largish patterns, other sizes for smaller ones. Even for something as large as a briefcase, the smaller parts go into bags and bigger pieces get held together with punched holes and chicago screws. Bags then go into big plastic bins on a shelf. Bags come in darned handy for keeping already cut parts together for individual projects when working on more than one at a time. - Bill

That's awesome!

Now THAT is a workshop with a view!! - Bill

Barry King is a sponsor here on LWN. Look for his banner ads at the top of the page and use that to get to his website. Give LWN a little love that way! - Bill

This might help a little ... Somebody posted it on here awhile ago. Not by any means complete, but it'll give you an idea. - Bill Craftool Conversion Chart.pdf

This is the book I picked up some 40 years ago on brain tanning ...https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B008GE55U2/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1518051048&sr=8-13&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=deer+tanning

I'm 53 by the calendar. 25 in my mind, and 70 in my arthritic body. So it goes!! - Bill

@rodneywt1180b Give "deer tanned" leather a try. It's very soft with a good amount of stretch - It would have a very nice feel for what you are doing. Deer, Elk and Moose are usually tanned this way, but cow can be too. I don't know how it is made in tanneries in the modern world ( I suspect some variation of chrome tannage ), but it was traditionally done with brain, sometimes eggs added and other things. Native Americans supposedly said "Every animal has enough brain to tan its own hide". If you look about on youtube, you'll find a few videos on brain tanning - they tend to be a little gross tho. - Bill

Leather tends to distort and "grow" a bit when tooled. If you punch holes then too, they likely will not align again after. As Mattsbagger said, punching holes for sewing is usually near the end of the process. - Bill

Sounds like you might be describing Renia?

A tag of some sort is a great idea. Depending on what you make, another nice option could be a simple fabric presentation bag made of flannel, satin, or cotton - whatever suits your product - can be nice. They cost little, can be put together in minutes, and provide a little bit of protection for your product in the shipping box. It gives the customer the idea that you've taken that extra care for the product you've made for them. - Bill