billybopp

Thanks for the update, pgivens. Bear in mind that pricking irons aren't really designed to go all the way through your leather. They are designed to mark spacing and should go just deep enough to help guide the angle of a diamond awl that you use to actually make the hole. The diamond punches/chisels that you referred to are designed to go all the way through, and that's why they are straight sided for most of the length of their "tines". I know exactly what you mean about lining up pricking irons since I ran into the same problem when I first switched to them from the diamond punches. I found that the best way to deal with that one, for me, was to scribe a VERY light line alongside where you want the holes and align the edge of the pricking iron with that line. Hope that helps Bill

That is a VERY clever idea, Xenophon! Thanks for sharing Bill

I've used it straight up, as well as the silver and pearl. They seem to behave more like a paint than dye and so not appear to penetrate very deeply. They also go on a little thin so require a couple of coats. Other than that, they work well. Bill

Fiebings ox blood is one of my favorite colors, and I often do contrasting colors just about like you have done. I like 'em both, tho! Bill

Gloves are certainly the way to go, but things happen too. They get holes, dye splashes or splatters sometimes. And while I love the "wear it like a badge of honor" idea, it's not always do-able. It can be hard to explain those dye stains to some people that might find them objectionable. The best thing I've found for getting dye off of hands is a product called Dye Gone II. It's not cheap, but it also doesn't take much to remove dye from your hands pretty thoroughly. The stuff has a pretty funky smell, so follow it up with some perfumed soap, tho! Hope that helps Bill

It may work or not .. but you might sell the pre-made interiors as a feature, particularly if the name brand on them has a known reputation or just sounds exotic. I don't know if you have your own brand name, nor which interiors you are using, but by way of example: "Rawcustom wallets, featuring Chaylor-Fenneli® interiors". Bill

A lot of people really like the John James harness needles. They can be found at http://springfieldleather.com/20058/Needle%2CHarness%2C%2200%22Med%2C2pk/ . Other people like the Osborne needles, and there are other brands out there as well. I'm not sure what size you need, since that is dictated by the thread size and the size of the holes you've poked in the leather. I keep a few different sizes around for different uses. Variety is good. Bill

Constabulary. Once again it looks like an awesome restoration job! I wish you weren't on the other side of the pond, or I'd buy one of your restorations when it goes up for sale! I'm pretty sure your restorations bring that old iron up to the standard it met the day it left the factory ... If not better. Well done! Bill

I cheat. Gussets seem to have a way of never matching up quite exactly, almost no matter what way you try to do them. Leather can shrink a bit under certain circumstances and stretch under others. So, I cut it just a little bit long and then trim off the excess after at least one side is glued and sewn in place. It works every time. Bil

There's a pretty decent video on youtube by Ian Atkinson that shows side by side weatherproofing ability of different finishes and sealants. It's obviously not exhaustive since there are far too many products available for that, but it may give you some ideas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyTg_hfpNUM Hope that helps Bill

I've been using the Tandy snaps all along, and have had no problems with them. Using a snap setter with the proper dies makes them easier to set than by hand to be sure. However, I recently bought some of the new colors .. antique brass and antique nickel I think. I'm NOT happy that Tandy has their name plastered on every piece of the snap other than the cap. It's time to buy them from somebody else. Bill

Plywood will probably work well, but I'd give some thought to getting a big roll of thick plastic when you're at the store for plywood. Put down the plastic first so that anything that might leak between the plywood seams (which according to Murphy's law it will ) doesn't go on down into the carpet. The plastic you buy in rolls for painting, etc isn't thick enough that it would hold up on its own, but beneath the plywood I think it would do alright. Just a thought Bill

Some US states even have a call list for people who will come by and pick up roadkill when the police find it. It gives the people potentially a meat ( and leather ) source, and gets the mess cleaned up at no expense to the state. Double win! Bill

Be glad it was water and not dye!

I would give up on sharpening the Tandy 4 in 1 blades. However, dulled a bit they can make decent lacing fids and such. Even if the handle doesn't fit your hand for sewing, it might still be useful for holding a scratch awl, or something else that you do not use often! Zuludog, many like to have their sewing awls not round. It keeps them from rolling off the table and through your foot. It can help them fit your hand a bit better. But most importantly, since the blade must enter the leather at just the right angle, it lets you feel with your hand exactly how the blade is oriented without looking! Bill

The Chinese threaded is braided polyester. It sews very nicely, but because it is not so heavily waxed as Tiger, it is slightly more easily pierced so you have to watch out for that ... But if your technique is good that should not be a problem. I've used it extensively for this years Christmas preparations and love it. Do look carefully at the colors before you order .. Most are solid colors, but a couple of them are variegated. Bill

You are having far too much fun with your CNC and Laser. LOL I like it!! Bill

Keep in mind ... The OP was presented the concept of two threads in a fabric sewing class. The intended audience is likely to have, on hand, small thread sizes rather than even what most leather sewers would consider small. It's most likely meant as a work around, but it may also present some interesting effects if the threads are different colors. As for needle sizes ..Yeah. It's not so easy since there is more than one system in place. The first number is based on the century plus old Singer system, which is more or less sequential numbers from small to large. The smallest you are likely to find is 10 or 12. The largest for my domestic machine is 19, which is about as big as domestic machines are likely to go (there may be exceptions, but I don't know). The sort of machines that leather workers are most likely to use START at around 19 and go up from there. The second number is based on a European system, which is newer dating from 1942. It is supposed to represent the thickness of the needle in hundredths of a millimeter. So, again, the bigger the number the bigger the needle. There have also been a number of other systems, but they are mostly no longer used, but there may be some exceptions. Most modern needles will have both Singer and European / Metric sizes although in which order seems to depend on the manufacturer. But it's not hard to figure out. You are not likely to find a Singer designation higher than 30, nor a European designation under 60. There are other variables, such as point type, shank type, and others .. But we'll leave those for another day. Hope that helps Bill

Looks like you and Monica are both on a "matching bag and wallet" quest, and both doing very well with it! If you were selling them, they would make for a great bundled package! It would be interesting to see how some trim made from the tan would look outside. Perhaps something like your brocade wallet ... Or a small zippered change pocket on the outside to reverse mirror what's on the bag. Just some thoughts! Good work. Bill

You might also try frisket film from an art supply store. It is meant to be used as a painting mask, and I have used it on a few leather items for airbrushing acrylics. I found for me that the light tack film did not stick well enough to my leather, and that medium tack worked fine but left a little adhesive residue that had to be cleaned off. I have also only used it with acrylic paints rather than dyes, but if you are airbrushing with dye, the result should be similar. The following guitar strap was done this way for the white line, pyramid and rainbow sections. It's not quite perfect, but it was my first try at this sort of thing. The name and surround were done with Grafix white mask liquid frisket .. AKA liquid latex.

I agree with Michelle, Tiger thread is about the nicest stuff I've used, but it is expensive, so I keep limited sizes and colors. For more variety, I've been using this stuff from China on ebay ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Waxed-Leather-Sewing-Thread-for-Leather-Hand-Stitching-200-Yards-20-Colors-/151170709384?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item233279f788 It is not as nice as Tiger, but it is less expensive. Spools are smaller than Tiger, and price / length is around half. It's not as heavily waxed as Tiger, which can also look better in some applications. And it's inexpensive enough to keep several colors around. Bill

The Seiwa awls have a rather short tip and the blade is then dead straight from there on back. I would use the words 'blunt tip', but that's not quite right. The tip is sharp enough to go to the bone in a finger (ask me how I know). Think something more like a rounded chisel tip and straight blade. If my camera would cooperate, I'd take some pictures to show you, but it refuses to focus in macro mode for some reason. Pyramid tip might give the right visual for how the Seiwa awls are made! Bill

Thanks for the enlightenment!! I would simply have referred to all three above as rolled .. and perhaps that is part of the reason why they are all sold that way. Lay people are certainly not likely to know the difference if many or most leatherworkers do not! Q: What sort of core would you find in a proper rolled piece core? . And if anybody feels so inclined and happens to be making a proper rolled leather piece, take pics and post a tutorial? I'm really curious now! Thanks Bill

You MIGHT have a little luck if you "super case" this leather. If you are doing as papaw suggested, I call that "surface casing" .. and it works perfectly fine for most leathers, whether carving or stamping. Occasionally, however, when I want my cuts to be deeper than normal, or work with difficult leather I soak the leather pretty thoroughly, or "super case" as I call it. Roll up the belt blank, and put it in a container of water for a few minutes until the leather is saturated. Hang the leather up to partially dry. When it has dried, but is still perhaps a little wetter than normal make your cuts. After the cuts are made, let it dry further to more "normal" cased state to make any stamped impressions. It might work for you. It might not. But I think it may be worth a try. Hope that works! Bill

There is a good dog collar video on Youtube, in several parts, by Bruce Cheaney .. and just about any video on belt making will be 90% or so applicable to collars as well. Look for Youtube videos by Ian Atkinson and Nigel Armitage for those, and there are a bunch of others as well if you search. There are also books on belts to be found, with http://www.leathercraftlibrary.com/default.aspx? being one source. Hope that helps Bill