Tannin
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Posts posted by Tannin
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...My current thinking is to get a head knife about 4-4.5" - influenced by Al Stohlman...would likely buy a new Joseph Dixon knife (they are still making/selling a full range of them
) or something similar by another English maker (e.g. Barnsley). In the end, I ordered a 5" "saddler's round knife" by George Barnsley, Sheffield, England (possibly NOS i.e. New Old Stock). I have a couple of Barnsley tools already & like them.
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...handle is different than any on a knife that I've see. Looks like an edger handle. Anyone seen one like this? Blade is 4 5/8" tip to tip.
The English-made Joseph Dixon round knives, etc. have round handles like that -- and yes, several of them do look like the handles used on their edge shaves:
http://www.josephdixon.co.uk/products/Saddlers_Tooling/Knives.html
http://www.josephdixon.co.uk/products/Saddlers_Tooling/Edge_Tools.html?pmode=2
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Hi Walter, I could not access your first link (is it correct?), however I was able to access the others. For the convenience of others I have re-stated them below as an image link and an active hypertext-link:
Doing an image search on Google for "Nähross" is quite interesting.
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Day Dreamer, like you, I'm learning from Nigel Armitage's youtube videos & Al Stohlman's books (Handsewing leather & Leather Tools) & also another book: the Leatherworking Handbook by Valerie Michael which is a nicely presented, modern introduction aimed at this sort of leatherwork i.e. English-style hand-sewn veg. tan (saddle-type) leather.
The Leatherworking Handbook: A Practical Illustrated Sourcebook of Techniques and Projects by Valerie MichaelSo far I have not bothered with the centre knot, it seemed unnecessary but, having said that, it is annoying when I sometimes get a few stitches in & find the one "half" has somehow become longer than the other :D - so perhaps there is some benefit to this simple idea. Note that Al Stohlman recommends using much longer threads than Nigel does. Another chap, who used to sew leather handles in rail carriages said that he was taught to use 4 foot lengths - which seems quite short but perhaps suited the task.
Usually, so far, I do not back-stitch the start but I always back-stitch the end - used to do 3 or 4 stitches but now only 2, if seems like more than enough for my needs (I am using leather around 3-4.5mm). If using polyester thread, I finally melt the ends both to seal them and to "stick"/mushroom them (a trick I learnt from another hobby), and to hide them.
I get the impression that each leather worker learns but then their develops their own techniques to suit what works for them. I like the techniques it Al Stohlman's book for recovering from a broken thread or "cross-threaded" stitch (more important with the long threads he recommends) - that saved me a lot of time & thread and gave me a different way of looking at things. Al recommends traditional waxed flax/linen thread, while Nigel recommends (expensive) modern waxed, braided, polyester Tiger/Tigre thread - which might influence decisions. I love Nigel's videos but I find hispreferred #2 needles hard to thread and rather weak (bendy) and awl lengths (1.25"/1.5") a bit too short for the thick leathers I am currently working with - and to be fair, he does talk about the need to scale-up & scale-down to match the leathers used and I am probably starting with thicker leathers than normal.
BTW After buying the above book - which I like - I came across this (more expensive) book. Although I am not so keen on the cover image, from the preview, it looks like it covers similar ground but might go into a little more depth:
Leatherwork: A Practical Guide [Hardcover]
Chris Taylor (Author)BTW I just got hold of a good second hand copy of Keith Savory's "The Working Saddler's Handbook" (from the USA - but it's an English book), first edition too. Unfortunately it's not really aimed at folk like me, it is - unsurprisingly - intended to be a bench reference for professional saddlers/bridle makers. So I will scan through it (was pleasantly surprised to see quite a lot of colour images) there are things to learn from it but will likely sell (or swap) that one on to somebody who can make better use it.
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Good point. I generally avoid using harsh chemicals, including organic solvents (such as turpentine), as far as practical. Oxylic acid is the poisonous acid found in rhubarb leaves: stronger than white vinegar (which I tried) but not, I think, as strong as battery acid, etc. Looks like gloves & glasses would be prudent.
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Joseph Dixon Ltd in Walsall, England make both styles: they call the upper style a "French Pattern knife" (#84 below) and the lower one a round knife (#72) or, perhaps, double head knife (#75). The upper one looks like it might be intended to incorporate both a curved clicking knife & head knife capability (e.g. for pull cutting and push cutting) - just guessing though.
http://www.josephdixon.co.uk/products/Saddlers_Tooling/Knives.html
Interesting post on the origin of round knives here: http://www.knifenetwork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33543
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Saw a knife like that yesterday, perhaps a little smaller: maybe 4-5" across, at the new Heritage Centre in Pewsey, Wiltshire (England). They call it a leather worker's knife. Semi-circular knives, sometimes called "Mezzalunas" (half-moons), were sometimes used in kitchens with hollowed cutting board, for cutting/chopping herbs I think.
There was a big, vintage, 6" head knife by English maker Gilpin or Whitehouse on ebay recently - but with the handle was at 90 degrees to that of a normal head knife, the seller wasn't sure it it was for leather or the kitchen - we suspect the latter.
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Beautiful carving/sculpture Spinner. I looked into using oxalic acid last year to remove many deep tannin stains from a large oak dough bowl that I carved (the staining probably occurred because I'd soaked the blank a long time - perhaps too long - to keep it as green and then continued to soak it between working sessions). Having seen you results, I might now give it a go - so thanks for sharing that
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Art, in addition to the "slack belt" approach mentioned earlier in the thread, for grinding a convex edge - I came across another technique which might be more convenient for day-to-day hand sharpening, which is to use wet&dry paper (e.g. 600 grit) glued to a surface that gives, an old computer mouse pad is often suggested. I suppose you could also use a strop with some give too. [This is the opposite advice to that typically given for maintaining a flat/Scandi grind.]
BTW the laminated Swedish steel I mentioned above is, I believe, made in sheets (saw a youtube video on the production of the Mora/Frost knives, which are stamped out of sheets). If you could get it, then it might be enough to cut out the blade & tang shape and then grind the cutting edge.
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Interesting thread. I'm in a similar position to the original poster. My current thinking is to get a head knife about 4-4.5" - influenced by Al Stohlman's tool book. I currently live in the UK, so would likely buy a new Joseph Dixon knife (they are still making/selling a full range of them
) or something similar by another English maker (e.g. Barnsley). However, if Amazon.com would let me*, I would order the super-cheap "Abetta Round Knife - 6 X 4 1/2" from the USA - just to learn with; I have quite a lot of experience sharpening tools now and am willing to put in the time to create & maintain a good edge.
*By agreement with the UK government Amazon & eBay block the sale of most knives, apparently including head/round knives, to the UK. Although they allow the sale of other leather knives if they are labelled as "tools" rather than "knives" and they allow draw-knives - which are correclty recognised as a non-weapon knife/tool, as head/round knives should be IMHO). Seems unfair, as other vendors are allowed to sell them.
Interesting to read the recommendation to use a convex edge (as typically used on axes & bush knives for robust edges). For flat ground ("Scandi-grind") edges, I wonder if a little oil (or glycerine or water) on the leather and/or blade might help?
BTW Has anyone made a laminated steel round/head knife (e.g. hard middle layer for the cutting edge with softer sides for robustness & easy sharpening e.g. rockwell 58/61/58), like some Scandinavian knives?
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Hi, my first post. Here goes...
Interesting discussion
Castor oil is supposed to keep vermin away.
Kevin
I've been trying to sort through contradictory advice in books and on the web re. oils/saddles soaps(soft/hard)/neatsfoot oil/neatsfoot compound/cod liver oil/lanolin/glycerine(glycerol)/beeswax/etc. - and castor oil is looking quite promising as a possible alternative to neatsfoot oil (neatsfoot oil looks promising too, for softening & waterproofing).
I wondered if anyone has tried using a castor oil based grease (e.g. "red rubber grease" or "red lithium grease")? I see that Ko-cho-line (Carr & Day & Martin by Appt. to HM the Queen no less) lists its sole ingredient as "red grease" but no specifics. It seems well liked for softening & preserving leather by those that use it & it is supposed to offer good protection when leather is stored.
The main things I've gleaned so far though is:
1. There are a lot of different opinions out there, often contradictory
and2. if you use any type of oil use it sparingly, don't overdo it - a little now & then rather than saturating it.
How Do I Reform My Brush Tips?
in Dyes, Antiques, Stains, Glues, Waxes, Finishes and Conditioners.
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I like the egg white idea suggested above. Art retailer & manufacturer Daniel Smith in Seattle/Bellevue, Washington state, sell several products & gizmos for cleaning & drying artists' brushes, including "brush cleaner":
http://www.danielsmith.com/Item--i-098-010-001
I haven't tried it but their products are generally pretty good - made by artists for artists.