zuludog

I used to buy my leather from Tandy as I lived near one of their stores, but since they've closed their shops in Britain I've been getting my leather from this supplier - https://www.buyleatheronline.com They sell all sorts of stuff - natural, plain, printed, dyed, embossed; cow hide, calf, goat, sheep, deer, and a few exotics - even crocodile if you have the money. From offcuts and cheap bellies to top grade shoulders and butts The quality is good and the prices are reasonable. Delivery to UK was about £13 and took 6 days. They also ship worldwide

1) The information on the label is only really relevant to the maker/supplier. It will refer to the type, colour, batch number etc of the leather, and probably the style, contract number etc of the couch. It won't mean much to anyone outside the company, so don't worry about it any more 2) You can't make dyed leather lighter, but you might be able to dye it darker, try on a scrap piece first. But the colour is reasonable enough, and would probably be improved by cleaning & renovating (see later), so just accept it 3) An obvious use is for upholstery, to cover/re-cover smaller items like stools & chairs. Could also do wallets, garments, bags, key fobs, or for lining 4) I suggest John James saddler's harness needles size 004 and a synthetic/polyester thread, about 0,4mm diameter. Start with a lighter thread, like yellow as this will be easier to see, otherwise whatever colour you fancy. See what Rocky Mountain Leather Supply have; hough I'm sure members in USA will make their own suggestions I cleaned up old furniture leather not too long ago. See my post 'Ideas for upholstery leather?' in the Leatherwork Conversation section on 27th October 2019 It definitely looked better when it had been cleaned Search YouTube for 'washing leather'; 'upholstery leather uses' and similar videos For a stitching chisel I'd suggest a Tandy Craft tool Pro with about 3mm spacing Search YT for 'hand stitching leather' and 'saddle stitch'. There are loads of videos; those by Ian Atkinson and Nigel Armitage are frequently recommended. I'm guessing that you haven't done much leatherwork before, so you could Search YT for 'beginners leather tools' and for any of the items that you want to make, to see the tools & techniques used by other people. Also past Threads on Getting Started and Tools sections of this forum

No, don't use duct tape! It's strong, but it's a temporary measure and eventually the tape will move and adhesive will spread & smear, leaving you with a right mess that needs to be removed with a solvent like white spirit - I know this from experience, though that was with a nylon rucsac, not a leather bag. And yes, it will gum up the needle & thread. See if you can find the proper stuff, or have a browse round a haberdashers for some suitable ribbon. Or cut some strips of thin leather, like pigskin or deerskin Have a look at this supplier --- www.buy leatheronline.com They have lots of different types at reasonable prices. I recently bought some leather for wallets from them; they're reliable, delivery to UK was 6 or 7 days. I've been meaning to do a review of them for this forum, I must get round to it

I haven't done anything like this, but I would have thought that skiving the leather for the seam would make the resulting seam thinner Search YouTube for videos on making tote bags and similar. The one by Ian Atkinson is good. Or just play around with the Search Box for similar items, as long as you have the stamina for!

You need to get onto their websites; then onto the thread sections; then scroll through the colours. Though they might not have the colours you want. Same with Abbey England; they have various types of thread

Yes, it is a bit confusing; here are a few comments which might help. They are for hand sewing only, as I don't do machine sewing The first choice is natural or synthetic/polyester? There is no doubt that poly is stronger, and sometimes cheaper than linen, but linen is still strong enough for some items, and some people prefer the way it looks and handles You could use natural fibres like cotton, hemp, or silk, but they are quite rare so for all intents and purposes, linen thread is used . Buy it from bona fide leathercraft suppliers, or look for branded names like Barbours, Somac, Coates, and Fil au Chinois. Don't buy anonymous 'linen thread' from Amazon or Ebay as some of it isn't very good In the early 19th century the French Company Sajou developed a way of making linen thread with a tighter twist, which meant that it was stronger and smoother. At the time anything Chinese or Oriental was fashionable so they called it Fil au Chinois (= Chinese Thread) even though it was, and still is, made in France. It is also known as Lin Cable - Lin is French for linen and Cable (should be an acute accent on the E) means 'cabled' and refers to the method of manufacture. It is excellent thread, but expensive and not so easy to find in Britain, but at least now you know what it is if you come across it As making linen thread is an old industry, the method of measuring the thickness/diameter is fairly obscure and involved. You don't need to understand it, though I'm sure you could find out if you wanted. All you need to know is that the most common size for leatherwork is 18/3 in the British system. In the French system, the higher the number, the thinner the thread, and the most common size is 432 You can make very thin strands of polyester material, then plait or braid them into a single thread - hence braided polyester. If the thread is made entirely of braid it tends to be a bit flat. Or you can make the braid around a central core of long strands, which results in Core Spun Polyester. This is rounder, and you can also make the core and sheath from different materials and colours The Julius Koch Company sell braided poly thread under the brand name Ritza 25; there is a picture of a tiger on the label so it is often called Tiger thread. It's very popular but I don't like the way it feels/handles. There are other makes, such as Yue Fung and Amy Roke Identity Leathercraft, Artisan Leather, and probably others sell short (22m?) reels of ready waxed poly thread that is twisted. It's easy to use and it is cheap enough to try The sizes for synthetic thread is usually just the diameter in millimetres; 0,6mm being the most common Bonded nylon is poly thread that is twisted and coated with a very thin layer of resin to prevent the strands from unravelling; intended for machine sewing Thread for hand sewing is always waxed. The thread you buy may be ready waxed or not, so check and be prepared to hand wax it yourself. You can give ready waxed an extra rub if you feel like it For most of these threads the cost pro rata is similar, the difference comes with the initial purchase price and depends on the size of the reel. Eg Abbey England are the main stockists of Ritza thread in Britain, and they only sell large reels, but if you shop around you might find someone who has rewound it into shorter reels As with any hobby you tend to accumulate odds & ends. Most people will try a couple of different types of thread when they start leatherwork, before settling on what they like Search YouTube for 'thread for leather'; there are several videos

AFAIK waxed thread is only used for hand sewing. It can be linen/natural or synthetic/polyester; ready waxed or hand waxed by yourself. I haven't heard of cotton thread being used much for leatherwork, most people use linen or poly I don't think you can get linen thread in neon/fluorescent, though you can get some bright colours like yellow or red. So if you want neon/fluorescent it would have to be polyester. These two suppliers have bright colours and a couple of fluorescent threads intended for sewing leather - YUE FUNG from www.blackmountainsleather.com AMY ROKE from www.artisanleather.co.uk Otherwise Search t'Net. There are several suppliers, but you will have to decide for yourself if the thread is suitable. Try asking their sales advice departments. I have always found such people to be pleasant and helpful; after all they know their products, and it's in their interest to help you

I can't advise you on which leather for handbags as I don't make them, and have not really considered it until now; but I would have thought that some kind of good quality 2mm thick leather would be the sort of thing to go for. Get onto Tandy's website and scroll down to the bottom on the home page - there is a guide to the thickness and types of leather for various end products I have recently bought some leather for wallets from this supplier. They have a wide range of printed and coloured leather for bags, garments, and other fashion items - hide, sheepskin, calf, goatskin and others The prices are reasonable and the delivery was about a week from Italy to UK. They ship worldwide --- www.buyleatheronline.com. They sell Vachetta calfskin which I believe is used in expensive handbags and wallets Search YouTube for - 'Leather Build Along #6: Turned Leather Messenger and Tote Bags' by Ian Atkinson They are similar to handbags, and he goes into detail on the construction Also Search YT for 'Making Leather Handbags at Home' There are several videos If you Search for 'Making Handbags at Home' you will get fabric bags, which might be of interest for construction and ideas I think that what you & I call a handbag, Americans would call a purse, so remember that when you're Searching

Search Google & YouTube for 'leather creaser' To make the lines more permanent you should heat the creaser, but practice to get the right temperature You could also try rubbing the creaser back & forth quickly for a couple of minutes to try to get some friction heat Adjustable ones make it easier to get a straight line, but will only reach about 5mm from the edge at the most. Single creasers can be used anywhere, but you need to be careful about getting a straight line I've made my own by rounding and polishing a screwdriver It looks like those lines were made with a single creaser Nice knife & sheath by the way

What size/width hacksaw blade do you have? 25mm and 40mm wide industrial blades are usually made entirely from hardened steel and can indeed be made into very good knives. but modern 13mm blades are usually mainly flexible steel, with just the teeth being hardened, and those are not so good. The clue is if they are described as bimetal I have made kiridashi/craft knives and skiving knives from old hacksaw blades, some with handles, and they can be made razor sharp. Yes you can skive with a kiridashi Search YouTube for 'kiridashi' and 'japanese leather knives' and you'll see the sort of thing Be careful when you make the bevel with a bench grinder as it is easy to burn such thin hard steel

It looks like you're drilling the holes. Try using a stitching chisel, they are easier to set straight lines. There are plenty of videos about them on YouTube Nigel Armitage has several videos on making pouches; even if you don't want to make one, they are good examples of neat & precise leatherwork using stitching chisels But if you want to stay with a drill, make smaller holes. It looks as though the holes you have made are in a straight line, but they are so big that the thread is able to move up and down within them, resulting in the uneven line Yes, stitching leather does use a lot of thread . I make sheaths from 3mm veg tan leather, and reckon on using 4 or 5 times the length of the line of sewing. Running out of thread just before the end is very annoying! And remember you will need some for backstitching, so I suggest you are generous with your thread at first, say six times. Once you have some experience you will be able to estimate it more accurately and reduce that

Welcome to the forum! I'm sure you'll learn a lot on here, including many new ways of spending your money! All is not lost with your woodwork. This man is generally recognised as an expert on woodworking with hand tools, and has a pleasant, laid back style of presentation Search YouTube for 'Paul Sellers Woodworking'.

Have you heard of 'The Law of Diminishing Returns' ? Put simply, it means that you can do the basics of a job - like making an awl - quite easily and cheaply, but to get better, and better, and ultimately the best possible results you must spend more and more time, effort and money for progressively smaller and smaller improvements Traditionally, if you want an awl, you would buy the blade and haft separately, then mount them and sharpen the blade yourself. This keeps the cost down as you are doing most of the work yourself, but it's a right pain and takes a long time As far as I can gather, top end makers buy good quality blades from people like John James or Vergez Blanchard, then do that sharpening for you. The blades are fairly cheap, what you're paying for is the time, effort, and skill. Having made a sharp blade it makes sense to present it nicely. You can buy a haft for <£5; The wood will probably be beech, and the ferrule will be drawn aluminium or brass tube. A top end haft would typically be some sort of exotic hardwood and a machined ferrule, which all adds to the cost. It won't do the job any better, it just looks more impressive I've had awl blades by John James and Tandy - individual 'proper' blades, not the infamous 4-in-1. I had to mount them, and they took ages to sharpen. A few months ago I bought an Osborne blade, and to be fair, that only needed an hour to sharpen & polish. Knocking it into a haft was fiddly, and I couldn't get it straight, so after a couple of attempts I drilled the haft and set the blade in with epoxy glue. When & if I ever buy another awl I'll probably get an Osborne blade, and a haft with some kind of chuck or clamp A typical price for an Osborne haft with a chuck is about £12, and a blade is about £9 ( I haven't been able to find prices in $ but they won't be much different) A Vergez Blanchard awl & haft ready mounted is about $24. A Barry King haft is about $55, and a blade is about $25, so the question you must ask yourself is - am I willing to pay $80 or more for something that might be a slight improvement?

No, Abbey don't publish prices on their website unless you've registered with them, though they will give you a couple of prices over the phone if you ask. That's because they are mainly a wholesaler. I also see it as a hangover from the old, secretive & restrictive practices of British industry If you want Osborne tools, H Webber and Metropolitan Leather publish prices, and could well be cheaper If you're just doing watch straps you could probably manage without a stitching pony, at least to start with Yes, Tokonole is good; try www.goodsjapan.com or Surf Ebay, Amazon, etc A scratch awl is cheap enough, and they're all much the same The #1 edge beveler is easy enough to use and sharpen; search YouTube for how to do that You can find edge burnishers easily enough, but for watch straps you might want something smaller. I've heard of people making small edge burnishers from plastic screwdriver handles or pieces of deer antler - anyone like to comment? Mallet, punch, dye, just Search & Surf Stanley knife or Rotary cutter? I've tried a rotary cutter but didn't take to it. On the other hand, lots of people do, notably Ian Atkinson. It is especially good for straight cuts on thin leather - like watch straps! A Stanley knife is simple to use, and you can do good work with one. Why not try both; a basic fixed (but replaceable) blade Stanley knife is cheap enough Metropolitan is a good supplier, but I've just bought some leather from www.buyleatheronline. The prices are very reasonable and delivery was about 7 days. You could phone Identity; Artisan; Leather4craft; explain what you want and they might have smaller pieces which would be OK for watch straps, and work out cheaper Don't forget a lump of beeswax. It's used for all sorts of jobs in leatherwork as well as waxing thread - even ready waxed. And a steel ruler or similar straight edge

Hello Hughlle, I think I've seen you before, on another Section! I've never made any watch straps, and I'm willing to be corrected, but still, here are some comments - As Tugadude said, it depends on whether you want a chunky look, or a smaller scale pattern of sewing For chunky, use Craftool stitching chisels - black finish ; either a set as you've indicated, or you can buy them individually...........John James saddler's harness needles, JJ product code L3912 size 002; ...........and 0,6mm thread. This combination is also widely used for other leatherwork, like pouches, sheaths, belts For something smaller scale/finer, consider Craftool Pro chisels - stainless steel finish; ..............JJ needles L3912 size 004..........thinner thread, about 0,4mm If you buy Tandy items online they are shipped from USA, but www.identityleathercraft.com is an agent in UK for Tandy, and sells the items mentioned. They are pleasant & helpful if you phone for advice Ritza/Tiger thread is popular, but I don't like the way it feels/handles. There is also the problem that you can usually only buy it in large reels, eg 0,6mm is 1,000m and about £60 I have used these threads, and I like them both. Both are available in various diameters; shorter reels, but still plenty to try, about £8 YUE FUNG from www.blackmountainsleather.com AMY ROKE from www.artisanleather.co.uk. They also sell JJ needles For a short time you can hit stitching chisels with a steel hammer, but this will soon damage them. You need a soft mallet, like hide, wood, or nylon Be careful when ordering JJ needles, as their sizing system is a bit confusing. You want size 002 or 004, and not size 2/0 or 4/0, which are too big

Making a new handle will be straightforward enough. I have made skiving knives and a Japanese style leather knife from shaped & sharpened plane blades and industrial hacksaw blades, that use a similar type of handle Take off the old handle to reveal a spike called a tang that fits into the handle. Clean up the blade; roughly shape your wood & drill it; fit the tang into the hole, not forgetting the ferrule; glue it all together with 2 part epoxy glue; finish shaping the handle Search YouTube for 'making a hidden tang knife handle' - there are lots of them. Watch a few to get the general idea. They will be mostly for fixed blade/ hunting type knives, but the general construction techniques will be the same. I suspect the tang will be fairly short, so you probably won't want to make anything fancy with lots of spacers Cover the blade with tape as this will protect the blade from scratches; protect your fingers from the blade; and provide a better grip in the vice I used a piece of copper water pipe for a ferrule It's a nice idea to make a fitted sheath or cover for the blade.

DJole has given us an excellent explanation, but here are a couple of other comments - To make things clear, you should not hit the chisels with a steel hammer as that will damage them; instead use a soft faced mallet, such as wood, hide, or nylon This video gives a demonstration & explanation - 'Pricking Iron vs Stitching Chisel vs Lacing Chisel' by Mark The Braider There are several other videos, Search YouTube accordingly

RAGINGSTALLION - Just re - read your post - I'm sure you could find tubs of potato salad in Idaho!

My local supermarket sells 1kg potato salad in clear plastic tubs; I use those. Thus I can sort my thread into linen, synthetic, different makes, different diameters, and so on, as I wish. I keep them in a cupboard at room temperature I don't use Tiger thread, so I don't have any large reels, they're mostly in the 50m to 200m range, with a few shorter lengths on card. I have another smaller plastic box for my beeswax I tried plastic bags but they always seemed to get scruffy & dirty

Oh, and while you're on YouTube, watch this film clip ....... 'Crocodile Dundee - That's not a knife!' If you're going to carry a large heavy knife on a belt at your hip, search Google and YouTube for 'Sam Browne Belt' He was a British officer who lost an arm fighting in British India, so he developed a belt with a diagonal strap so he could still carry a sword, as some of the weight was carried on his shoulder. Later the same system was used to carry a revolver in place of a sword He also invented the Sam Browne Stud, which enabled him to adjust the straps with one hand. The current British Army Machete is carried in a synthetic sheath at the waist; Search t'Net accordingly

Search YouTube for 'Making a sheath for a machete' and 'Making a leather knife sheath'. There are lots of videos, watch a few to get the general methods of construction, then adapt it to suit what you want

Here are some British suppliers of leathercraft tools, in no particular order - Abbey England Ltd Identity Leathercraft H Webber and Sons Ltd George Barnsley and Sons Artisan Leather Metropolitan Leather Have a browse through their websites; Search YouTube for items that you fancy, to see how they're made, and you'll soon get the hang of things Come back to us when you've got a shopping list, and we'll give you our opinions

Have a look at this video. He shows how to make a sheath that fits closely around the blade, and a couple of ways to cope with the step formed where the blade meets the bolster, whilst leaving all the handle exposed 'Designing and Making a Ka-Bar Sheath' by Ian Atkinson

I assume you mean that the diameter of the hilt is fairly big compared to the base of the blade. It's a good picture of the detail of the problem area, but it would have been nice to see the whole knife, or at least the whole handle and most of the blade The first part of the handle, brass in this case,is known as the bolster. My thought is to file & sand the bolster so that it is flatter, more of an oval shape to reduce the difference or step down to the blade and blend or fair it into the rest of the handle, so that it ends up like the Scandinavian puuko style Then make a sheath such that the blade & handle fit into it, about 3/4 of the way up the handle. Search YouTube for 'Making a Scandi Sheath' and 'Puuko Knife'; and play around with the Search & Links, and you'll see the sort of thing I was thinking of Or just 'Making a Leather Knife Sheath'; there are loads of videos, you're bound to see something that will do the job You might need to wet form the sheath, or at least stretch the sheath when it's been well oiled or greased. I've seen your post on 'Critique My Work' and I don't think you'll have much of a problem with the leatherwork Bu before all that it would be worth seeing a picture of the whole knife & handle

I mostly make knife sheaths, & axe covers from 3mm veg tan, plus a few belts, and I'm quite happy to make all those without a pattern Now I want to make some wallets, and they look a bit more intricate & precise. Besides, as I mentioned, I've just bought some rather expensive Horween Chrome Excel. So I thought that for the sake of ten quid (£10 = about $12) I'd get Nigel's plan pack, and I'm glad I did. There are about 20 pages of plans, advice, and comments on construction & umpteen variations on the basic shapes & dimensions to make billfolds, cardholders, bi- & tri- folds, and so on I could probably have managed without, but it is a lot easier with