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No luck, I will google it again

Will do. Going to be a few days though as I have to do some paid work first.

Oh wow, ok, I will try that. And it was wet. Thanks a lot.

Hi everyone. I have been braiding for several years now and I decided to take the plunge into a little bit of rawhide work. I want to make a bosal but I only know how to do roo and I couldn't find anyone to make a rawhide core. I bought some rawhide, managed to get it soft, I even managed to spilt a 1/2" piece with my hand held splitter. Whe I started citing it down into 1/8" inches it did not go so well, but I got a couple of 1/8" strands I could bevel. I went to bevel with 0 success. No beveled pieces oh well. Any advice would be appreciated. I knew rawhide wasn't easy but goodness....I had no idea, that is some tough stuff. I am thinking my whimpy roo tools will not be adequate. itt

THAT is what I was thinking rawhide...I mentioned it in an earlier post when I resigned myself to not being able to completely close the top. I have some tiny conchos that just might work. I got these at a garage sale..like I also mentioned in a earlier post I have 1 round one in the bunch that will be simple to cover, but the rest are like these. Anyway being round might be easier but this shape shows more of the weaves.

Not done yet. The second interweave on a 10 bight is very tricky. Will have to use contrasting colors to follow the correct string for a long time!

Hmmm, very nice...but don't you think you deserved 8 plait, and maybe a few knots for your bday?

SWEEET bucksnort Well the idea came to me cause I have to repaint my cabinets and I want knobs so they don't get so darn dirty, but I could not find one knob I liked...But then I thought ...oooh, braid it. I had a chance to try out my idea when I found probably 50 knobs or more at a garage sale for 10 bucks. Put off my commissioned pieces to try it out...bad me! I have to wait 24 hours before I can play with it anymore though so I will try and get a couple of pieces done for customers in the mean time...

Well I took it apart and put it back together twice last night and finally decided on a piece of leather. Not creative at all, and what is worse I overlapped it a bit cause I couldn't get two beveled pieces to go together right. I think with a couple of Spanish rings it will look OK though. It's not part of the handle that will show much, and between a bit of two part glue and a couple of spanish rings it should hold forever. I have to let the glue dry 24 hours before I can mess with it though. I see Brian, quit clever, so the bights are not interwoven the same way. I can't follow a grid to save my life though. I wanted the top of the knob not to have a hole in it, but after thinking on it I thought it might look nice with some sort of cap on it too.

David Morgan didn't work with Springfield leather, I would not loosen your braid, and your cores are fine too. However with 1/8" string you can go up to 3/16 inch core if I remember correctly. The herringbone braid is actually a square braid so if you have a tiny core you are rolling corners round so that is part of it as well. 8 plaits can be rolled round, trust me, you will just have to do some experimenting with something that works for you. Yes you can bevel as David Morgan suggests but I would not do that with kangaroo. Especially kangaroo with a finish. I did it like that for a long time and it looks nicer the reverse like he suggest for 4 plait. And let me tell you I went through a whole heck of a lot of colored string when I did it that way. It is really hard! That finish is also even worse on blades so you can go about a foot and then you need to move the blade.

D'oh. Think I can convince anyone that I meant to leave that part uncovered???? Better think of something before I add my second interweave and tie it down.

Ha ha!!!! bucksnort what a hoot that's it exactly what I did. i taped some leather to the top and after I got the turks head going I took the leather out so the knob is flat again. I can picture a very nice silver cap over the tiny hole left at the top???? I did not go the lazy man's route though...I think it's a 10 bight turks head...I'll be doing a herringbone interweave. LOL well maybe I will do a easier interweave next time. I'm a sucker for a beautifully detailed knot though and I would like to have some for my kitchen knobs...Would look wicked nice!

Thanks mike. I may have figured something out I will let you know tomorrow too.

Yes gives me an opening at the top, I don't like it....Or I have to spit up the turks head when I turn it the other way.

Here we go...hmmmmm

Has anyone ever covered a knob...?? know of any tutorials on it?

That's not bad at all, looks to me like it just needs a bit more rolling. Are you beveling 30 or 45 degrees? 45 will help you skive off extra thickness if you don't have a splitter. Helps a bit I think. . It is a little twisted though so be sure you are securing your plaiting while you braid. Sometime tying it on a rope can be counterproductive. try clamping the top of the piece down so it does not twist on it's own while you are braiding...at least with the 8 plait. .

Well i didn't take a picture of the finished ROUND knot, but I swear did get it!! LOL...But if you have facebook you can see what I ended up using instead. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=554514821250641&set=a.551255361576587.1073741825.113553735346754&type=1&theater

Welcome!

Yes beveling will make smaller, splitting even smaller than that. Use more strings if you want larger diameters, like 6 or 8 plait. Or try some calf hide. My calipers measure about 3.5 mm on a 4 strand braid. Cores do not help you smooth the braiding in my experience. I change the position of my blade when the leather does not run through smoothly. That is about all I can tell you there. If it helps I buy 200 blades at a time for my cutter and beveled, my splitter takes a different blade.

Hard to explain....hmm, completely normal with Springfield leather. What I do to get it started is hold on to the end of the piece and help roll it or turn it, with my hand, while I am rolling it with a piece of wood with the other hand. Once it is mostly round you should be able to finish rolling without helping.

Well it was to big so I did gauch knots with 1/16" string. So all that trouble and I didn't use it, but at least I learned a new knot.

If you want smooth beautiful pieces you bevel and split. That's what most of us work for, smooth detailed pieces. If you like it a different way, certainly nothing wrong with that but it's not the traditional way, again, nothing wrong with that. Kangaroo is a beautiful strong leather, even springfield's, if you buy it I would assume that is what you are working toward; smooth detailed pieces. Splitting and beveling will matter even more as you learn to tye knots and move onto 6, 8, 12 plait or more. Oh and not beveling lighter color where the rough out shows will get really dirty and it can't really be cleaned like the smooth. I have seen many 4 plait dog leads not split, beveled or rolled that did not stay nice at all. On those springfield leathers I take a whole lot off beveling. Just be sure to keep your blade sharp, those leathers are terrible on blades. You want the leather to move smoothly through the bevel. don't be afraid to use a little bit of feel while beveling rather than depending comepletely on the guide on the beveler.

Well I finally figured it out and AFTER I tied my first one on leather this video was sent to me. Maybe it will help someone else in the future.

How about this, I can do it every time with a piece of rope. I cannot get it at all with my leather, it has to be how the leather lays. I would appreciate any help. I have been at it for hours, I just can't get it.