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On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

I'm thinking I can use a utility knife I already have (standard boxcutter).

Yes. Get good blades and strop them extra sharp.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Groover.

Grooved stitching is a personal choice. Without the groove your stitching will look more slanted and "hand stitched."

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Awl.

Yes, but you can live without it for this project.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Stitching chisels (4mm spacing).

Good choice.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Poly mallet.

Yes.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Harness needles.

I recommend John James 002

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Beveler

Choose carefully. Have a gameplan to sharpen it.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:
  • Skiving knife

Not for this project.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Burnisher

Yes, or you can make one easily enough.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Rivet / Snap setter.

Yes, if you are using hardware you need the setters for it.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:
  • Cutting mat.

I can't live without mine.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:
  • Mallet mat.

No, but you will want an anvil type surface for setting hardware. Nothing serious, a flat piece of steel will do.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

I'm uncertain if I'll need a tack hammer to pound down the stitching.

I wouldn't use a tack hammer, any light hammer with a reasonably wide face will do as long as you sand it flat, polish it smooth, and don't hit anything hard with it.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

I'm also uncertain if I need a stitching pony or a marble/granite slab.

I prefer vises myself. Especially for something like a sheath where you want a good clamp. IMO you do need something to hold the work for best results. You don't need a granite slab for this project but in the future if you need one you will know.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

I'm uncertain about keeping the leather a natural color and using neatsfoot oil

Good plan. Classic.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Also uncertain about whether I'll need to buy some beeswax.

Yes you will want beeswax. It has many uses.

On 1/1/2023 at 10:49 AM, Gosut said:

Can I get by with the items on my list? Am I overlooking something?

You will save a lot of headache by burnishing with Tokonole. Fiebings pro dye in black or dark brown to dye the edges. Ritza Tiger thread specifically. 

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Posted

I'd recommend Al Stohlman's The Art of Handsewing Leather and The Art of Making Leather Cases, Vol. 1, which describes making a knife sheath. Both books contain huge amounts of useful information. (In France the books are on Kindle, but I can't imagine the fomat working well - check out the sample.)

As for the mallet, it's quicker and easier to make than to buy: 

 I've made mine from an oak branch and never looked back (but then, I live in the country and have a workshop with woodworking tools)

I've also made a stitching pony which I consider almost essential when working as described by Stohlman. If you have a workshop it's easy to make as well. 

By the way, I'm still using the stitching chisels I've bought at the very beginning on Amazon in a leathercraft tool set (came with a burnisher - still occasionally in use - and a groover/edger set of which the groover works well, the edgers less so, for less money than I would have paid in my leather shop for the chisels alone). If the offer is not too ridiculous (like "50 tools for $ 20" - how could that work? ) it can be a good start. 

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Posted

It just occurred to me: You don't need a groover, but you'll probably want something to mark your stitchline an even distance from the edge. I mostly use a compass (with two pointy ends, no oencil).

  • CFM
Posted
12 hours ago, Gosut said:

Today I got the craft paper and poster board, and started laying out the pattern on the paper. Might be making a mistake in doing that, but to my happy surprise, pencil is easy to erase from the paper. My idea is to tinker with the pattern, then see how much leather I'll need.

It was then that I discovered a problem: the top of the blade rises by half an inch until it reaches the beginning of the clip. That means I'll have to size the sheath for the widest point, and that will leave it loose at the top. I split the difference at the blade guard, drawing a straight line to the widest point on both sides, then following the point of the blade. I'm allowing a half inch for the welt.

Today I'd thought of making the sheath tight enough so that I could get by without a means to secure the blade, but with the way it swells at the start of the clip, I don't think that's an option. I've sketched in a strap for the thumb break, setting it at 60 degrees to the top of the sheath and drawing it way longer than it will need to be, so I can cut to fit. It's not going to be period, but it should be secure.

Unfortunately, this also means my idea for a period sheath for that Milledgeville Arsenal Bowie look-alike is probably out. I suspect it's the same blade, but with a wooden handle and a D guard. That would mean it swells in the middle, too.

 A picture of your blade would help, most of the d guard bowies are straight blades with a clip point and many of the period sheathes are simple fold over /taco type sheathes. Most of those i have looked at had  no means to secure the blade, because its length doesn't make it a blade that will easily fall out of its sheath.  Period sheath could mean about anything in this case most folks in the 1800's either personalized the existing sheath or made their own the best way they knew how. 

Worked in a prison for 30 years if I aint shiny every time I comment its no big deal, I just don't wave pompoms.

“I won’t be wronged, I won’t be insulted, and I won’t be laid a hand on. I don’t do these things to other people, and I require the same from them.” THE DUKE!

  • CFM
Posted
12 hours ago, Matt S said:

That's a good point. How long before your edges shag out? I found that adding glue makes the burnish go faster and stay slick for longer in use.

Never had that issue.

Hoka Hey! Today, tomorrow, next week, what does it matter?

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Posted
10 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

 A picture of your blade would help, most of the d guard bowies are straight blades with a clip point and many of the period sheathes are simple fold over /taco type sheathes. Most of those i have looked at had  no means to secure the blade, because its length doesn't make it a blade that will easily fall out of its sheath.  Period sheath could mean about anything in this case most folks in the 1800's either personalized the existing sheath or made their own the best way they knew how. 

.This Bowie isn't the D guard. The shape of the blade is a clip point, but with the increase in the width of the blade at the start of the clip. The D guard Bowies had the straight blades (I thought this one did when I bought it online), but I suspect that the cheap one I was thinking of getting is just the same blade as the one I have now, but with a different handle. After I start this project, it may be best not to have the expense of another Bowie, anyway (even if it is inexpensive).

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Posted

Nope, absolutely not. You don't three different threads, just one coulour that goes with your leather and diameter that goes with your needle. The set contains only a scratch awl (if it is one?), no two identical needles, and what's the ring for? 

 

 

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Posted

The ring is a thimble ring

Al speling misteaks aer all mi own werk..

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Posted

You mean like a seamstresses thimble? Don't think I've ever used one for sewing leather...

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