Transferring tooling patterns onto the leather

[TailGunner]

What do you find the best ways of transferring a tooling pattern onto the leather?

[rleather]

I find simple is easier. I use regular printer paper to draw or copy the design on. Then just case(wet) the leather. Set the pattern in position on the leather where you need it to be. Use painters tape to secure it from moving, then I use a regular pencil to follow the pattern, imprinting the design into the leather . Use a practice piece first to get the "feel for how much pressure to use to get a good impression. Then swivel knife away! Happy leather crafting!

[chuck123wapati]

 dont use an ink pen if the paper tears you will have a nice ink line to follow. I use a stylus to trace. you can also buy craft aids from Tandy for pre made designs.

[Frodo]

Hmmmmmm

 

i wonder if roll on deodorant would harm leather?

apply roll on place drawing ink down on leather and roll the back of it with the roll on

 

[TonyV]

I like to use clear packing tape to laminate the pattern and trace it on cased leather.  Taped paper won't tear even on wet leather and I can reuse it several times (especially nice when it's a design I drew myself).  I dont have a ball point stylus, so I use a dried-out deadsville ball point pen that I've had for years.   Lead pencils can cut the tape and paper and ink pens leave a mess that can spread to the leather.

 

Edited January 13 by TonyV

[HandyDave]

I use freezer paper. Not the waxed kind. But the one with a shiny side and a paper side. If I draw my pattern on the paper side then put the shiney side on the cased leather the freezer paper doesn't get all wet like regular paper. And i can get a couple uses out of the pattern using a stylus. And I prefer the green frog tape for holding smaller patterns down doesn't leave any residue. For larger patterns I use weights most times. 

[Wepster]

an idea i saw on you tube

 

[1985]

19 hours ago, Frodo said:

Hmmmmmm

 

i wonder if roll on deodorant would harm leather?

apply roll on place drawing ink down on leather and roll the back of it with the roll on

 

Just something I used last year  for a project, the plastic roll on deodorant bottle , squeeze the bottle and pop the ball out, wash out and fill with any think then push ball back in,

Edited January 14 by 1985
taken out unwanted words , sentence never made sense

[sparctek]

Don Gonzales has a video explaining how he transfers belt patterns on to his belt.  Basically, use tracing paper and a B2 pencil trace the pattern on to the tracing paper, flip the pattern over and trace again. Use the tracing paper with the image on both sides on dry leather. For a belt as you trace on the image on top of the paper, the pencil marks transfer to the dry leather, as keep flipping the tracing paper you keep refreshing the pencil marks and transferring the image on the dry leather.

I've started to use this process on every pattern. When it's not for a belt I use either Microsoft Word or any other image application to "mirror" the image, print it and then transfer it to tracing paper. This works very well, and for me a least it keeps my image on the leather really neat and easy to follow with the swivel knife.  

Here is a link to the video. It is a bit long winder but the actual transfer process starts around the 14 minute mark.  

 

[Burkhardt]

One of the cheaper/easiest and good product is parchment paper. Yup, the kind for baking and such.

[Hildebrand]

If it’s a pattern I have downloaded or can scan I print it onto the clear overhead transparencies and trace it with a stylus. I get pretty much unlimited use out of them.

[Frodo]

On 1/14/2024 at 9:48 AM, 1985 said:

Just something I used last year  for a project, the plastic roll on deodorant bottle , squeeze the bottle and pop the ball out, wash out and fill with any think then push ball back in,

Damn grammar po po is writing tickets again

[fredk]

Some decent ideas. I used an A4 piece of ordinary printing paper. Only time I had to do it

[Handstitched]

12 hours ago, Burkhardt said:

One of the cheaper/easiest and good product is parchment paper. Yup, the kind for baking and such.

Theres been so many helpful ideas, but yep , but here in Oz, we call it ' grease proof' paper, different names for the same thing.  Works a treat  

HS