adem Report post Posted January 9, 2008 I am new to leathercraft and can see myself coming here often. I am wondering if someone can tell me what is a good hidecrafter steep beveler ideal for tight detailed work. I have looked through their catalogue and I am having trouble telling which is the steepest. (I am after smooth) If anyone can point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated thanks Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
David Report post Posted January 9, 2008 Not sure about Hidecrafter, but the steepest I've found are Barry King's Dave Theobald Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
adem Report post Posted January 9, 2008 I did notice he had "extra steep" bevelers, but at the moment I am on a budget and thought something from hidecrafter may be in a more suitable price range.also what is the difference between and "undercut beveler" and a "lifter" ? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
whinewine Report post Posted January 9, 2008 (edited) I did notice he had "extra steep" bevelers, but at the moment I am on a budget and thought something from hidecrafter may be in a more suitable price range.also what is the difference between and "undercut beveler" and a "lifter" ? An undercut beveler is just that- a beveler that, when struck, digs/cuts underneath the leather to lift it up. A lifter can be like the old deerfoot modelers (and the new tlf modeler, too) that is pushed under after the leather is already beveled to lift it up, or it can refer to the propetals, which are cutting tools inserted under the leather to lift it up, or the name 'lifter' can be used interchangably with 'undercut beveler'. Hidecrafter has steep bevelers in their pro-crafters line= nice tools, reasonably priced (I'm not sure right offhand whether any are smooth- check their catalogue). Better yet, call them. Toll free # & they are nice people. They don't bite. Edited January 9, 2008 by whinewine Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gtwister09 Report post Posted January 9, 2008 (edited) As mentioned earlier, Hidecrafter has some PX series tools that have some "steep" bevelers that are checkered. They aren't smooth. These cost a little more than Craftools but definitely less than Custom tools. They are quite good. Regards, Ben Edited January 9, 2008 by gtwister09 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Elton Joorisity Report post Posted January 10, 2008 I used the Pro-crafter set for years and just recently switched to a set from Barry. Barry's are steeper but you get really good bevelling out of the pro-crafters for the money. Just my 2 cents worth Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JRedding Report post Posted January 10, 2008 Adem, one of the easiest ways to get the beveler you want if it's smooth you're after is make your own, you can take any smooth beveler file it to the pitch you want and the width you want, sometimes you have to reshape the face a little after resizing it. I polish mine back on a buffing wheel but if you don't have one set up use a little Flitz polishing compound and elbow grease. You don't always get it right the first time usually you'll have to file and polish it out a couple times to get just what you want and running smooth. Don't be afraid to file one down if you blow it you're out a couple bucks and a cheap beveler. I've been at this nearly twenty years and I don't know a single tooler with a lot of experience who hasn't filed a bunch of tools, sometimes it's the only way to get just what you need, or you'll think if I only had a tool to do this, it may be something you can fashion. I hate to tear into tools I've paid forty bucks for but if you pay forty bucks you shouldn't have to. You'll be surprised what you can make, I've got border tools I made out of nails before they were easy to find, some of them have bordered out over a hundred saddles, and nobody knows how many saddlebags and breast collers they've seen, how do you think Don King got started making his own tools way back when. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robert Report post Posted January 11, 2008 ditto to jredding's post... smooth tools are the easiest to make or modify... get a couple of tandy bevelers and go to work with a file. if you have a beveler that you like, study the face of it - we think of bevelers being flat on the bottom, but good ones are not - they have a belly to them. once you file it down, you can work it smooth with some wet/dry sanding paper, then strop it with rouge to polish it... it has to be really smooth and polished as much as you can so it will walk and so it will leave a good burnish. or buy the procrafters from hidecrafter and sand off the checkering with fine grit sandpaper... then polish. its a bit intimidating at first, but once you try it, you will find that it is not that hard... and for some of us, it becomes a new hobby in and of itself! robert Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
anne newkold Report post Posted January 11, 2008 I am new to leathercraft and can see myself coming here often. I am wondering if someone can tell me what is a good hidecrafter steep beveler ideal for tight detailed work. I have looked through their catalogue and I am having trouble telling which is the steepest. (I am after smooth)If anyone can point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated thanks Bob Beard makes steep beveler's also. check this site out www.robertbeardtools.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
adem Report post Posted January 11, 2008 Thank so much for all your suggestions, I would like to start looking at making my own tools actually so I may do that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
