Rosin for hand stitching

[oldtimer]

Mike........Thanks for the information. Do you know if the "cobblers heel ball" is made using the natural raw rosin right off the tree, or is it processed rosin ?

Todd

Rosin is the hard and brittle substance you get when destilling turpentine out of raw pine pitch. So I don´t think it is a very good idea to try making hand sewing wax out of raw pine pitch as it will probably wind up in a mess , and if you get it on your hands you´ll be like Spiderman. So my advice is : Don´t do it !

/ Knut

Edited February 4, 2010 by oldtimer

[jimsaddler]

Mike........Thanks for the information. Do you know if the "cobblers heel ball" is made using the natural raw rosin right off the tree, or is it processed rosin ?

Todd

Hi Todd

I actually used Resin straight from the Tree to experiment back in the 60's. Pine resin Wax mix turned out Crumbly. Gumtree Resin Mix was good but too sticky to use (Spiderman is a good description). White Lead made beaut White Wax for white Thread, BUT then came the fact that the Lead gets into your system. So I stopped that in the 70's. So back to the precessed Resin, Blond being prefferred.

By the way a bit of Castor oil in the mix will help deter Mice.

For Mike

Have you tried a desert Spoon of Friars Balsam and a bit of Raw Linseed Oil in your Wax. I heard of a Shoemaker who was allergic (Had dermatitus) to Resin using it with no reaction. Don't know where you would get it nowadays.

Please have a Happy Day.

Kindest Regards.

Jim Saddler.

[jasj]

Very interesting discussion about the use of resin. I had the good fortune to come by tools and gear from a distant relative who was a saddler in NSW Australia during the 1930s. Among the awls, punches etc was some single strand thread and a small 2 ounce tin labelled "SAYERS VENICE TURPENTINE". On the back of the tin it claims to be "A valuable home remedy for cuts sores ulcers, veterinary purposes etc" It is still over half full of a treacle consistency liquid, smelling a bit like turpentine. I wonder if anyone reading this knows if it was used in the saddlery trade,or was just for the uses on the label.

Regarding the use of resin, I took a workshop with Stohlman Award winner Peter Main at the Dimensions In Leather Conference in the 1990s and he used resin on his threads.

Have a great day wherever you are!

Bye from Jim

[ToddB 68]

Jasj , jimsaddler, oldtimer.......... Thanks for your replies ! Don't think I'll be trying the globs of raw pine sap straight off the tree anytime soon.

Todd

[ChuckBurrows]

Rosin is the hard and brittle substance you get when destilling turpentine out of raw pine pitch. So I don´t think it is a very good idea to try making hand sewing wax out of raw pine pitch as it will probably wind up in a mess , and if you get it on your hands you´ll be like Spiderman. So my advice is : Don´t do it

Well I have to respectfully disagree - I've been using collected natural pinyon pine pitch (aka resin) now for about eight or nine years and it works fine. I collect the raw pitch from where it's oozed out and semi-solidifeied on damaged sections of the tree (or tap a couple od trees just enough to get some ooze and let it air dry), then I heat the collected pitch until melted and spoon off as much dross as possible - the heat cooks off most of the turpenes leaving behind the solids aka rosin - do this in a well ventilated area and don;t over cook it that will make it too brittle. While collecting you may also find balls of solidified pitch (natural rosin)- this works good as well as the softer stuff - I heat it just enough to clean it. I collect enough once a year or so to last a couple of years.

I tried filtering through cheesecloth and for me that didn't work so well. What I do instead is use the small yogurt containers or similar tallish, narrow containers. Pour the melted pitch into the containers (hold them down in a pan of cold water) and let the pitch harden. Once hardened cut away the plastic and you'll find that the remaining dross will have collected at one end - cut that section off leaving you with a nice clean glob of pitch. I like mine hard enough that I can dent it with my fingernail but no harder. If it's too soft cook it some more but keep an eye on it. If too hard mix with some that's too soft. After you work with it a while you'll learn the right consistency.

I generally mix it 60/40 pitch to beeswax and a teaspoon or two of EVOO or castor oil per pint of pitch/wax - that's not as sticky as most of the shoemaker's like, but for me it works great.

On the other hand you can buy a pound of Brewer's Pitch from James Townsend and Sons for about $15.00 and it will last a long time - but I like doing things myself.

As to getting raw pitch on your hands it's easy to clean off - alcohol, acetone, or gum turpentine takes it off - Use Everclear and you can also mix some in with your Sangria - shades of Jerry Jeff

BTW - resin is the proper term for the raw pitch, rosin is the finished product although the terms are often used somewhat interchangeably.

Edited February 5, 2010 by ChuckBurrows

[amuckart]

Hi all,

My background is in making reproduction medieval shoes and they called this stuff code back then. It's been a long time since I've hand stitched anything without it, but I ply up my own cords out of single-strand #10 linen and put bristles on them rather than using this newfangled poly stuff and harness needles Poly's hard to taper and I don't think you build good tight round closed seams in a shoe with needles.

Anyway, some time ago I wrote up how I make up code or hand wax as modern shoemakers call it, on my blog along with photos at http://wherearetheel...aking-code.html

If it'd help in terms of search etc, I can always transcribe that content directly into the forum. As I say in the blog post, I was poured about twice as much as I should have in each pour so in the photos I'm pulling a bit too much and it didn't really mix properly.

This is the mix that works for me, with the beeswax I have, and the rosin I have. It pays to experiment a bit and write down your ratios as you go, but make it up in decent size batches so once you get it right you've got enough to last you for a while. The made up wax will dry out over time as the volatiles evaporate out. Storing it in a ziploc baggie, or even better a jar of water stops this.

I've also been working on a recipe using proper black pitch rendered down from stockholm tar that's probably closer to what the medieval guys used, but I doubt it'd be much use for saddlery work being as it's awful messy.

I'd advise against using oil or tallow to cut the rosin with. It can go from rock hard to a gooey mess in the space of one or two drops if you get it wrong.

With a good mix I can build a seam then take a knife and cut off the externally visible parts of every stitch and still need pliers to pull the leather apart. When it comes apart there will be these hard little 'pegs' of waxed thread filling the holes.

I hope that's of some help to folk on here. I'm getting an awful lot out of this forum, so thanks to everyone who makes it such a useful place.