Beveling

[Butch]

Does anyone have any real good tips on beveling? I've been working with leather for awhile but just can't seem to get a real clean/crisp looking bevel. I even spend a lot of time with a modeling tool, but it just never comes out very good. I know that practice is supposed to make perfect, but I don't think my practice is perfect.

(Sorry I don't have any pictures)

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Butch

[yaklady]

I teach leather craft to 4-H kids, and they ALWAYS have trouble with their beveling. Most of the time, they pound REAL HARD to get some depth. This leaves tiny ridges and deep pockets, even if you are walking the tool. Once you do that, there's no going back. So here's what I try to get them to do. In fact, it's how I do it.

You know how to walk your beveller, right? At first, don't worry about the depth, that can come later. Walk the beveller fairly lightly, concentrating on smoothness. Make sure you don't have the beveller right against the leather, but rather slightly above it. Now go back over the same beveling, but hit it harder. The depth will be coming in now. I often rebevel after I have used the other tools. Here in Colorado it's dry, and I always have to redampen the leather. That takes the depth right back out, so I spend a lot of time beveling. It gets me the results I want, so the extra time is worth it to me. Always go back with a modeling spoon to round out the edges of your pattern when you're through with all the tools. You may be surprised at how this improves the pattern.

Hope this helps!

Kathy

[CitizenKate]

I second Kathy's advice. And here is the list of tips I share with my students:

Getting rid of track marks:

- Make sure the overlap between impressions is at least 2/3 the width of the toe. This way, any given point along the line is struck at least three times by the tool.

- Make sure the leather has the right amount of moisture. If it is too dry, track marks will abound, no matter how perfect your strokes are, and they will be very difficult to flatten down even after adding enough moisture.

- Avoid striking the tool too hard; more specifically, avoid allowing the sharp side-edges of most bevelers make an impression in the leather.

- If track marks are present on one side of the impressions, it is possible the beveler is not perfectly square across the bottom. Try leaning the tool slightly to keep the tool face level on the surface of the leather. (This is an exception to the rule about holding the tool straight up.)

- Make extra passes over the track marks to flatten them down as much as

possible and gain more depth.

[Butch]

Thanks Ladies, I will give your techniques a try.

I appreciate it.

Butch

[Patrice]

I can sure benefit form this short tutorial myself

If i can propose something, i'm more a visual kind of guy. So, with images, maybe this tutorial will be more easy for some people like me.

When you say: above the leather, how high is this? I tryed it from various high, but did not notice any rebound of the tool on the leather.

I'm prety sure that my technique is wrong.

[Cowboy316]

howdy Guys and Gals heres a video clip from my friend Wayne at Standing bear Trading post

hope this helps http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.myvideos

Cowboy316

[Butch]

Thanks Cowboy316. I don't have a myspace account though and it never came up.

Butch

howdy Guys and Gals heres a video clip from my friend Wayne at Standing bear Trading post

hope this helps http://vids.myspace....n=vids.myvideos

Cowboy316

[yaklady]

I can sure benefit form this short tutorial myself

If i can propose something, i'm more a visual kind of guy. So, with images, maybe this tutorial will be more easy for some people like me.

When you say: above the leather, how high is this? I tryed it from various high, but did not notice any rebound of the tool on the leather.

I'm prety sure that my technique is wrong.

I'll work on a tutorial for you, but it's not going to show "how high". I have it slightly above the leather. Maybe I could slide a piece of paper in there, but nothing else. Some people can use their pinky finger as a shock absorber underneath the beveller, but I can't do that. Really, how high is dependant on the person.

[crissy]

shucks, now I want to see what your all talking about. can't wait to see the tutorial.

[HideShop]

Does anyone have any real good tips on beveling? I've been working with leather for awhile but just can't seem to get a real clean/crisp looking bevel. I even spend a lot of time with a modeling tool, but it just never comes out very good. I know that practice is supposed to make perfect, but I don't think my practice is perfect.

(Sorry I don't have any pictures)

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Butch

Here is a place where a good quality tool really makes a difference. If you look at a Barry King, Bob Beard or any of the pro quality tool makers bevelers you will see that the heel of the tool is rounded unlike lets say a craftool. This will help quite a bit to eliminate tracking as you can lean the tool back just a bit to help walk the tool. The moisture content of the leather is also very important and don't be in a hurry, take your time only advancing the tool 1/4 of the length of the tool with each impact, using the largest beveler you can for the area. Don't get discouraged as everyone has been there.

Just my 2 cents worth

Richard

[hidepounder]

Beveling is probably the most difficult tool to master after the swivel knife. Richard hit on the most important points which are leather moisture, overlap and beveler size. When I'm beveling I am constantly switching bevelers in order to use the largest practical size. I keep my beveler IN the cut....I don't hold it above the leather, but I don't think there is anything wrong with doing that if it works for you. Experiment with tipping the tool to help eliminate tracks. Eventually beveling will become second nature, however, until it does concentrate on learning to walk it. Walking the beveler aids in striking with consistant force which is very hard to do when placing the beveler and stiking it in separate motions. If you can only advance the beveler a small amount at first that's okay. Like Kate and Kathy said....you can always go over it again. Perfect practice makes perfect!

[TroyS]

I've discovered a little trick that really helps me out...

After my lines are cut with the swivel knife, take one of your smooth face bevelers and run it across your stroping block a couple of times just to polish it up a bit and remove any dust or other buildup. Now, drag the tool across the leather in an inconspicuous spot. The tool should "GLIDE" across the leather with no resistance at all. If it glides across the skin of the leather very smoothly, then you're ready to bevel, if not, it's time for another cocktail while the leather dries some more. Keep trying this every few minutes until it glides across the leather with no resistance.

Now that your tool "GLIDES", I usually start with a small beveler, lay it into the cut line with the tool on it's "toe" and begin to tap lightly. I'm not trying to dig deep this pass, I'm only pushing the leather away from the cut line. Once the line has been pushed away from the cut, I start again with a larger beveler, and repeat the process with the tool still on it's "toe". I'm not trying to dig deep this pass either. Now that I have the bevel pushed away from the cut line, I take the beveler and tip it back on it's "heel" and repeat the process... Still not trying to dig deep, just get the angle of the bevel nice and smooth. Light taps...

Now, without even realizing it, you've just managed to pull the leather away from the cut line, smooth out the bumps, and dig deep into your leather for a nice clean bevel. The trick is really to not try to get your bevel complete in the first pass. Several passes and light taps will get you the nice clean deep bevel you're looking for!

Hope this helps!

[CitizenKate]

Richard mentioned tool quality as a factor, and just thought I'd re-post this photo I shot of two of my bevelers, one of the common "mass-produced" bevelers, and one of the "better" bevelers, so you can see the difference.

I really believe that, when you are at a point in your craft where you're ready to start investing in "better" tools, your bevelers are one of the first things you should consider upgrading. A better beveler does make a difference, and makes good beveling much easier. The better bevelers have side-edges that have been rounded and shaped to lift off the leather more gradually around the sides, rather than coming to an abrupt end, which is what those track marks are.

That being said, does this mean the only way to bevel well is with designer tools? Nah. A better beveler does make it easier, but either way, you will want to develop the skill to make a good bevel, regardless of what tool you use. In my own work, although I do love my nicer bevelers, I have found that the skills I have developed in working with the tool have made a bigger difference.

Here is a little photo demo I put together a while back the difference between poor beveling (along with some common causes) and what "better" beveling should look like. It does help to be able to recognize the difference. Since this was intended for my students, who were given Craftool bevelers to use, this was done with a Craftool beveler, and I think it demonstrates that you can produce decent work with even the least expensive tools.

One thing I didn't point out in the photos is, the first one was done in one pass, the second in two. Others have mentioned this, but the first example is also what you get if you try for too much depth on your first pass.

Kate

[Patrice]

Thank's to all.

I have notice another thing. My moisture content is not right when bevelling. I can see that the leather Kate is working on is pretty much dry. Mine is not that dry. I'll just have to wait for my leather to be dryer. That migth explain why my belling is not quite alright.

[Butch]

Thanks for all of the advice. I'll have to get out the scrap pieces and use your techniques and see what works for me the best.

Thank again,

Butch

[CitizenKate]

I have notice another thing. My moisture content is not right when bevelling. I can see that the leather Kate is working on is pretty much dry. Mine is not that dry. I'll just have to wait for my leather to be dryer. That migth explain why my belling is not quite alright.

Just to clarify a little further on moisture content, the surface is somewhat dry, but you can tell by the burnish that the core of the leather is fairly moist. If the core is too dry, you will get track marks, no matter how perfect your strokes are. (I don't have any theory to explain why that happens, just know from experience.) And of course, the photos were taken about a half-hour after the work was done, so they were dryer in the photos than they were when I did the beveling.

On the other hand, you will know it is too wet if you don't see any burnishing (darkening effect) in the impressions.

Kate

[Go2Tex]

Thank's to all.

I have notice another thing. My moisture content is not right when bevelling. I can see that the leather Kate is working on is pretty much dry. Mine is not that dry. I'll just have to wait for my leather to be dryer. That migth explain why my belling is not quite alright.

The leather will tell you when it's ready. If you don't get a nice burnish and you don't feel a resistance from the leather when you strike it, it's not ready. The problem is keeping that way long enough to complete your work! Weather conditions affect this process quite a bit and I just never know how it's going to go. I find that proper casing, over night in a plastic bag to distribute the moisture evenly helps it to dry out slower. There is always one part of a piece that will start to show signs of drying out quicker than the rest so I just start there and work the rest as it gets ready. Re-wetting is something I really try to avoid because I usually get too much and have to wait again to work it.

[hidepounder]

This has become an interesting thread....it's fun to hear how theories and approaches differ. I have never heard of Troy's method for determining when the leather was ready to bevel, before, but I agree with it!

I don't find myself beveling twice...at least not with the same tool. Sure, I get sloppy sometimes or in too much of a hurry and have to go back and clean up a spot ot two, but for the most part I think as you progress you can expect to accomplish what you need to in a single pass. Tool selection has a lot to do with that. I mentioned not using the same tool....I mostly use steep bevelers, but there are times when I want the beveling to be flatter. At that point I will make a second pass with a matting tool. On some patterns with lots of crossovers I will bevel the crossover points with a smooth matter before I begin beveling. When I get to the matted area I just follow thru with my beveler which is usually checkered. If a matter is not available a larger figure carving beveler will produce similar results. It is a way accentuate the illusion of depth.

In my opinion, if you are getting heel marks from your beveler while holding it verticle, then the beveler is too small for the job and needs to be leaned forward into the cut to prevent the heel from getting to the leather. I have a bad habit of leaning all my bevelers forward and have to make an effort to keep them more verticle. I constantly switch out beveler sizes and generally keep 1 or 2 bevelers in the fingers of my right hand while holding my maul. It allows me to qucikly switch back and forth as oppossed to laying one tool down and picking up another. It is common for me to have three to four bevelers in use when beveling.

I agree with Kate, the very first tools I upgraded were bevelers. I think this is because I was never satisfied with my Tandy bevelers and was constantly modifying them to try to achieve what I thought they should look like. Bevelers are tools which are used for long periods of time and having good ones are a pleasure to use.

I'm being a bucket mouth again, LOL.....

Bobby

Edited October 5, 2009 by hidepounder

[JohnD]

What a great thread. It's interesting to learn how everyone has their own ways of doing things. One thing I wanted to mention that helped me a lot was Paul Burnett's free newsletter. Quite a bit of good info.

http://paintingcow.com/content/index.php/publications/free_lesson_sign_up/

Hope this helps.

John

[joker]

Hello, Im pretty new here and have posted a few things that I have done. Dont know if this is right or not but I have problems with beveling also. I took a smooth bevel and cut it down so that it would fit in a swivel knife. After I get it beveled edge done, I can drag the bevel tool along the valley with more control than just holding the tool itself. It seems to work alright for me.

Just my 2 cents worth

Joker