First Mocs..... What Sole?

[reuben cogburn]

I'm looking to construct my first moccasins... Since I'm a beginner at this type of leather workI'm using a Tandy pattern (Plainsman boot moccasin) To get to know the ropes. I'm not sure I'd like the light sole of the pattern, and was thinking that a bit of saddle skirting would my better fit my needs, (since i'll be using these quite a lot).

Would gluing an inner sole of skirting work or, should I use the skirting as the actual sole, and sew it to the deerskin innersole?...

And help, or advice is much appreciated.....

regards...

reuben....

Edited April 10, 2010 by reuben cogburn

[Jim]

Reuben,

I can tell you from experience that adding a heavy veg tanned inner sole to the lighter deer skin outer sole will creat some heartache when the outer sole wears through along the sides.

So, if I may suggest using full weight Moose hide for the outer and inner sole. Moose is tough and the double combo gives a lot of cushion for the feet on them hard rocks what gets walked on.

Holler at Lietzau Taxidermy in Cosmos, Minn. at 320-877-7297. Nice folks and a great bunch to work with.

Jim

[reuben cogburn]

I appreciate the input. i'll give them a jingle... I live in moose country, but first need to see a legal bull before I cn collect any meat or hide..

I'm sure that combining the two different leathers would cause it's own issues, which is one of the reasons I asked before blindly jumping in.

I have a friend with bison mocs, which are beyond cool, but this first attempt is more than anything an exercise.

regards y'all..

reuben...

[Jim]

Well the first pair is always a leap of faith and with that being said take a good hard look at the sole patterns BEFORE you transfer to and cut the leather. Ask your self "Self, does that really look my foot?" Don't be afraid to modify the shape of the sole pattern to better fit you foot.

I made my first pair from a Tandy pattern and quickly saw that the sole patterns were of the "generic" nature. So I widened the sole and outer to fit my wideasst foot with good results. I also widened the vamp as well. As long as all the holes are same number as with sole pattern, all will go well.

I recommend transferring the patterns to poster board with carbon paper. This will give you chance to look things over as you go before cutting into the leather.

By the way, Buffalo leather is another good way to go.

Have fun

[reuben cogburn]

I do have fairly eide feet, and noticed that my foot didn't really meet up with the pattern... I was definetly going to widen a bit, but was not sure if widening the vamp, or just widening the sole and outer sole would suffice....

regards...

reuben...