Rope Border

[Double U Leather]

I've been hired to make a daytimer for a customer, and he wants a rope border around the edge. I'm not real sure how to run a rope border tool. If any of you have any helpful hints, I'm all ears. Thanks in advance for the input.

[bruce johnson]

I use rope borders quite a lot. I run mine with just an outside guideline. I try to run at about a 45 degree angle. I bevel the rope, and have made bevelers from cheap Tandy stamps to match the curve of the different rope stamps I have. Just take a round stone on a Dremel and grind a curve in the toe of the stamp to match. I am attaching a few examples. One is the 90 degree corner, and how I tip to get the corner. The next is a Celtic pattern I did for a stamping deal we had here a few years ago. The only Celtic thing I have done, it was kind of fun. I forget who but someone asked me off forum a year or two ago for some help with tight curves with the rope border. I knocked one out pretty quick as an example of how I do those on a sample bridle cheek. In a nutshell I stamp a full impression on the outside of the curve and tip the stamp to do a partial and shorten up the inside. It is a little tricky to keep the angle right, but after a while you kind of get a feel for it.

[Double U Leather]

Thanks Bruce. That does help some. The border may be the easy part. I'm havin a heckuva time finding a steer tripper silouette now. I figured with the internet, that wouldn't be too difficult. WRONG!! I guess I'll figure something out. Thanks for the help.

[SFC Morris]

Just starting out in leather working, thank you for the information and pics, it will help a lot.

[SmokeyPoint]

This is a really old post, but I'm glad it resurfaced. I've done rope borders that turned out OK, but not great. That's a terrific tip on the beveler. Helps to hide the scribe lines.

[eglideride]

Old School way to do rope-

Al Stohlman Figure Carving Finesse 1982

ropes Al Stohlman 1982 1.pdf