What All Tools Do I Need To Hand Stitch?

[LilRay]

What all tools do I need to hand stitch? I'm looking at Springfield leather, and they have diamond chisels. Are those for thread or lace? Also I'm guessing a groover. What else?

God Bless, Ray

[dragonspit]

  On 3/23/2011 at 11:32 PM, LilRay said:

What all tools do I need to hand stitch? I'm looking at Springfield leather, and they have diamond chisels. Are those for thread or lace? Also I'm guessing a groover. What else?

God Bless, Ray

Hi Ray,

Im a noob, but Im gettin the hang of it. I am assuming when you say chisel, you mean awl. a stitching awl, and a lacing awl are a little bit different. a stitching awl looks more round and pointy. from what I understand, a diamond one is a better quality. I have the standard tandy one, its done me fine so far, but thats only been a few pieces. yes a stitch groover although not necessary will give a more proffessional look as it will let the thread lie down inside the groove. unless you plan on doing a heck of a lot of measuring, you would use an overstitch wheel. you can also get that at tandy or most places. its a tool that has a handle, and a wheel with little points on it, that you run down your groove that marks where the holes will be. it keeps the measurement consistent. there are different wheels depending on the look you want, and the thread size you plan on using. and after your done, you use the over stitch wheel to run over your stitching to get it to set into the groove.

of course you need some needles and thread.

you will hear folks say it again and again on here, even if you do it on line, get the Al Stohman stitching hand book. its invaluable. it was to me, it would be to anyone starting. and pay attention, at the beginning he tells you read it and pay attention, dont just over read it. he was right......again.....still.

hope that helps some.

Bob

[Timd]

The first tool should be Al Stohlman' guide to handsewing. Then This DVD. They'll both set you in the right direction.

[LilRay]

Bob, The chisel I'm talking about you see here.http://springfieldleather.com/store/product/8100/Chisel,DiamondHole,1-Prong/

I'm guessing it must be for lace?

God Bless, Ray

[TexasJack]

Yeah, that's for lacing.

At a minimum, you need an awl (to make the holes), thread (kinda obvious), a pair of leather needles (which are not sharp like cloth sewing needles, which is in part why you need an awl, and you need 2 because most leather is sewn with a saddle stitch), and some wax (to lube the thread and needles).

To do it right, you need a groover (so that the thread won't stick up above the leather and get worn through) and a stitch wheel (that marks the stitches evenly). Leather stitches are also 'set' with a mallet (or the stitch wheel) when you're done.

I haven't seen the DVD offered earlier, but it looks like a good one. Definitely you want to spend a few $$ and get Al Stohlman's "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather". It shows you all sorts of tricks and tips and is a very easy read.

[LilRay]

  On 3/24/2011 at 12:21 AM, Timd said:

The first tool should be Al Stohlman' guide to handsewing. Then This DVD. They'll both set you in the right direction.

Tim, For some reason your post didn't show last night. I'll definately look into the DVD, as I'm more visually adept and would probably learn quicker. Thanks for the tip!

  On 3/24/2011 at 4:41 AM, TexasJack said:

Yeah, that's for lacing.

At a minimum, you need an awl (to make the holes), thread (kinda obvious), a pair of leather needles (which are not sharp like cloth sewing needles, which is in part why you need an awl, and you need 2 because most leather is sewn with a saddle stitch), and some wax (to lube the thread and needles).

To do it right, you need a groover (so that the thread won't stick up above the leather and get worn through) and a stitch wheel (that marks the stitches evenly). Leather stitches are also 'set' with a mallet (or the stitch wheel) when you're done.

I haven't seen the DVD offered earlier, but it looks like a good one. Definitely you want to spend a few $$ and get Al Stohlman's "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather". It shows you all sorts of tricks and tips and is a very easy read.

Thanks Jack! (What part of Texas are you in? I grew up in Dallas.)

Can anybody point me to a diamond awl? The only one I see at Springfield is S shaped. Is that the best one????

God Bless, Ray

[Lippy]

Have a look at this stitching tutorial post.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=12259&view=findpost&p=19889

And then . . .

Here's a post link that has a nice video and links to hand sewing/saddle stitching info. Hope it helps.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=28041&view=findpost&p=176210

The video from the Hermes site shows a fellow stitching a saddle component. Their leather goods are all hand stitched and they all cost buckets 'o money. Like $6,500 if you want to buy your wife a small purse.

Have fun!