What tools should I get to start off with?

[sodapop]

hey anders...heres a thought for a chunk of granite...i went to a place that makes/sells headstones...and they had a graveyard of misfits in the back...and they were more than happy to let me have whatever i wanted for FREE...since they have to pay to have them disposed of...is what they told me...hense why they had soooo much to choose from =0)

darryl

Edited May 25, 2008 by sodapop

[hivemind]

I'm far from a pro, but I use my German leather shears a TON. I also have never bought a rawhide mallet. For driving hole punches and stuff, I use a rubber mallet with a piece of thick hide glued on the face of it. Everyone talks about a head knife, but I have an Osborne one that I've never used. I can see the utility of it and all, it just seems like I already have a purpose made tool to do everything that other people say they use their head knives for. I also don't relish the idea of what looks like a steep learning curve to master that particular tool, nor the constant sharpening and stropping that goes with it. I'm probably wrong though...

[TwinOaks]

The oil dyes aren't the thing that imparts a particular feel to the leather. Oil dyes are used for their better than average penetration and colorfastness. The final top coat finish will really determine the feel, and the softness of the leather is going to be greatly affected by the type of tanning (we'll presume veg. tan), and the conditioners applied to the leather. As an example- I made a belt for my dad, using a Tandy belt blank. The grain side was tooled, dyed (spirit dye) and sealed with neat-lac. From the flesh side, we hand rubbed in A LOT of carnuba cream. The carnuba is a conditioner, and since it has waxes in it, helps protect the leather as well. Before the CC, I could hold the belt about 6 inches from the end, and it wouldn't flop over. The leather was stiff. Afterwards, with the finished belt, is was so supple that a 2 inch hold still leaned pretty far. We also used the CC to recondition a belt that my dad made for his dad nearly 35 years ago. It's supple again too, but isn't in use because of it's keepsake value.

I'm not sure anyone else touched on this, but don't skimp on leather quality for something you want to last. Buy the cheap stuff for practice, but spend money on final products, and don't neglect to charge for it accordingly. The above mentioned 'grandpa's belt' was made from top quality leather, and I wouldn't be surprised if it outlasted the blank I bought.

[AndersHeintz]

Thanks guys!!

Darryl,

I have a small piece of marble allready, but I may been a bigger one, especially after looking at some peoples workbenches on these forums! There is a funeral home right down the road and can call them and see if their supplier of head stones is close by.

Hivemind,

Thanks for the post! Im no sure so sure what German Leather Shearers are? What they do?

TwinOaks,

Interesting! It sounds like thats the stuff I need! Where can I get some carnuba cream? Do you always just use it on the flesh side?

As for the oil based dyes it makes sense that they don't make the leather softer. Coming from a painting background I have used oil colors in the past, and they are cut with white spirit or mineral spirits, neither which is 'soft' and tends to dry out thigns rather then make them more 'oily'. The sound just makes it seem like they would help the leather.

How do you determine if the quality of a hide is good? I got a nice side of leather, feels good, looks good, but was not top dollar. It is indeed Veg Tanned as well. Any way to see the quality or some signs to look for?

Thanks again guys for all your replies, they have all been of tremendous help in the quest of starting some leatherwork!

[hivemind]

"German leather shears" refers to a set of heavy-duty, spring-loaded, high-quality scissors. Mine happen to be German-made. Mine are also kind of serrated on one edge, which helps it grip the leather when cutting.