Australian Strander Lace Cutter

[mlapaglia]

Is the Australian Strander Lace Cutter any good. I will not be doing a lot of braiding. Just need some lace every once in a while. Is it worth the approximately $30 bucks? What about the Craftool Lace maker? Does that work? I cant afford anything other than something cheap. I know I can cut it with a sharp knife and my thumb but I want something a little better than that.

Michael

[bruce johnson]

Michael,

I am with you. I don't cut a lot of lace, but occasionally need some. I like the Australian strander much better than the plastic stick Tandy cutter. The strander is adjustable, and just is more comfortable for me to use.

[jpstees]

check out the strand cutter from s&t leather, you'll like their price much better !

[mlapaglia]

Michael,

I am with you. I don't cut a lot of lace, but occasionally need some. I like the Australian strander much better than the plastic stick Tandy cutter. The strander is adjustable, and just is more comfortable for me to use.

Bruce, With the Australian Strander can I cut lace from a circle either starting on the outside or inside like I can do with the Tandy wand?

check out the strand cutter from s&t leather, you'll like their price much better !

jpstees,

I found the link, $8.95? thats amazing. I am almost afraid to buy it at that price. its like $20 cheaper than anywhere else. Have you bought from them before?

Michael

Edited October 14, 2011 by mlapaglia

[rcsaddles]

I used to cut all my lace with the Aussie Lace Cutter. Leather, rawhide or roo hide. I would venture a guess that I have cut a couple of miles of lace with it. It will only cut from the outside of the circle, not from the inside.

For the money, you can not beat it in my opinion. If you are not going to cut a lot of lace, I would highly recommend it. If and when you get one, play with it a while and then ask how to use it.

[jpstees]

Bruce, With the Australian Strander can I cut lace from a circle either starting on the outside or inside like I can do with the Tandy wand?

jpstees,

I found the link, $8.95? thats amazing. I am almost afraid to buy it at that price. its like $20 cheaper than anywhere else. Have you bought from them before?

Michael

ST leather has been in business for many years and is an advertiser on this forum I believe/ most of their tools are Ivan brand which is a lower end tool. I have one of the stranders and I works OK but I dont use it much. ST does not have an online ordering system however you can phone them . Be forwarned their accent is a bit difficult to understand.

[shadowryder]

Bruce, With the Australian Strander can I cut lace from a circle either starting on the outside or inside like I can do with the Tandy wand?

jpstees,

I found the link, $8.95? thats amazing. I am almost afraid to buy it at that price. its like $20 cheaper than anywhere else. Have you bought from them before?

Michael

Hi can you supply me with a link to ST Leathers please,

Cheers

JJ

[mlapaglia]

Hi can you supply me with a link to ST Leathers please,

Cheers

JJ

http://stleather.com/

Have a good day

Michael

[shadowryder]

thankyou for that,

cheers

JJ

[bullwhips]

A great lace cutter that I think is very under rated because of its simplicity is the David Morgan Lace Cutter: http://www.davidmorgan.com/product_info.php?products_id=1139

For the rare occasion that I'm not free hand cutting this is what I use and I love it! I find it's much more comfortable to hold in the hand because of its size.

[Suicide]

Lace maker (Tandy) somehow works for me. I just replace blade with razor half blade (fit perfectly).

Very depending on leather you are cutting. Thin, stretcheable and pliable leather gives you a headache with starting a cut and having even with for a lace.

But using it you can really have about 4 yards of lace off from the square 4"x4".

[roo4u]

i second the david morgan cutter...its inexpensive and easy to use and they sure cut alot of lace with it in his braiding shop....

[joe59]

I use both the Aussie stranded and the tandy wand. Both work great on latigo and chap leather. Rawhide is a bit tricky but both tools work well on it as well. I would also recommend the lace beveler sold by "Y Knot". It is a fantastic tool and does a great job. I use mine on all my lace as well as saddle strings.

JOE

[Suicide]

I would also recommend the lace beveler sold by "Y Knot". It is a fantastic tool and does a great job. I use mine on all my lace as well as saddle strings.

Hi Joe,

Do you mean this?

Edited January 17, 2012 by Suicide

[Sovran81]

I use the Aussie strander then finish with a copy of Bevans tool design that I "borrowed". One of these days I will take the plunge to roo so I dont have to pre-stretch goat hide. I spend more time stretching the goat for final sizing then all the other operations combined.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?app=gallery&module=images&section=viewimage&img=14791

[Suicide]

http://leatherworker...image&img=14791

Great job!

Would you mind to share plans of this?

[joe59]

That is the one. I own both sizes. They are very easy to use and a handy tool to have on your bench. I bought them from Jim Downey when they first came out. Jim sold his business to Barbara about two years ago. She is a wonderful person to deal with.

JOE

Hi Joe,

Do you mean this?

[Sovran81]

Great job!

Would you mind to share plans of this?

This was one of the throw together projects. I had no plans, but I can run you through the build. I used the videos on youtube of the tool in action to guestimate dimensions.

1. Take a piece of wood 1x4x8 and drill 2 holes(3/16) in each end about 2 inches deep.

2. Cut 1" at 90* off one end and 1" at 45* off the other end.

3. Drill the 4 holes in the main piece large enough to accept brass threaded inserts for 3/16" studs. The holes on the angled side need to be deep enough so the insert doesnt stick out on the angle.

4. I used a router and clamped blocks as a guide for the sliding groove but you could just cut a dado all the way across if you dont plan on placing the top studs on the same axis.

5. Use flat aluminum stock to make the fences. Aluminum hand machines easily. For the slots in the fences I drilled a series of holes then used a coping saw to connect the dots. File smooth. I then glued a strip of wood to the bottom to add a little height and give a bottom face that can be filed for clearance on bevel fence.

6. Place the fences on the main body and mark for top studs. Drill the holes for the top inserts. Glue and install inserts just below flush. Glue and drive in the end inserts so they are just below flush. Loctite and install the studs.

7. Install the end pieces and secure with wingnuts.

8. File a dado on the bottom of the bevel fence the length of the finger just deep enough for the leather to pass under. I filed it 1 mm deep. The corner of this dado needs to be square because it is the width guide when beveling.

To use the tool:

Cut your strands wide and stretch them.

Set up the square cut to cut just enough off to get the strand same width and pull strand through, trimming the outside curve of the strand.

Set up the bevel cut to remove just enough to get the bevel and pull strand through on the inside curve of the strand.

Reset bevel cut to give the finished width of strand and pull strand through on the outside curve of the strand.

My strands are normally about 120 ft long sized to the widest dimension of the strand. Then I cut the strands to length, choose my taper points(for whips) and run them through the bevel cut again starting at the first taper point. Then again at the next taper point. The steps at the taper points blend into the plait and can only be seen if you know what to look for. It seems like a lot of work but the tool allows such speed the entire process doesnt take very long at all. It takes me about 2 hrs to go from hide to 18 12foot finished strands ready to braid. (not including the stretching. I havent found a speedy way to stretch)

Here is the vid I used.

Hope that helps.

Edited January 18, 2012 by Joe M

[Suicide]

This was one of the throw together projects. I had no plans, but I can run you through the build. I used the videos on youtube of the tool in action to guestimate dimensions.

Wow! Thats a great guidelines, thanks alot for it! Very appreciate.

[AZ Pete]

This is an indispensable tool for whip makers (IMHO) or any one wanting to cut their own lace. Thanks for posting this Joe M!

One thing I would like to add to Joe's instructions. When you drill the holes in the sides, be sure that they are as straight as possible. Also the size of the hole that you drill is important. The threaded bolt/insert need to be as tight as possible while still allowing the smaller cut piece to move freely. This is especially important for the beveler side of the tool. If there is a lot of play in the smaller piece, when the wing nuts are tightened, it will want to pull down along the kerf cut thus making it uneven on the top. If the top is uneven, the bevel will not work quite as well.

Reason I mention this is I messed up on my first one. However, rather than starting completely over I cut off the messed up beveled piece and left the resizer as is. I then made a smaller separate beveler. Because it was smaller (4.5in or so), I was able to drill all the way through the piece and place longer hex bolts through the entire piece. I really too my time drilling the holes to make sure they were straight and the proper size. Worked great. I have two separate tools instead of one but they both work great!!

Just some suggestions for those that care...