Sharpening Strap End Punch...not Working :/

[Vanilla]

Hello,

Getting slightly exasperated with my strap punch as of late! I am attempting to sharpen my strap end punch (http://www.tandyleather.eu/en-gbp/3198-03.aspx) by following this video:

using a Stanley sharpening stone/oil.

Despite running it along the sharpening stone as directed by the video, I can't really seem to get a keen edge and I am failing to stamp through my leather. I have read somewhere that you require a heavy mallet to handle this tool properly, but I have been using Tandy's poly-head mallet as instructed by one of Tandy's shop assistants. I am by no means a seasoned leatherworker - I have only focused on making a handful of basic animal collars, and now my strap punch is failing me.

Could someone tell me what I may be doing incorrectly? Or perhaps I need to sit and sharpen for ages? I'm at the point of asking any UK leatherworkers if they'd consider sharpening it for me for a reasonable fee! If the punches didn't cost the amount they do I'd simply get a new one!

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[Trox]

Leather cutting tools has to be polished after sharpening, read all the pinned sharpening topics on top of this forum. Get a strop and some polishing paste and polish all cutting tools to a mirror like surface. You can also use a buffing wheel on a drill, bench grinder etc to polish your tools. We polish all tools on the strop before use . See your edge under a magnifying glass after sharpening, your edge are still coarse. Using a stone like in this video is just half a job, you need to polish it. Post a high resolution picture of your edge and let us see how your edge look like,

Good luck

Trox

[Vanilla]

Hi Trox,

Thanks for the reply. When sharpening this type of tool do I use the strop in the same fashion as the sharpening stone?

Thanks again!

[TwinOaks]

Yes, but on a pulling stroke instead of pushing. You'll know immediately if your strop is working, as you'll have gray/black streaks where your tool passed over it.

Look for a mirror finish, but you CAN settle for just a high shine.

[Vanilla]

Thanks for the reply, TwinOaks.

I was working with the pull stroke on the flat side of the tool when using the sharpening stone, and only pushing when following the curve/outer side of the tool end, as instructed in the video. I used both the coarse and fine side of the stone, so I didn't realise I would need to refine it even further. I was getting those grey/black marks on the sharpening stone, so I hope that's some indication that I was doing it correctly? So, just to reinforce: I simply need to repeat this procedure on a strop with a finer grain until I get a nice shiny finish?

Thanks again for the help - I really appreciate it!

[Trox]

Glue som firm leather (hairside out) to a piece of plywood 2 x 20 inches (or desired size) and get some aggressive polishing paste to use on it, then you have a polishing strop. (or buy one) You polishing by pulling hard against the strop in the cutting direction. When you have a nice shiny or mirror like edge, your punch will glide through your leather like a knife through butter. (almost)

good luck

[dirtclod]

A heavier maul or mallet ( something in the 1 1/2 to 2 pound range ) will help a lot to. Those poly head mallets they sell or to light to use cutting ends on straps. IMO

[Trox]

Yep thats true, I use a heavy rawhide maul. A light head will only beat up the tool, when a heavy maul will drive the tool through the leather. (of course the poly can`t ruin steel, its just a figure of speaking)

[Art]

Make sure your work surface is solid without any (even the slightest) bounce. Use the floor if you have to. Also use a heavy mallet or maul. I use a 96 oz Barry King maul which may be overkill, but a two or three pounder should also work.

Art

[Vanilla]

Thanks for all of the helpful replies, guys! I was checking out leather strops online and a lot of them seem slightly pricey for what they are, but I suppose it's an investment if I don't really have the appropriate leather. I only have 5-6oz vegetable tanned leather; I only purchased one roll while I was visiting PA earlier this year as I knew I wouldn't need a huge amount for making basic collars. I've been teaching myself with this piece of leather, using the resources I've managed to unearth on the internet. It's a little slow-going and although I'd love to purchase thicker leather, I just find it a little bit too pricey at the moment - being a recent uni graduate and part-time employee means it doesn't really fit the current budget! At least not on the Tandy website. Anyway, I was initially looking for 6-7oz as recommended by the dog collar pattern I found on Tandy's Leather Library, but they were sold out at the shop in PA, so had to settle for the 5-6oz at the time. In any case, would this type of leather be adequate for making a strop? I saw a few videos and all of the leather looks rather dark/thick, so I'm doubtful.

This was the most suitable thing (I think) that I could find: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Trend-Honing-Paste-Leather-Strop-DWS-HP-LS-/120996618571?pt=UK_BOI_Building_Materials_Supplies_Carpentry_Woodwork_ET&hash=item1c2bf5e14b + http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tormek-PA-70-Honing-Paste-T7-or-T3-/190614204884?pt=UK_Home_Garden_PowerTools_SM&hash=item2c617df1d4

Again, thank you for the help. Any further feedback would be fab!

[TwinOaks]

I routinely use scrap pieces of leather of all weights and sizes to make my bench strops. It doesn't need to be large, or a specific shape. It just needs to BE.

[dirtclod]

You can make a strop out of a piece of dense cardboard or a cardboard carton that a case of beer or cold drinks come it. They will work fine just make sure you use it on a hard smooth surface. 5/6 ounce leather will work fine to and even better if it's glued to a piece of wood.

[Vanilla]

Being able to use any weight of leather is GREAT to know! Already have some powerful glue, just need to find some scrap wood and get my hands on some polishing paste.

Thank you once more for taking the time to reply; you are all so wonderfully helpful and lovely!

[Vanilla]

Sorry to revive this thread... But: I got the paste and was sharpening my punch tool on both my sharpening stone and on a leather strop I made. I polished it until it was nice and shiny..nice black streaks all over the leather. While it seemed a little sharper at first, it really didn't last long. I didn't even really manage to get it through the leather adequately the one time I did manage to get it to cut through. After that it practically felt worse than before I even started sharpening, and the force of pounding was giving me a headache and undoubtedly pissing off the neighbours...so I ended up having to finish the initial indent by cutting it with my stanley knife - untidy compared to the proper thing. I'm not sure how long I really need to sit there and sharpen; getting the feeling I just don't have the right technique.

I really wish there was a full length video to guide someone through the sharpening process. Seeing as I've been teaching myself to make collars, the lack of a decent strap punch bothers me. I have seen people make it without, but I personally don't like the look. Is there anyone out there (UK based) that would be willing to sharp for a reasonable fee?

[Chief31794]

Sharpening is more of an art than a science, you must maintain the same angle every stroke or you're just working against yourself. I would take it to a machine shop or someone who sharpens blades if you're having that much trouble and have them put a good edge on it, then use a strop often, always pulling the blade away from the edge when using a strop. Additionally, I would invest in a Dead Blow mallet at about 2-3 pounds, I always use dead blow to hit punches as the nature of a dead blow is to put all the force on the work piece due to being loaded with small shot. With a sharp strike from a 2lb mallet and a relatively sharp blade, it should cut through 5/6 oz leather pretty easily.

Chief