Order Of Operations For Leather Straps (Dyes, Conditioners, Finishes, Paint, Edges Etc.)

[needles]

hi Hayley

just looked at your web....i really like it, looks good to me..the collars look good and it seems to explain everything. sorry though I'm a beginner and know much less than you......seeing what you've done so far, I'd say you'll be fine......

al

[Cyberthrasher]

overall the collars you're doing aren't bad. But, with some refinement to the edging, they'll double their value. The pictures on your page are a little pixelated, but I saw the same thing between your site and your mom's. The main thing that really popped out at me is what I have circled in blue. The edge beveling you're attempting now is really sporadic and uneven. This happens when your edge beveler isn't held at the exact same angle throughout the length of the cut. Practice, and make sure that edge beveler is stropped too. Also, it helps to have your edges still a little moist at this point. The part I circled in red, you already know about. Having that natural portion stick out (which, by the way, is the part you'll round off with the sandpaper) really brings down the perceived quality. These collars look really good and well constructed, so I don't want to see these details ruin a customers perception of your work .

Now, this picture also brings us back to your burnishing problems. I think a big part of what you're experiencing is that your edge slicker isn't able to make full contact to the leather because it's got that natural ridge in the center. Your edge slicker has a rounded channel for the leather. With that ridge, neither the sides or the top are able to make contact with the surface of the slicker. Once you get it sanded nice and round and smooth, then slicked with either your edge slicker or dremel burnisher, you should have a nice round and slick edge that will only take dye on that portion. I didn't point any of this out in the picture, but you have sections where you were trying to dye the edge and it bled down into the main collar. A well burnished edge won't let it bleed past the edge because the fibers are so compacted. Again, this really helps with the finished look and the perceived quality. Point of comparison for value, I have a friend who has asked me for a custom collar for his English Bulldog at 1.75" x 22". I told him $80. When he went and compared he came back and said that that's about how much plain ones were without the custom tooled name on it.

Edited February 8, 2013 by Cyberthrasher

[billymac814]

You should have no problems finishing this up in an hour once you get the hang of it. Here is my method of making a belt if using Veg tan, I do sell a lot of English bridle belts too and they are easier as there's less steps.

1. Cut and dye strap, let dry.

2 Skive and punch buckle end, then mark the length and cut punch billet end.

3. Bevel the edges with an edge beveler.

4. Burnish the edges. Ill copy a link to how I do them. Certain projects get more detail in the sanding area, others get slightly less but both have very good results.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=45386&view=&hl=&fromsearch=1

5. Apply light cost of Neatsfoot oil, you could substitute with Lexol.

6. Apply my finish, I use 50/50 water and resolene applied with a foam brush. Ill apply it to the backside first. Normally the backside of Wickett and Craig leather is super smooth anyway but if it were very fibrous I'd slick it down with a bone folder using the same finish or gum trag. The finish gets applied to front back and edges.

7. Install buckle.

[billymac814]

Now here's the steps for my English bridle belts. I sell these in my store and they have become a good money maker. These are a pretty standard belt, if someone wants something tooled or stamped I use the previous method but most people that come to my shop want a belt and they want it today and price is often a concern to some extent.

1. Call Weavers and order pre cut, pre punched and edged English bridle belt blanks and premade keepers.

2. Take measurement, punch holes and end. Finish up the end where cut off.

3. Install buckle and I'm done.

Total time spent 5 minutes.

When I was making them all myself I was lucky to be able to have one belt on my rack for people to look at, I usually have an 2-3 month wait list for my holsters and other custom items so I couldn't spend time making a bunch of belts that aren't sold yet. Most people would walk out as they didn't want to wait a few weeks for a belt. My sales increased dramatically when I started buying these. I now carry 3 colors in 3 widths and people are very happy with them as they are far better than anything else you can find in a store.

I mainly sell these locally in my store and I sell my more expensive ones online more. My profit margins are way better on these ones though as I have about 10.00 in each and sell them for 35.00 so I make 25.00 for 5 minutes of labor which equates to 300/hr, my double layer gun belts that I make sell for 90.00 but it takes me about an hour so I'm at about 80/ hr. when I was cutting my own single layer English bridle belts Id have between 30-40 minutes in each and sell them for 40.00 so I'm in the 60/hr range.

[Haleyf]

cyberthrasher - nice work. I will use that of an example for what my edges SHOULD look like. As for my sample pics... I think i photoshoped that one a little and that is a part of what your seeing. Also that was my very first ever finished edge. I am going to take more time on beveling from now on. Good stuff thanks! I am not only learning leathercraft but also html and web design lol. That is a super rough draft of what I want but hey I am just getting started. Big Otep fan btw.

needles - THANKYOU!!

billymac - Wow great edge in less than a minute. I will definitely be refering back to this. I ordered a wooden burnisher for my drill press with 6 different grooves that seems to be taking forever to arrive. I can see more now the legistics behind the corners vs the center of leather edges. I am going to look into buying pre-dyed leather as soon as I expand into concho only collars. Because I am such a novice and am having to get all my mistakes out of the way and learn I am averaging like -$2 per hour at the moment. lol. But I am a pretty smart cookie and have faith that I will figure this out

Thanks everyone! I am going to practice a little more with all your advice and report back!

[Cyberthrasher]

cyberthrasher - nice work. I will use that of an example for what my edges SHOULD look like. As for my sample pics... I think i photoshoped that one a little and that is a part of what your seeing. Also that was my very first ever finished edge. I am going to take more time on beveling from now on. Good stuff thanks! I am not only learning leathercraft but also html and web design lol. That is a super rough draft of what I want but hey I am just getting started. Big Otep fan btw.

Just keep at it and you'll be flying in no time. I always tell people to just be honest with themselves as they're looking at their work. I'm far from perfect, but I know exactly what I need to work on to get better. Part of that is the fact that I'm extremely critical of everything I do. So, just step back and look at your work while asking yourself "what part of this isn't perfect?".

I used to be a bigger Otep fan than I am now, but my wife and 12 year old daughter are borderline obsessive