Stretching Kangaroo Lace

[pakalbaugh]

Hi everyone,

A question I've had on my mind for a while and which I think is causing me problems on some of my braiding projects, is how to stretch and how much to stretch the laces before braiding? I've tried stretching a lot, a little, before and after soaping up the strands. I inevitably end up with varying widths of strands being braided which makes it difficult to keep the tension and pattern consistent. Sometimes it is worse than others. I am not to the point of buying my own hides, cutting and dyeing my own lace so I am using pre-cut 1/8" lace from Springfield. I am braiding around a core most of the time so stretching after the piece is complete is not as much of a concern as it would be if I were not using cores. I've looked at many videos on the web but most of them are stretching their own cut lace, not pre-cut lace and many of them stretch before they make the final width cut which I cannot using pre-cut lace.

You can see my inconsistent braiding on this piece:

Is this why I'm not getting a nice, even, consistent herringbone pattern on the 8 strand braid and is there a workaround? Any thoughts on this subject would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Pat K

[KnotHead]

Most of the pre-cut lace depending on where you buy it, is either already stretched or is not stretched at all. I have found in my earlier days that spool bought lace has this inconsistency that you speak of on a regular basis. This would be spool bought lace from places like Tandy Leather. This would be the chief cause of your inconsistent pattern along with one more thing that COULD be the issue also, that would be inconsistent tension while braiding. A heavy hand mixed with a light hand will produce inconsistent braiding.

You should not have to stretch your pre-cut lace at all if you buy it from a factory outlet like Tandy Leather. They've already either done the stretching or they have not due to the lace that is being used.

Brian...

[rawhide1]

Pat

I don't think I would mess with trying to strectch precut lace. Unless you plan on cutting it down more after stretching to get a uniform string.

When I cut strings I cut them wider to allow for the shrinkage due to stretching. I can then cut to my final width. On smaller items like bracelets, hatbands, key fobs , and such I may not stretch the string at all. Especially if its pretty firm.

Mike

[entiendo]

Springfield string is difficult to work with but doable, I use it everyday. I do stretch it just slightly. Be sure your beveling and splitting is consistent, and watch for imperfections! Sometimes you can get a spool cut from a bad part of the hide, or one that has imperfections. Be sure to anchor your piece while you are braiding to help you get equal tension and prevent twisting.

[pakalbaugh]

Thanks for all the great suggestions! Some colors are worse than others for stretching...or maybe it's just the place on the roll that is worse. I will try not stretching at all and see what happens although I think I will get some stretch as I braid. I do anchor the braid on a string jig attached to a light stand. I'll let you know what happens.

Pat K

Juneau, AK

[rawhide1]

Pat

I noticed that black seems to be the worst for me. You may get some stretch from braiding but it won't be near as much as purposely pre stretching a long string or strip.

Mike

[pakalbaugh]

OK...thanks everyone!

Going to try to bevel the underside corners, soap and then braid without pre-stretching. I'll try and post a photo after I'm finished.

Pat K

Juneau, AK

[pakalbaugh]

I braided an 8 strand herringbone braid yesterday without stretching the lace at all. I beveled it first, soaped it up and went for it. The braid turned out much better than the pieces I've stretched so thanks to those who suggested I do not stretch the pre-cut lace. I was also cognizant of tension and pulled ALL the other strands tight each time I pulled a strand around, under 2, over 2. This gave me better tension than I've ever had before. The pattern stayed straight and even. On previous braids, I was only pulling the "working" strand I brought around the back and maybe the one I pulled around just before tight. So that is the good news.

The bad news is that I couldn't get the braid to smooth out very much with rolling. It's a little smoother than the unbeveled 8 strander I've done but not by much. Is this because I need to take more off with the beveling? I'm also wondering if braiding so tight left the strands with no place to go when rolling. (I was braiding over a core also).

Pat K

Juneau, AK

[rawhide1]

IMO you need to take more off when beveling. Your core looks like it might be to small also.

Mike

[pakalbaugh]

Thanks Mike! Will try that.

Pat