How To Make My Own Leather Cord

[bruce johnson]

That less than 1/32 of an inch of grain leather provides little strength relative overall to the rest of the thickness of the belting cord. That is kind of the misunderstood parts of leather strength. Yes, the grain section has more strength compared to the same thickness of the flesh leather. Overall the flesh leather adds more strength the thicker it gets. It is true that a folded and sewn round should have more tensile strength than a single ply thicker round, but the cost of producing a round is more then stripping out belting. Single ply belting works well for the intended purpose.

Another thing is to have the leather damp wen you pull it through the rounder. You want it to be about the moisture content for edge burnishing. Some people use plain water. The old guy who taught me used water with a little soap in it.

[TXAG]

I still don't understand how it keeps it shape and/or bonds to itself after using the rein rounder...I mean is it magic? Voodoo?? What??

Edited January 23, 2014 by TXAG

[bruce johnson]

Once you edge all four edges you are giving it a somewhat rounded profile, especially if you are using an edger that leaves a rounded cut - like a Gomph round bottom edger or equivalent. You start in a larger hole and pull it through a few passes. Then step down a size and repeat until the leather is compressed and round. The deeper moisture is critical to allow the leather to compress and hold that profile.

[Northmount]

Wet forming is the answer you are looking for TXAG.

Tom

[TXAG]

Won't there still be a gap there? Because it sure doesn't look like there's one in the pic in the first post...

And if there is not a gap, wouldn't there be a ridge where the leather goes over top of the other edge?

Oh well...maybe one day I'll have a rein rounder and try it then...

Edited January 24, 2014 by TXAG

[bruce johnson]

If that is machine belting, it is probably one layer of leather - no folds or gaps to fill in. Just one ply of thick leather that is heavily edged and worked through a rounder. Heavier belting might be folded and stitched in channels top and bottom. Then the excess is trimmed the two cut edges are edge beveled heavily and rounded up. Even heavier round are made of two pieces, The outside is folded around a flat piece, sewn through in channels then trimmed and edged like the folded one piece before it is rounded up

[bruce johnson]

Here is a quick sketch of what I was trying to explain regarding the different rounds.

[shtoink]

I still don't understand how it keeps it shape and/or bonds to itself after using the rein rounder...I mean is it magic? Voodoo?? What??

It stays round for the same reasons that a tooled piece of leather doesn't spontaneously pop back to a smooth surface. Once the leather is cased properly, it behaves a lot like clay. Instead of being forced into various shapes with different tooling, it's forced into a round shape and when it dries, it stays that way as long as no other large forces are involved.

[Bob Blea]

Thanks all! I've learned something today.

Bob

[contactfrancine]

Hi.  I want to try this... is anyone from this original conversation still active? Best rein-rounder suggestions?

thanks all.