Adjustable Edge Creaser (Vergez Blanchard)

[DavidL]

Just a general word of warning.

I see lots of posts (not just this thread) about buying VB & other expensive tools as cheap/mid price aren't any good.

VB, Dixons etc are not what they used to be.

They might still be good/ok but in all honesty they are no where near as their old ones, much cheaper steel & manufacturing techniques are used making new tools.

I'd always recommend trying to find a vintage tool first (only exception would be pricking irons & awls, you have to be very lucky to find an old pricking iron that isn't worn/damaged)

Ive compared (& bought) head knifes, skivers, creasers etc from VB, Dixons etc to their vintage equivalent, difference is night & day.

So I'd say do yourself a favour, get in touch with Bruce or search ebay etc for old tools first.

Would you say that VB modern pricking irons are the same quality as vintage vb pricking irons? Vintage dixons look like they are equal to modern vb, but hard to find in good quality.

Also does anyone one have experience with creaser tips that are added to soldering irons. I have the option of getting a soldering iron w/ the tips or an adjustable vb w/ an alcohol lamp, both are around the same in price.

[Macca]

a vintage iron with perfect teeth will be better, marginally, down to better steel.

You have to be very lucky to find a good set of vintage irons though, they are easily damaged/worn.

Ive never seen a decent set up using a soldering iron with creasing bits. Guess for the money its alright for doing a few lines but soldering irons (even those with temp control) are really not designed to have a lump of brass on the end so the temp control doesn't respond that well.

[mrtreat32]

I happen to have both a screw adjustable creaser from Tandy, and a used Osborne #1, and find that they both have their uses.

The Osborne makes a very fine crease, and with too much pressure will actually cut into the leather. It has a guide "blade" ( for lack of a better word) which is longer than the other creasing "blade". That helps to prevent the tool from wandering as I push it with a very slight toe in angle to keep it tight against the leather edge. The fine crease that the Osborne leaves makes a very attractive decorative crease, but is much too fine for a stitching crease.

The adjustable is a much more blunt tool and requires a lot of pressure. It also leaves a much wider crease which is great for stitching. It wanders a bit more on me, probably because both "blades" are the same length which requires that it be both toed in AND tipped toward the edge of the leather. I have also noticed on mine that one "blade" is slightly thicker than the other, so I use that to advantage for a slightly different crease. I haven't looked at any others, so I do not know if that is by design, or a fluke.

On veg tan, heat only makes a slight difference which is more noticable with the adjustable. I prefer the look that heat gives.

Alcohol burners are the tool of choice because alcohol burn very cleanly. A butane lighter will leave a deposit of soot on your tool which then has to be wiped off, which is a pain. The same is true of at least most candles. And if you don't get all of the soot off, you have a blackened crease on your work for the first few inches. I put up with wiping my tools for awhile but recently bought one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005QDP42K/ref=oh_details_o00_s01_i03?ie=UTF8&psc=1#

It has a wide heavy base to help prevent tipping, a thumbwheel to adjust the wick without snuffing it, a nifty little snuffer cap to snuff the flame and also slow the alocohol evaporation, and a cute little handle that is useful. I'm burning 90% rubbing alcohol which works fine, but denatured alcohol might be even better. I'm not so sure about 70% rubbing alcohol.

On awls, you are completely correct about blade length. It's good old geometry at work. The farther the tip of the blade is from your hand, the more it will move with every tiny movement of your hand. It's another thing that I put up with until I figured a few things out. My first awl was a Tandy multi-purpose with a wing awl blade, which was duller than the butter knives in my kitches. I used it because I did not know any better. It didn't take TOO long to realize that it had to be sharpened to be of much use. It took a little longer to figure out that the wing blade is a pain to use since it will always make a bigger hole on one side of the leather than on the other and consistent holes require very precise depth control. And finally longer still to figure out that it was too long. I now use awls with short straight sided blades that are sharpened and stropped to an almost mirror like finish and am MUCH happier, and my stitching is vastly improved. I'm sure that wing blades have their uses, but not for me.

I hope that helps more than it confuses!

Bill

That makes sense about the lighter leaving a deposit on the tool. Gonna order the burner you posted from the Amazon link.

thanks

[mrtreat32]

Just a general word of warning.

I see lots of posts (not just this thread) about buying VB & other expensive tools as cheap/mid price aren't any good.

VB, Dixons etc are not what they used to be.

They might still be good/ok but in all honesty they are no where near as their old ones, much cheaper steel & manufacturing techniques are used making new tools.

I'd always recommend trying to find a vintage tool first (only exception would be pricking irons & awls, you have to be very lucky to find an old pricking iron that isn't worn/damaged)

Ive compared (& bought) head knifes, skivers, creasers etc from VB, Dixons etc to their vintage equivalent, difference is night & day.

So I'd say do yourself a favour, get in touch with Bruce or search ebay etc for old tools first.

Agree that most old tools are probably of better quality. But like you said its hard to find certain types of older tools in good condition.

here in the US it seems if the style of leatherwork you are into is more towards european styled stuff there arent as many vintages tools that suit that style of work. Pricking irons are hard to find used and most of the nice older stuff seems to be more focused towards western saddle making (stitching wheels, groovers etc)

I have a Barry King awl haft that is beautiful and plan on ordering some edge tools of his as well but BK, Rons tools, and the other really nice modern tool makers in the US make the majority of tools for people interested in tooling and carving designs. If any of those makers made high end pricking irons and such I would purchase from them. Im sure the quality of these tools is better than modern VB in most catergories

Also owning a decent amount of VB tools so far it seems that some are still made very solid and some seem very average. Maybe they still make certain tools up to par of the older ones and have changed manufacturing of others. The pricking irons and compass I cant imagine being any more solid but a few others leave a bit to be desired. To me their stuff seems to be a step above most other large US made brands and goodsjapan( which people say is good for the price).

[bruce johnson]

Apparently good vintage pricking irons are not all that easy to find in Europe either. I get emails every week about them. Just to add another dog to the hunt here, most of the vintage Blanchard, Mayer-Flammery, and Dixon tools I get are then sold either back to Europe or to Australia (European influence). Less than a third stays in the US and the majority there are plough gauges. I can't recall selling a Blanchard knife within the US. I have sold a few to Canada, but most go to Belgium, France, Romania, Switzerland, Germany, and one went to Moldova.

[Macca]

Indeed Bruce, its close to impossible to find vintage pricking irons in good condition over here, you might find the odd one but 99.99% of them are busted/worn/damaged in some way.

I got lucky with an ebay purchase recently, seller inherited a bunch of Dixon leather tools, 50 years old at least, didn't really know what they were so were listed as a job lot.

they had been oiled & stored in wax paper so perfect condition, as good as the day they were made, zero signs of use on them

I was happy that day !

[MorningStar]

Howdy!

I have used the adjustable edge creaser as well as various other brand/types (largely bought via ebay).

Different manufacturers, differing time frames, and alterations that may have been made by any previous owner will have an effect on tool quality and ease of use.

Overall, the older tools are better made and the best choice - provided they have been treated kindly by the previous owner(s).

Use the correct number in relationship to the thickness of the leather is another key point. The thinner the leather, the lower the tool number (typically). Also, the older edge creasers were designed to round/smooth the edge of the leather at the same time it made groove. When using one of these, edge the leather BEFORE creating the crease. A little moisture and saddle soap run along the edge before using the edge creasing tool helps as well.

There is a slight learning curve, true enough, but hand position is critical. (The older tools tend be more "right hand friendly", but can still be used by lefties. See note in explanation below.)

Use notes: Grasp it like you would a vertical door handle or pitcher of tea.

Align the long edge along the outside of the leather and make sure the part that does the grooving is making contact with the leather. Without tilting the tool, push it forward. (I usually stop about an eighth of an inch from the end and gently tilt the tool foreword to complete the line.) Lefties - you will need to start at the farthest point and pull the tool TOWARD you.

Hope this helps some.

PJ

[ClaireAshton]

Those tools must be worth at least £600 ($1000) retail !

[Hi Im Joe]

Indeed Bruce, its close to impossible to find vintage pricking irons in good condition over here, you might find the odd one but 99.99% of them are busted/worn/damaged in some way.

I got lucky with an ebay purchase recently, seller inherited a bunch of Dixon leather tools, 50 years old at least, didn't really know what they were so were listed as a job lot.

they had been oiled & stored in wax paper so perfect condition, as good as the day they were made, zero signs of use on them

I was happy that day !

Wow...you lucky bastard.

[Macca]

Those tools must be worth at least £600 ($1000) retail !

They went for decent money, but still much less than half retail.

I'd have been happy at retail price as they look unused & better quality than the new equivalent

Wow...you lucky bastard.

YUP !

Edited July 21, 2014 by Macca