braden Report post Posted July 20, 2014 hi guys, i am hoping someone will be able to let me know how the designs in the example images are created. i am a novice leatherworker but most of the tools/techniques i have seen for tooling leather involve mainly stamping. but in these examples a tool is being used to remove some of the leather, kind of like a stitch-groover, but i imagine it must be different somehow since the ends of the lines all taper nicely to a point, which i don't think you can achieve with a standard stitch-groover. also i would like to point out (in case there is some confusion) these examples are *not my own work*; they are from 'wasteland oddities' vendor on etsy.com, linked here: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/WastelandOddities?ref=l2-shopheader-name i would have liked to reach out to creator directly but i don't have a facebook account and don't want one. anyways, any advice on how this tooling effect is achieved would be greatly appreciated. thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
camano ridge Report post Posted July 20, 2014 There are several ways of making incised patterns. Use a swivel knife to cut the lines then use the tip of a modeling spoon to widen or open the lines up. For the wider lines use a free hand groover. I am sure other people have techniques they would use. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cem Report post Posted July 21, 2014 Not sure exactly what wasteland is using some of them just look like a swivel knife like camano ridge mentioned I know some others the ones who actually remove the leather in their designs use Flexcut Micro Palm carvers,they will be available from woodwork suppliers. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ReneeCanady Report post Posted July 22, 2014 The markings look like they were done by a swivel knife to me. If you are looking for a nice natural wood grain pattern on your leather I'd use real wood. I have a few nice pieces of cedar wood that have amazing markings on it. I just case my leather and clamp it down on the cedar wood for a while to get a nice natural wood grain pattern. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
braden Report post Posted July 22, 2014 hey guys, thanks for your suggestions. i will give the swivel knife a shot and post some of the results. neat idea about clamping the leather against a piece of wood also. i wasn't really interested in the wood grain design per se (it just happened to be the piece i chose as an example of the tool marks) but it's definitely an interesting thing to try anyways. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tatsumi Report post Posted July 24, 2014 Swivel knife and a set of ball end modelling Styluses Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NVLeatherWorx Report post Posted July 25, 2014 Yup, tatsumi called it. Nothing more used here aside from a swivel knife and then opening up the cuts with the ball end of a modeling stylus. And you can open the cuts even further if you roll the leather onto a rounded object (as shown in the examples) and let it dry that way. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hillbilly tim Report post Posted August 3, 2014 I've always just used a cheap ol' tandy wide blade in a swivel knife. If sharp it will do a fine job on its own. Like I said, that's how I've made that pattern in the past. Don't have to overthink or make hard. Bro. Timothy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites