Char Report post Posted August 9, 2015 Hey guys, I'm looking to pick up some tips on making rolled handles. I've just watched an awesome video on how to hand sew them, but I'm hoping to do it on my machine since my hand stitching skills aren't very good and I don't have a clamp/stitching horse yet. The major issue I'm having is that my leather is wrinkling quite a lot when I bend it. I've been using 4oz veg tan with a vinyl tubing core. I'm using a zipper foot so I can get my stitching as close to the tubing as possible, but it still seems to be a bit loose and I think that may be contributing to the wrinkles. I have tried conditioning it, which helps a little, but I'm still not 100% happy. I was wondering if a welting/cording foot would deal with that by allowing me to sew even closer to the tubing. Has anyone tried a welting foot, and if so, could you get the stitches really close to the cording? Does it seem like that would help me? Or am I better off just biting the bullet and hand stitching? Also- I've been glueing the leather together, but then when I go to burnish the cut edge I seem to get a lot of glue coming onto my edge, making it sticky and hard to slick down. Is there any way to prevent this? I'm using an eco-friendly water-based glue.. Any tips are appreciated! Thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coreysyms Report post Posted August 10, 2015 I don't think your sewing technique is the issue. I always wet the leather with water before bending. Never had an issue with cracking or wrinkling. Of course if you bend in the opposite direction of the finished side, it will wrinkle. I don't machine leather much, but when I do I use a walking foot, seems to work well for me. try the water, that should help you out. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
