Best Way To Store Leather

[craftsman827]

Most of us leather workers don't have enough space to store our leather flat.

So we roll it up. My question is which way to roll it ?

Grain or flesh side on outside ?

I store mine flesh side out, so I don't get tan marks from the light.

Then the leather is bent !

What about rolling grain side out, covered in packing paper ?

[JerseyFirefighter]

Curios as to this as well. I know I receive SLC's leather flesh side out, however RJF sends flesh side in. Then again the first is veg tanned and the second is latigo.

[Troy I]

I store my leather the way I get it from Wickett & Craig Tannery...rolled with the grain side out, heavy packing paper on the outside to protect it from light and scratches.

[TinkerTailor]

Grain side in is more likely to induce wrinkles.

[JLSleather]

I like it flat.. grain down. Cover a table with cardboard, then stack hides face down on it. I'd love to have a separate "slot" for each weight / type of leather, but just don't have teh room for all that.

[Dwight]

When I built my hobby / leather shop, . . . that was one of the concerns.

I had to put up a divider wall between two sections, . . . instead of a 2 x 4 wall that would be all wasted space, . . . I used a 2 x 12 on the end of it, . . . put an OSB back on it, . . . an OSB door on the front, . . . and all my leather hangs in the "vault" nowadays.

I made swinging arms that would hold 6 or 8 pieces each, . . . so I can just open the door and thumb through what I have until I find what I want.

What little I have rolled up, . . . sits on the floor of the vault, . . . awaiting a day when it too will be hung up.

Greatest invention I've done in a long time.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Wild Bill46]

Dwight, You've intriqued me !

When you say you used 2x12 on the ends ? and made swinging arms to hold 6-8 pieces on each ?

Maybe its just me but, I can't imagine this. Do you have pictures of your invention ?

This is exactly where I'm at now, in my thinking process, for a small future shop, and its storage ? --- Wild Bill46

[Dwight]

Actually, . . . what I have is nothing more than a big box, . . . almost 8 feet tall, . . . 4 feet wide, . . . 12 inches deep.

I have racks inside, . . . that swing, . . . allowing me to pick what ever piece I want for this item, project, or task.

Really pretty simple when you come down to it, . . . and as I said before, . . . was putting up a wall anyway, . . . just made it thicker and hollow, . . . serves as my "vault", . . . so to speak.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Wild Bill46]

Thank you for sharing your vault pictures !

This just may be what I need to help me make up my mind, how I want to store my leather.

Tidy, out of the way, and accessible. almost leaves no room for thinking.

Thank you once again Dwight. --- Wild Bill46

[Dwight]

Actually, . . . the original plan was for a table with drawers or a lifting top, . . . something where my leather would lay flat.

I wound up not having as big a place for that table as I felt I needed, . . . had to look for another way, . . . got the inspiration just as I was getting ready to make that wall, . . . and as the saying goes, . . . the rest is history.

What I really like, . . . is once it has hung in there for a couple of days, . . . most of the curl from being rolled goes away, . . . and it makes life easier down on the cutting table.

Good luck....

May God bless,

Dwight

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

Dwight that is a really nice idea. Very well conceived. If I ever get time to make a set up like that, It is no now on my bucket list. For now, my cutting table is 10' X 5' and I can easily have a few sides on it and work around them with out issue. Besides, I usually don't have much laying around because I keep my inventory down to just what I need for a saddle and a couple of lesser projects.

On the other hand, I really like your idea and will get it done sometime when I am in between saddles. By the way, In the first pic, that Vietnam poster has on it a Phantom on it, that wouldn't have a VF-161 tail insignia on it would it?

Bob

[Mike516]

Am I the only one that works without a cutting table? I feel so deprived lol!

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

You can easily get along with out one , till you get into projects that require large pieces and several sides to complete. Then, you will see the wisdom in having one. Once you have one, you won't be able to understand how you ever got along without it!

Bob

Edited February 15, 2016 by BondoBobCustomSaddles

[Dwight]

Dwight that is a really nice idea. Very well conceived. If I ever get time to make a set up like that, It is no now on my bucket list. For now, my cutting table is 10' X 5' and I can easily have a few sides on it and work around them with out issue. Besides, I usually don't have much laying around because I keep my inventory down to just what I need for a saddle and a couple of lesser projects.

On the other hand, I really like your idea and will get it done sometime when I am in between saddles. By the way, In the first pic, that Vietnam poster has on it a Phantom on it, that wouldn't have a VF-161 tail insignia on it would it?

Bob

No insignia on it, . . . in fact everything but the New Jersey is not ID'd.

The manager of a local VFW gave it to me, . . . it actually is a beer promotional poster, . . . they had one for WW2, Korea, 'Nam, and the sand box, . . . I talked him out of this one, . . . cut up a bamboo fishing rod, . . . framed it, . . .

It reminds me from time to time just how well I've been protected..............

May God bless,

Dwight

[LumpenDoodle2]

Am I the only one that works without a cutting table? I feel so deprived lol!

Join me at the 'deprived' table. In my case, I cut leather on my little work desk. After cutting, I then spend a good five minutes picking up all the stuff which has been swept off the desk when I dare to move the hide even a fraction.

Oh for a 10 x 5 foot workroom, never mind that size a cutting table.

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

No insignia on it, . . . in fact everything but the New Jersey is not ID'd.

The manager of a local VFW gave it to me, . . . it actually is a beer promotional poster, . . . they had one for WW2, Korea, 'Nam, and the sand box, . . . I talked him out of this one, . . . cut up a bamboo fishing rod, . . . framed it, . . .

It reminds me from time to time just how well I've been protected..............

May God bless,

Dwight

Just had to ask. Every time a see a pic, or artists' work of a phantom, I always look. I did 3 cruises as a hydraulics specialist with VF 161 in the sixties. Love them birds, they have a certain look that just stands out.

Bob

[Mike516]

Join me at the 'deprived' table. In my case, I cut leather on my little work desk. After cutting, I then spend a good five minutes picking up all the stuff which has been swept off the desk when I dare to move the hide even a fraction.

Oh for a 10 x 5 foot workroom, never mind that size a cutting table.

I have a smallish but decent size shop, but the one thing I'm missing is a large strong table.

I have a spot with a somewhat flimsy table not good for this kind of thing I think I'm going to clean off and may try to build my own.

I've never done any kind of woodwork, but this may be my first or second project, There's a lot of plans to be found on the internet for tables, so that might be what I do. I might try and build display stands for my collars first, kinda like a warm up to the table. But a table would make building my display stands a lot easier. Hmm, dilemma.

[Wild Bill46]

Dwight ; Im about to say yes to your Storage Vault, ! thanx

LumpenDoodle2; and Mike;

Don't know what you have in mind precisely ?

My coming shop area needs a 3'x7' worktable w/ slot for a measuring stick,

cutting base, punching base, And my 16"x28" stamping stone and maybe even on adjustable rollers ?

Maybe something quick might work for you ? A used door on sawhorses maybe ? might be the ticket ?

I have heard of using an old ironing board ? ideas are unlimited for you to ponder ?

Hope your dilemma's works out for you ! --- Wild Bill46

[LumpenDoodle2]

Put it this way, I spent 1/2 hour today crawling along my livingroom carpet, using my strap cutter to cut out belt blanks (and the knees don't work as well as they used to). :-)

I'm just a bit jealous, I think.

Edited February 16, 2016 by LumpenDoodle2

[Mike516]

I'm looking to build probably a 6' X 3' table with 2 shelves and maybe casters. I have 2 store bought work benches already, so this would be for cutting, pictures, weighting, etc.

I found plans online for a 4 X 8 table exactly what I'm looking for so I'm hoping I can modify those plans. I don't think I need doors or drawers since I keep my leather in the boxes the hides come in out of any light so they can go on an open shelf.

This probably sounds ridiculous to people who do some wood working, but the plans are a big deal since when it comes to a simple table, I don't have any imagination.

[Mike516]

I finally got around to the worktable I was wanting to build. 62" X 30" table top with shelf and power bar. Hung a light over it as well. It's sturdy, level and everything is squared. The design left me with plenty of wiggle room for adjustments. And I completely scrapped the plans  pulled off the internet in favor of the Lowe's guy named Dave who gave me a few ideas. About $80 in materials minus the light, power strip and jig saw that broke in the middle of notching the shelf. The only thing I'm thinking of adding is a back board which will enclose the shelf on 3 sides. I don't really need it but I have some scrap left over and it looks unfinished without it.

 

Edited May 3, 2016 by Mike516