slipangle Report post Posted March 4, 2016 Hello folks, I have here for sale #17 in my series of hand made leather awl hafts. This awl haft is 4 1/2 inches long from the butt end to the tip of the chuck. Is is made from a piece of old growth genuine lignum vitae that I have had for over 30 years. For those who may not know, lignum vitae is considered to be the hardest and heaviest of hardwoods. It is very dense, full of natural oils, takes a beautiful polish, and no addition finish is needed. This piece surprised me somewhat when I cut into it, showing a beautiful yet darker color than the piece I worked with previously. It is extremely dense, with very tight grain pattern in a lovely combination of dark olives and browns, with a hint of yellow. This awl has a satisfying heft in the hand, is quite heavy and substantial, certainly when compared with most commercially available awls, and yet allows very good control when using it with conventional saddle stitching technique using two needles. The raised finger and/or thumb rest I turn on these allows not only a firm support with which to help the blade through the leather but also makes for a functional shape to hold between the fingers when the needle is being held in the finger tips during stitching. I cut the traditional three concentric rings around the larger end of the butt, and one groove near the thumb rest for added grip. It has a nickel silver collar which I use at the junction between the wood and the Starrett pin vise, which I adapt for use with diamond blades in these handles. I only use the Starrett pin vise as my chuck as they are the highest quality available, even though they cost five times the price of the cheap imported chucks I could use in these tools. This size awl is suitable for people with medium to large hands, I feel. Though the human hand is highly adaptable. For scale, I have somewhat small hands for a man, size 8 in a tight fitting glove. and yet I find this size and shape very comfortable in the hand. I include one diamond shaped awl blade, which is given a preliminary sharpening. Price for this awl is $90. which includes free shipping in the U.S. Payable through Pay Pal friends & family option as I would prefer not to incur fees. Inquiries welcome from overseas. But I will only ship this to certain countries. Please inquire. Thank you. Please send me a private message if you are interested or have any questions. more pics Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Black Dogg Report post Posted March 16, 2016 Sent you a PM! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Black Dogg Report post Posted April 12, 2016 Well folks, if you are thinking about buying this one you're too late ! I got it last week and what a nice tool it is!!! Slipangle's workmanship is excellent and the awl itself fits my hand like it was made for it. The wood has a beautiful look and the silver collar sets it off nicely. He said above that the he gave the blade a "preliminary sharpening"; if what I got is preliminary I don't want to know what his awls do when they are fully sharpened. They must punch the holes all by themselves, I guess . I took mine right from the box and did a test seam on two pieces of 5-6oz. veg-tan (10-12oz. total thickness): The blade went through the leather like a hot knife through butter! The tip is mirror polished to about 1/2 inch back and it is SHARP!!! The one "problem" I have is that my needles a bit large for the hole, but now I have an excuse to buy some smaller ones and a spool of the Tiger thread that everyone here is talking about; not a bad problem, I guess . If you want a high quality tool that not only looks nice, but works like a dream, save up for when he's making more again! It sounds a bit pricey at first but once you've used one of these you won't regret buying it!! Black Dogg Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
slipangle Report post Posted April 14, 2016 Say, Black Dogg, I really appreciate this glowing review. I'm very happy you like the awl haft, and that it fits so well in your hand. It's always a challenge to know just what shape to make these handles...so I'm glad it's comfortable. My thanks again. It was great working with you, and I very much appreciate your business, and your review here. Scott Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
