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Mujician

Making a wallet - question about thickness

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I have some 1.6mm leather (I think thats about 4oz. I would like to make a wallet from it. Is this suitable to make the whole thing, or should I think about using just really thin lining leather for the insides of the wallet?

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Good for the wallet back.  Pretty thick for the insides unless you like sitting on a 2x4.

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So what would you recommend?

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Buy pig lining for the inside.  Pretty easy to work with and cheap.  Once you get good, switch to goat for the insides.  I still use both depending on my mood or who I am making it for. 

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I think the lining leather I have is pig. What difference will this make? It seems very soft. Not sure its suitable for what I wanted. Should I invest in some thin sheep skin? How thin should I go for? 1mm?

Edited by Mujician

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Most pig lining leather I have seen is pretty hard/firm.  Sheep is very stretchy, probably not a durable choice.  About 1mm max on thickness.  Every bit of added thickness will stack together to make an uncomfortable wallet.

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In the end of the day, it's down to personal preference. Make do and learn, as they say. I've made and sold wallets for 20+ years and most of them are from 1.8-2mm (5-6oz) veg tan leather, all around. Now, I've found that I like to do wallets from that kind of thickness and i have a customer base that obviously like wallets that reminds them that they didn't get some crap from the pound store. At the same time there are many that would never consider to use a leather wallet unless it was paper thin, regardless of durability issues. Obviously, I'm never going to get them to like my wallets. My suggestion is that you do your wallets with the leather you have, and you will quickly find out what you like and what you want to change. That's more important than what others will tell you (unless they are potential customers), because in the end of the day, you are the one making it - and it is supposed to be fun! So don't over think it, spend more time doing things and you'll pretty soon find a balance between what you like and suits you and what others appreciate (potential customers) or not. Good luck.

Edited by ConradPark

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I like to use Kipskin for inner pockets. Inexpensive, thin, and it will take dye like your 5/6 Oz. outer.

In fact there are many reasons to keep some Kipskin around the shop even though you don't hear much about it.

Michelle

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