Putting nylon webbing inside of folded leather straps

[Anubis78]

What are your thoughts about putting nylon webbing inside of folded and sewn leather straps (say inside of 2-3oz leather).  I would think that this could serve almost like a stabilizer for the strap in order for it to keep its shape.   Are there any cons to this?  Would there be any long term adverse effects of doing this? For example, if it is a lightweight leather, will the texture of the webbing eventually affect the look of the leather?   Will nylon webbing breakdown due to chemicals in the glue if glued inside of the strap?  Does anyone have any experience in doing this and if so, what were the results? 

[Alexis1234]

I know for tugs on horse harness, some harness makers will sandwich nylon webbing in between the leather for added strength.

[Dwight]

Leather was doing a great job with all this stuff long before nylon, rayon, and other webb stuff came along.

Personally, . . . I don't see the purpose, . . . leather works fine by itself.

May God bless,

Dwight

[fredk]

A few random thoughts:

A; I have nylon straps on things from about 1970, so longevity isn't a problem

B; if you glue the nylon to the leather it might stabilise the leather, ie as the nylon won't stretch neither will the leather attached to it. It might stengthen the thin leather

C; if the leather is very thin and the nylon has a coarse weave that weave pattern might eventually show through on the outside

[Viking Queen]

I have been sewing garments for decades....way longer than I care to admit   Leather sewing is newer to me however some materials work for both types of sewing.  I have taken apart several leather jackets in order to repurpose the leather.  In doing so, I have discovered that iron on interfacing used in conventional sewing is also used in garments made of leather.  It stabilizes the "fabric", in this case the fabric is leather, to firm it up as well as to prevent stretching.  I have experimented with the iron on interfacing and it works well without adding bulk or a texture that might show through on thin leather.  You just apply it with a dry iron, no steam, and follow the interfacing maker's instructions which come on a  wrapper with the interfacing.  I use a man's white cotton handkerchief between the interfacing and the Iron to act as a pressing cloth and protect the leather from excess heat.  In lieu of a handkerchief you could cut a piece of fabric out of an old man's dress shirt to use for a pressing cloth....make sure that what you use is cotton and not a cotton poly blend.   This type of interfacing comes in several varieties, some more stiff than others. You would choose based on your finished product and how flexible you need it to be.  I have used this interfacing to provide extra body to purse straps which were made of fairly thin garment weight leather and the interfacing worked well without making the strap too bulky and uncomfortable.  I hope this information is helpful for you.  Happy sewing!

[Anubis78]

Out of  curiosity, do you always have to sew leather straps?  I have suspenders that I make that are rather inexpensive for my customers. Since the straps are only an inch wide, they look better to me without them being stitched.  The edges meet in the middle on the backside and are held with contact cement.   A fellow vendor suggested that I sew them down along the folded edges, but I haven't had any issues with them coming undone.  My customers like them as well.  I've tried sewing them, but I really didn't like the look because the straps weren't that wide.    What are your thoughts? 

[Rockoboy]

45 minutes ago, Anubis78 said:

I haven't had any issues with them coming undone

I think you have answered your own question here.

If you have not had any failures so far, and you have made several items over the years, introducing another process into the manufacture of the item, will reduce your profit margin, unless you increase the price to cover the increased effort and supplies, which might reduce your total future sales. This would probably reduce your profitability.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

[Anubis78]

42 minutes ago, Rockoboy said:

I think you have answered your own question here.

If you have not had any failures so far, and you have made several items over the years, introducing another process into the manufacture of the item, will reduce your profit margin, unless you increase the price to cover the increased effort and supplies, which might reduce your total future sales. This would probably reduce your profitability.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

I've been making them for over a year now and I have not had anyone come back with issues not have I had issues with any that I've made for myself.  One would have to forcefully pull them apart to come undone.   So yeah, I just wanted to double check for feedback in the unlikely event that other leatherworkerw have had any issues with doing that.