Safety Beveller (skirver)

[Leahlovesleather]

Hi, I am new to leathercraft and bought a safety beveller, like the one Tandy sell (see second image).  It is great for the first 5 minutes but the blade dulls quickly.  I mainly make wallets and small goods. Is it worth sharpening the replaceable blades, or can anyone recommend what they believe would be the best skirver to buy.  I was thinking maybe a french skirver like the one in the first image.

[howie696]

Use the shick injector blades they are much better

But the best is something like this

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/257475163/angular-skiving-knife-vergez?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=skiving knife&ref=sr_gallery_2

 

Edited July 30, 2017 by howie696

[Matt S]

Just now, howie696 said:

Use the shick injector blades they are much better

 

They are not always available or cheap. In the UK for instance they are more expensive than the 'real' ones.

I use a Swann Morton 10a scalpel blade on a no3 handle. Strop or replace the blade as soon as it starts dulling. It took a lot of leather and a lot of four-letter words to learn how to skive and I tried a few different knives. This is very handy, fast and economical.

[zuludog]

I made a knife similar to the Blanchard one from an old 25mm hacksaw blade

A Japanese craft knife is similar, Search & Surf Google & YouTube for a KIRIDASHI. Also Search YouTube for 'skiving leather'; there are a few videos

You could also look at a Japanese Leather Knife. Again Search & Surf to see what it looks like, and how to use it. Videos by 'leathertoolz' are good & useful

Both of these can be used to both cut out and skive leather. You can get them at a reasonable price, though as with anything you can pay as much as you want. They are straightforward enough to make from an old hacksaw blade or plane blade 

The key to any leatherwork is to have very sharp tools. You will need a fine stone; oil-, water/ceramic-, or diamond-, whatever you fancy. Because they have been around for a long time you can often find oil-stones secondhand

Make your own strop from oddments of wood & leather, but treat yourself to some proper stropping/honing compound. It's not that expensive, and a bar will last you for years

Yes, scalpels are good, I use them on model planes, just Search Google. Matt S has found what suits him, but can I suggest that a number 4 handle (and appropriate blades) might be a better choice for leatherwork?

Matt S sums it up - time, practice, try different knives till you settle on what works for you; and be prepared for a fair amount of frustration

I use mostly 3 to 3,5mm leather and use a kiridashi and s Japanese knife. If I was using thinner leather I might use something different

Remember that if you use one of these types of knives you will need work on a hard smooth surface like a thick sheet of glass, a tile, or a marble slab 

Edited July 30, 2017 by zuludog

[Leahlovesleather]

I will try the Schik Injector blades.  Thanks Howie for the suggestion.  I live in Perth too,so hopefullythey aren't expensive here.  Do they stay sharp longer?

[howie696]

19 hours ago, Leahlovesleather said:

I will try the Schik Injector blades.  Thanks Howie for the suggestion.  I live in Perth too,so hopefullythey aren't expensive here.  Do they stay sharp longer?

Yes they are a much better blade, then also fit the strap cutters, lace cutters etc

[teresamwong]

These are good comments. I make handbags. I also use the Tandy skiver pictured in the 1st post. And yes, the blades do wear out after 5 minutes of use. I even bought the better quality ones. I am going to try the Shick Injector blades too.

that Tandy skiver has got to be the most un-ergonomic tool ever invented. what were they thinking? I guess they got me to buy it... but it is so awkward to use and horrible to hold.

i appreciate the suggestions for the knives above, but I am not good with knives... I do need more of a safety feature.

any similar skivers with a handle you can recommend? 

Teresa

 

[teresamwong]

Just saw the previous post about Swann Morton surgical knife. i am going to try this! Thanks!

[zuludog]

Swann Morton's website is https://www.swann-moron.com

Their USA distributor is http://www.cincinnatisurgical.com

Although this website is British it gives you a good idea of the range available http://www.scalpelsandblades.co.uk

Have a look at # 4 or # 6B handle and # 25 blades. Or see if there are any taster or starter packs which would give you a handle and one of each type of blade, these are usually good value for money

I don't know about USA, but in Britain there are lots of outlets & suppliers. Shop around craft, hobby, and art stores

Also search YouTube for 'scalpels and blades' There are several videos

 

Edited August 3, 2017 by zuludog

[niakulah]

Anyone here actually sharpen or strop the safety skiver blades? If yes, how do you do it? They're pretty tiny to hold on to.

Like others I have found they are only sharp for 5 minutes or so....

I'll also try to look for the schick injector blades.

 

[chrisash]

Different makers have different quality, so try not to buy the low cost blades

[niakulah]

1 hour ago, chrisash said:

Different makers have different quality, so try not to buy the low cost blades

Good to know. I've only gotten the knife, haven't bought any replacement blades yet.

[chrisash]

Did you by the osbourne / Tandy one or a clone some guy sharpening/ polishing on this video

These are good blades

http://abbeyengland.com/Store/CategoryID/441/List/0/catpageindex/2/Level/a/ProductID/75962 

Edited September 23, 2018 by chrisash
add blades

[niakulah]

13 hours ago, chrisash said:

Did you by the osbourne / Tandy one or a clone some guy sharpening/ polishing on this video

These are good blades

http://abbeyengland.com/Store/CategoryID/441/List/0/catpageindex/2/Level/a/ProductID/75962 

Thanks for the links. Very helpful.

 

I got a clone from Wuta Leather. Skived like a dream for about 5 strokes, then rapidly got blunt.

 

I have a lot of unused razor blades from a sample pack that I bought a few years back. I might try cutting them to size first, like what some people have done here:

https://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/injecting-a-de-blade-instead-of-an-injector-blade.50874/

[ScoobyNewbie]

I was on another thread and I was saying that I found a site called japangoods.com. They have leather planers that sound cool.

[bikermutt07]

I have stropped the tiny blades for the strap cutter. Just get some miniture pliers and drag the blades backwards across your strop.

Makes a lot of difference.

[niakulah]

25 minutes ago, bikermutt07 said:

I have stropped the tiny blades for the strap cutter. Just get some miniture pliers and drag the blades backwards across your strop.

Makes a lot of difference.

Thanks Mutt, I'll give that a try. I don't have a strap cutter but from photos online, I think the skife blade is only about half the size of the strap cutter blade. I've been toying around (in my head) with the idea of using a binder clip to hold the blade (if it will clear the strop, I think not...).

 

I might just buy the Ryobi bench grinder in the video above and hope the wife doesn't notice. It is cheaper than some knives I have bought for this hobby, but a lot harder to hide a bench grinder in a drawer

[niakulah]

54 minutes ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

I was on another thread and I was saying that I found a site called japangoods.com. They have leather planers that sound cool.

I've bought both the flat and the curved Japanese leather plane (cheaper on Aliexpress). Not great for skiving. OK for beveling edges and maybe cleaning up edges if you don't want to sand your edges.

[ScoobyNewbie]

Ah, thanks for the info.

What about their skiving knives? More of a push, then a pull, I thought.

Edited September 24, 2018 by ScoobyNewbie

[niakulah]

4 hours ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Ah, thanks for the info.

What about their skiving knives? More of a push, then a pull, I thought.

Yes I have that as well. It is a push/slide/diagonal movement to skive with it. As far as I know, only the safety skiver and English paring knife can be pulled for skiving.

Note that I am not even remotely qualified to advise about skiving so don't take my word for it...

 

 

[ScoobyNewbie]

I’ve never even seen one in person. You’re more qualified than me.

[YinTx]

On 9/23/2018 at 7:55 AM, chrisash said:

Did you by the osbourne / Tandy one or a clone some guy sharpening/ polishing on this video

 

Wow, I instantly thought of the cloth wheel grabbing that blade out of the skiver and slinging it across the room.  Scary method.

They make safety blade holders that you could use to more firmly grip it.  I have just recently started using my safety skiver again, and I do just drag mine across the strop board in the holder.  Would like to find better quality, so will try the link provided for that.  Thanks!

YinTx

[Chief Filipino]

On 9/23/2018 at 8:18 PM, bikermutt07 said:

I have stropped the tiny blades for the strap cutter. Just get some miniture pliers and drag the blades backwards across your strop.

Makes a lot of difference.

Nice! I did ten strokes on each side on my strop and it cuts like a new blade! Thanks for the money saving tip! About how many times do you think I could do this with each blade? 

[bikermutt07]

On 11/18/2018 at 11:28 AM, Chief Filipino said:

Nice! I did ten strokes on each side on my strop and it cuts like a new blade! Thanks for the money saving tip! About how many times do you think I could do this with each blade? 

Quite a while I suppose. As long as you keep doing it, it should last.