Really Stupid Basic Question on Leather Types

[rodneywt1180b]

I have a customer who wants a leather wrap on a cane handle similar to the wrap shown here:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/529902819/walking-stick-377-pin-oak-with-raised

I think I can do a reasonable job on fitting the wrap but I need to know what type of leather is most appropriate for wrapping the grip.  I know veg tan is a good choice but I love the looks of oil tanned too.  Would that mold to the ridges like veg tan?  Also what weight would be best?  The handle is maybe 5 inches long and about 1 1/2 diameter.

Thanks for any advice you can give,

Rodney

 

[fredk]

Anything from about 1mm to about 2.5mm thick [3 to 6 oz ?] in veg tan. I would prefer to use veg tan for this, it can be oiled up or stained after moulding

Two ways;

1 / wet mould around handle, take off, trim excess leather, punch sewing/lacing holes, put back on and sew up

2 / Trim leather to size. sew/lace in place, wet mould after its in place [chance of shrinkage tho]

For the ridges; glue a length of thick thong or string around the handle of the stick for each ridge - wet mould over them. Then if you want to, remove the thongs/strings and glue into the now raised areas of the moulded handle before putting it back on, but leaving them on the stick will help with getting the grip back on exactly where it fitted afore

 

Edited November 2, 2017 by fredk

[rodneywt1180b]

That's exactly the info I needed.  Thank you very much Fred.  I'll most likely go with option 1, it sounds more friendly to a beginner.

I'll post a picture when the project is done.  It should be a good learning experience for me.

Thanks,

Rodney

[fredk]

Forgot to say; your stitches will be important visually. I'd use either a base-ball stitch or a hidden-end [under & over ends] X stitch

Edited November 2, 2017 by fredk

[rodneywt1180b]

Thank you.  I already ordered a small piece of 3 oz veg tan from The Leather Guy.  He looks like a good resource for the occasional small piece of random leather.  Now I'm waiting to hear from Egyptian Leather about what needles will be best w/ their  .8mm thread.

[rodneywt1180b]

The  Leather Guy didn't have any veg tan strap material.  From the looks of their inventory, veg tan isn't a major part of their business.  I ended up switching to black oil tan to match the strap material they did have.  Not a big deal.  Their service was  really good and I think they're a good place to go if all you need is a few small things like I did.  It just means I'm leaving the ridges out this time.  Being my first real leather project (as small as it is) it's probably a better idea to keep things simple anyway.

John at Egyptian Leather was really helpful too.  I'm pretty sure my needles and thread left the same day I ordered them.  They're already here and my leather will be here in another day or so.  I can't wait to get started.

[motocouture]

Good luck, and I’m curious to see how it goes!

[rodneywt1180b]

I got my leather from The Leather Guy yesterday.  Absolutely flawless piece to my untrained eye.  I'm very happy with it.

I should clear up one mistake on my part.  I bought from their Etsy store because I was already in Etsy, not through their actual website.  Their actual website has a much larger selection. 

[rodneywt1180b]

I completely butchered the black piece I bought.  I ended up buying a bigger piece of brown oil tanned instead.  The brown was a lot more pliable and forgiving than the first piece was.

Anyway, here's some really bad pictures of what I came up with.

Pretty ragged stitching. Cutting my lines could have went better too.  I don't think there are two stitches in line anywhere on it but as a first attempt I'm pretty happy with it.  I think there is a stitching chisel in my future.

 

[motocouture]

Thanks for sharing! I love the contrast of the leather with the natural wood. I wouldn’t stress too much about the stitching - I have no doubt that will improve with time, and a stitching chisel does wonders too

[rodneywt1180b]

Thanks,

I showed the pictures to my customer and she's happy so all's well on this one.  It was a fun project and I plan to do more.

I'm used to working with wood.  I don't know much about leather but this piece had a lot of stretch and liked to move as I was cutting it.  I don't mind the stretch.  I think it was why I was able to get it to fit.

Rodney

[Rolandranch]

Looks good! The stretch may be because of the location of that piece on the hide. For example, the belly will stretch a lot whereas straight down the spine won't stretch that much. But it could also be the weight, too. Anyways, I would go with a stretchier leather for a project like that because you can fit it well and when it dries it forms and tightens around the handle.

Thanks for sharing!

-Ryan

Edited November 19, 2017 by Rolandranch

[Rockoboy]

Just one small thing, besides the stitch line which I know you are working on, the edges of the leather needed burnishing before fitting. (Something I am trying to get my head around).

Overall, a good job and I bet you learned heaps from this project. Onwards and upwards from here.

[rodneywt1180b]

I'm a little confused on burnishing.  (Back to really stupid basic questions)  I know you can burnish veg tan.  This is oil tanned.  Is oil tanned leather veg tan that's treated with oil or is it a type of chrome tan?  Can I burnish oil tan like veg tan? Also is it possible to mold oil tan?

Fixing my stitch line is a pretty big priority for me. I also need to get a lot better at cutting a smooth seam edge.  I've got some ragged cut lines on this one.  It needs to be neater for what I want to do.

This one was a good learning experience.  It's also good to know bellies will work for me.  I'd like to turn out a nice product but still keep costs down.

[bikermutt07]

I can understand the wanting to fix up your stitching.

But, for this particular piece, I don't see where it was needed. This was a very rustic cane and the wrap with the stitches, as well as the raw edges, complimented it perfectly. 

I think it looks awesome.

As for burnishing oil tan, I've never used it. Give it a go on a piece of scrap.

[rodneywt1180b]

This one is about as rustic as I make them.  I have one gluing up right now that will be a lot more refined (I hope).  That one needs the stitching right.  I'll most likely buy matching thread and use a baseball stitch for it.

Rodney

[motocouture]

In terms of cutting, I find a hand held rotary cutter (45mm disk size) works really well if you don’t have access to a head knife or something similar. Olfa is a good brand; the replacement blades can be a little pricey but the blades last for ages if you take care of them

[rodneywt1180b]

Good idea.  I actually have a rotary cutter already from sewing fabric.  I'll give that a shot on the next one.

 

[fredk]

I've not used 'oil' tanned. By the look of your piece its very thin, and you say its 'stretchy' - that sort of leather is near impossible to edge burnish unlike thicker and stiffer veg tan.

Your piece is not too much unlike the chrome tanned upholstery leather I use. For neat edges on it I skive the inside edge a bit using rough sand paper [a skiver just doesn't want to know] - I do about 2cm wide, then fold and glue that edge over, blattering it really flat with a rubber-head mallet. Not only does that give a really neat, tidy edge the double thickness is an advantage for the sewing or lacing

Don't make the really silly mistake I made when I first used a rotary knife. I used it with my usual straight edge. I found the supposedly really good rotary knife had only partially cut through the thin leather. Tried a few more scrap pieces - same result. The centre button of the wheel blade was riding on the top of the straight-edge allowing the blade to just touch the leather!!