New Toys just came in

[Garyspruill]

 

New Toys just showed up

2 months of waiting

4.0 Crimson Hide

 

 

Edited August 13, 2018 by Garyspruill

[YinTx]

Awesome, but what is that I spy on the left side of the first photo?  They look nice too...

YinTx

[alpha2]

Ooooh! New toys! I see some stitching in your near future! We'll need a follow up report...

Jeff

[ScoobyNewbie]

Ooooo! I lust after your chisels!

Crimson Hides? How much?

[Stetson912]

Chrimson hide makes a great product. O wish I had some. But then again, I have switched to pricking irons and an awl... For some crazy reason haha.

[Garyspruill]

12 hours ago, YinTx said:

Awesome, but what is that I spy on the left side of the first photo?  They look nice too...

YinTx

I spy, hmmm, good eye.

Yes, sets of 3.0, 3.38 and 3.85's from Blanchard's

[Garyspruill]

5 hours ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Ooooo! I lust after your chisels!

Crimson Hides? How much?

Fun Question:

Breakdown:

Singapore Dollar: $290

US Dollar: $210.02

Shipping: $45 via FedEx

Right at $260 out the door for all four irons.

I bought these from the recommendation of Nigal ArmItage.

 

I have already run a few lines with them as a test. My goodness, these teeth are at almost 45 degrees. That thread just lays way over on its side.

[ScoobyNewbie]

Ouchie! 

Hello, my name is Scoobie, and I’m a cheap rat b......

Still very cool though.

I use an eight prong, diamond head chisel. Your heads seemed farther apart, but thinner and more rounded. You obviously hand stitch, are you having any problems getting both needles through the holes, or do you open the holes with a fid after making them?

I like small, close stitches better then big, loopy stitches. How many stitches per inch do you get with your new chisel?

[Garyspruill]

35 minutes ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Ouchie! 

Hello, my name is Scoobie, and I’m a cheap rat b......

Still very cool though.

I use an eight prong, diamond head chisel. Your heads seemed farther apart, but thinner and more rounded. You obviously hand stitch, are you having any problems getting both needles through the holes, or do you open the holes with a fid after making them?

I like small, close stitches better then big, loopy stitches. How many stitches per inch do you get with your new chisel?

Hey Scoobie,

Yes, I hand sew a lot, gets my brain to turn off for some reason?

My likes: I like a super slanted tight hole. If I have to use a pair of needle nose pliers to get a single needle through the hole sometimes, its perfect! Using an awl is very common. I like that 40 to 45 degree angle tooth coupled with a tight hole. Makes the thread lay perfect in my opinion. Nothing chunky or rippled with light showing through holes where the thread is. Tight!

SPI (stitches per inch) on the new Crimson Hides irons  - 4.0 is 7 spi. I own/use sets at 2.7, 3.0, 3.38, 3.85 and now 4.0 (newbies)

I do also use a sewing machine for the quickies. 

Please also note: I am still in my first year at this hobby :-)

Gary

[porcupine]

2 hours ago, Garyspruill said:

My likes: I like a super slanted tight hole. If I have to use a pair of needle nose pliers to get a single needle through the hole sometimes, its perfect! Using an awl is very common. I like that 40 to 45 degree angle tooth coupled with a tight hole. Makes the thread lay perfect in my opinion. Nothing chunky or rippled with light showing through holes where the thread is. Tight!

Biting my tongue...Hard!

[Stetson912]

14 hours ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Ouchie! 

Hello, my name is Scoobie, and I’m a cheap rat b......

Still very cool though.

I use an eight prong, diamond head chisel. Your heads seemed farther apart, but thinner and more rounded. You obviously hand stitch, are you having any problems getting both needles through the holes, or do you open the holes with a fid after making them?

I like small, close stitches better then big, loopy stitches. How many stitches per inch do you get with your new chisel?

You don't need real expensive tools to get a good stitch. They are nice to have and they do work better due to quality, but they aren't necessary. 

I'll post a picture of a wallet I finished recently. All you really need is a way to mark your holes and a way to make them. An awl is necessary for making the hole, and a pricking irons or even stitching chisel can be used to mark the holes. 

In the following picture I used cheap tabdy stitching chisels(I'm sure sewa ect would be fine too) to mark my holes (NOT punch all the way through) then my awl to make the holes. 

[Garyspruill]

6 hours ago, Stetson912 said:

You don't need real expensive tools to get a good stitch. They are nice to have and they do work better due to quality, but they aren't necessary. 

I'll post a picture of a wallet I finished recently. All you really need is a way to mark your holes and a way to make them. An awl is necessary for making the hole, and a pricking irons or even stitching chisel can be used to mark the holes. 

In the following picture I used cheap tabdy stitching chisels(I'm sure sewa ect would be fine too) to mark my holes (NOT punch all the way through) then my awl to make the holes. 

We are saying the same thing.

You just explained it better than I did.

 

[Garyspruill]

17 hours ago, porcupine said:

Biting my tongue...Hard!

porcupine,

You can tell me, I am an old fart.

Allow me to rephrase: teeth-pricking irons just tell me where the hole should be, then the awl for a tight hole. Line drawn by groover.

Reminder: I am in my first year, aka: newbie, am I doing something wrong??

[porcupine]

Hi, Gary.  It was my late night dirty mind at work.

Read your paragraph with that in mind, and you'll see what I meant. Nothing critical intended.

[ScoobyNewbie]

Okay, I’ve been using my diamond point chisels to cut all the way through, on all my projects.

So you suggest using the stitching guide (pricking irons?) to mark and stitching awl to press the holes. I have found that I am getting too close to the edge a lot with them. But I do really like the speed that they offer. Do you get faster with the stitch guide and awl? Or is it just that I need to cool my jets?

I also see that you didn’t stitch the bottom middle on your wallet. Is that an aesthetic, or is that to let it close properly? I did a wallet, and the pattern had me stitch all the way around. It sits open on the table. I don’t like that. How do I stop it?

I’ve just started using Glover’s needles, and I like them MUCH better than harness or stitching needles. They cross in the holes a lot easier. But they are also MUCH stabbier.

Edited August 17, 2018 by ScoobyNewbie

[Stetson912]

5 hours ago, Garyspruill said:

We are saying the same thing.

You just explained it better than I did.

 

Yup, same exact process. I was just trying to help Scooby out haha. I'd like to see a sample of your stitching Gary! I have lusted after those chisels. 

4 hours ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Okay, I’ve been using my diamond point chisels to cut all the way through, on all my projects.

So you suggest using the stitching guide (pricking irons?) to mark and stitching awl to press the holes. I have found that I am getting too close to the edge a lot with them. But I do really like the speed that they offer. Do you get faster with the stitch guide and awl? Or is it just that I need to cool my jets?

I also see that you didn’t stitch the bottom middle on your wallet. Is that an aesthetic, or is that to let it close properly? I did a wallet, and the pattern had me stitch all the way around. It sits open on the table. I don’t like that. How do I stop it?

I’ve just started using Glover’s needles, and I like them MUCH better than harness or stitching needles. They cross in the holes a lot easier. But they are also MUCH stabbier.

Lots of good questions. So first, the reason I suggest marking the stitches then using an awl to make the hole is because the hole that a diamond stitching chisel makes is huge. Far bigger than necessary. The awl will make a smaller hole that will grip the thread a bit better (as Gary mentioned) this is where the chrimson hide chisels are superior, the teeth taper (much like an awl) instead of being the same width all the way down the tooth. 

Grant it, stitching chisels are meant for making holes all the wy through the leather and pricking irons merely mark the holes. However, both give you an index for your awl, that is they show the angle the awl blade needs to be at when you make the hole. Actually making the hole is trickier than you would think. You have to keep the blade perpendicular to the leather and push straight throughwhile supporting the leather on the back with your fingers being careful not to stab them. Any sight angular mishap will make the hole on the back come out in the wrong location. And it is absolutely imperitive your awl is sharp and polished. You should never have to force an awl through leather with a lot of effort. Plus, it's dangerous!

As for being too close to the edge, you should get some wing dividers if you don't have some already. Mark a light line 1/8" to 3/16" from the edge. This is where you want the tips of the teeth of your chisel or iron  to lie. This is a decent distance for most things in my opinion. It is important not to rush anything when you start learning to control the tools and stitch properly. Speed comes later with practice. 

I didn't stitch that section because I started from the top corners when putting the interior and exterior together. One side at a time. It's a matter of choice really, it doesn't effect function at all. You could stitch all the way around if you like.

If the wallet sits open on the table it's possible the interior is too long or the exterior too short. The exterior should be about 1/2" longer than the interior. That allows the wallet to close properly.

Finally, needles. John James harness needles are great. I use the size 004 and 002 because different thread sizes. This gide comes from Rocky mountain leather supply. 

Size 4 (004)- Smallest Needles (length 48 mm/Outer diameter 0.9 mm ) 

Lin Cable - Pairs with 532, 632, 832 

Tiger Thread - Pairs with 0.6mm

Size 2 (002)- (Length 54 mm/Outer diameter 1.0 mm) 

Lin Cable: Pairs with 332 & 432 

Tiger Thread: Pairs with 0.8mm 

Size 0 (1/0) - (Length 57 mm/Outer diameter 1.1 mm) 

Lin Cable: Pairs with 332

Tiger Thread: Pairs with 1.0 mm 

Size 00 (also known as 2/0) - (Length 57 mm/outer diameter 1.3 mm) 

Pairs with thread 1.0mm to 1.2mm

Size 000 (3/0) - Largest Needles (Length 62 mm/Outer diameter 1.6 mm ) 

Pairs with thread 1.2mm

I hope this clears things up for you scoobs. Sorry it's so long. 

[Garyspruill]

Newbie question:

Best way to sharpen you awl? 2000 grit? 

Me: light tap on the irons, awl, stitch. When I am going all the way around a project, I like the unbroken seams, but is a bear with all that thread hanging out while sewing.

Personally: I like either the thread I am working on-testing or the Tiger in 0.80 with a JJ 002 needle. It's just what I have gotten used to I guess.

[Stetson912]

I use the john James 002 and .8 mm thread. It's s great combo. I like the .6 for smaller things so I go down a size in needles.

That's the beauty of leather craft, everyone had their own way of doing things and that makes them different than other people. 

2000 grit wet/dry paper will polish your awl fine. But it'll only polish. If you need to sharpen it you'll need a stone or coarser papers lol