how to cut Sting ray leather

[Starwind0]

Welp.. the texas rose round head knife I waited for 18 months from knipschield custom knives was probably not the best one to try stingray leather on.. So I will be figuring out how to f&ckup my roundhead edge... Pretty upset about that.. but nothing that cant be fixed. 

That about when I went to a cheap knife and literally hammered to get the rest of the cuts done..

Then I did my pricking irons, and tried to sew it. It's as if I tried to align the holes binkfolded with a single tooth iron..

Yikes where do I learn how to use this, challenging material?  This project just used it as an accent, so it was a small piece. Next will be big, like a wallet.

[Frodo]

tin snips.

They come in sets of 3   the yellow handle is for straight cuts

red is left cut, green is right cut

if you have a band saw with a blade for metal,  that would be your best [friend] bet 

a drill press with a #20  needle   or what ever you wish.   then punch your holes   {LEAVE THE POWER OFF }

[arashikage]

I would also recommend shears / tin-snips. 

An additional suggestion would be to sand/grind down where you want the stitch line to go. Knocking down the pearls will make it less likely that the needle/chisels bounce off.

[paloma]

You can't cut it. You can saw it.

[Sturme]

stingray isn't that bad to cut. just turn it over and cut from the back. remember to use your template backward to mark it. I cut and punch stingray all time using a cheap harbor freight utility knife and i have a set of punches i use exclusively for it also. just do it all from the back fleshy side.

[chiefjason]

I use sturdy shears to cut it.  Then I inlay it under a leather border to hide that nasty looking edge.  I pre punch my holes with an awl chucked into a drill press which works well too.