Wet moulding 9 oz or 10 oz leather

[ScottEnglish]

I want to try wet moulding 9 oz or 10 oz leather. Anybody here have experience of doing this? If so, what have you made? I'm seeking an understanding of the possibilities and limitations of leatherwork in this area.

Ta.

Scott

[Handstitched]

In metric, ( I'm  in  Australia  )  thats about 3.5 - 4mm?  I've moulded that thickness for knife cases, sheaths  etc. regularly .  I mainly use the tried & tested...and trusted  ' Al Stohlman' method , for around 15 years. 

Against the ' norm', I soak the piece of leather in water for about an hour, maybe two,  grain side down. You'll see and hear the air bubbles coming out.  Its then  pliable like clay. I choose a template, a leatherman knife case for example,  and use a pin board , a piece of pine off-cut , or something soft enough for the  panel pins to go through and carefully mould & pin the leather around the template,and keeping all the  panel pins in line , and  adequate  spacing from the edge of the template, so when its stitched, machine or  by hand, the stitching hides all the pin holes. 

However, I don't use a ' bone folder' , I use a 3mm thick   'O' ring or a  3 x50mm square ring to mould it. The ' roundness' of the rings and  and the corners of the square rings are ideal. With that thickness, it does take a bit of ' elbow grease' . I have done thicker, around 5mm. You'll have an arm like 'Arnies'  by the time you've finished. 

 I put the case out in the sun  or near a wood stove to dry out. ( you can cheat a bit by using a hair dryer for about 10mins or so, and then put it out in the sun or near a wood stove to speed things up........but I never told you that ) 

Been doing that for 15 years.   

Thats my method, others on here will have a different take & a different  method. I just do what works  ...and it works just fine ....for me 

HS

Edited July 18, 2020 by Handstitched

[ScottEnglish]

Thanks for the detailed response Handstitched. Your shared experience is appreciated.

Scott

[Squilchuck]

I've molded phone cases, knife sheaths and gun holsters (pistols, rifle) using Stohlman's methods as described above, but  use a bone folder for sheaths.  I soak only for less than a minute in warm water, then let case an hour or so for sheaths.  For  holsters I stick the gun in a few minutes after setting then shape with fingers.  Leather weights are from 6-9 oz.  -- John

[Dwight]

I made an envelope from some thick vinyl . . . hooked up a vacuum pump . . . I slip the holster with the gun in it on a plastic cutting board . . . slide it in the bag . . . turn on the pump . . . and watch the magic.

Depending on how detailed I want it . . . sometimes I'll turn off the pump . . . let air back in the bag . . . reposition the holster or sheath or case . . . hit the pump again and mold it while it is in the vinyl bag.

I get what I believe are really good results . . . 

May God bless,

Dwight

[ScottEnglish]

Squilchuck: John, thanks for your reply.

Dwight: the vacuum pump method sounds interesting, thanks for mentioning it.

[Handstitched]

One other thing that I have done when moulding, sometimes the client will give me the item to be moulded, a  leatherman for example.  I would wrap the leatherman in plastic or  a plastic bag, bound with plastic packing tape  so no moisture gets into it , and make a case around that . Once the leather has dried out just enough and taken shape, I remove the leatherman as soon as practicable   while the leather is still pinned to the board and unwrap it . 

The 5mm leather I have moulded was for the round bit on a H/D  fishing gimbal , and fishing  accessories . The other "accessory"  I made,  was  a belt mounted  stubby holder ( you call them coolies over there? ) ...for the beer of course  

HS

[ScottEnglish]

Thanks for posting more information Handstitched.

Scott