Sunstonecustomknives

[SunstoneCustomKnives]

Hi there. I'm a professional knife maker that has always used kydex for my sheaths. I'm about to start making leather sheaths and I have a few questions I was hoping to get some help with. I received a sample tag of 3.8mm-4.00mm veg tan leather and I think that's what I'm going to go for. The issue is that it's priced per square foot and you have to buy an entire hide. Will this hide be that thickness over its entirety? I've seen some people write that only the shoulders and back end would be. Also there is a disclaimer saying that some brand marks may be present. Is this likely to be more than one brand? Like if the cattle changed owners multiple times? 

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer me. Sorry for the noob questions. 

Ruaridh Hunter. 

[gary]

Welcome Ruaridh.  The thickness and quality of the leather will vary, particularly near the edges, but in the main it will be the stated thickness.

It also depends on the type of leather you'll be using; marks will show up more on russet than on bridle. They're also less noticeable on darker leathers.

It has been suggested that between 15% (for less high end items) and 35% (for high end items) of a given piece of leather will not be up to the standard required for the job in hand as there will be parts which have marks or blemishes which you can cut round. Sometimes, a mark can be made into part of the design (not often) or striations, such as found on a piece of shoulder, can be included as part of the 'character' of the leather. Offcuts can always be useful for places where the quality or aesthetic doesn't matter. They are also useful as glue spreaders, spacers, test pieces, thonging and so on.

Having patterns that you can lay on the leather to plan your cutting scheme will help..

Would write more but need to away.

Hope that helps.

Gary

 

[SunstoneCustomKnives]

12 hours ago, gary said:

Welcome Ruaridh.  The thickness and quality of the leather will vary, particularly near the edges, but in the main it will be the stated thickness.

It also depends on the type of leather you'll be using; marks will show up more on russet than on bridle. They're also less noticeable on darker leathers.

It has been suggested that between 15% (for less high end items) and 35% (for high end items) of a given piece of leather will not be up to the standard required for the job in hand as there will be parts which have marks or blemishes which you can cut round. Sometimes, a mark can be made into part of the design (not often) or striations, such as found on a piece of shoulder, can be included as part of the 'character' of the leather. Offcuts can always be useful for places where the quality or aesthetic doesn't matter. They are also useful as glue spreaders, spacers, test pieces, thonging and so on.

Having patterns that you can lay on the leather to plan your cutting scheme will help..

Would write more but need to away.

Hope that helps.

Gary

 

Perfect! Thanks so much for the welcome and for the advice. 

Ruaridh

[battlemunky]

Yeah, like @gary said, it should remain pretty consistent across the hide aside from the edges. There will be some variation but it'll be within the range of the hide sold. Some folks consider range marks valuable but for me, I try and keep them out of the piece. If I could get them consistently I'd find a way to work them in though.