New Stuff at Springfield Leather Col.

[Tugadude]

Well, my daughter's car problems created the opportunity for me to travel to Springfield, MO yesterday and I was fortunate to have time to stop by SLC.

I bought some very nice leather that they had on special along with some hardware I needed.

But there are two items I though others should know about if they haven't seen them.  One is some new thread they are stocking and the other is a diamond stitching chisel.  Actually, they have two new types of chisels in stock, but I'm going to be talking about the polished ones.

Bear in mind I haven't used the chisels or the thread yet, but I can tell just by looking at the irons that they are going to be great.  They are made of stainless steel and highly polished.  The teeth are very slick.  I'm thinking they will be easy to remove after punching through thicker leather.  They are quite small too.  The teeth are a lot smaller than some of the other diamond chisels I've tried.  The overall size of the irons is diminutive.  They look and feel "dainty", but with care I think they will last a long time.

The thread is a flat, woven polyester and is SLC's answer to Ritza 25 Tiger Thread.  They call it Rhino thread.  It is listed as 1.0 mm.  Comes in tons of colors too.  If the thread turns out to be a "worker" I'm going to ask them to consider bringing in smaller sizes as 0.6 and 0.8 are handy for smaller items.

Over the next few days I'll be experimenting with both the irons and the thread and report back on them.

 

[Frodo]

I saw that,  I picked up a set of the black chisels,  so far i like them

I did not eee the thread,  and am in need of a different thread supplier

When i order waxed thread i want waxed thread, not some thread that was made in a factory that had a candle in the window

Edited October 29, 2020 by Frodo

[Tugadude]

The teeth on the chisels I purchased are smaller than the ones on the black chisels, which is one reason I bought them.  I prefer smaller holes, especially with finer threads of course.

[Tugadude]

I'll do a couple of stitch lines with various chisels and the new thread and post tomorrow.

[Tugadude]

Well, my experiment with the new thread is inconclusive, at least on some points.  I'll try to do something over the weekend using black leather so that the yellow shows up better.  As it stands I used the yellow thread on a piece of softish veg-tan and you really can't see much.  I think the thread is a bit large for the iron though, and will try something else to confirm.

I really admire those that are set up to do professional-looking photos.  Mine ain't.  But hopefully they will get the point across.

The new irons from SLC really are small.  But they aren't too small in my opinion.  They feel dainty and elegant, but I think they will be plenty durable so long as care is shown to them.

I examined the teeth very closely and confirmed that they are indeed highly polished.  When I hammered them through two layers of 4-5oz. veg-tan, they came back out easily, no wax required.  Both of the Tandy chisels were much harder to remove.

The thread seems to be a "soft" weave if that makes sense.  It isn't what I'd call tightly woven, at least the spool I purchased.  Time will tell how it behaves.  The thread has plenty of wax on it.  No complaints there.  Like I said, I need to use it with some larger chisels and on some black leather and maybe that will help to determine the aesthetic qualities better.

If you look at the holes created by the three irons you will see that the Tandy Craftool Pro are long and thin compared with the "Black" Tandy Craftool chisel.  The black irons are perfect for larger thread, but the holes are undeniably chunky.

The new SLC irons seem to be what I've been looking for in an iron.  They make small, clean, diamond-shaped holes and are easy to pull out from the leather.  They have met my expectations.

Hopefully on Saturday I can find some time to do a few lines of stitching with some smaller thread, 0.6 and 0.8.  I think I'll find that the SLC 3.0 chisels are perfect with the smaller threads.

 

 

Here's the other pics.

[TonySFLDLTHR]

Glad to see you posted this Tuga...we have tried to get the word out about all of this, but it is guys like you and those in the forums that really help.

The Rhino thread is 1mm so it it is pretty big for those irons. The explanation on the Rhino is very good...it is a looser weave especially when compared to Tiger thread. 

I would say that two big differences between Tiger Thread and Rhino Thread....weave and price per yard.

 

Love seeing your review of this...hope you able to get by on a week day! Maybe we will get you in a LIVE video with us!  

[Tugadude]

15 minutes ago, TonySFLDLTHR said:

Glad to see you posted this Tuga...we have tried to get the word out about all of this, but it is guys like you and those in the forums that really help.

The Rhino thread is 1mm so it it is pretty big for those irons. The explanation on the Rhino is very good...it is a looser weave especially when compared to Tiger thread. 

I would say that two big differences between Tiger Thread and Rhino Thread....weave and price per yard.

 

Love seeing your review of this...hope you able to get by on a week day! Maybe we will get you in a LIVE video with us!  

The Rhino works good with my larger irons and I will be buying more colors.  I had some .06mm thread on hand and it works perfectly with the 3mm irons that I purchased.  Pulling them out of the leather is smooth and easy.  I look forward to using them on some upcoming projects.

And Tony, I always enjoy seeing Jeff when I'm in the store.  He is knowledgeable and very friendly.  

[TonySFLDLTHR]

10 minutes ago, Tugadude said:

The Rhino works good with my larger irons and I will be buying more colors.  I had some .06mm thread on hand and it works perfectly with the 3mm irons that I purchased.  Pulling them out of the leather is smooth and easy.  I look forward to using them on some upcoming projects.

And Tony, I always enjoy seeing Jeff when I'm in the store.  He is knowledgeable and very friendly.  

You know....now through the end of the month Rhino thread is $4.99 for 250 yards. https://www.springfieldleather.com/Rhino-Hand-Sewing-Thread

We are having 20 days of sales right now!

https://www.springfieldleather.com/sale/crazy-days

Edited November 12, 2020 by TonySFLDLTHR

[Tugadude]

Perfect timing

[Retswerb]

Oof, $8.55 shipping for a $4.99 roll of thread. I’ll pass, must be nice to be close enough to visit in person.