Stop blaming your tools

[Danne]

Before someone gets upset, I will start with clarify a couple of things.

1. I don't see myself as a professional leathercrafter, i'm a self taught hobbyist and my results are not perfect, but I will say after a lot of practice my skiving and stitching skills are on a decent level.

2. I have also blamed my tools, my inconsistent skiving was because I needed a better skiving knife (Even though I had a Kyoshin Elle knife which is a really good knife) and when I bought my Ksblade pricking/stitching irons, I had to admit to myself that the reason for my inconsistent stitching isn't because of my stitching irons, I need to practice more. 

3. Are there benefits with more expensive tools? Yes, for example a really cheap skiving knife often have very bad edge retention, and if you can afford it I would recommend you to buy a slightly better skiving knife, because you will have to constantly sharpen those cheaper ones. The more expensive pricking irons are often easier to work with and polished and sharp and make smaller holes. The more expensive ones is often easier to punch through thicker leather, and when you make holes in really thin leather for example a watch strap it's easier to get a nice stitch line with small slim holes.

So you are starting this craft and you aren't happy with your results, your budget was low so you bought the absolute cheapest tools you could find, and you think it will get better once you can afford better tools, the answer is no. If you can't get a decent result with cheap tools, you will not get better result with the more expensive tools. (Of course this doesn't apply to all tools. Here in my example I will talk about skiving knives and stitching irons.

Here I have tools from Aliexpress. The price is around:

Stitching irons: ~ 5usd

Skiving knife: ~ 2usd

 

So I start with the skiving knife. Here is a card pocket I skived with this skiving knife, and believe me it does a much better job than the most expensive knife you can find if it's an expensive knife you can't get really sharp. But once you learn to sharpen your knife, of course it's nice with a good quality tool that keep it's edge sharp longer.

 

Here is a crafter on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mamaleathergoods/

who use cheap Aliexpress irons and stitching looks really clean.

 

A couple of final words.

You don't need a lot of money to work with leather and make nice things. You can buy cheap tools, some cheap tools are really bad, other do the job. If you decide to spend a little bit more money it's still a good idea to not buy the most expensive tools, as an example buying Ksblade, Sinabrooks, Kevinlee premium irons before you know if you want Japanese or European style irons is not a good idea. Is it convenient with an expensive electric creaser? yes, but manual Wuta creasers will do a really nice job, even though it requires some practice for correct temperature if you need to heat it over an alcohol lamp. And depending on where you live (where you can't buy leather with splitting) you might want to save that money for a skiving machine instead and learn to split leather for wallets and watch straps and other small leather goods. 

And of course if you have done this for a while and know what tools you like, and you can afford it expensive and sometimes handmade tools have it's benefits. First it's fun to buy tools Crafting with high quality tools feels good. But what I wanna say is that you don't NEED those tools to get a good result. 

But keep in mind not all cheap tools will do the job, Tandy is a good example, they have a lot of tools that are more or less useless. (Even though it seems like they have started to sell some better quality tools also. (I haven't tried them, because I will never buy anything from them again since they ripped me off on some tools I bought like a useless hole punch set.

Edited November 29, 2020 by Danne

[Retswerb]

Well said. Thanks for the reminder.

[chrisash]

Its often a choice between low price or none, people new to leather are in most cases giving it a try with absolutely not starting skills and often soon become bored and give up for the next in thing

As you say a basic tool can do a good job, not as good as a great tool but adequate for the skill level of the person, but a proviso not a crap tool, there is a difference

If you don't go for the 200 piece tool kit from Amazon but look at maybe the basic 14 piece selection you will probably find the tools a introduction and something you can improve on when you have the required skills

Unfortunately many well known names who have high prices are living on their name these days and not value or high quality, computer aided design and manufacture have taken massive steps forward and its far cheaper to make 2000 of a item all exactly to the same spec than a few dozen that were great a few years ago, but not up to the same quality and higher specifications of the newer guys on the block

Its true that 10 years ago a lot that came out of the Far East was poor quality, but now they have embraced the world market and moved to cad and cam to raise their game, though not all companies have been so forward thinking

[battlemunky]

I agree with 99% of this.

Some tools are just crap though. There is a certain level of tool that you can no longer place blame, there is the lucky few good cheap tools that are a freakishly good value that you get where you can't place blame, and then there is crap. Unfortunately for me, and I assume a lot of folks, you don't really know how to tell until you've been doing this for long enough to figure out if it is you or the tool.

[Danne]

2 minutes ago, chrisash said:

Its often a choice between low price or none, people new to leather are in most cases giving it a try with absolutely not starting skills and often soon become bored and give up for the next in thing

As you say a basic tool can do a good job, not as good as a great tool but adequate for the skill level of the person, but a proviso not a crap tool, there is a difference

If you don't go for the 200 piece tool kit from Amazon but look at maybe the basic 14 piece selection you will probably find the tools a introduction and something you can improve on when you have the required skills

Unfortunately many well known names who have high prices are living on their name these days and not value or high quality, computer aided design and manufacture have taken massive steps forward and its far cheaper to make 2000 of a item all exactly to the same spec than a few dozen that were great a few years ago, but not up to the same quality and higher specifications of the newer guys on the block

Its true that 10 years ago a lot that came out of the Far East was poor quality, but now they have embraced the world market and moved to cad and cam to raise their game, though not all companies have been so forward thinking

 

1 minute ago, battlemunky said:

I agree with 99% of this.

Some tools are just crap though. There is a certain level of tool that you can no longer place blame, there is the lucky few good cheap tools that are a freakishly good value that you get where you can't place blame, and then there is crap. Unfortunately for me, and I assume a lot of folks, you don't really know how to tell until you've been doing this for long enough to figure out if it is you or the tool.

Yes, I agree. There is a difference between buying high quality tools and cheap tools. Like if you buy something from Ksblade, all their tools are good quality tools. Not all tools from Aliexpress are good tools. But if someone have a very limited budget and ask for advice there are cheap tools that will do the job. 

I sometimes get contacted by beginners who ask what tools they should buy and they link to some amazon kit. I usually ask them what they plan to do and recommend some tools from leathercrafttools.com (I have some tools from them and Goodsjapan which sell a lot of the same brands) and i'm happy with those tools. Do I want to upgrade things like my skiving knives from Kyoshin Elle? Yes, I want some tools from Okada, mostly because they are nice. And if I would do this professionally I think I will get a better edge retention on his skiving knives.

But there are also things that take time. I like both my irons from Ksblade and Kevinlee's premium. But I don't really need them. In most cases I use them as pricking irons and open the holes with a reshaped awl, so I could use cheaper pricking irons with tapered prongs. Those irons wouldn't be suitable for me when I started this craft because I had no clue how to reshape and sharpen my awls or how to use them with consistent results, and punching European pricking irons with a large taper on the prongs would result in quite large holes. (For my taste to large hole for the thinner thread I prefer)

[zuludog]

I have one of those cheap Japanese style leather knives shown in the OP. Search the Net and you can find it for about £5, certainly <£10

It's surprisingly well made for the money; the blade is stiff, firmly mounted in the handle, and in line with the handle

It is obviously made to a price though, and the finish can be improved - the handle is uneven and has a coating of cheap & tacky paint. I scraped and sanded that off, then sanded the handle to improve the shape and remove any sharp corners. Now it is more comfortable to hold, and as the grain is exposed, it looks quite attractive

The blade has a very small secondary bevel. I ground that out on progressively finer oilstones, followed by stropping, and gave it a longer bevel of about 5 or 6 mm. It did take a few sessions spread over a week, but the result is much better

Now it is easier to use, and can be made very sharp

However, you need to know a bit about what you're doing, and have a selection of sharpening stones. If not you would be better paying just a bit more, say around $30 for something from one of the  better known Japanese manufacturers like Kyoshin Elle, Craft Sha, or Seiwa.

Also, you can do good work with a Stanley knife, aka utility knife, aka box cutter. you can resharpen blunt blades, and they seem to work better, probably because you've reduced the shoulder of the bevel and polished it. even new blades are better if you strop them first

 

Edited November 29, 2020 by zuludog

[Danne]

9 minutes ago, zuludog said:

I have one of those cheap Japanese style leather knives shown in the OP. Search the Net and you can find it for about £5, certainly <£10

It's surprisingly well made for the money; the blade is stiff, firmly mounted in the handle, and in line with the handle

It is obviously made to a price though, and the finish can be improved - the handle is uneven and has a coating of cheap & tacky paint. I scraped and sanded that off, then sanded the handle to improve the shape and remove any sharp corners. Now it is more comfortable to hold, and as the grain is exposed, it looks quite attractive

The blade has a very small secondary bevel. I ground that out on progressively finer oilstones, followed by stropping, and gave it a longer bevel of about 5 or 6 mm. It did take a few sessions spread over a week, but the result is much better

Now it is easier to use, and can be made very sharp

However, you need to know a bit about what you're doing, and have a selection of sharpening stones. If not you would be better paying just a bit more, say around $30 for something from one of the  better known Japanese manufacturers like Kyoshin Elle, Craft Sha, or Seiwa.

Also, you can do good work with a Stanley knife, aka utility knife, aka box cutter. you can resharpen blunt blades, and they seem to work better, probably because you've reduced the shoulder of the bevel and polished it. even new blades are better if you strop them first

 

I use sandpaper from Mirka up to 2500 grit and strop with green chrome oxide. And to be honest I don't think it's harder to sharpen the cheap Aliexpress knife compared to my Japanese skiving knives.

Have you tried Olfa black max blades for snap-off blade knives? they get dull quite fast but they are razor sharp.

[chiefjason]

10 years in and I still use a toothbrush handle as part of my set of tools to mold holsters.  

[chuck123wapati]

Well said ! i will add if you cant sharpen a good tool its no better than a cheap one. I have found much of my problems stem from just a few basic things none of which are the tools fault.  1.Keeping your tools sharp, learning to sharpen is one of the most necessary things IMO.

2.Patience. Slow down take your time. I used to get in a hurry and just didn't take the time really needed for a good job, like beveling I don't care for beveling and if I don't watch myself i get in a hurry and it really shows.

3.Getting in over my head, I'm the first to admit I try projects and techniques far above my experience and suffer for it, Disclaimer ; a person has to stretch the limits but they also have to realize the outcome wont be great for a while. 

4. Not finishing correctly , goes right along with patience i used to tend to hurry my project and skip steps that although didn't seem necessary at the time really deterred from the finished project, follow the steps all the way through.

 

[Sheilajeanne]

Al Stohlman started out with home-made tools, and look what he achieved! But from the sketches he made during the war when he was stationed overseas, you can see the man already had considerable artistic skill.

I have a few friends who are artists, and even THEY say how so much of it is due to practice and persistence. They have seen many artists more talented than themselves give it up and fall by the wayside, while they continued to draw and paint and enter their work in shows.

 

[liquify]

Hi I've been working with leather for some time but I'd like to improve my works and I decided I'd like to buy some quality tools,like a skiving knife and pricking irons,especially to make wallets.I don't want to spend 150$ on pricking irons,let's say 50$ max.

I have one one iron I bought some years ago and its not bad but I can't make perfect straight stitches when I have to punch 3-4 layers of leather,not sure if it depends on me not keeping it perfectly straight or what.This iron has 4 prongs only and I was thinking maybe using a 6 prongs or more would be easier?

Can you recommend some good ones?I'm in Italy so not easy to order from US based stores.Thanks for any suggestion!

 

[paloma]

I'm not rich enough to buy cheap.

[Handstitched]

18 hours ago, Sheilajeanne said:

Al Stohlman started out with home-made tools, and look what he achieved!

I still follow the ' Al Stohlman' method .

When it comes to tools,if its not available, or too costly,  I adapt. 

I don't think theres ever been a time that I've blamed my tools  .   Thats like blaming a whisky maker for a hangover . 

HS

[chrisash]

I suggest there is at least three layers of leather tools

Cheap (normally crap)

Low cost(workable tools that do the job without frills or bangles)

Expensive (may be first class or maker living on old reputation)

It come down to how clever you spend your money i guess, some people in London spend a thousand pounds for a room in a hotel to sleep for a night, if you are rich its hard not to spend your money on expensive items, if you are poor you don't have many options, most of us are somewhere in the middle ground

[jcuk]

The latest stitching chisels seem to me to be the main culprit at the moment,  newer better ones every week or so it seems - people saying just got these and they don't  seem as good as the newer ones from that maker,  chasing the latest model not a good policy. Hermes Louis Vuitton and other fine leather goods makers have been using Vergez Blanchard other old tool makers of forever they don't  feel the need to change every week, Same in the saddlery industry. Yes i know some maybe trading on their reputation but the tools still seem to work if the effort is put in on using the tools you already have.

Hope this helps

JCUK   

[Hardrada]

6 hours ago, paloma said:

I'm not rich enough to buy cheap.

[billybopp]

When I was in HS, I took up photography did lots of pics for the yearbook of sporting events, dances and such.  I picked up a book on the subject and I think it summed up tools pretty well.  Better cameras do not make a better photographer, they just make getting the photograph that you want easier.

- Bill

[Kcstott]

Money will only get you so far, 
skill is needed and the only way to get there is practice. 

[johnv474]

The difference between a cheap guitar and an expensive guitar is the player, until he reaches the limit of that guitar.  Eric Clapton could make a cheapo guitar sound better than most but a beginner can’t make an expensive guitar sound good any more than a Boy Scout gets better aim by buying a sniper rifle.

 

Most of my tools are neither cheap nor expensive.  You can get by with about six tools, a la Daisukenshin, and none of them are expensive.

 

I threw out all of my tools yesterday.  I am replacing them with a knife, a fork, a spoon, an awl, and, optionally, wing dividers.  Throw in a head knife and some needles and the set is complete.  

 

Owning too many tools gets in the way of learning how to use them.

 

 

Edited December 2, 2020 by johnv474

[Klara]

On 11/30/2020 at 2:44 PM, liquify said:

...I have one one iron I bought some years ago and its not bad but I can't make perfect straight stitches when I have to punch 3-4 layers of leather,not sure if it depends on me not keeping it perfectly straight or what....

I hope this response finds you for I think I've just seen the answer to your problem: 

 

 

As for the general topic: I'm working with wool semi-professionally. When I started out I went tool-crazy - always looking for a better spindle, a better spinning wheel... Then I learnt that my brain and hands are the most important thing and now I mostly agree with the OP.

The problem is just how to recognise the difference between cheap-but-serviceable tools and useless crap. johnv474 mentioned guitars - there's low cost functioning guitars, and there's vaguely guitar-shaped objects that are impossible to play because the frets are too high or too low or the tuning won't hold or they have other technical defects. 

My first leather tools I bought from Amazon. 4 chisels (or pricking irons? By the time the description is translated into French it is incomprehensible) at half the price of a very similar-looking product in the local leather shop, a handle for groover and 3 edge bevelers and a burnisher. My logic was "What can go wrong with making chisels?" and they were what I wanted most. That the groover works - and pretty decently, after I honed it following JH Hall's video - was a  nice surprise. I haven't had much luck with the edge bevelers so far, but I don't use veg tanned leather at the moment, I believe. 

The Vergez  Blanchard awl blade, however, I bought in the shop and it's a world of difference with the old one (ouch!) AND a lot cheaper than a complete no-name awl from elsewhere (had the handle). The same shop also sold me a cheap knife - I'll see whether I'll be able to keep it sharp. If not then I prefer to ruin a 20-Euro knife rather than an expensive one... (strop is already made).

And I figure that's what I need for the moment (plus leather, thread, glue, needles... of course) 

By the way, does anybody know why saddler's needles are sold in packs of 25?