Cutting Curves?

[Cattledude]

Cut it close and sand to shape...

[fredk]

4 hours ago, MtlBiker said:

I've got really good Gingher fabric scissors which I've been afraid to use on leather in fear of ruining them.  I guess leather scissors are different.

My 'leather' scissors are not the speciality type sold by leather suppliers but just very tough high quality scissors. They are by Mundial^. They cost me £12 each and I've ended up with 3 (don't ask). These scissors can cut through thin sheet metal as well.

For curves I don't do anything fancy, I just grab a plate, a bowl, a lid, anything that has the right curve to it, or even just fold a bit of card in half and cut a curve by eye, trimming it to tidy it maybe*. Then draw around it. Using a pen to mark the leather gives me a more solid line to follow. Also, as I'm very colour blind I cannot actually see a scratch mark on leather

* if I'm going to make more of the same item I keep that card pattern shape

^ similar

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mundial-2-inch-Red-Dressmaker-Shears/dp/B0009VEM54

[Hardrada]

All I use for curves is a Don Carlos round knife. Before that knife curves were a dreaded nightmare, now they're a zinch and even enjoyable to cut.

[bland]

Learning to use a round knife changed my life.  Very versatile.  Tight curves, long straight cuts without a straight edge, skiving, trimming...  I have an old Midas Leather round knife I inherited and a Master Tool from Weaver.  I have been happy with both.  

[jcuk]

I will have to add the last Osborne round knife i got in exchange for a older one which got damaged is not a patch on the older one i had, good to use when it has been sharpened and stropped but will not hold a edge for very long so i was spending more time on keeping the edge in top order than on my leather work. I am not the only on here who thinks Osborne quality may have dropped which is a real shame. Have said this before think they are trying to compete with cheaper imports from the far east, think thats what did it for Dixons ( a old British maker of no nonsense Saddlers tools that did the job they were made for)  their quality dropped towards the end.

Glad to see George Barnsley are trying to buck the trend over here again no nonsense tools that do the job their single head might be a good knife to get not sure about shipping costs and import duties may make it way expensive. You might be lucky someone that side of the pond may stock them. 

[MtlBiker]

12 hours ago, fredk said:

My 'leather' scissors are not the speciality type sold by leather suppliers but just very tough high quality scissors. They are by Mundial^. They cost me £12 each and I've ended up with 3 (don't ask). These scissors can cut through thin sheet metal as well.

For curves I don't do anything fancy, I just grab a plate, a bowl, a lid, anything that has the right curve to it, or even just fold a bit of card in half and cut a curve by eye, trimming it to tidy it maybe*. Then draw around it. Using a pen to mark the leather gives me a more solid line to follow. Also, as I'm very colour blind I cannot actually see a scratch mark on leather

* if I'm going to make more of the same item I keep that card pattern shape

^ similar

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mundial-2-inch-Red-Dressmaker-Shears/dp/B0009VEM54

I'll give those scissors a try... thanks.

Funny, Amazon in Canada doesn't have the 8 1/2" version... only an 8" and a 9 1/2" (both Red Dot) version.  I'm going to order the 9 1/2" version, thinking the extra length might give more leverage for thick materials.

A "plate, a bowl, a lid, anything that has the right curve to it" just didn't appear in my kitchen or garage.  As you can see from my first post photo, I needed to round the top of the flap in a shape sort of like a tongue.  I found the easiest way to get that shape was to make a bezier curve in a drawing program.  But of course the resulting paper template couldn't be cut against.  I found it very easy to cut out the paper template using scissors, so your suggestion of a good pair of scissors to cut the leather might work great for me.  Thank you!

[MtlBiker]

11 hours ago, Hardrada said:

All I use for curves is a Don Carlos round knife. Before that knife curves were a dreaded nightmare, now they're a zinch and even enjoyable to cut.

Couldn't find the knife in Canada with a Google search, but Amazon US has one.  Is this the one you use/recommend?

[MtlBiker]

9 hours ago, bland said:

Learning to use a round knife changed my life.  Very versatile.  Tight curves, long straight cuts without a straight edge, skiving, trimming...  I have an old Midas Leather round knife I inherited and a Master Tool from Weaver.  I have been happy with both.  

Did it take long to master the round knife?  I can see that it should make cutting curves easier, but I'm surprised at your statement that with one you can also make long straight cuts without a straight edge.  Surely you couldn't make two long parallel straight cuts, like for a belt, without using a straight edge as a guide.

[MtlBiker]

2 hours ago, jcuk said:

I will have to add the last Osborne round knife i got in exchange for a older one which got damaged is not a patch on the older one i had, good to use when it has been sharpened and stropped but will not hold a edge for very long so i was spending more time on keeping the edge in top order than on my leather work. I am not the only on here who thinks Osborne quality may have dropped which is a real shame. Have said this before think they are trying to compete with cheaper imports from the far east, think thats what did it for Dixons ( a old British maker of no nonsense Saddlers tools that did the job they were made for)  their quality dropped towards the end.

Glad to see George Barnsley are trying to buck the trend over here again no nonsense tools that do the job their single head might be a good knife to get not sure about shipping costs and import duties may make it way expensive. You might be lucky someone that side of the pond may stock them. 

Believe it or not, I just ordered from Barnsley direct.  Their shipping to Canada is quite reasonable (even less than Amazon US sometimes charges) and I'm getting the Barnsley Saddlers Round Knife, a Narrow Skiving Knife and Extension Clicker's Handle with curved blades.  That should be more than enough to get me going with cutting leather.  And it should arrive here before the end of next week too!

Now to watch all the YouTube videos I can find about using these tools properly.

Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[zuludog]

5 hours ago, MtlBiker said:

Believe it or not, I just ordered from Barnsley direct.  Their shipping to Canada is quite reasonable (even less than Amazon US sometimes charges) and I'm getting the Barnsley Saddlers Round Knife, a Narrow Skiving Knife and Extension Clicker's Handle with curved blades.  That should be more than enough to get me going with cutting leather.  And it should arrive here before the end of next week too!

Now to watch all the YouTube videos I can find about using these tools properly.

Thanks for the recommendation.

 

Well I, and no doubt yourself, am pleasantly surprised that you are able to order from George Barnsley directly at a reasonable cost; I have their head knife and it's very good

There's just one thing though. It's fairly straightforward to make a basic knife for leatherwork, but getting it very sharp, sharp enough to cut through leather easily, brings you into The Law of Diminishing Returns as it requires more and more careful sharpening, usually by hand, and so becomes expensive

So to keep the costs down, traditional makers such as Barnsley only provide a basic cutting edge; you are expected to do the final  sharpening and polishing yourself, and you buy the knife on that understanding. There are several videos about sharpening a round or a head knife, and once you've done that, usually all you need for regular use is a strop, or occasionally a light sharpen

You'll probably want to make a sheath for a round or head knife, again there are a few videos, as well as for using the knives themselves