Can You Recommend Leather for a Newbie's Watch Straps ?

[Schick]

Hi. I have been trying to teach myself how to make leather watch straps. So far, I have realized just how difficult it might be, as I am very new to leather and now see just how many techniques I need to master.

 

I am able to stitch fairly good (in my eyes at least), and am getting better at cutting out templates by hand. I am even getting better at edge coating and hand-burnishing. I am however, having difficulty skiving my work. I realize it is not something I would learn in a week, and I expect to learn from my mistakes.

I think my issues are based on a few things. I need to get better at sharpening my skiving tools. I am okay at it, but not perfect. I am also using cheap scrap leather. It is the kind you get in bags at stores like Tandy. I think it is mostly chrome tanned. I think some of my scrap may actually be some old couch leather a friend gave me. Skiving the Tandy scrap leather is a real pain for me, as I seem to either cut too much and accidentally shorten a piece, or not quite thin the leather enough. I am guessing that veg tanned leather is easier, but am unsure, as veg tanned scraps available are heavy, and much to thick for a watch strap. I tried sanding the leather with a dremel instead of a skiving knife, but wow, is that ever messy!

 

A friend told me that chrome tanned is bad, especially if it touches the skin, and that some people might get skin reactions on their wrists. Is that true?

 

Also, is the inner layer of leather in a watch strap usually calf skin? Are there alternatives? What is a good leather for watch straps created by a newbie?

I have so many questions, but will just try and keep it to this topic for now.

 

Thanks in advance to anyone kind enough to offer advice. 

[Hardrada]

You need to keep in mind that temper is more important than tannage here. Aside from those who might have allergic reactions to leather (some might be allergic to chrome tan, but I'd wager there are folks out there who are also allergic to vegetable tanned leather too!) your choices in leather for a given project should be guided not by tannage, but by the item itself and how it works and what its function is and what characteristics it must have to perform said function.

Take belts, for instance: you need leather that is firm in temper and that doesn't stretch; additionally, in some cases you also want the leather to be resistant to the elements. It's not the same to make belts for the outdoorsman than it is for the lady going to a party.

Now, wristwatch bands are basically mini-belts. Again, you need leather that's firm in temper so that it doesn't stretch. Firmness of temper also makes it easy to skive since it's less likely to pull out of shape when you run it through a paring machine or put it under the skiving knife. You may also want something that is resistant to scratches and that looks good.

Regarding the liner, I use goat skin (chevre). Again, it skives easily and it's more scratch resistant (although this last feature is probably not too important for a liner).

I use scrap veg tan for the inner reinforcement.

I replied to your welcome thread because I hadn't seen this one. So, I'll repost here what I posted there since it's apropos:

This is the pattern set that I use: https://am-leathercraft.com/collections/pdf-patterns/products/simple-watch-strap-pattern-video-tutorial-from-18mm-to-25mm

$5 for the full set in PDF is a steal. Just print them out onto cardstock paper and you're set. The video is available on YT without the patterns. I recommend watching it before buying; whether you'll buy that pattern set or not, you'll get an idea of the whole process of making a wristwatch band. It's the same process that I use, 'cept that I use a paring machine instead of a belt skiver.

 

The results I got with that pattern/process aren't half bad. They're not perfect because I'm not good at it yet:

Edited September 9, 2021 by Hardrada

[Hardrada]

Hmm, it seems that he updated his tutorial. What I use is his previous video (which is the one I got when I purchased his pattern set). Here:

 

 

[Danne]

Using veg tan leather that is not too soft is a good start. I make watch straps, and making them in softer leather is harder, because it stretches a little bit and it makes it harder to cut and skive consistently.

And I can relate to the skiving, I struggled a lot with skiving in the beginning, and the reason was because I believed my skiving knife was sharp.

How do I sharpen my skiving knives? I made a simple jig of a couple of pieces of wood, I also placed a piece of rubber in between (easier to adjust the knife) 

 

I use wet and dry sand paper 1000 grit and 2500 grit, and finish with stropping on grain leather with green chrome oxide. I slide the fixture on the granite plate outside of the sandpaper, and since a skiving knife is quite wide it works awesome. I do the same thing with woodworking chisels but it's way harder because they are more narrow.

I also made a jig to set the distance. I have a primary bevel and a very small secondary bevel, which makes it quick to sharpen the edge when needed.

 

Edited September 9, 2021 by Danne

[mike02130]

Zermatt leather from Tannery Haas is the best for the lining against the skin.  It is hypoallergenic and is sweat and waterproof.

Just because a skiving knife cuts leather easily, it doesn't mean it is truly sharp enough to skive leather.  Mark the edge of your blade with a black marker and and pull it across a strop or a piece of cardboard with some sharpening compound on it and see if the marker disappears.

[Schick]

Big thanks to Hardrada, Danne, and Mike02130. This gives me much to work with.

 

I was considering goat. I will have to order anything, as the only store local is Tandy. 

 

I am definitely going to have to manufacture that sharpening rig. So simple and smart. I love it.

 

Thanks again to all that assisted. I would have replied sooner, but I guess I was not subscribed to my own post. :-)

[Hardrada]

3 hours ago, Schick said:

Big thanks to Hardrada, Danne, and Mike02130. This gives me much to work with.

 

I was considering goat. I will have to order anything, as the only store local is Tandy. 

 

I am definitely going to have to manufacture that sharpening rig. So simple and smart. I love it.

 

Thanks again to all that assisted. I would have replied sooner, but I guess I was not subscribed to my own post. :-)

If you're in my SK, you can PM me your addy. I'll send you a "starter kit" with enough patches of goat and nigh-unscratchable calf to get you started. I can even split them to the right weights with my paring machine. I've quite a bit of clean leftovers that aren't good for a major project such as a bag or wallet, but they're just the right size for watchbands. Heck, if you're in the Queen City the delivery is $0.

If you insist on buying, I order most of my leather from Rocky Mountain Leather supply. They're in the US and we must pony up for duties, but they're the only ones who split your leather to your chosen weight. A paring machine is helpful up to a width of 1 inch, beyond that you'll need a splitter. RML splits your pieces for you at no additional cost. They also sell 1 sq ft pieces: a 9x16" rectangular piece is just the right size for several watchbands since you cut the initial pieces as rectangles.

I don't like buying leather from Tandy. Hardware and some tools is OK, but their leather is all over the spectrum and you what you end up getting isn't always up to snuff.

My other supplier is Lonsdale Leather, but they're in Vancouver. I occasionally buy stuff from Longview Leather in Alta.

Edited September 12, 2021 by Hardrada

[Danne]

11 minutes ago, Hardrada said:

If you're in my SK, you can PM me your addy. I'll send you a "starter kit" with enough patches of goat and nigh-unscratchable calf to get you started. I can even split them to the right weights with my paring machine. I've quite a bit of clean leftovers that aren't good for a major project such as a bag or wallet, but they're just the right size for watchbands. Heck, if you're in the Queen City the delivery is $0.

If you insist on buying, I order most of my leather from Rocky Mountain Leather supply. They're in the US and we must pony up for duties, but they're the only ones who split your leather to your chosen weight. A paring machine is helpful up to a width of 1 inch, beyond that you'll need a splitter. RML splits your pieces for you at no additional cost. They also sell 1 sq ft pieces: a 9x16" rectangular piece is just the right size for several watchbands since you cut the initial pieces as rectangles.

I don't like buying leather from Tandy. Hardware and some tools is OK, but their leather is all over the spectrum and you what you end up getting isn't always up to snuff.

My other supplier is Lonsdale Leather, but they're in Vancouver. I occasionally buy stuff from Longview Leather in Alta.

Doesn't District leather supply split also?

I just want to add something to "A paring machine is helpful up to a width of 1 inch, beyond that you'll need a splitter" You already know this of course, but maybe not Schick, if you decide to start to make a lot of different straps and want to be able to split leather yourself (and different types of leather) a bell knife skiving machine is awesome for this task.  (A question to you Hardrada, is it correct that a paring machine will be hard to use with softer stretchy leather? I haven't used them, it's just my guess.) 

And yes stay away from Tandy, Yes they might have some premium tools that are decent, but at least the tools I bought from them when I started this craft was useless, and good quality budget tools from goodsjapan and leathercrafttools wasn't more expensive. I still use some of the tools I bought from them, other tools I have updated, not because the quality wasn't good enough, but for example the diamond pricking irons from Goodsjapan is awesome, but for thin straps with really thin thread, I wanted smaller holes and the European style of holes. But still use my cheap skiving knives and edge bevelers from Goodsjapan, and see no reason to replace them.

 

Edited September 12, 2021 by Danne

[mike02130]

Rocky Mountain Leather will sell half goatskins.  It's not on their site but email them to order.

[Hardrada]

20 hours ago, Danne said:

A question to you Hardrada, is it correct that a paring machine will be hard to use with softer stretchy leather? I haven't used them, it's just my guess.

I'd say so. Even medium temper leather can get pulled out of shape with a paring machine:

See how bendy the Alran chevre got when I did the edge paring? Ugh.

The Heritage Series didn't strech as bad, or much.

I think I've observed that the worst stretching happens when you try to pare down leather from a thick weight down to a very thin thickness. Maybe doing it gradually would help preventing or reducing the issue, but then again, several passes might also increase the chances for stretching.

I'm thinking there should be a proper technique to avoid all this, but I'm yet to find it.

 

Proper feeding is also crucial with a paring machine too, lest you end up with this:

A whole piece of expensive leather can be ruined in an eyeblink if the right beat is missed on the feeding and the leather rides high on the anvil. Not fun.

After ruining several pieces due to the blade biting through and through into the leather I can see why such love for a bell skiver, but then you look at the price of them... and your heart starts loving the paring machine again even as your mind starts thinking on how to find the proper technique.

Edited September 13, 2021 by Hardrada