Middle Earth Ranger Forum

this has seriously saved my bacon on many occasions.

AMEN!

... and sometimes it hasn't been enough.

I used a fabric measuring tape and a pile of newspaper to create the pattern for my last jerkin. I made measurements and marked them (geometrically) on the newspaper to form the different panels. As each panel was drawn, cut out, and then analyzed on me in the mirror, they would be scotch-taped together to form the overall pattern. Once it was all together and looked right, I broke the pattern down again into the individual panels, and then traced the panels onto the leather with a 1/4" extra seam allowance on all sides that I used to turn the edges under. However you do it, make sure you're wearing a few layers that either are or approximate what you'd be wearing under the jerkin, or it'll wind up too tight to comfortably function in.

Another option if you want to mimic historical patterns:
https://www.patternsoftime.com/

I'm back again I got my thread in and I really like the look of it! I was wondering what does everyone think of these chisels and what size I should get? I have an awl but I thought this might help make it look neater (in the areas where neatness would be best) but I don't want my stitchs or thread holes too large..
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/2b/4b/3b ... 23efee.jpg

While the sizes look good, they don't look sharp enough to penetrate the leather. They look like they would be better suited for fabric, where they would just be pushing the threads aside for the stitching.

Compare the chisel "teeth" to the ones in the closeup of this random ebay auction:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CRAFTOOL-TANDY- ... Sw3NlZr2Od

I did see other auctions with chisels like the ones you've pictured but I've only used Tandy tools in the past. I'd be interested in hearing the experience of anyone who has used the type you pictured.

For what it's worth celegon, the chisel Pete linked is the one that came in my basic kit from Tandy mubmledy-mumble years ago and I've never had call to use anything different. The leather kind of "heals" around the holes a bit unless you're using really heavy vegtan tooling leather - in which case you kind of want big holes for big thread anyhow.

For a light suede like you're talking about, I think any of the ones you listed or Pete linked would work.

I'd also suggest for a proper made-in-the-forest kind of jerkin, you might want to look at either braintan (Udwin does great work btw!) or perhaps German tan like this:
http://www.crazycrow.com/buckskin-leath ... l-14-22-sf

Greg made his jerkin from braintain, expressly for the sake of breathability. You might consider the same: from what I've been told, the early '70's buckskinners just about keeled over from the heat in their chrome-tanned buckskins.

Anyhow, if you use braintan you can just about use a heavy regular sewing needle, or near any chisel. It's spongy, forgiving stuff.

duplicate.

Elleth wrote:Anyhow, if you use braintan you can just about use a heavy regular sewing needle, or near any chisel. It's spongy, forgiving stuff.

I'd recommend the heavy needle, no pre-punching necessary. Helps the hole really hug the thread.

FWIW, I think the original punch you showed here looks like it would work just fine for your project. I used a very similar one for my own, and found it extremely helpful. Hand-punching holes without a guide for spacing can be extremely difficult to make look neat, especially without a lot of long practice under your belt. As for some of the other chisels mentioned, they are probably just fine too, but I might recommend steering away from any with long, flat tines. Those work better for lacing than for stitching, and if you're not careful the holes tend to tear rather easily. Greg is right, in that just using a very sharp needle would probably yield the best results as far as the actual integrity of the leather, but in my experience that is also an extremely painful method, and not at all efficient. So that's up to you really, but I think the punch you were talking about initially, or something like it, looks like it would probably do the trick.

...Then it's really just a matter of how wide you want the spacing. Remember that leather is different than fabric. With fabric, tighter spaced stitches are often stronger, but with leather, if your stitching gets TOO narrow, the holes literally make the leather act like perforated paper, and can easily cause catastrophic tearing. So compromise is good.

I’ll second the use of a lap board. If you want something to give you nice spacing for cheap get a metal fork from a thrift store flatten it and file the prongs. It’s what I use and I love it and it looks really nice.

celegon wrote:I'm back again I got my thread in and I really like the look of it! I was wondering what does everyone think of these chisels and what size I should get? I have an awl but I thought this might help make it look neater (in the areas where neatness would be best) but I don't want my stitchs or thread holes too large..
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/2b/4b/3b ... 23efee.jpg

The chisels you picture look almost exactly the same as mine, which were a very cheap eBay buy last year when I first got into leatherwork to make stuff for my pirate costume, I have had reasonable success with them (and am still useing them for almost everything) on anything up to 8oz leather although with thick leathers it takes a lot of hammering (or an arbour press) to drive them through and the holes seem a little to tight. On thinner projects (probably simaler to what you will be useing) I have found that they work fine, punch holes quite easily and that the holes are small enough to work well with the 0.7mm linen thread I buy from my local market.

My leather chisels pictured on the piece of plywood I use to protect my bench:

OMG YOURE ALL PIRATES!!!!!

BWAHAHAHA ANOTHER PIRATE-RANGER, HAHAHARRRR!!!

We buccaneers are like a fungus - difficult to get rid of, but we grow on ya'

Manveruon wrote:BWAHAHAHA ANOTHER PIRATE-RANGER, HAHAHARRRR!!!

We buccaneers are like a fungus - difficult to get rid of, but we grow on ya'

Is there such thing as a 'pirate ranger' Mabe I should wear my trycorn hat with my kit

Oooops, I think I might have derailed yet another thread, sorry