MarcusLaMont
New Member
I greatly appreciate the continued support. Still in the process of continuing to age it a bit more.
Best advice I can give is make paper templates for everything, heavy card stock is best. It saves both time and especially money by minimizing having to correct mistakes made on the leather. And always test finishes on scrap pieces.
I've done some armor using the boiling method (cuirboulli). Seems to be more suited for pieces like chestplates and vambraces as it results in the leather being very stiff. Pieces like this need a bit more flexibility to be practical. I used a method somewhat similar to get the scales to keep a curved shape. Rather than submersing it in boiling water, I used a sponge and got the scales moderately wet with hot water then put them in the shape I wanted and let it dry out for a day or two. Still very flexible but wants to stay in the curved shape I need.
As for price, the materials for this probably cost around $60 total.
Most expensive thing being the hide itself.
If you are looking to get into leather working, look to see if there is a Tandy Leather Factory near you. Prices are competitive and the staff is generally very knowledgeable. Best thing though is they have a table set up with all the different tools and you can go in and play around with them and see what things do. They also generally have free workshops on the weekends that teach you different skills and tools.
You really only need like 4-5 tools to do almost anything you need and they are under $70 for the lot depending on where you get them.
Knife of some sort (I use a 1/2" exacto)
Stitching Awl or tiny drill bits (for making holes for sewing)
Decent hole punch kit (for making holes for rivets)
Beveler/Skiver and a burnisher/edge slicker (for finishing the edges)
If you are on the fence about starting leatherwork, jump in. Once you have the basics you can pretty much make anything. For the first couple of pieces do old/aged items. Good for covering mistakes plus if you rummage through the pile of hides at your leather store you can generally find a few gnarly ones and get a halfways decent deal on them.
Best advice I can give is make paper templates for everything, heavy card stock is best. It saves both time and especially money by minimizing having to correct mistakes made on the leather. And always test finishes on scrap pieces.
I've done some armor using the boiling method (cuirboulli). Seems to be more suited for pieces like chestplates and vambraces as it results in the leather being very stiff. Pieces like this need a bit more flexibility to be practical. I used a method somewhat similar to get the scales to keep a curved shape. Rather than submersing it in boiling water, I used a sponge and got the scales moderately wet with hot water then put them in the shape I wanted and let it dry out for a day or two. Still very flexible but wants to stay in the curved shape I need.
As for price, the materials for this probably cost around $60 total.
Most expensive thing being the hide itself.
If you are looking to get into leather working, look to see if there is a Tandy Leather Factory near you. Prices are competitive and the staff is generally very knowledgeable. Best thing though is they have a table set up with all the different tools and you can go in and play around with them and see what things do. They also generally have free workshops on the weekends that teach you different skills and tools.
You really only need like 4-5 tools to do almost anything you need and they are under $70 for the lot depending on where you get them.
Knife of some sort (I use a 1/2" exacto)
Stitching Awl or tiny drill bits (for making holes for sewing)
Decent hole punch kit (for making holes for rivets)
Beveler/Skiver and a burnisher/edge slicker (for finishing the edges)
If you are on the fence about starting leatherwork, jump in. Once you have the basics you can pretty much make anything. For the first couple of pieces do old/aged items. Good for covering mistakes plus if you rummage through the pile of hides at your leather store you can generally find a few gnarly ones and get a halfways decent deal on them.
