choice of leather?

hello, About any weight of leather will do..... But, the heavier stuff, 8 to 10 oz. is what i learned on and still use..... Good luck.....I make knives and had to learn leatherwork to make them but i find i enjoy it very much.....Lay them out on paper first then go to leather..................carl.
 
Ask for vegetable tanned, not chrome tanned. Much less corrosive to the knife.
 
You do want to buy only veg-tanned leather for sheaths. 7/8oz. will work for all knives except the really big (9"+) blades. For those, 8/9oz. would be the choice. Buying better quality will save you much time in the form of less frustration and a better finished sheath. Here's a couple of suppliers that carry the best leather at reasonable prices: www.siegelofca.com
www.wickett-craig.com . Best choice of cut would be a shoulder or double shoulder. A single shoulder will provide enough leather for a dozen or so medium sheaths and belt loops with a minimum of waste. When ordering, ask for "soft or medium roll" leather. This just refers to part of the tanning process and will give you leather that is much easier to cut than the "hard roll". Hard roll leather is the choice for most tooling and carving. Next suggestion would be to check out Chuck Burrow's at www.wrtcleather.com and get his CD on basic sheath work. It'll really get you going in the right direction.
 
If you are just starting or just want to try your hand at sheathe making without blowing alot of money. Try some tooling bellies. That's usually the left over parts of the shoulder or double shoulder cuts.
 
If you have a Tandy store nearby they usually have smaller pieces available on the table with the full shoulders and stuff. I used to buy a lot of leather off of ebay from leather shops that were selling scraps they couldn't use but were plenty big to make sheaths.
 
I've found that by going to resale shops (Goodwill, Rescue Mission, Salvation Army...) theres usually a couple of old Leather Coats that can be had for cheap, (5-10bux cheap,) take apart the jackets and you have leather. Granted it's not really heavy Leather but it's cheap It's leather and it works!
 
I can second what Rick and Will said. If you're in a hurry and only want a small piece to experiment with, Tandy is a good place to go. They also have all the tools and dye, etc you could dream of. But they're pricey. I've bought most of my leather from Siegel, and they're great. Once you get on their mailing list you'll have an opportunity to buy veg tanned double shoulders on sale a couple times a year. That's the way to buy leather! :D

Also, Chuck Burrows' video is a must have. I watch it every time I'm starting a leather project, just to refresh my memory and see what I missed the last time...

Good luck and have fun! Leather work can be really gratifying.
 
I have some Elk hide I use, It is light so I contact cement 2 pieces together so I have both sides finished. I was in a Goodwill store yesterday and got a huge leather purse that I wiill use the same way $2. I also go a weight lifter's belt for a $1. Loads of heavy leather on that. I also [picked up a big pelican wood carving that is ironwood or the like and a wood plate that is some kind od dense hardwood. It looks to have been around a while with no cracks so it goes in the handle pile LOL.
 
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