Saddle stitch or lock stitch?

S

SRWeldon

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I'm curious about opinions on these 2 different types of stitches. The saddle stitch and the lock stitch. Do people prefer one over the other, is one better then the other or is a matter of personal preference?
 
I prefer hand stitching because I think it's more repairable and more resistant to catastrophic failure, while also allowing more precision. The downside is it's a lot more time consuming
 
In recent months I have started using the two needle method for sewing and one thing I like is that there isn’t a risk that the ‘knot’ doesn’t get pulled up to the surface. Also if you need to remove your stitching to change something, I like that saddle stitching is pretty hard to remove when compared with the lock stitching.

G2
 
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I will throw a little twist .. quite literally. I use a Cast saddle stitch on a home made saddle pony. No stronger way to put pieces of leather together.
 
SRWeldon said:
What is a cast saddle stitch?
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So lets say you pass your right hand needle through the hole first but you havent pulled it tight. You pass your left needle through the hole. Now you take the thread from your right needle which hasnt been pulled taut and cast it over the left needle. Now pull both ends tight. It basically creates a knot with each stitch inside the hole. I have done it so much I can do it while blindfolded.

Upsides .. you can cut half the stitches and still not pull the leather apart. The stitch looks the same on both sides of the material.

Downside is subjective. If you are using an awl and like a somewhat exaggerated zig zag stitch and I will admit .. sometimes I think it is very cool looking .. the cast stitch is a bit more reserved on the zig sag. Still a beautiful stitch just maybe not as dramatic as a standard saddle stitch.
 
Boriqua said:
So lets say you pass your right hand needle through the hole first but you havent pulled it tight. You pass your left needle through the hole. Now you take the thread from your right needle which hasnt been pulled taut and cast it over the left needle. Now pull both ends tight. It basically creates a knot with each stitch inside the hole. I have done it so much I can do it while blindfolded.

Upsides .. you can cut half the stitches and still not pull the leather apart. The stitch looks the same on both sides of the material.

Downside is subjective. If you are using an awl and like a somewhat exaggerated zig zag stitch and I will admit .. sometimes I think it is very cool looking .. the cast stitch is a bit more reserved on the zig sag. Still a beautiful stitch just maybe not as dramatic as a standard saddle stitch.
Click to expand...

I never knew it was called a cast saddle stitch, huh learn something new all the time :) When I was hand sewing leather this is the way I learned to do it.
 
Boriqua said:
So lets say you pass your right hand needle through the hole first but you havent pulled it tight. You pass your left needle through the hole. Now you take the thread from your right needle which hasnt been pulled taut and cast it over the left needle. Now pull both ends tight. It basically creates a knot with each stitch inside the hole. I have done it so much I can do it while blindfolded.

Upsides .. you can cut half the stitches and still not pull the leather apart. The stitch looks the same on both sides of the material.

Downside is subjective. If you are using an awl and like a somewhat exaggerated zig zag stitch and I will admit .. sometimes I think it is very cool looking .. the cast stitch is a bit more reserved on the zig sag. Still a beautiful stitch just maybe not as dramatic as a standard saddle stitch.
Click to expand...

That's the way I hand stitch. I thought that it was just a regular saddle stitch.
 
SRWeldon said:
Yes. What stitch is this called. I like how she says you may have to watch the video a few times to get it right. Like 10 or 20 times!
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I think she just calls it a saddle stitch. After checking on YT, she calls it a double stitch/saddle stitch. I guess they are the same thing.
 
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To me it looks like putting in a basic over-hand knot that sits in the leather. Looks like a regular saddle stitch but won't pull out as easily if the thread breaks.
 
Wyo Coyote said:
To me it looks like putting in a basic over-hand knot that sits in the leather. Looks like a regular saddle stitch but won't pull out as easily if the thread breaks.
Click to expand...

Well, Jo started out making saddles so she should know. Maybe it was a saddle maker that came up with the double-stitch?
 
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