Questions from a Rookie

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Mar 20, 2019
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I've run into a problem, I don't know how to do this . As any tradesman, I've just riveted leather things together. Rivets use to be a hardware store item. There, you know my level of expertise . I have rehabbing some old axes, one was a double bit, you just can't go to the hardware store to buy a sheath for a double bit so I went to saddle maker/repair and bought some leather. He showed me his one piece pattern and sold me some heavy split grain. His pattern had two folds and a flap that snap closed. It was easy enough to do, with mink oil and heat gun, I was extremely pleased. Now for the second double bit axe I went to him again with my $40 figuring to get enough for a broad axe as well. This time he sold me heavy full grain leather,.150 " 9 or 10 oz ?? I had been to Tandy Leather and know what a great deal he gave me. But this stuff doesn't fold, I barely folded the split grain. His pattern wasn't going to work. So instead I thought to make a sheath like an envelop, drop it in, and close it with straps.

Here is the problem , with this heavy leather I'll have to shape the bottom like my axe eye. I need a shaped filler strip to go between the two pieces . Can I glue leather together, then grind/sand it to shape? What type of glue, I have PVA(carpenters glue), poly urethane(Gorilla glue) and epoxy. Or should I use wood ? THX
 
You may have to get the leather wet to wet form it. Glue should probably be something like barge cement. And the sheath should be sewn or riveted to hold it together when your done. Good luck with your project.
 
When I make Sheaths or Belts out of 9-10 oz. in particular, I use a sciving blade to remove enough leather at the fold. Tandy has videos on their website and YouTube about the use of their tools. Then when I make the fold I wet the leather and use a weight and/or a clamp to set the fold. Good Luck!
 
Thanks for the replies.

I plan on using copper rivets, I just bought my third box, err, bag now. Crude, even if I knew how to post photos, I surely wouldn't be posting my leather work! One of my hobbies is woodworking, I have a shop. Today at the fleamarket rust hunt I found another double bit and a adze. The adze is a prize, as rough as it is, the first I've ever seen in the wild. More sheaths.
 
If you like the original pattern you have and want to use the heavier veg tan, just case it. Hold your leather underwater until the bubbles stop coming out. Then wrap your wet leather in a towel or wool blanket and leave overnight. Next morning your leather will be very pliable. You will be able to shape it however you want to. It will also be much easier to cut. I would suggest cutting, shaping and fitting while your leather is in this pliable state. Let it dry before any riveting. If ya need to do any glueing and you are a wood worker get ya some Weldwood in the green can. Works great on leather, its what I use.

The shaped fillers in your plan B are called welts. Yes leather can be glued together and sanded to get what you are trying to accomplish there. I use a wedge shaped welt on a scoped rifle scabbard to keep it a little more open on the top side for the scope. Its a short little wedge welt maybe only 1.5" long.

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I use a specialized leather tool called a push skiver for this but it can be sanded. I have a 6x48 set up with a 120 grit ceramic belt for sanding leather. I was working on some welts for sheaths yesterday and I do have one knife I taper the welt for. Couple of the welts had hard spot in them and ended up sanding them instead of tapering with the push skiver.

Hope this helps.
 
Nice work. Is that a Browning BLR ? It's got good wood. I like the use of contrasting colour for the straps, mind if I copy that !

Is the ceramic belt necessary for leather or will the plain brown aluminum oxide do for the 6x48. I know I'll have to splurge on a couple grits of blue ones when I do the adze, the A/O just dull too fast on metal. It has some deep pits .I've restored wood planes, one plane ,one belt and that's soft cast iron bottoms. I do have wood chisels. I've honed my sharpening skills restoring old chisels. You can groan now.

Yeah, I'll do my two piece pattern, it's uses less leather . So far I need:
Barge cement
Push skiver

THX
 
Nice work. Is that a Browning BLR ? It's got good wood. I like the use of contrasting colour for the straps, mind if I copy that !

Is the ceramic belt necessary for leather or will the plain brown aluminum oxide do for the 6x48. I know I'll have to splurge on a couple grits of blue ones when I do the adze, the A/O just dull too fast on metal. It has some deep pits .I've restored wood planes, one plane ,one belt and that's soft cast iron bottoms. I do have wood chisels. I've honed my sharpening skills restoring old chisels. You can groan now.

Yeah, I'll do my two piece pattern, it's uses less leather . So far I need:
Barge cement
Push skiver

THX


Yeah a BLR in .243, Leupold compact 3x9 gold ring. It does really have nice wood for a factory job and a great rifle. No the ceramic belt is not necessary but for $6 to $7 bucks it lasts a very long time, even at my production levels. Stay away from any of the colored belts they tend to discolor leather. A push skiver is basically a much thinner and wider wood chisel.
 
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