Hey there !
i’m starting to experiment with thin and soft leathers like goatskin (got a few hides from Alran sully splitted down to 0,5mm).
i like how thin the items can be made but i’m having a hard time with getting a clean and consistent stitch on the back, especially on extremely thin areas (like only two layers so 1mm of soft leather).
My guesses :
- thread tension consistency sucks
- such a thin leather can‘t really be as clean as thicker / harder ones
- my tools are not the right ones (but I get great results with them - I tried with 10spI irons)
- my technique sucks - I should try to stitch differently with that leather
- I‘m just too noob to play with that wonderful stuff, go back to you heavyweight vegtan 😅
I precise i’m not casting the stitch on such thin areas.
Options that might help :
- combine with harder hand leathers (and loose the point of using that thin and soft leathers...)
- use folded edges everywhere I can to increase thickness is the areas causing trouble (good plan ?)
- change tools
- stop complaining on a forum and go back practice your stitch
Any experience with that kind of issues ? The result is not terrific but definitely could be much better.
In addition to above suggestions, I have found gently hammering the stitches gets them to look more consistent and uniform. It also helps even out some of my inconsistent tension.
All right here is what I'm getting with a little fine tuning (on approx two layers of goat - total thickness around 0-8-1mm) - that should do for the next projects :
Cast, minimal tension, orange is poly, white is linen, both at 0,35mm.
A similar question was asked via email a few days ago, so I will post my reply:
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'When you pull a thread tight, it always wants to go straight because it wants to find the shortest distance. We know from physics that the shortest distance between to points is a straight line ---------.
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/ An angle stitch comes from where the shape of the leather disrupts this natural inclination because the leather is able to overpower the natural tendency of the thread to straighten. This by being a) thick b) stiff or c) both.
In essence, you are never going to get the same 'zig-zag' look in thin soft leather like lambskin that you are in vegetable tanned cowhide unless you use some kind of backing material like leatherboard etc to stiffen it.'
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You mentioned that you found less tension helped reduce the straightening effect, I can also attest to this from my own experiments.
I will also add that softer threads tend to need less tension to set and conform to the leather better, so if you are using linen, loosen it up in a wax cloth or run it over the edge of the table a few times to make it more supple.
@hubert.lachery you made me laugh at the end with "stop complaining on a forum and go back practice your stitch" !! hahaha
Do you have any picture so we can see how you do it? I guess all this is mainly a matter of practice... my technique also sucks when I have to stitch something nice and thin like Alran goat...!!
On the other hand, what kind of goods are you making currently? something small just to use 10 spi irons? what size of thread?
Just my opinions on your option list:
1) Have you tried to add some thin reinforcement like Salpa, for example?
2) Folded edges would increase thickness but the edges would look more bulky than the center of the article (I guess?).
3) Which tools do you use?
4) All of us are here to learn and exchange experiences and info!
I understand pretty well what you say as I tried with goat skins a few times and I have the same problem. I realised that a good step is to choose the right size for irons and threads (it improves the work quite much), however the other part is just practice + `practice + practice + practice... at some point you might sacrifice a small scrap piece of Alran leather and stitch it completely just to get trained. That is my humble opinion...
Ok that's all! :)