The Mess

[GunClick Rick]

 

I'm finishing up my arrowhead collection shadow box,then gonna start on the lace.This is the one ACE cut for me,he said if i screw it up to bad he made an extra pattern.Thanks ACE..How do ya get the needle to stay on the leather lace?It's 1/8th lace.Ace did not sticth it ,just punched it and tacked it together so i could finish it up.What size needle should i use?I know the one in the pic is not right...
Any sugestyuns

[Gun Butcher]

Rick you need a lacing needle.  There are two types- a flat needle or a round one with a hole in the end to screw the lace into.
there might be other styles but those are the two most common.

[Gun Butcher]

  Here you go Rick, this is the most commonly used lacing needle.  As you can see it is flat and split with two little prongs to hold the lace.  Hope this helps

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Howdy Rick

      Like Gun Butcher said, this is what I use to do my lacing, they call it a two prong lacing needle, you need to prep. the tip of your lacing first, it needs to be skived down a little , ( made thinner ) and then insert the tip of lacing into the center of the split in the needle, then squeeze it tight with pliers, I use needle nose,  these needles are great when using a lacing /pronging chisel, they also sell round needles, that have the center removed, these can be used on round punched holes, and they hold your lacing fairly well, they're called Perma -Loc here's a link, they come in different sizes. It wouldn't hurt to pick up a cheap book on lacing, this will walk you through the process, then when you have mastered that you can go for the fancy stuff.  http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/home/department/Lacing/1193-01.aspx?feature=Product_29


                                      Hope this helped

                                    tEN wOLVES 

[GunClick Rick]

Well that clears things up a bit GB,THANK YOU! Dang right that helps...Who'd a thunk it..

[GunClick Rick]

Thanks TW helps alot. I remembered there is a roping range not to far from here and a feller that does saddle repair,gonna run over tommorrow and see what he has.Circle (N) Ranch

[Gun Butcher]

  Its worth a try ,there are a lot of saddles with laced edges around.

[Gun Butcher]

  Thanks for the link TW, I have one of those perma-loc needles around here somewhere but I couldn't find it.

Maybe TW or Kid Terico can shed some light on the problem of breaking your lace at the needle to often

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

 Thanks for the link TW, I have one of those perma-loc needles around here somewhere but I couldn't find it.

Maybe TW or Kid Terico can shed some light on the problem of breaking your lace at the needle to often

  GB, and Rick, the end of the lace needs to be tapered, so that it will fit nicely in between the two prong needle, but it also needs to be skived 5/8" or so, so that it will fit flatly between the needle, then you need to close the end up by pinching it closed with needle nose pliers, I also use a lacing fid, sort of like a sewing awl, but for lacing, you need to use the right size one for this, after punching my  slits, I open up the slits a little with the fid, I  also rub my needle across my bees wax every once in a while, this helps greatly with pulling the lace through.  http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/home/department/Tools/3056-00.aspx?feature=Product_165

                                           Ten Wolves  

[GunClick Rick]

Well this gives me a hace of a good start and saves me some mistakes.Cut the lace pointy like and flush,rub on bees wax to lube the needle.Thumbs up to you fellers

[Gun Butcher]

Thanks TW, I never thought of waxing the needle. I have always just used the pliers to pull the lace through and thus the problem of breaking 

[JD Alan]

I spoke with Kid Terico (a good guy) on the phone about his lacing, and he doesn't use a needle. He said he makes sure the lace is cut to a fine point, the pokes it through the holes by hand, pulling the lace the rest of the way through with pliers. He uses the Tandy lacing chisel and the Tandy fid. Now he can weigh in on this and tell you any fine points, or correct what I've said. Looking at some of his rigs, he has the lacing technique down pat!

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Thanks TW, I never thought of waxing the needle. I have always just used the pliers to pull the lace through and thus the problem of breaking  

    GB, using the two prong lacing needle makes lacing a breeze, you just need to prep, before you start, after I use the chisels I then open the slits a little more with the fid, draw my needle over my bees wax every few slits, these things make  pushing and pulling the needle through the leather much easier, like JD was pointing out, if you want to use a hole punch instead of a chisel, you can do as KT does and make a narrow pointed end and just put it through the hole and pull it all the way through, using a slit or chisel gives you a much more sealed hole, but this is a matter of what you're doing and how you want it to look, it's nice to have options. Heres a picture of the lacing done with a chisel and fid on 8/9 ounce leather, both sides are cemented together, and then after putting in a stitch line using a stitch line groover, I  punched my holes, if you're going to lace a piece that is really thick, using the chisel becomes a little too hard to use, you would be better off to drill your holes, this is true where there is a thick welt in a holster or knife sheath, you can still use the chisel and fid , but it will be harder to get through the leather, and in some cases not worth it. IMHO

  Maybe Kid Terico will chime in here, he has surely, done a lot of lacing.  


                         Regards

                    tEN wOLVES  

[GunClick Rick]

Poor feller don't know the diffrence tween lead and wood,well bless his heart anyway..

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Poor feller don't know the diffrence tween lead and wood,well bless his heart anyway..

     Rick, that's a last bullet in, bullet pusher, used for lever actions, it's some times hard to get that last bullet in far enough, this pusher allows you to get it in, when I load my lever action, I use the next bullet to push the one before it in, which works fine, but when you get to the last bullet in, it will some times hang up, using a pusher solves the problem.

                                   Now you know why I carry loaded wood


                                             Regards

                                       tEN wOLVES 

[GunClick Rick]

I ain't gonna say it.. i'm off to the saddle shop...That is a dang good idea TW,i believe i'll make me one,thanks.My thumb is sore by the time i get my last bullet in..

[Kid Terico]

I do it just like JD Said except I use a I use a needle nose and not a pliers. TW if I am going through a very thick piece 1/2 " I will even use small screwdriver the size  of the slot to open it more to get the lace in. If u make it a little to wide use your shoe hammer to pound it down . It will close nicely. This what works foe me. TW your right sometimes its a lot of work. Depends how bad u want it.  KT

[Curley Cole]

Back when I was doing some leather work, I also would keep a bar of soap sitting around....Ivory used to work best. And every now and then stick the needle into the soap, and gives it a good slickering....

just a tip from a used to be....

curley

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

I do it just like JD Said except I use a I use a needle nose and not a pliers. TW if I am going through a very thick piece 1/2 " I will even use small screwdriver the size  of the slot to open it more to get the lace in. If u make it a little to wide use your shoe hammer to pound it down . It will close nicely. This what works foe me. TW your right sometimes its a lot of work. Depends how bad u want it.  KT

        KT, I was referring to using the lacing chisel, on too thick a seam, as being a lot of work and not worth it, when using a hole punch, it is a whole lot easier to get through thick leather and therefore more user friendly, sorry if I didn't word that right.


                                             tEN wOLVES 

[Kid Terico]

TW You probley did say it right. . I misread . MY BAD. KT