Leathersmith​/Archer

Cutting Leather

 

Leather is tough. That’s why we make shoes and armor out of it. Therefore it is logical that it is also very tough to cut. So how do we successfully cut leather without cutting ourselves? Let’s remember we are ALL covered in leather just waiting to be tanned (a little cordwainer’s humor there!).

 

First and foremost, MARK YOUR LEATHER ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE PROJECT. Usually this is the rough side. Sharpies work just fine for this purpose. There are several tools on the market for leather cutting, leather shears and very heavy duty scissors. One kind looks just like blunt nosed scissors. Another type is similar but has small serrations on the cutting blades. These serrations make cutting thick leather easier as the serrations grab the leather preventing the cutting edges from forcing the shears backwards. There are other heavy duty scissors on the market and most will work for leather up to about 4 – 5 ounce. Above that you will need the “official” leather shears or a knife which is next.

 

A head knife is a half round knife with a straight handle. When you cut with this knife you draw towards yourself cutting with one of the edges. Other knifes have slight hooks to them. Box openers also work well. One true fact about cutting leather, the tool must be very sharp. If you are using a knife, sharpen it as best you can then finish it off by stropping it on a piece of leather with some jeweler’s rouge worked into it. If your cutting tools are dull you will mess up your cut. If using a knife you will get your best results by drawing the knife towards you. This also affords the best control of the blade.

 

Lay out your pattern on the backside of the leather. Backside would be the inside of the project. Trace around it with the sharpie. I’ve seen people use ball point pens and while they work you will get some ink residue that will smear over the project. You can count on that happening. As leather isn’t cheap, I try a few arrangements before I settle on one and mark it. I’m trying to economize the wasted leather. Also check to be sure that the finish side of the project will not have a brand, tick mark, or fence scratch mark right in the middle of it.

 

If you are cutting out of a large piece of leather, i.e. an entire side, I like to rough out the piece I’m going for. That way I have a smaller piece I can do the finish cuts on.

 

Now a few tips on cutting. Let’s assume you are using leather shears. For example purposes, think of a piece of paper with a square marked on it. Your objective is to cut out the square leaving a piece of paper with a square hole in the middle. If you just cut down to the corner in one direction then down the other side to finish the cut you will end up with small cuts extending beyond the edge of your cut. If there is stress on this point, ultimately the leather will rip. Instead punch a small hole right in the corner. Then cut down both edges finishing inside the small hole you punched. Now you have a corner that will not rip.

 

For cutting long straight edges, keep your eye on the line ahead of where you are cutting. Be sure to cut on a surface that can support the entire piece of leather you are cutting from and the piece you are cutting off. Without the support you have to juggle two pieces of leather and it will cause a wavy cut line.

 

If you are using shears with the serrations on the blades be very careful cutting around inside radiuses, i.e. cutting a circle out of the middle of a piece of leather. If you are not careful the serrations will leave scratch marks on your project.

 

If cutting thick leather with a knife or box cutter, it may take two or more passes to cut all the way through the leather. If you are cutting along a straight edge, i.e. a metal yard stick, it serves as a guide and allows you to make multiple passes over the same cut.

 

Now for straps and belts from a side or shoulder there is a special tool on the market that is worth its weight in gold. It’s called a Strap Cutter, I know, go figure! You simply adjust for the thickness of leather you are cutting and the width of the cut. Then you start the cut and keep a straight edge along one side of the cutter as you draw it down the original piece. Very nice, clean edged, straight belts strips or straps. This tool works really well on veg tanned leathers about 3 – 4 ounce up to about 8 – 10. Above 10 ounce it is really hard to get the strap cutter through the leather. I use a jig saw for armor leather which is any where from 10 to 20 ounce.

 

If you are cutting straps or strips from leather that is less than 3 ounce or deer, elk or furniture leather, any leather that is soft, there is another tool called the Aussy cutter. It only cuts up to about a ¾ inch wide strip but it fits over your finger and allows you to use both hands to feed the leather through the cutter for nice strips.

 

There is another type of strip cutter that looks something like a thick pencil with a razor blade in one end faced with slots. You cut a small hole in the center of a piece of leather, then using the tool, cut around the circle from the inside, spiraling around making larger and larger rotations and forming one continuous long piece of leather. Now this piece of leather will naturally want to assume its original shape of a spiral so wrap it around a large round object like a coffee can and leave it for a few days. When you come back the strip will have mostly straightened out. There is a story in history of some queen who was bad. She was told she could only have as much land as a hide from a cow could enclose. She made a very long single strip from the cow hide and won herself many acres of land! This tool does the same thing.

 

One final tip for cutting softer leathers. They tend to creep while being cut. It’s generally not a good idea to try to cut two pieces of leather at the same time like you would if making something out of fabric.