Leather wrap handles

[Matt Beitzel]

Question for the brains trust.  Looking at leather wrapping a wooden core handle.  Should I use Veg tan or is chrome tan ok? I have some deer leather and cow veg tan and some cow chrome tan leather that I could skive down.  In wrapping the handle is PVA OK?   Thanks in advance

[Carlos Lara]

Doesn't really matter what kind of leather it is, should all work ok, depending what you use to glue it. I wouldn't use anything other than hide glue. It has excellent adhesion to wood and leather, and is somewhat reversible if you make a mistake. PVA will stick to wood, but not that well to leather, and it's irreversible. Hide glue has a bit of a learning curve, but if you have a glue pot and a hot plate, it's very easy to use. Just add water and heat, when it's dissolved it's ready to use. I skive the edges so they can fold over cleanly, and have the leather fit the wood well dry, soak the leather, put the hide glue on the wood, then put the leather on wet. You can shape it and form it with your hands until the glue sets. Then give it 24 hours to cure. Once it's cured it's very strong, but you can gently steam or rub a section with hot water until the glue melts if you have to to fix a problem. This takes a while though, takes some elbow grease with hot water. 

 

Usually I get some cotton twine/cord and wrap the handle with that and hide glue first. That makes the leather a bit more comfortable in your hand.

[Alan Longmire]

Here's what you need to know:

 

 

If you're only doing one grip, you don't even need a hot plate or glue pot, an insulated mug of hot water is fine.  Hide glue, though, is a must.