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Adventures in Pocket Watch Lanyard Making

  1. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers Apr 26, 2020

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    Hello all! To say I am self-taught would be disingenuous. I owe so much to all the enthusiasts and educators here and on YouTube that have built both my interest and capacity to work with leather. On OF especially, thanks to @Duracuir1 for starting the Adventures in Strap Making thread that built my interest in leatherwork to the point that I finally decided to pick up some tools and try out a new hobby.

    The journey begins when I wanted a pocket watch lanyard but none of the ones I saw seemed quite right. I set out to designing one that had a few features I was after: for safety, it should be detachable from the belt loop; for convenience of switching between pocket watches, it should easily be able to put on a watch and take one off; and, it should have a classic look that is inline with what those gorgeous pocket watches deserve.

    Okay, on to the photos! I start with breaking down vegetable tanned 3mil sheepskin

    PW2.jpg

    Then they are cut, dyed and a top coat is applied. Brown dye is frustratingly difficult vs a very forgiving black dye.

    PW1.jpg

    The mystery braid is then is woven in - note that this is all still one continuous piece of leather. The button studs and keepers are then installed

    PW3.jpg
    PW4.jpg

    So I am happy to now have the lanyard that I have been looking for. I offered to send one to @Canuck for his feedback on the design, and he kindly counter-offered and became my first customer – a true gentleman. Thanks Canuck also for the great feedback. I would value the feedback of others as well on the design or features, and what colours you currently have or would want.

    Feel free to PM me if these are something that you are looking for too. Please jump in to this thread so we can share what others are doing with pocket watch lanyards. Though I fear that I might not have a lot of company in this niche.
     
  2. Canuck Apr 26, 2020

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    @DaveK ,

    Yesterday (Saturday) I decided to go through my 1952 model 1623, 16-size Waltham Vanguard pocket watch in preparation for a long term accuracy test. Finished tuning it Sunday. It is ready and waiting for the “mystery braid” lanyard that Dave is making for me. He is also making one for a local collector friend of mine. Looking forward to receiving mine.

    The watch:

    7929F8C5-C800-4A7B-AA05-CCFFC7FC755B.jpeg
     
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  3. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers Apr 27, 2020

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    Looking forward to the results of the accuracy test ::popcorn::

    a Canadian railroader is certainly on my wish list, thanks for sharing your great examples!
     
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  4. Canuck Apr 28, 2020

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    @DaveK . This morning (Tuesday). 48 hours since it was set to the second. No detectable variation. Running 12 hours face up, and 12 hours in the pocket. And it is 68 years old, but hasn’t been used for even one year in those 68.
     
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  5. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers Apr 28, 2020

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    :thumbsup:
     
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  6. Canuck Apr 29, 2020

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    Four seconds slow in 72-hours. Regulation due.
     
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  7. Amg786s May 2, 2020

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    Looks great. Maybe match some of the hardware to the case material if possible I.e. those studs could be in steel or brass. Would add that extra bit of colour to the dark tone of the leather
     
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  8. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers May 2, 2020

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    Thx! There is a nice gun metal available. Some contrast would be nice
     
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  9. Canuck May 2, 2020

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    My Waltham awaits my lanyard. Serviced one week ago (25th), minor adjustment And regulation on 26th and re-set. Carried since then. Rate has varied between 4 seconds slow, to 1 second fast as we speak. In its day, railroad standard watches had to run within 30 seconds per week. Mine is well within limits!

    88314CDA-450C-4FD0-8DDF-65AB697C9DE2.jpeg
     
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  10. Canuck May 4, 2020

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    Well, as of this morning, it has been 8 days since last set. Time has varied between 4 seconds slow, and (as of this morning), 3 seconds fast. It wasn’t carried over the week end as I was heavily involved in working in the yard. Return to 12 hours a day in the pocket again, as of today (Monday).
     
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  11. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers May 9, 2020

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    @Canuck, your pocket watch lanyard is off in the mail to you! I'll PM you the tracking info. I think that the brown version you asked for is stunning. Thanks in advance for your feedback

    Brn 1.JPG

    Again, thanks to OF for the motivation. So, it turns out that I enjoy making these. I want to keep this thread interest based and crafty, so a FS thread will be set up for sale inquiry conversations, or PM me.
     
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  12. Canuck May 9, 2020

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    @DaveK ,

    Thanks for the update. The 68 year old grade 1623 Waltham Vanguard eagerly awaiting the chance to doff its bootlace lanyard when the results of your craftsmanship arrive. My friend eagerly awaits his as well. Pictures forthcoming when the watch and lanyard are united.
     
  13. Canuck May 14, 2020

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    A momentous day! My lanyard has arrived from @DaveK , and it is on my 68-year-old, 23-jewel, grade 1623 Waltham Vanguard. This lanyard is done using a technique called “Mystery braid” in which the finished lanyard has no stitches, no staples, and no glue. One piece leather. The only stitching is on the leather keepers (loops) that are a safety feature to assure neither the watch end, or the belt end, come undone. Dave has incorporated brass studs at both ends, so when the loops are formed, the “button hole” on the tongue is pressed over the stud to assure a safe attachment. The “keepers” are there for peace of mind. As an aside, the Waltham was last set on April 26, 18 days ago, carried 12 hours daily, and today it is 17 seconds fast. Thank you so much David. I love it! F4AA8D81-EAB7-41B4-957E-B6A66F445BD7.jpeg
     
  14. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers May 14, 2020

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    Oh boy, that’s handsome. They look great together :thumbsup: And congrats on the regulation of that Waltham.

    Thank you for the great review :)
     
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  15. Canuck May 14, 2020

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    My friend, also a pocket watch collector, picked his lanyard up today. He also is thrilled with @DaveK s handiwork. I am so encouraged that I plan on making it a habit of wearing pocket watches more often. Goodbye to boot laces! I have worn my Waltham now, since April 24, but as soon as I choose another pocket watch and service it, I’ll give the Waltham a rest.
     
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  16. wagudc May 14, 2020

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    Agreed, they look quite nice. I like the color variation in the leather.
     
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  17. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers May 14, 2020

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    ::psy:: I’m so glad he likes it :)
     
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  18. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers May 20, 2020

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    Welcome to some rambling musings about ways to customize a stitching pony. The pony holds your work in a clamp to facilitate easy and consistent hand stitching. I bought this entry-level model when I had no idea what to look for, and I don’t have a workshop to build one. A few days later I realized that I could have made one easily enough anyway. The pricier models can come with leather protectors on the clamp (to protect your work from being marked by the rigid wood surface of the clamp). They also have a better & more useful clamp-release mechanism. I figured that addressing the lack of leather protectors on the clamp was going to be an important first project for me. A few pieces of an old thrift shop belt and there we have it, the clamp will now not mark up my projects

    263EF6F4-7AE8-411B-B620-0D9049199F2E.jpeg

    And then I thought, well, what if an Amazon delivery arrives midway through a sewing project? The solution was to use some contact cement to glue two fridge magnets to the inside of the clamp, providing a handy spot to set aside your needles where they won’t get tangled, knotted or worse while you step away. I also do a lot of weaving, so I figured that a cuphook would work wonderfully inside the clamp (where it will not tangle up the thread) as a sturdy spot to hold my project while weaving is underway.

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    When you live in a small space, modified & multipurpose tools make life a lot easier :thumbsup: Anyone else done any handy multipurpose or modifications?
     
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  19. DaveK Yoda of Yodelers Oct 31, 2020

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    I recently purchased my first skiving knife (a stupid-sharp knife that allows you to thin and taper leather, like where a watch strap’s inside-liner thins towards the springbar) and decided that the first project would be a sheath for it. Stupid-sharp knives deserve a good leather sheath :thumbsup:.

    EF862A7E-3C7C-446A-A482-F945EB6EBC22.jpeg

    Using some 5-7oz vegetable tanned leather, I made the front and back and then glued-in a welt to allow room for the blade to slide in while not cutting through the stitching

    31B001BE-A85B-4CC9-84BD-A6862EAC91D2.jpeg

    Then I added a strap and a snap

    081C19ED-8181-4CBB-8EA7-C445664A6F82.jpeg 58DDEB0B-F19D-4CB9-BECD-500BBFEB4DCC.jpeg 6A4F42D2-CE22-43C6-8C34-A70EFAA16F8C.jpeg

    I got the sheath 95% finished and made a careless error in laying in the stitching line ::facepalm1:: I guess I had my stitching chisel on an angle so I ended up coming out too close to the edge on the far side :cautious:.

    EE05AA94-89CC-451F-AA68-29371D16CF8A.jpeg

    My fist attempt at making a sheath, and after all that work I just ended up with a really nice prototype to make the real one from :oops: . At least I was just using scrap leather and didn’t invest the time to oil the leather and stitch it :coffee: Sure, I could still use it, but I’d see the error every time I picked the knife up.

    Oh well, living and learning :thumbsup:

    happy crafting everyone
     
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  20. Canuck Oct 31, 2020

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    Is the final picture your Mark II model? I don’t see any stitching on this one. Were it me with that tool, I’d still find a way to cut myself, AND dull the keen edge, in spite of the scabbard! Have you diversified your product line beyond the lanyards?