Making the Dieselpunk Leather messenger bag

Follow the build of the Dieselpunk Leather messenger bag in vegtan leather.

This is not a "how to" video, but a "how I" video ;)
The leather is 2,5mm thick vegtan leather that I dye by hand using Fiebing's Oil Dye in dark brown.
All pieces are saddle-stitched by hand.

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I make leather products in my spare time, mostly bags, backpacks and small items like wallets and card-holders. I am still learning a ton every time I take on a new project and always appreciate feedback on my creations.
For the moment I don't take orders as I like to spend too many hours getting the finished product as good as I can : this means that if I were to sell these bags, the selling price would be way more than the bags are worth due to the hours of work involved.

As always, do let me know what you think of this creation and this video. If you have any tips or comments about the techniques used, please let me know by dropping a comment below this video :)

[leighbaragwanath]

G’day James, just a quick comment re stitching the bags straps on the flap. The horizontal stitches that you have done will over time wear as a hinge point & fatigue etc. You would be far better off just making three vertical stitch lines or placing a rivet back from the edge if this makes sense to you. Well done on you video & I did appreciate you your candid honesty in the commentary. Looking forward to your next project.

[duanegroomes]

Love the stretch marks, most unique character in any project.

[macswanton]

Hard learned lessons tend to stick, even if you get a do-over occasionally. I admire your presentation style, as well as your work ethic, and always watch for your next upload. Cheers!

[htchtc]

Very nice bag. Thanks for sharing. The way you mad seams by adding that thin strip of leather gave me some inspiration as I have been wondering what kind of a seam I'd like to meke for a leather bag.

[patriciacalvinho]

James, you're just gifted. your works are perfect.. I love them

[marktaylor]

Beautiful bag and thanks for your honest assessment of your own work. Every leather project I make, there are small things wrong with it that I might do differently another time, but it really adds character to your own work. Take care.

[deej]

At the end of a project I use snoseal. Heat the item with a blow dryer and rub it. It soaks into the leather and helps waterproof it. When I started leather work they didn't have diamond punches for stitching. The awl is tough to learn but I still use it for something's. Don't learn on nice items unless you don't mind blood stains from pricked fingers.

[sailorjohnboy]

Dyeing leather in the living room? Gutsy move man, either you are single or the man of your castle. :D Great video, keep it up! 👍

[CantrellLeatherGoods]

Great video! Those imperfections in the leather are gorgeous. I’m crazy about DieselPunks channel and his patterns are so freaking cool. This is awesome that one of my favorite channels is featuring another of my favorite channels. You did amazing!

[marqbarq]

I finished that bag last week. His patterns are great.

[rozinant]

I Feel your pain on the stitching. I too make NiteKore bags using a saddle stitch which I think looks better as well. The reason the pieces do not line up is because, as designed, the holes are set in farther from the edge of the leather then what most people set their grooving tool at. You are wise to start in the middle to begin to get this to line up, but the side gusset will always come out longer. To correct this, punch the holes in the large piece first and count every hole! I actually make little copper tags to place every 25 holes so I don't lose track. Then you can prepare your custom gusset, start with a piece longer than you need and then punch with the exact number of holes required. As long as you have the same number of holes in each piece it will work out!

[TheAtarashiiKaze]

I liked the polish you made. Good on you sir!

[igotatan]

A total work of Art, Before the resew... A simple pully I found out is a great "Slicker" for the tapered, dyed straps, and endings...of course after a sanding. Very Fine work IMHO Sir.
May I suggest a RFID Liner, for your Leather, hand made card holder.

[redwolf]

Great vid. Total beginner myself, recently started leather working and finding bevelling difficult. Also need to learn how to sew leather.

[erikgautebaklid]

That whetstone looks like a 1200 grit höfftech Diamond like I have 😊

[bazlur-Vancouver]

What size and type of Crimson hide pricking Iron you use here?

[ulianovacraft]

Классная работа! А что за крем вы нанесли на готовое изделие?

[maureenbrown]

Loved the bag, loved the video little concerned that working on that low table is not going to be the best for your well being in the long run. ❤️❤️

[theuktoday]

really useful video thank you from a learner leather goods maker.

[saifulizhan]

You should hold the gusset with needles/ small wire before stitching so that you would not lose track on the stitching holes.