10-19-2020, 04:53 AM | #1 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Low-tech tool kits: leather
One of the players in my TL1 fantasy campaign is looking to have her character own a leatherworking tool kit. Consulting GURPS Low-Tech, I see that it lists a "tailor's kit" as suitable for working with cloth or leather.
1. Will the same kit work for both cloth and leather, or do you need two sets of slightly different tools for the two materials? 2. The kit doesn't seem to include tools for producing the leather in the first place. What would go into a tanner's/furrier's kit? Please comment/suggest.
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10-19-2020, 05:14 AM | #2 |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
You should ask the author of Low-Tech. :)
Let's see. I found this how-to guide. Seems you need: 1 large bucket. Some form of scraper - a large knife would probably be fine. Some abrasive to scrape the epidermis off the hide. Leather awl Ropes and a wooden frame A blunt blade or rowing paddle to sleak the hide In addition you will need Lime solution, made from seashells or bone (?) Large amounts of suitable bark (oak or hemlock in the source material) Greenwood to dry the leather Oil to waterproof it You will also need three to nine months, most of will be spent in a tanning solution. So patience would be recommended as well.
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“When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love ...” Marcus Aurelius Last edited by Anders; 10-19-2020 at 05:31 AM. |
10-19-2020, 06:01 AM | #3 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
Yes, well, I believe the author of that chapter of Low-Tech is still active here.
The list of recommended equipment is helpful. Can you suggest a total weight and price?
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10-19-2020, 06:57 AM | #4 |
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
For a leather sewing kit, I'd double or triple cost and weight from the tailor's kit. Similar gear, but more heavy duty.
For a leather-making kit, the tools aren't that complicated. You'll want a set of scrapers of different shapes (at TL1, probably mostly stone but some metal as well; call that $100, 2 lbs.), and stakes (a bunch; $40, 5 lbs.) and rope ($5, 1.5 lbs.) for stretching hides. If you're thinking of a portable kit, this would involved a couple of tubs for soaking operations ($113, 32 lbs.), though leather production often involved fixed installations with purpose-dug pits. Then there are materials, whose costs vary. Leather gets treated with a variety of unpleasant substances which might include wood ash solutions, concentrated urine, alum, and the animal's own brains.
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10-19-2020, 07:34 AM | #5 | |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
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10-19-2020, 07:47 AM | #6 |
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Join Date: Feb 2005
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
You'd need to line it with something (stones? clay?) so that whatever vile solution you were using didn't soak out over the course of several days, but yes, I'm sure that would work.
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I've been making pointlessly shiny things, and I've got some gaming-related stuff as well as 3d printing designs. Buy my Warehouse 23 stuff, dammit! |
10-19-2020, 07:57 AM | #7 |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
Bury a clay pot. It's called a tanning pit.
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“When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love ...” Marcus Aurelius |
10-19-2020, 09:14 AM | #8 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Wellington, NZ
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
If you're not in a hurry, you can oak tan the hides by layering oak (or other suitable tree) bark and hides in a pool and leaving them there for a good long time (months, usually). Hope you didn't need that pond for anything else, though.
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10-19-2020, 09:19 AM | #9 |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
My source said you should change solutions every three months, and that three months is the minimum time.
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10-19-2020, 11:36 AM | #10 | |
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Re: Low-tech tool kits: leather
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