My daughter is in need of a new pair of spur straps for use in her horseback riding. Instead of buying a new set, I decided to try my hand at making her a pair.

I used a borrowed pair of spur straps and an old cereal box to make a cardboard template. I then found a scrap of leather that would match her boots pretty well. I used the cardboard template to trace the pattern onto the leather, and used an Xacto knife to cut the pieces out. I then stuck the matching pieces of leather together with some double sided tape and sanded them smooth using my Homemade Belt Grinder. Any method of sanding would work just fine but I like using the belt grinder.

With the edges sanded smooth, I beveled the edges and burnished them with a wooden slicker. Next, its time to punch the holes for the hardware. I used a very inexpensive rotary punch for most of the holes, and an oblong punch for the buckle keeper. At this point the straps could be assembled, but I decided to add a decorative stitch line around them using a contrasting thread color. I used a 5mm stitching chisel to punch around the edge then hand stitched the cream thread using a saddle stitch. It was at this point I should have stopped, and assembled the straps. Not knowing this leather better, I decided to oil the leather with neatsfoot oil. After letting the oil soak in overnight, I discovered that the leather became very stretchy and way too soft. Upon further investigation, this leather is treated from the tannery with a lot of oils and wax, so applying too much oil after that, can make it stretch. So, I ended up remaking them.

Once the new pair was done, I assembled the hardware and riveted everything in place. All thats left to do, is install them on the boots and put them to work. I really like how these turned out and although I had so spend a considerable amount of time remaking these, I’m glad to have learned something new about different types of leather.

Thanks for stopping by and check out the build video below.

— Affiliate Links to Products Used —
5mm Stitching Chisels – https://amzn.to/2ZYLe57
.8mm Cream Waxed Thread – https://amzn.to/3o1IWur
John James #18 Saddlers Harness Needles – https://amzn.to/3qciml2
Xacto Knife – https://amzn.to/3mLJHZk
Tack Hammer – https://amzn.to/3GYjK0u

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