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That $120 leather sewing awl set I bought was a complete ripoff | Bookbinders - Talk Freely

That $120 leather sewing awl set I bought was a complete ripoff

Picked up a kit from a guy on Etsy who promised it was the same stuff professional binders use. Within three weeks the needle tip snapped off while I was trying to punch through a stack of signatures. The thread that came with it kept fraying and snapping on me too, which just made me mad. I ended up spending another $35 on a single good needle and some real linen thread from a shop in Portland. Now the awl handle is loose and I have to wrap it in rubber bands every time I use it. Has anyone else gotten burned on those flashy tool kits that look good in photos but fall apart? What brand did you switch to that actually held up?

3 comments

3 Comments

elizabethn565mo ago

Oh man, that sucks so bad. I bought a "professional grade" leather kit off Amazon once and the needle bent on like the third stitch. The thread felt like waxed dental floss from the dollar store, no joke. I feel your pain on the handle thing too, I've got a pair of pliers wrapped in electrical tape right now that I use as a makeshift clamp. At least you got some good linen thread out of it, that's a win I guess. Hope the rubber bands hold up better than my janky tape job.

susana665mo ago

Yeah exactly, I had one of those kits where the wax on the thread was like this weird sticky glue that got all over my hands. And the awl handle literally came off in my hand on the first try. At least you got some useable linen out of yours, mine was basically just a scam in a box.

luna8915mo ago

I mean honestly are we really acting like a bent needle is the end of the world here? I've been using the same cheap awl from a hardware store for like five years and it's never given me trouble. You probably just got a dud or maybe the leather was too thick for that kind of needle. As for the pliers with tape, I've seen people use way jankier stuff that works just fine so I don't think it's that deep. The rubber bands will probably hold up better than you think unless you're doing some serious heavy duty stitching. People get way too worked up over tools that are basically just meant to get the job done.