Leather and electric bicycles

[atcspaul]

with the 21mm wrench, tube and other things you want to carry finding the right bag is kinda hard if not imposible. i did leather carving when i was in my was in high school, i am in my mid 50's now, anyway i figured what the heck, to get what i want i will have to make it myself. the bag is for the handle bars, my 21mm wrench, tube,pump, all my tools, a sandwhich and a few cold drinks will fit it in it. the skulls are snaps to keep it closed. the dragon I hand carved. i am really happy with the results. next i will make my battery bag and also i custom seat is in the future. the leather is over 1/8'" thick and should last a lifetime. i don't know about you all but it seemed i was sewing or replacing my canvas bags every time i turned around.

 

[wayover13]

I'm also looking into a battery housing for my bike, so this thread caught my interest. Leather has a lot to commend it. My battery weighs 16 lbs. though, and must hang off a seat back (recumbent design). That would require some pretty heavy leather and well-sewn joints. Some kind of strap/buckle system that's especially carefully crafted would be needed to hang it off the seat frame. I have no experience working leather, though I've done a lot of carpentry and worked a bit with metal. Where do you buy your leather?

 

[atcspaul]

i live on an island in the Caribbean so most everything i order from the states, i got the leather from tandy leather. thier is stores located throughout the usa. here is a link to their website and you can see if store near you https://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/home.aspx

 

[cal3thousand]

Yup. Canvas bags don't last a season on bikes unless they are WELL built.

I like the bag! That is very cool and unique. You should post this in the homemade battery box thread too. (I know it's not a battery box, but plenty will like the inspiration)

 

[muffinman]

amazing! now im curious. how long did it take to make (with and without the dragon)?

 

[Ykick]

My favorite battery bags tend to be thick, heavy leather. Good physical protection and decent fire protection. Plus, when treated artistically, as the fine example above, they look pretty damn cool....

I realize this is a tool bag but similar design would apply to battery sized bags.

 

[atcspaul]

i am doing a battery bag next and plan to put in the bag section. the hide i bought is 9oz leather which is over an 1/8 inch thick, nice heavy duty stuff

time to make one is a few hours a day for about 5 days carving dragon, without the dragon i could probably make one in an afternoon.

 

[muffinman]

and cost of materials? sorry for the 20 questions...

 

[MadRhino]

Leather luggage bag and battery box are planned on my Fatboy build, but I always find myself some excuses to delay.

 

[atcspaul]

and cost of materials? sorry for the 20 questions...

actually next to nothing. the snaps where the most expensive around $5.00 each. the leather only around $6.00. thread and finish lets say a !.00 so well under $20.00.

 

[wayover13]

i am doing a battery bag next and plan to put in the bag section. the hide i bought is 9oz leather which is over an 1/8 inch thick, nice heavy duty stuff

Please post a pic of the battery bag when it's done. Do you carry your battery on a rack? What's the battery's weight? Is it the same thickness leather on both the tool bag and battery bag?

 

[cal3thousand]

and cost of materials? sorry for the 20 questions...

actually next to nothing. the snaps where the most expensive around $5.00 each. the leather only around $6.00. thread and finish lets say a !.00 so well under $20.00.

That is amazing that is costs so little. It's all about the worksmanship

 

[atcspaul]

i am doing a battery bag next and plan to put in the bag section. the hide i bought is 9oz leather which is over an 1/8 inch thick, nice heavy duty stuff

Please post a pic of the battery bag when it's done. Do you carry your battery on a rack? What's the battery's weight? Is it the same thickness leather on both the tool bag and battery bag?

i sure will wayover. my battery is a 48v 15ah lifepo4. its around 17 pounds. i will be carrying it on a rack and yes same weight leather which is 8 to 9 oz and runs a little more then 1/8 inch thick. its heavy duty and could hang a battery in the triangle with the same leather. i bought a pretty large size of leather and can do lots of projects. this saddle here is what made me decide to start doing leather work again, if you have never did any leather work it is a lot like clay when wet and you can mold it anyway you want

 

[muffinman]

if its not too much trouble, would you mind taking some pics of the stitching? how difficult is it to do? i have no experience, but have thought about doing some leather work to make a bag.

 

[atcspaul]

this was the first time i ever stitched like this. all other projects when i was a kid was doing hand stitching. i did the stitching with a tandy sewing awl which was simple to use and did a pretty nice job. the thread is like 6 strand that comes on the awl and is very strong. here is link for an awl. https://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/search/searchresults/1216-00.aspx it also has a video on that link on how it works. check for other sellers on ebay. i think i got mine for around $15.00. its great for repairing canvas bags also.

 

[Willow]

oh yeah! thats beautiful. Love it.

 

[Drunkskunk]

You've inspired me to get back to some old leather projects. Very nice work!

 

[muffinman]

drunkskunk doing leatherwork? pics will be needed, epicness is expected

 

[atcspaul]

finished the battery bag today, inside is the new golden motor 48v 15ah battery

 

[cwah]

Incredible!!

Where can we buy leather for cheap?

 

[The fingers]

I made a guitar strap out of Tandy leather a long time ago. The store near me then closed, unfortunately.

 

[atcspaul]

tandy leather has it all thickness and nice stuff. the leather I used is around 7-8 oz thick which is pretty thick. gives the battery some nice protection and looks nice

 

[maurtis]

Great work Paul! I have been thinking of picking up a handlebar bag for tools and my phone, but making my own sounds fun. Thanks for the inspiration. Google says there is a Tandy Leather store near my work, so I will check it out tomorrow.

 

[atcspaul]

people at the stores are pretty knowledgeable and i am sure will help you out. i got sick of trying to find things the perfect size. not a problem any more

 

[nicobie]

Very nice!