Stamps and leather

Community Laser Talk
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Hello, friends,

I’d like to make a contribution on the topic of stamps and leather.

I work with leather occasionally. Stamping leather is a fairly old, if not archaic, technique. If you have a laser (for working with leather, I recommend a two-diode laser, at least 10 W total), in addition to cutting the pieces of your project, you can engrave all kinds of images into the leather.

Leather is a fairly diverse material in terms of behavior, as it can come from different animals with different characteristics. There are also different tanning techniques (chrome, vegetable, and smoked), but the main characteristic to consider when printing images on it is moisture. Very dry leather is not ideal for making leather goods, as it will crack, break, and damage the leather item (wallet, belt, jacket, purse, etc.). To make leather goods, the leather must have a certain moisture content, which can vary between 10% and 25%, and which requires maintenance with products that nourish the leather (horse grease, for example; there are also other more technical and specific products depending on the type of tanning and leather) if we want the leather item to last. Therefore, the images we engrave on the leather must be done with low laser light intensity. They must be light scratches, just enough so that the images are visible and do not break the leather due to overdrying it with the laser light.

Humidity is an obstacle to printing images on leather and limits grayscale. Although not all projects require grayscale (for example, text and spot colors in general, although with a laser, we can only use a single spot color), there is software like LightBurn that has tools to convert grayscale images into engravings. Grayscale is imitated with an artistic technique called “Pointillism.” (It’s an artistic movement based on making dots on paper or canvas, primarily of a single color. The more dots are close together, the darker a shadow appears, and the greater the distance between them, the lighter the shadow will be.) This engraving technique helps overcome the difficulty of creating grayscale images with the leather’s humidity.

The only drawback to working with leather with a laser is the unpleasant odor, but we can minimize it by using lasers encapsulated in boxes, with smoke extraction systems to extract the smoke to the outside, or even passing it through a carbon filter first.

In short, it’s much cheaper and offers many more creative possibilities to engrave leather with a laser rather than using stamps.

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I do not laser leather, but I read there are two types of tanning processes. One dangerous for lasers and one just smelly. I think it is the difference between metallic and vegetable tanning. I am not an authority, but I think this is worth researching.

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Leather Tanning Laser Safety

The leather tanning process that is safe for laser cutting is typically veg-tanned leather. Veg-tanned leather is processed with tree tannins and is generally stiffer than chrome-tanned leather, making it safe to use in a laser cutter.
Chrome-tanned leather, on the other hand, is processed with chromium and is more complicated. While some sources claim that trivalent chromium used in modern chrome-tanning is safer and can be laser-cut, many still advise against it due to potential health concerns and the release of harmful gases.

Veg-tanned leather is best for laser cutting because it does not release dangerous gases and is less likely to cause damage to the laser cutter. However, it may produce a terrible smell during the cutting process.

For laser engraving, chrome-tanned leather can be used, but it cannot be cut with a laser. Instead, you can score the cut lines while engraving your design and then follow the scored lines with scissors or a rotary cutter.

In summary, veg-tanned leather is the recommended type for laser cutting due to its safety and compatibility with laser cutters.

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Thanks @Pete.IRL for the contribution. Perhaps I missed completing my post.

I work with vegetable-tanned leather for ethical and environmental reasons. Vegetable tanning is more environmentally friendly, as it produces little waste compared to chrome tanning, which also produces very dangerous waste for human health and highly polluting for the environment.
The laser I use has a fume extraction system, and I usually wear protective masks.

I wanted to expand my knowledge on the subject and asked ChatGPT about it. I’ll leave the link for you to check out.

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Hi Albert
I also asked the search engine for the info I posted.
I think this conversation about leather comes up on a regular basis and serves as a good reminder for enthusiasts that safety and ecology are very important.

I have been asked by a friend who attends markets and events with his own products, if I could produce some lasered leather items and I will be happy to do so once I’m up and running.

I think there are quite a few artisans producing leather goods here in Ireland and I’m hoping they can supply almost/ finished items that I can add value to using bespoke engraving.

It will be good to know where the products are from and how they have been manufactured.

The work I have seen so far here on the forum has been of a high standard and there should be some info and examples available in previous conversations.

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Hi, @Pete.IRL

Yes, forums are indeed a great way to exchange information and learn from other perspectives.

Regarding examples of laser-enhanced leather craftsmanship, here’s a link to a video of the last custom wallet I made, a few months ago. It might help inspire you, or even help you see how I create a custom wallet. Maybe you can use some ideas. The video is subtitled; select your language to read it.

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That is real craftsmanship 100% …and the next time you upload a video I’ll grab some popcorn before watching.

Very well done Albert.

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