Oh what a feeling! :-)
A new leather cover on the helm has me in stitches...
Beautiful Helen organised the leather for me and my mate Bruce some expertise and the thread.
I thought it'll be pretty straight forward and quick, but a set of strong hands is required to get the leather nice and snug so I had to do it in stages. My old sailmakers hands aren't what they used to be, but surprising myself I still got my eye in when it comes to hand sewing.
Thread is a braid that will last quiet a while and the leather is at a guess around the 3-4oz mark. A rough hide that gives nice grip and feel and will keep our hands warm on those colder nights when touching cold wet steel is the last thing you want to wrap your hands around,.. Hot cup of coffee would be on the other end of that scale!
Using a sort of locking stitch that interlocks under the leather seam out of sight, it is a good way to keep tension on the thread. Repeated re-working the thread to tighten the leather around the steel tube of the wheel was much easier on my hands once I put on a sailing glove. (shame I didn't realise this till the last few hours of the job)
All up it took maybe 10-12 hours and possibly more. It was a tedious job as positioning the wheel in a comfortable position was the biggest problem, hence breaking it up into small stages was the go for me. Early on I took a couple of days off in between sections to rest the old digits, but guess I toughened up in the end. LoL
Another "Turks Head" knot to mark the centre of the rudder/wheel and the job is done!
I'm very happy with this outcome, the wheel not only feels, but looks fantastic and we all know Bela Vida is worth it. Working with leather and hand stitching it is a very personalised final finish that is very rewarding and unique. Not to mention the little blood spots that are now on the leather after I pricked myself with the needle quiet a few times. Very personalised indeed! :-)
Good sailings!
