I'm A Leather Expert

[bullhead]

Bwahahahahha not really, in fact, my total experience consists of this Circle K holster and the extreme luck that just somehow occurred. All I wanted was a black holster, which wasnt cheap or quick, not to mention, barely possible. All this had me thinking of making one and led me here. I decided to just buy this one, which was shiny brown. Today: I thought, what the heck get out the acetone and really clean her up. After half a roll of paper towels, I get out the Kiwi black shoe die and this is the result Without spending another six or seven hours on the net, I thought I would just ask the experts concerning what happened. I was wondering exactly what my dieing procedure would be called. I mostly want to know what to do next, to coat the surface. It looks shinier than would appear, but I am guessing that it is really not fit to be worn or leave the house until protected. I was about to spray it down with enamel clear coat.

You guys have a stellar reputation and the best smilies EVA

[Kcinnick]

Buff until no more black will come off on a soft cloth and put a coat of Kiwi Neutral Shoe Polish since you are taking the frugal route.

[bullhead]

Buff until no more black will come off on a soft cloth and put a coat of Kiwi Neutral Shoe Polish since you are taking the frugal route.

Is there another way?

[BEARDOG]

Looks good, I use Resolene over most of my spirit based dyed holsters, it is a clear,flexible acrylic finish...I'm not sure if it would make the KIWI come off???

Thinking shoe dye, I might try shoe a product called sno seal (I have read of other guys using this on holsters) or just do a wax/polish like suggested above. Tandy sells lots of other finish choices as well.

Edited December 11, 2011 by BEARDOG

[bullhead]

I am wondering if this is spirit based dye because the label said to rinse the applicator with water to store it.

[Kcinnick]

I am wondering if this is spirit based dye because the label said to rinse the applicator with water to store it.

Doesn't really matter at this point. No matter what dye it is, you want to get the excess off (buffing until the color doesn't come off) and seal it with an acrylic or wax product (The resolene, wax based product (Kiwi neutral, johnson Paste.)

I suggested the Kiwi even though its not what I use because you didn't seem to be a leather worker or aspiring leather worker and its a readily available product that will work for you application.

[bullhead]

Well being out of kiwi wax, I brushed on a watered down Mop n Glo mix. This was followed down by a wipe down with a paper towel. Before this, I rubbed the holster with a paper towel. Niether, before the M n G, or after, gave up any dye. There was barely a hint of dye on the paper and I am thrilled. The large amount of acetone did wonders. I believe.

[TwinOaks]

You missed an important step, I'm afraid.

Hosing down the leather with acetone, regardless of what you're trying to get OFF of it, will severely dry out the leather. Leather is so very durable because of the oils and tallows (fatty waxes) that keep the fibers pliable. After cleaning it with acetone, you've probably stripped a good bit of that out. You really needed to oil the leather (neatsfoot, et al., or EVO) and let it normalize for 24 hrs to condition the leather before applying the finish. I'm not sure if you will be able to oil through the finish or not, but it's worth a try. If the oil doesn't penetrate the finish, and you haven't treated the interior of the holster, you might still be able to condition it by applying it sparingly to the inside of the holster. You could start with a small brush and apply ONLY 1 light coat. The trick to oiling leather is to stop 2-3 coats before you think it's had enough. Over application of the oil will leave the leather too soft, and it will bleed the oil out over time....which generally gets on everything you don't want covered in oil.

Things to look for to see if you've stripped the essential oils out of it is to bend a section and see if you have cracks showing up. If you do have cracks when bent, it's dried out. Don't put the holster under any stress. Once the leather cracks, you can't really repair that crack, so check an inconspicuous non critical area.

As far as the finish, I suspect that part of the reason the finish looks the way it does is that after the acetone, the leather greedily sucked anything resembling oil or wax back into the fibers. Be aware that getting some conditioning that the leather "likes" better may push some of the dye out, so after conditioning, re-buff it and check.

Incidentally......GP100?

[bullhead]

Well thanks for the advice, Twin oaks. I think that I am glad that it is too late to listen and not do what I have done. The holster appears to be as good as anything that I could have bought, except for the areas that I could not get to. Time well tell, however.

Since you mentioned the danger of acetone, I have recalled reading this discussion, elsewhere, but luckily forgotten. At the time I signed up I was in a marathon session of learning about leather. I learned enough to just buy what I did. I do plan on getting into this hobby in the future, and make a few things, as I am kind of hooked.

The holster is for a Dan Wesson, I don't know why the gun outline shows up so much because it has hardly been holstered at all.

[bullhead]

Oh, there is no sign of cracking at all and i am kinda afraid to do anything else and mess it up.