Yukonrookie

Yup definitely

@kgg I couldn’t have said it better. I’m located in the yukon. 650km north of Whitehorse. It’s rough, mountainous bush country. I live in the middle of it with the closest neighbour a looong ways away. Trails out here are either made by myself or animals. It’s a hard life on gear. It’s something I have to always vividly explain for most people to realize that it’s something to constantly consider when choosing the right gear and that wear and tear is at completely different levels here.

What is your opinion of high quality linen thread like, say, a fil a chinois? I’m sure with enough hard use no thread would stand up for eternity, but maybe when hard use is paired with proper care and maintenance? I guess that may answer my question. I’m sure you came across good Lin cable back than too. Interesting, I have heard this since I started the hobby, but I used to be of the belief that dubbin or an natural oil like “pure” beats food oil would do exactly the opposite and protect natural plant or animal based stuff. Thinking that ‘If good for leather it should be good for linen, cotton or flax as well’. I know better now, but my point is that the majority of folks out there still believe this. Now this IS news to me. I’ve been using sno seal on my boots and saddles for ages. Since starting the hobby I’ve even been putting it on sheaths and belts as well, as long as I didn’t stamp much. Making sure I melted it nicely. I don’t think sno seal is only beeswax. Obviously I’m only talking for veg tanned leather, the odd time oil tanned but not chrome tanned. I heard and read that beeswax for chrome tanned is no bueno. Is this correct? I have on occasion used pure mink oil but only on anything where I didn’t mind a “softer” leather. But when I use mink oil, not too much, over the years it softens the leather up too much for my taste. May be just my imagination? Although, I use it a fair bit on my saddles. When it’s supposed to be soft or I want it to become soft, right? For my mountaineering boots especially I found sno seal to be superior to anything else I ever used. I’m talking about good quality triple stitched boots here. They have oil tanned Juchten leather. They’re a completely handmade boot by Hanwag called the “Sepp 100”. Initially pricey boots ($750 US) but they have lasted me 10 years already and been re-soled 3 times. My previous pair lasted me 12 years before I got a new pair, but I now wear them for reall messy work. Mountaineering or riding boots are all I wear and both would be considered work boots for me, as I’m a wilderness guide. My riding boots, usually of the “packer boots” variety, don’t see wear and tear as heavily as my mountain boots. Those will go through hard dry rocky country and plus 30 degrees Celsius one day, swamps and countless creek crossings the next and snow and ice the next day again. Sometimes all in a single day. Plus they get exposed to up to -55 Celsius during winter. I don’t wear them then but they are stored in buildings that aren’t heated when I’m not around for more than a couple days. The boots actually came with 3 vouchers for free re-sole. So my next re-soling will be the 1st one I gotta pay for. The soles for my mountain boots are usually down to 40% life after 2 years. So going with them, while initially sounding expensive, is actually economically sensible. Well put!

Very interesting post. This forum is awesome. To be able to hear first hand, long term experiences from pros about things that the “average” guy, or someone from a very different background would never learn of. My sheaths, holsters, belts and such are constantly exposed to the north Canadian bush. My first saddle will be exposed to tough outdoor use. I suspect that water based stuff won’t be quite up to snuff. It won’t hold up to extensive exposure to water, I know that for sure. The notion that the glue you use is just supposed to bond until it’s sewed, is something I have to get used to. I think that if you’re using glue for something why not use the best you can find. Anyway, I’m still relatively new at all this so I might be talking out of my … here.

Yeah, I think you’re right. I ended up buying a can of Le page heavy duty Cement at the local hardware store on my trip to town. It seems like decent stuff. Time will tell, but it behaves the exact same way as the more expensive ones I used thus far. Just about half the price from the Renia options.

Hey Tastech, thanks for the reply. When compared to I.e. weldwood, barge, masters etc. the difference to Syntic Total, for example, isn’t as big as I thought. At least in Canada. Weldwood is $45,95 and Syntic is $59,95. Still a 14 bucks difference and if I used up a quart bi-weekly, or even less, it’s quite a bit. For me a quart would last me a couple to three months. That said, the likes of Weldwood and barge are easier to get on a regular basis up here. If there’s no real difference between them, for just leather, then they‘ll be my choice after all. Weldwood (red) is especially quick and easy to get for me. Would you say that’d be a good choice?

Thanks for all the replies. I think I will go and give the Syntic Total a try. That’s what was recommended by Renia. If anyone uses it I’d love to hear your feedback, but I will probably go ahead with ordering it soon.

@Digit I do use water based CA as well sometimes (Aqualim315). Just with some projects where I wet mould after assembly, and sewing, I don’t like using it. Also where the item is exposed to moisture and heavy use outdoors on a regular basis I found it not to stand up to snuff. This is also based upon advisement by the one pro leatherworker who I know personally. Some of the sheaths I made so far were easiest to wet mould after assembly. Usually when the knife, especially the hilt, is a bit more on the smaller side. After I glued and stitched I’d just briefly pour water in it and dump it out immediately and place the wrapped knife inside it. Worked great. Of course some sheaths and especially holsters I would weld mold prior to assembly. I found that the water based glue doesn’t stand up well to moisture long after it dried and cured completely. So with sheaths and holsters with a welt the glue will detach all the way to the stitch line. Even though that’s only 1/8” to absolutely max 1/4”, depending on the project. Am I overthinking this? I do t know, but I think some projects a water based CA is the answer but for others a solvent based might be the better solution. I haven’t tried doubles sided tape yet.

Yup, it’s sure cheaper and easier available. What colour is it when dry? Thanks a lot for the advice!

Hello folks, I’m about to order some contact adhesive again and am debating between the above mentioned options from Renia. Although I’m pretty set on one of the above, I’m open to good alternatives. It’s gonna be used for sheaths, the odd holster, belts, hopefully the odd saddle and such. So it’ll have to withstand some wet moulding. Although the wet moulding I do would be more on the “light” to “medium” side. I will also say upfront that I contacted Renia and they recommended one of the above mentioned ones. So some would wonder why I still ask this question. Well, I’d like to know what experience those of you who used some or all of these contact adhesives made. I’d like a really strong bond with some resistance to water. I was a bit concerned people would get annoyed with me for asking this question, when I already got a recommendation from the manufacturer. I’ll take my chances anyways . These glues aren’t cheap and I personally don’t think it hurts to try and find out more about what and why people ,who actually used them, prefer one glue over the other. I appreciate you taking the time to read my post and possibly even give some feedback. It’s greatly appreciated.

Hi there, I just came across a product by Oka factory called Oka Toko tough coat. It’s a urethane, water based finish and supposed to have a really good waterproofing properties. Now, it says that they upgraded this product from an acrylic finish to the mentioned urethane finish it now is. I still wonder how it would compare to resolene though. It’s about twice the price of resolene too. If anyone used this before I’d be very interested in your opinion and experience with it. Did you use the Matt or glossy version? How glossy is it? How would compare to the well known conventional finishes out there? I’d be very interested and grateful for any advice. Thanks guys and gals.

Thank you very much for the advice @Helenn. Did you use Tokopro by chance? I’ll be ordering some Tokonole but it’ll take a little while until I have it here. I use micro mesh pads, for the fine stuff, to get that shine. I’ll try using them wet now. Anyway, thanks again for your help. Much appreciated.

Good to know. I’ll be placing an order for some right away. When I bought the Tokopro I was told Tokonole wasn’t available anymore and the it was the same thing. I now know I was wrongly informed. Thanks again for your help. Oh and happy Easter!

Yup, I’ll place an order right away. Thank you! Happy Easter!

That’s great to know. Thank you. I’ll check it out.

@PastorBob I forgot to add that I’m thinking of sanding it down again and start over with my previous method of glycerin and saddle soap. It actually turns out alright. The only reason I switched was cause I was to and read that Tokonole would stand up to abuse better. What do you think? Thanks again.

Thanks for your input @Chipster99 and @SUP. I appreciate it a lot. It’s a great help. I was told it’s the “new” Tokonole. It sounds like I was misinformed. Makes sense now. Maybe I’ll stick to glycerin soap and yellow saddle soap for now. Until I can get some real Tokonole. So much work for nothing. Good thing I enjoy doing this stuff. Unfortunately I can only do a little at a time lately. Anyway, I guess I’ll sand it down as good as possible and start over with the glycerin and saddle soap. What do you think?

Thank you very much for that video and all your tips. It’s a big help and greatly appreciated! It also sounds like Tokopro isn’t the same as Tokonole.

Thanks @PastorBob and @rleather. That’s how I’ve been doing it as well. I sanded and beveled, applied Tokopro and burnished with wood followed by canvas. I actually kept progressively sanding and reapplying up to 2k grit. Excessive but nice and shiny. Anyway, I must’ve done something wrong though. Can’t remember explain otherwise why it feels like fibres are still sticking out in the odd spot. Anyway, thanks again!

Hi there, after being out of commission for a while, I’m finally able to get back to do a bit of leatherwork again. So I made a belt and am not quite satisfied with the edges. You see I tried some Tokonole (Tokopro) this time, since I read it may hold up better to abuse. Anyway, while it looks good, there are a few spots that feel like some fibres may be sticking out still. I think when I applied the first layer of tokopro I didn’t get it in deep enough and got the fibres down properly. I really thought I did since I kept checking as I kept sanding finer and reapplying Tokonole. I must not have properly “massaged” it into the edge well enough. Anyhow, I’m worried that if I sand it all the way down again and start over I will also sand some of the dye away and, since there will still be remnants of Tokopro in there, won’t be able to reapply dye. I applied the Tokonole a bunch of times as I kept sanding finer. Any suggestions on what best to do here? Up until now I used glycerin and saddle soap and it worked well for me. I just wanted to give this tokopro/tokonole stuff a try since I read that it holds up better to abuse. Plus for projects where I want that really shiny edge this stuff seems to work well, I guess. Looks super shiny anyways. Thanks in advance.

Sounds great! Thanks again.

Sounds great! Thanks for all your replies. I think I got my list together. My heaviest Maul is 24oz so I might add one of your 32oz WJ Mauls to it. Thanks again for your advice.

That’s beautiful work there @bruce johnson ! Thank for posting those pictures! I’m putting together an order with you in the near future. I won’t be back home for another 3 - 4 weeks so I gotta wait at least another couple weeks before I’ll actually place it. You see, too often in the past have I forgone proper research before placing an order for stamps. This time I’m trying to do it better and try to gather as much research as possible, so that the tools I order actually fit each specific job while still looking nice to my eye. Where I live it’s keep the tool you ordered because shipping back would be on my dime and a hassle. Anyhow, that’s why I’m asking so many (annoying) questions. I narrowed my choices down to WJ230, WJ245, WJ90 and WJ221. Those are all 1/4”. They should fit perfectly with my 1/4” wide basket stamps (I.e. BK#3). Would you say they should still fit well with my 3/16” (I.e. BK #2) wide basket stamps? Last question (promise ): WJ245 and 246 should be placed tightly together, right? Leaving no gaps. Meaning it wouldn’t work so well on curves, corners, bends etc. Better for more or less straight borders. Or am I missing something? Thanks in advance for your patience!

Thanks for explaining that. Yeah, I still have some craftool or craft Japan stamps, but I stay away from them as much as possible. So far it’s been mostly BK, Sergey, Texas leather tools, I think I’ll give those Jueschke stamps of yours a try next though. Thanks for that picture. That helps for someone that’s still a bit of a newb like myself and can only order online with deciding. You see I’m not exactly sure which camo or border stamps I want. Just that I want to try out something else. What does that rope border you mentioned look like? At the risk of becoming annoying, would you happen to have a picture handy?

Just to clarify for dummies (I obviously don’t mean myself )….. If we take a BK “rope” size 3 (1/4”x7/16 or 6.35x11.11mm) as an example….. By the “Golden Rule” you mentioned, the width of my border stamp shouldn’t be wider than approx. 1/4” or 6.35mm, correct? Would you consider a C425 (7x6mm) on the big side the BK #3? I think I may have been using bigger camo stamps than I should’ve.