ScottWolf

Use a conditioner on them and let it soak in about 24hrs and then use a dauber or an air brush to apply the resolene. Plan for 2-3 light coats of resolene, allowing for dry time between coats and they should each look distinct, while not absorbing water from the glass/cup placed on them.

You are in luck, as I actually refurbish and work on baseball gloves as a hobby. Untreated , the coasters above will absorb water and stain/darken like any other piece of leather that doesn't have a top coat. Two ways you can go about it IMO, is to do what I do when I've either conditioned or re dyed a glove. I use the all natural conditioner that I posted the recipe for in the forum here and hand rub it in. It will darken the leather some, but not drastically and provide some protection from moisture, as it is beeswax based. If you want the dried out and in need of conditioning look like the coasters above, then either resolene cut 50/50 or Angelus MATTE sealer will keep that appearance. Make sure you get the MATTE version if you use Angelus products, as they have 4 versions that range from matte to super shiny pattent leather in their shine when dry. Personally, I'd condition them and give them back a little bit of their color, as you won't loose that worn look and may even bring some of the text printing out better.

Here is a link to an actual recipe on how to make a conditioner to soften your leather.

The benefit of pull the dot snaps over standard snaps is their ability to resist inadvertently un snapping from anything but a direct linear pulling down on the snap itself. So things like bending over, twisting, any normal movement , to include force on force having another person trying to pull your pistol/holster off of you, will not cause the snap to come undone. This is especially beneficial when its used as an attachment/retention method on holsters, which is pretty much as an industry standard found on quality holsters, be it kydex or leather. I can understand your dislike of clips, as historically, they have all been substandard and or cheaply made, be it a FOMI clip or the super cheap metal money clip type clips found on every cheap holster ever made. However, I will say this, DCC clips are not like anything you've probably ever used before in regards to their ability to retain an item/holster to the wearer and not bend out of shape over time. There is a very good reason why they are extremely popular in the firearms training industry right now. Short of fixed loops, the DCC clip is an excellent option for IWB holster retention. The best part, is that they are relatively inexpensive and can be retro fitted on most kydex holsters and or built into leather ones. Builders like 5 shot leather, Bitterroot, Milt Sparks are offering them as a user option to customers.

I would kindly suggest that you use "pull the dot" snaps instead of the standard snaps shown. Over very little time and or from not being properly seated, regular snaps have a tendency to come undone/release un expectantly. Its for this reason that just about all of the holster makers in the firearms industry use pull the dot snaps for attachments to ones body/belt. And let me tell you, there is nothing worse than drawing your pistol and having the holster come flying off your waist and or stay attached to the pistol. I have had this happen with several holsters I've used over the years and had students have this very issue during one of my classes. As an aside, you will probably also be interested in looking at incorporating/using DCC clips ( Discreet Carry Concept) into your holsters. They offer excellent retention, conceal ability and versatility. It's what a lot of holster makers in the industry are moving towards and or offering as a user option when ordering these days. https://discreetcarryconcepts.com

The Badger 105 is a good airbrush, about middle of the road price and quality wise. You can find them around $90-100 brand new. I don't know if you're spraying large or a lot of items at once, so if you are, the reservoir is not that big compared to airbrushes that feed from the bottom from a small bottle. If that is the case, it may not be your best bet. But the 105 is easy to take apart, clean and works hassle free in my experience.

Couple of questions for you. Are you cutting your resolene 50/50 with water when spraying? How much resolene are you adding to the airbrush? I'd imagine your previous experience you used a spray gun with a large reservoir and not something as small as an airbrush reservoir? I've had no issues spraying out of a badger 105 airbrush with resolene cut 50/50 or with the Angelus acrylic sealer. I do clean it immediately afterwards with some windshield wiper fluid and then blow it out with some water to avoid clogs or build up from either product.

A member posted a video of the guy who makes these in another thread showing it easily cut the leather you want to trim down. I just came across a few of them here, at a decent price. If I can find the video of the guy who makes them I'll add it in later. Hope this helps you out. https://www.flatbillbaseball.com/product/leather-skiver/ EDIT: here is the video

Are their stores open? I thought I read that they were closing most of them down to in store shopping?

Based on the limited info you have provided, I'd say you need to tell the customer NO. With that said, can you better explain where this magnet is supposed to go? As a gun person, I'm drawing a blank as to where this application would even go.

Glad to hear that you gave it a go and it's working out for you.

Mop and glow can be used with similar performance to resolene.

Yes. No, nothing else. Don't shake the bottle before use, it will create bubbles. If while you are applying it, you get a bubble on your item, you need pop it, so it doesnt dry with a bubble on it. Its an acrylic sealer, same as mop and glow, like you use on the floor, so it creates a shell on top of the leather. You dont want dried in bubbles in your shell. Cutting it 50/50 will help reduce that as well as reduce the amount of shine. Apply 1-2 coats as needed

Did you rub/buff the item after dying it until no more dye came off on the rag? If you didn't do this step, this is likely your issue. As for resolene, use the neutral, as you'll be able to use it for other projects as well. Cut it 50/50 with water, avoid bubbles when applying it.

If you make it as a balm, you can scoop it out with your fingers and rub it into the leather by hand. If you make it harder, like a shoe polish, you can use a rag to apply it and rub it in. The heat from you hand and or the friction of the rag will warm it up as you are applying it.

Just happened to come across this picture from Ashland Leather's Horween wallets. And it looks like your dye drama is actually something they do intentionally. So kudos.

Check out Angelus.com, they make acrylic paints for leather and have a ton of videos, although a lot of them are on painting tennis shoes, the principal is the same.

Follow the ratios in the recipe and you'll get to an end product to your liking quicker. A 1:2 ratio ( 1 wax, 2 oil) will get you to a semi firm product. If you go 1:3 you will have a very soft butter. The more oil you add to the ratio, the softer it will continue to get but after about 1:5 ratio it's usually too soft and melts very quickly to the touch.

I use an all natural wax based conditioner/finish that I make myself for my projects. I posted a step by step recipe , along with ratios , etc on how to make it that will work with pretty much all the common ingredients used/found in leather working products. You can tinker around with it or just follow the recipe as is. Here is the link:

I have read that this is what gives leather that leather smell, but I am not sold on it entirely . I recently tried applying it( Cod liver oil) on both the grain and hide side of a finished piece in a very, very light coat using a rag. The piece indeed smelled like fish for a few days and has subsided, but I am calling BS on it giving it that leather smell or even being worth the conditioning given the stink from using so little of it. I can only image how much it would reek if a liberal application of it is applied to a hide. To the OP: I'd recommend airing the piece out for about a week or more to see if it subsides, if waiting that long is acceptable to you. If it doesn't , I'd ask for a refund from the vendor.

I've been using this recipe and variations of it for well over a year. No issues with it to date. I'm not really surprised, as this and some of the variations of ingredients mentioned are the exact same ingredients used/found in various commercially available products per their MSDS. The only exception is that in some cases, the commercial versions also use cheap oils/mineral oils, etc, that I choose to leave out. I'm currently testing out a variation of the above with the addition of D-Limonese added. It is an all natural solvent/terpene derived from citrus/oranges. While it acts as a typical solvent/penetrator, it has no negative health concerns and is even sold as a dietary supplement and can be ingested. As is to be expected, it does have a slight natural orange smell to the final product that is pleasant but not overpowering.

No problem. Happy to share the knowledge with others and maybe persuade others to share their recipes more openly.

100% pure Anhydrous Lanolin, which is what I use in my recipe, is refined extensively and is what is used in cosmetics. Generally it is in/around the $7+ an ounce price range.

Lanolin is actually one of the ingredients I mention in the link above to my recipe for leather conditioner. In doing research, I did find some of the more expensive commercial leather conditioner products used lanolin, and I think that is why their price was higher than other products without lanolin. Here is what my recipe for leather conditioner with lanolin added into it looks like.

I just posted an actual recipe on how to make an all natural conditioner in the forum here that addresses conditioners. Here is the link to it: