Unicum Report post Posted September 8, 2024 (edited) Greetings everyone my name is Graham. I have joined this group to learn about working with certain leather applications. I have a collection of antique cameras and most have the bodies wrapped in leather, and in some of them very old and dried out leather. I have no knowledge of how to properly clean, treat and care for old dried out leather so this is why I am here, to learn from those who have lots of experience. Thank you for letting me join up and I look forward to learning all about leather! The handle I have chosen, Unicum, was the name of a very common camera shutter made by Bausch and Lomb from the late 19th century into the 20th. Many camera manufacturers offered this shutter on their cameras. Edited September 8, 2024 by Unicum Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Northmount Report post Posted September 8, 2024 Welcome! Could you post a couple photos showing some of the areas of concern on your camera collection. It will help others chime in with some help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Unicum Report post Posted September 9, 2024 Yes, I can. I was not sure if this part of the board was for questions or just intros. The photos show the wooden camera body which is covered in leather. The section that is peeling away is on the bottom. Most cameras of this time period seem to have used shellac to glue the leather to the body. As it can be seen the leather is thin and dried out. I plan to use shellac to re-glue the piece back in but feel that to do the best job is to remove the section in order to fully remove all the old glue before re-attaching it. I have read rubbing alcohol works well to break down the old shellac. Due to its age, being dried out and not knowing when or if this leather has ever been treated in the past I am guessing that it would be better to not only clean it first but also to try and rejuvenate it to hopefully restore some flexibility. This is why I am here. Searching the web turns up countless leather treatment products. I only have one go at this to get it right and not to make things worse so will only do this if I feel confident that the products and methods are the best for this situation. I also realize that this is a very old piece of leather and do not expect it to be like new. I just want to put it back best I can and preserve the look. I think it gives the camera more character when it shows its age. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
