Finishing holsters/belts

[woolfe]

I need a little help/advice on finishing holsters and belts.

I have Eco-flo super sheen which seemed to work okay until I removed the loops from my first holster, i made a few days back, and they took some of the finish with them. Further inspection revealed crinkling of the finish where the leather curves to conform to your body.

I spent the last couple hours reading in the finishes section of the forum and I'm even more confused now than before. From what I can gather Fiebings Leather Balm w/Atom Wax or Resolene seem to be the preferred finishes for Holsters and belts.

My few questions:

1) Can I expect a more permanent finish with Fiebings Leather Balm w/ Atom Wax or Resolene then Eco-flo?

2) This was my first leatherworking project its possible I didn't allow it to dry properly. Do people manage to produce quality finishes with Eco-flo that last?

3) I noticed someone was using Resolene on the inside of the holster. Are you suppost to use finish on the non-smooth side of leather and if so will Eco-flo super sheen work?

[Shorts]

Resolene anywhere is ok. Its an acrylic that dries flexible. I've never had any trouble with it cracking or peeling off. I allow 1-2 days for the finish to set before I package and send them out.

[woolfe]

I think I'm going to give Resolene a shot. How shiny does it look, compared to super sheen?

I'm most likely going to try the dipping method with it diluted to 50/50.

[Shorts]

I don't dilute in order to ensure a solid cover that doesn't bleed.

If you do, 50/50 is a lot. Keep it like 10% diluted if any.

[woolfe]

Is Resolene water based like the Eco stuff?

I didn't realize the Eco finish will come off with water. I can't believe the guy at Tandy sold me this junk. I told him I needed a finish for making belts and holsters.

[Lobo]

Edited January 27, 2009 by Lobo

[Lobo]

I've been making holsters since 1972. Here is what works well for me.

After wet-forming, allow the item to air-dry completely. This can take from 1 to 3 days, depending upon where you live, what the ambient temperatures are, how much humidity is in the air.

Apply a liberal application of neatsfoot oil compound for lasting protection of the leather. I use a 1" paintbrush, which I dip into the neatsfoot oil, then just slather it over the outer surfaces one time, then set the piece aside to allow the leather to absorb the oil. Note that too much oil will make any leather article limp and useless!

Allow the neatsfoot oil to settle, it will migrate through the leather until a balance is achieved. This can take 1 to 2 days.

Apply a final finish of Fiebing's Bag Kote (long a favorite of saddle-makers, seals well, remains flexible). On the interior (flesh side) this will settle the fibers and leave a slick finish. On the exterior this product penetrates and dries within a half hour or so, leaving a satiny egg-shell luster that is flexible without cracking.

For what it may be worth to you, this has provided many, many hundreds of satisfactory results for me. Hope this helps.

[woolfe]

Thanks for the tips! I already got a bottle of Resolene on order so i'm going to give it a shot. Lucky for me Tandy is only 1 hours drive from here so my orders get to me over night. If I have trouble with it I'll try the Neatsfoot oil and Bag Kote next.

Thanks!

[JRB]

I've been making holsters since 1972. Here is what works well for me.

After wet-forming, allow the item to air-dry completely. This can take from 1 to 3 days, depending upon where you live, what the ambient temperatures are, how much humidity is in the air.

Apply a liberal application of neatsfoot oil compound for lasting protection of the leather. I use a 1" paintbrush, which I dip into the neatsfoot oil, then just slather it over the outer surfaces one time, then set the piece aside to allow the leather to absorb the oil. Note that too much oil will make any leather article limp and useless!

Allow the neatsfoot oil to settle, it will migrate through the leather until a balance is achieved. This can take 1 to 2 days.

Apply a final finish of Fiebing's Bag Kote (long a favorite of saddle-makers, seals well, remains flexible). On the interior (flesh side) this will settle the fibers and leave a slick finish. On the exterior this product penetrates and dries within a half hour or so, leaving a satiny egg-shell luster that is flexible without cracking.

For what it may be worth to you, this has provided many, many hundreds of satisfactory results for me. Hope this helps.

Lobo - For the benefit of the OP...When are you applying dye?

I believe the preferred method is to apply the dye before the neatsfoot oil and Bag Kote (I'm ordering the Weaver Kote to try which should provide similar results).

From the pics it looks like Lobo dyes before he stitches.

[Lobo]

Lobo - For the benefit of the OP...When are you applying dye?

I believe the preferred method is to apply the dye before the neatsfoot oil and Bag Kote (I'm ordering the Weaver Kote to try which should provide similar results).

From the pics it looks like Lobo dyes before he stitches.

For items to be dyed, I apply the dye after forming and burnishing, allow dye to set overnight, then oil, then final finish coat.

I use white nylon (Tex270) thread on everything. Black dye penetrates it completely. The browns do not fully color the thread, but I get no complaints about it.

[woolfe]

I went with the Resolene 50/50 dip. Its been about 7 hours and everything seems great. I even used Neatsfoot oil on the belt loops before using Resolene, I did let them dry for about 5 hours first tho. I'll post a picture once I get it assembled. I just want to make sure its good and dry first.

[woolfe]

Here are the Pictures, THanks for the help!!

My holster, Resolene 50/50 dip