Leather finish/seal/conditioner ???

[BowHuntingFool]

Hi all, new here and a very cool site indeed! I made a back quiver for my son's upcoming birthday, 1st time working with leather. It is made out of vegetable tan leather that I stained brown! I picked up Neat Lac to finish it but have no experience with it. Has anyone used Neat Lac before or is there a better way of finish/sealing the quiver??? Also will it darken the leather at all?

Thanks

Joe

[Randy Cornelius]

Neat Lac will do a good job but be sure to use it in a well ventalated area as it is quite strong as it is a lacquor based finish. I use a piece of sheeps wool to apply it but I think a piece of soft cloth would do just as good, it may break down a sponge. It should not darken the leather much at all. It may at first but after it drys it should return to the orginal color. Us it on veg tan as I am not sure what it will do to crome type leather never used it on crome or anything else but veg tan.

Randy

[BowHuntingFool]

OK, so I confused here after reading and researching a bit, some say not to use Neat Lac as it clogs the pores and does not let leather breathe! Do I have to actually seal or finish the leather. I just dyed the leather now is it OK to just use some Montana Pitch Blend on it instead of the Neat Lac???

Thanks again!

[Randy Cornelius]

The Neat Lac will seal it and protect the leather from soil and dirt and keep it looking good for years to come. But if you are concerned about it not breathing etc. I would suggest some other type of finish like Tan Kote. Tan Kote will let it breath some and will protect it some. It is more user friendly as it is a water based finish and will not smell up the house or shop. I use it on saddles and tack as a top coat finish which works well. There are so many different types, kinds, brands of leather finish out there that you will get a lot of different oponions as to which is best. I use Neat Lac as a resist when doing Sheridan syle antique finish, I use Tandy's Supershene for most of my small leather goods as it is easy to use and leaves a high gloss shine. I use Tan Kote on all my horse gear as I do not want a high gloss finish that the Supershene leaves. Some items I just give a good coat of pure neatsfoot oil. Maybe that is what your arrow quiver needs. It will take on that well used look in no time. There are some around here that use other products that I feel work just fine also, I just don't have room for every leather finish that is out there. I am one of those guys that just stick to what works for me.

Randy

[BowHuntingFool]

Randy, thanks your your help! I've been beating my head off the wall trying to figure out what to use. Is it possible to just use the Pitch Blend on it???