Burnishing

[woolfe]

I'm looking to find a more efficient way to burnish my holsters. I currently use various wooden dowels on the end of a dremel tool. I get mixed results, sometimes it works great and other times I have to fight with it.

I've been looking into a couple options.

1) http://cgi.ebay.com/Motorized-Fantastic-Le...tem320353692769

2)http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=38515

I would have to get a piece of wood and cut the grooves into it for option 2.

Any other options or better way of doing it? Anyone here use option 1?

[Denster]

Hi

Your option one will work great for burnishing. It's a take off on the method shown in John Bianchi's holster making video.

Option 2 is a bit pricy unless you like to do wood turning. Go to the marketplace section of this website there is a guy there selling a allready turned rosewood burnisher for $38 shipped that can be chucked into a drill press or hand drill. I bought one and it does great the guy is a good craftsman. I replaced my well worn one with this one.

Hope this helps.

[Denster]

I'll make it easy. Here is the link for the rosewood burnisher. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=15051

[woolfe]

Thank you denster. I saw that thread.

I'm not convinced that my drill press would hold up very long applying a force perpendicular to the shaft, especially with the leverage that the rosewood dowel would provide.

I've tried using my homemade oak dowel in my drill press, they are about half as long as the rose wood one, and my drill press starts to make funny noises.

[Denster]

Burnishing doesn't take pressure when using one of this type just touching the leather to the burnisher and the speed and friction does the job.

The fantastic leather edge burnisher does take pressure not a whole lot but some as you are creating heat against the wool felt pad to melt the beeswax/parafin mix into the leather.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

I am pretty convince there are as many ways to burnish edges as there are quirky pre-game rituals in professional sports, and I'll bet half of them are just as odd. The burnishing machine looks like as good a place to start as any, and the link Denstar provided is a good option as well.

A lot of it will depend on the kind of work you are doing. When I am making a black holster, or a brown holster with black edges, a felt wheel works great. If I need to make a holster where the edges match the rest of the finish, I spray the edge with water, run it on a wood burnisher similar to the one shown in the linked thread above, wax it with natural beeswax, rub it down with a polishing cloth, and paint it with resolene.

It's probably gonna take a lot of experimentation to find a way that suits you, but keep at it and you'll get there.

[Rayban]

Woolfe, after trying both options you are thinking about, here is what I would recommend to you:

Try that felt head burnisher with wax method, but buy the head only. You can find a 1/4 HP motor that turns 1725 rpm all day long on Craigs List for about $20.

Then buy the wooden one from Scott for $40...you can get an adapter to run it in the same motor for about $5......NOW TRY THEM BOTH.

As was suggested earlier on this thread, if you line up 6 guys and ask them about their favorite burnishing method, you'll get 6 different replies. The only way you can find out which method is right for is to try them yourself.

Again, after trying them both, I'm sticking with the wooden one....today.

[ABC3]

Not to Hijack this Thread but you guys might find this one interesting. I ran into an old saddle maker a few weeks back and we started talking leather. For some reason the conversation got around to burnishing. I told him I used water, gum & bee wax depending on the project. He looked at me, kinda stupid and said " go get your self a bar of Neutrogena hand soap. It will do a better job that all of that other stuff. I had never heard to such a thing so I picked up a bar and damn if it doesn't work great.

It's never too late to learn.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

I have used glycerine (sp?) soap to smooth edges. I was happy with the way it looked, but I could scrape the edge with just a scratch of my finger nail (as is the case with water and a wood burnishing wheel, gum trag, etc. unless you take extra precautions). The way I finish edges now takes forever, but they can take a pretty good beating before they show wear. How does the Neutrogena hand soap hold up to abbuse? Any idea if it's an oil based product or not? I'm guessing not since it is supposed to clean your skin, but I'm curious as to how it affects the leather, how much in penetrates the surface, etc.. Any info you can give i much appreciated. Oh, and pictures of your edges would be awesome! Thanks, Hobby Tom.

I have used glycerine (sp?) soap to smooth edges. I was happy with the way it looked, but I could scrape the edge with just a scratch of my finger nail (as is the case with water and a wood burnishing wheel, gum trag, etc. unless you take extra precautions). The way I finish edges now takes forever, but they can take a pretty good beating before they show wear. How does the Neutrogena hand soap hold up to abbuse? Any idea if it's an oil based product or not? I'm guessing not since it is supposed to clean your skin, but I'm curious as to how it affects the leather, how much in penetrates the surface, etc.. Any info you can give i much appreciated. Oh, and pictures of your edges would be awesome! Thanks, Hobby Tom.

[ABC3]

Boomstick the Neutrogena contains glycerin as well. I would not think it is oil based. I have nothing in the shop to take a picture of that I have used it on. I've only used it on a couple of belts & it seem to do a good job. Although it did feel alittle tacky.

If you try it - get the "fragrance free"

I'll play around with it & try to post some pic's.

[Dwight]

I'm looking to find a more efficient way to burnish my holsters. I currently use various wooden dowels on the end of a dremel tool. I get mixed results, sometimes it works great and other times I have to fight with it.

I've been looking into a couple options.

1) http://cgi.ebay.com/Motorized-Fantastic-Le...tem320353692769

2)http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=38515

I would have to get a piece of wood and cut the grooves into it for option 2.

Any other options or better way of doing it? Anyone here use option 1?

I kicked around a couple different things, including the burnisher John Bianchi shows on his holster making video, . . . but my Dremel tool burnisher seems the best for me.

Plus, . . . I don't have to go to the shop, . . . I can burnish on the front porch watching the birds, . . . catching up on the news, . . . and if I had a horse and a plug in on the saddle, . . . while getting my morning ride

Mine is made from an oak dowel, . . . using a 1/8" drill bit for the shaft, . . . made both of them in less than a couple of hours.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Rayban]

Like I said, line up six guys.....

How did you do it, just rub the dry edges and burnish like you would normally do?

Not to Hijack this Thread but you guys might find this one interesting. I ran into an old saddle maker a few weeks back and we started talking leather. For some reason the conversation got around to burnishing. I told him I used water, gum & bee wax depending on the project. He looked at me, kinda stupid and said " go get your self a bar of Neutrogena hand soap. It will do a better job that all of that other stuff. I had never heard to such a thing so I picked up a bar and damn if it doesn't work great. It's never too late to learn.

[ABC3]

yep - Like I said, I have only done a couple of belts so I don't know how it will hold up. I just spoke with the Mgr of our local Tandy store & he said that's all he uses.

Until I find out how it holds up I certainly would not recommend it to you guys.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

I may give it a try and see what comes of it. As I said in a recent e-mail, I have tried everything up to dancing around my burnishing wheel on a full moon and chanting just to get a decent edge...

[Twosons]

... I have tried everything up to dancing around my burnishing wheel on a full moon and chanting just to get a decent edge...

Do you think that would work?

Seriously...

I have done in the neighborhood of 10ish holsters now. The one area that I am insecure about is the burnishing. It is OK, but could be much better. Oh well, constant improvement and all that.

[zaptoid]

I am going to use a dremel for burnishing but I did this with number 2 pencil edge just to see the result. Came out better than my last attempt. Something to be said for getting the edge nice and square first.