Finishing Edges

[ToddB 68]

Hi Bob !

With reference to your Finishing Edges process, in step 3) you rub Fiebings glycerin bar soap into the leather edges and then at step 4) you burnish with Fiebings yellow paste saddle soap. With all that rubbing and vigorous burnishing of two soap products on the edges, it seems there would be a good chance of now and then smearing a bit of the soaps onto the face of the leather adjacent to the edges. If that does happen, wouldn't that cause splotches or discoloration where the final finish is applied over top of the soap smears ? Or do you have to clean off any soap smears before adding the final finish ? If so, what cleaning chemical do you use ?

Thanks,

ToddB68

[hidepounder]

Hi Bob !

With reference to your Finishing Edges process, in step 3) you rub Fiebings glycerin bar soap into the leather edges and then at step 4) you burnish with Fiebings yellow paste saddle soap. With all that rubbing and vigorous burnishing of two soap products on the edges, it seems there would be a good chance of now and then smearing a bit of the soaps onto the face of the leather adjacent to the edges. If that does happen, wouldn't that cause splotches or discoloration where the final finish is applied over top of the soap smears ? Or do you have to clean off any soap smears before adding the final finish ? If so, what cleaning chemical do you use ?

Thanks,

ToddB68

Great question Todd! I often edge last, after I have finished the surface of the leather, so that any soap that gets on the face is easily wiped off and doesn't affect any finish. When I burnish before finishing the face I will remove any soap smears with water first. I also almost always clean the face of my leather with oxalic acid before applying any antiques and that removes any residue also. The reality is that I really don't get much contamination on the surface because the glycerine bar soap is only rubbed on the edge and the yellow paste soap is applied to the canvas that I burnish with and there just isn't that much slop. What little there is, is easily removed.

Hope this helps....

Bobby

[ToddB 68]

Great question Todd! I often edge last, after I have finished the surface of the leather, so that any soap that gets on the face is easily wiped off and doesn't affect any finish. When I burnish before finishing the face I will remove any soap smears with water first. I also almost always clean the face of my leather with oxalic acid before applying any antiques and that removes any residue also. The reality is that I really don't get much contamination on the surface because the glycerine bar soap is only rubbed on the edge and the yellow paste soap is applied to the canvas that I burnish with and there just isn't that much slop. What little there is, is easily removed.

Hope this helps....

Bobby

Thanks Bob !

I appreciate the thorough reply.

ToddB68

Edited September 12, 2010 by ToddB68

[SimonJester753]

Hi SimonJester753. I use this method to finish the edges on everything I make. It is the same method that has been used in saddle shops all across the country for many years. Of course there are some variations from maker to maker. Some add more steps, some eliminate steps I suppose. Anyway I would use this on saddles, holsters, cases or anything that has exposed edges regardless of what it is exposed to.

If you are asking why I do not dye before I burnish, it is because when the edge of the leather is raw and unburnished, I am unable to get a nice clean dye line because my alcohol dye spreads as it soaks in. However once the edge is burnished it does not absorb the dye as fast and I am able to get a very clean dye line.

I hope this answers your questions....

Bobby

Thanks!

I don't think I have to worry about my dye line, as I'm using black latigo, so I think I'll dye first as I'm using water based dye and I'd like it sealed in as much as possible.

I was wondering if my edge beveler needs sharpening and googled for instructions and came across another forum where you explained how it's done. You say you use "round bottom" bevelers. I've never liked the flat bottom beveler I have. Where do you get the round bottom ones?

[hidepounder]

Thanks!

I don't think I have to worry about my dye line, as I'm using black latigo, so I think I'll dye first as I'm using water based dye and I'd like it sealed in as much as possible.

I was wondering if my edge beveler needs sharpening and googled for instructions and came across another forum where you explained how it's done. You say you use "round bottom" bevelers. I've never liked the flat bottom beveler I have. Where do you get the round bottom ones?

The edgers I use are old antiques made by Gomph. CS Osborne made them as well (I believe). Both are still readily available on eBay and from Bob Douglas. I believe Bob Douglas also offers his own line of round bottom edgers. His tools are very high quality! Ron's Tools also offers really nice round bottom edgers in stainless steel. I owned a set and they were outstanding. Hope this helps....

Bobby

[SimonJester753]

The edgers I use are old antiques made by Gomph. CS Osborne made them as well (I believe). Both are still readily available on eBay and from Bob Douglas. I believe Bob Douglas also offers his own line of round bottom edgers. His tools are very high quality! Ron's Tools also offers really nice round bottom edgers in stainless steel. I owned a set and they were outstanding. Hope this helps....

Bobby

Thanks!

[Ferg]

Hello everybody,

I receive quite a few PM's and emails requesting information on edges, finger cutting, tooling patterns and various other topics. Questions regarding some of these topics come up on a fairly regular basis, so I thought I would put something together that members could easily refer to. This article describes the way I finish edges and Johanna has posted it in the "Tips & Tricks" section on the main page. I hope that some of you will find it helpful.

Finishing Edges

Bob

Bobby,

I have two questions:

When you apply the dye to the edges are you intentionally keeping the dye from the very edge the edging tool makes? The edge next to the flat surface of the leather, if that helps me clarify my question. I find it easier to apply the dye without getting on that very narrow portion of the rounded edge.

You showed a photo in your shop on a post, of your burnishing apparatus. Motor attached to a shaft with a wood dowel, perhaps, that you filed/sanded the grooves into. Any particular kind of wood used and did you attempt to impregnate it with saddle soap, glycerine soap, or any other product?

Thanks,

ferg

[hidepounder]

Bobby,

I have two questions:

When you apply the dye to the edges are you intentionally keeping the dye from the very edge the edging tool makes? The edge next to the flat surface of the leather, if that helps me clarify my question. I find it easier to apply the dye without getting on that very narrow portion of the rounded edge.

You showed a photo in your shop on a post, of your burnishing apparatus. Motor attached to a shaft with a wood dowel, perhaps, that you filed/sanded the grooves into. Any particular kind of wood used and did you attempt to impregnate it with saddle soap, glycerine soap, or any other product?

Thanks,

ferg

Ferg I'm not sure I completely understand your question but I am going to take a shot at it anyway. When I edge a piece of leather with my round bottom edger there is a very fine line distinguishing the differenc from the edge of the cut from the untouched surface grain of the leather. That is the line I try to dye to. There is no ridge or actual edge because the burnish smooths it out, but there is a visable line there. I hope that answers your question.

If you are going to cover your burnishing wheel with canvas as I have then the wood used probably doesn't matter. I do keep the canvas saturated with Fiebings yellow saddle soap to help control the amount of heat and friction.

[Ferg]

Ferg I'm not sure I completely understand your question but I am going to take a shot at it anyway. When I edge a piece of leather with my round bottom edger there is a very fine line distinguishing the differenc from the edge of the cut from the untouched surface grain of the leather. That is the line I try to dye to. There is no ridge or actual edge because the burnish smooths it out, but there is a visable line there. I hope that answers your question.

If you are going to cover your burnishing wheel with canvas as I have then the wood used probably doesn't matter. I do keep the canvas saturated with Fiebings yellow saddle soap to help control the amount of heat and friction.

Bobby,

You understood my first question better than I stated it. Thanks for the clarification.

On the burnishing wheel: Do you glue/attach the canvas to the wheel? I assume the canvas needs to be pushed down into the grooves or does the saddle soap put enough "give" in the canvas to make it conform to the grooves?

Regards,

ferg

[barra]

I started to follow this thread when Bob initially posted but somehow I have missed a heap of valuable info in the middle.

I have pictures of the burnishers mentioned by Pete hennessy for hot burnishing but they are stored on my desk top (with virus). I have also topped Troy West and not only mis placed the camera cord but also added my camera to that. Perhaps it is in my car which is in the crash repair shop after being stoved into by a disabled taxi. I will have to get my poop in a pile a drag some pics up. As well as dipping the hot burnisher in beeswax I sometimes use what the boot/shoe trade call heel ball or coad.

I really like Troy's idea of the felt shoved into PC pipe as it seems a bit of an improvement over my felt skewered by coat hanger wire. I have tried just about every mechanical device known to man but somehow I always come back to the elbow grease methods.

One thing I have found to be a passable black edge dye/coat that is cheap and easy to come by anywhere is tyre black. Ok now to get off my butt and fix my other computer and find the darn camera.

Barra