Olive Oil

[rickeyfro]

Someone told me you can use virgin olive oil as a finish on tooled leather, have any of you guys tried this? Is the finish look like Tan Kote. Rick

[Art]

Hi Rickey,

It is more like neatsfoot than Tan Kote. No need to kill any virgins (they're getting to be an endangered species around here), just regular olive oil works. Some folks say it will go rancid over time and as it is not hydrated, it is less stable than other oils, but I have done a few things with it and can't say I have noticed a difference. I have used neatsfoot quite a bit, but it varies so much from product to product that I went to #1 saddle oil or Pecard's or Aussie or Montana Pitchblend, the first two being what I use the most. Bag Kote (or Tan Kote for a little more shine) also work great for top finishes. For 19th century period correct finishes, Dubbin would be the preferred product, but current formulations are heavily mineral oil based, so I tend to use Montana Pitchblend or Neatsfoot which are more natural.

Art

Someone told me you can use virgin olive oil as a finish on tooled leather, have any of you guys tried this? Is the finish look like Tan Kote. Rick

[tazzmann]

I have used olive oil on several things and I have to agree with art, that it comes out looking more like neatsfoot oil than anything else. Take a look at the quiver my son and I did in the Archery section of this forum. It was finished with Olive oil.

[Leerwerker]

Someone told me Will Gormly swears by ONLY extra virgin coldpress olive oil for his gun holsters (look at his patterns at a Tandy store ...).

Any plant or animal oil can be used on leather, as long as it is used sparingly. I have doused a piece of leather before in cod liver oil and the smell of fish lasted no more than an hour or two and then it changed into the very traditional "new leather smell". I did that to test it because I used cod liver oil in my own dubbin that I make of sheep fat.

I think the closest product to Dubbin that we have in America, is Dr Jackson's Hide Rejuvenator! It is close to the old non-mineral Dubbin.

I have written some about finishes at

www.leatherlearn.com

[Timbo]

I've also followed Will Ghormley in the use of EVOO and I love it. Plus if you run out it's very easy to get more. Be sure and don't over apply it or it will lubricate the fibers too well.....and too much can turn rancid. When I say too much, you would really have to saturate the piece with it.

It takes a little while to even out, just like neetsfoot but gives a nice finish. And don't worry that it looks green when you start to use it. It won't leave a green finish. Constant use and sunlight will also let the piece turn dark over time........like a well used saddle. But that is not unique to EVOO.

Another thing I do with it, is to add some Feibings oil dye to it to tint it. I'll take one of the small dye bottles that is probably a quarter or less full and fill it with EVOO. It is very subtle but looks really good. If you apply with a wool dauber, the dauber will soak up the dye first then the oil, so as you go along you'll get more tint than when you started. Let the dauber sit in the mix for awhile and that will help it go on more even from start to finish. I usually use a piece of terry cloth to apply. It does the same thing but is quicker to even out.

Give it a try........bet you'll like it.

Tim