Some Basic Questions

[Bauer]

Hello everyone!

Let me introduce myself first... i am a 23-year-old dude from Finland, but currently living in Japan. I have been making all sorts of things with my hands for past couple of years, mostly clothing though (19th century uniforms etc.) for my own fun. I've done some very basic leather items, but getting stuff and knowledge in Finland is ridiculously hard, even from leather shops (the owners seem to be crumpy old men usually). Now after 2 years being immersed in this culture of Japan, I've thought of starting more serious project and as I am ambitious guy, I decided to try to make - nothing more, nothing less - than a samurai helmet. I have basic understanding of tooling etc. and I basicly know what to do in order to do the helmet... HOW EVER....

As some of you maybe know, not all of Samurai's armor was made of still. Especially lower class samurais had lacquered leather and bamboo as parts of their armor. This is what I am interested in - making a laquered leather helmet. There are however few things I don't know and I can't find any information about them in Finland. This is mostly because leatherworking books in finnish tend to talk about one topic only - making knife sheats out leather.

Basicly what I am after is Edo-periods most common helmet - Zunari kabuto (I made rough sketch of the style and shape I am gonna have. Shape is based on the former I use... http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c168/Rosak/Artissimo/helmet.png). Anyways. I don't know how to properly harden leather. I have a full hide of roughly 2mm thick leather in my house in Finland, which is rather hard as it is. But it's not hard enough as it is, so I would need to harden it. Now, I've read quite a bit about this from internet and heard all sorts of tricks. Some say I should use lindseed oil, some talk about wax, others say wet the leather and to put it in the oven.

So what would you recommend? I am hoping I could get the helmets basic shape by using just one piece of leather, maybe with few cuts to make it settle nicely on the former, but should I try it with water? Would it make it hard enough to withstand falling on the floor or just knocking it without messing anything up?

How about lacquering? I tried to find info on this, but apparently nobody does this to leather - or atleast talks about it in the internet - and I could find absolutely nothing about this in Finnish... actually, I don't even know what to call this process in Finnish, so if you do know some products and techniques, please try to make it simple so I can actually ask store keepers there about the products etc.

I know that lacquering is basicly covering the leather item with liquid that will harden when it dries, but I want the helmet to have a nice shine to it and I wan't the black color to come through, so how is all this done?

Anyways, I would apreciate any comments and tips and such on this matter! Even if you have good ideas on how to get the proper shape, then please do share them with me!

[TwinOaks]

First things first, Bauer....Welcome to Leatherworker.net!

You have found the penultimate source of leather knowledge, so be prepared to spend some time reading.

There are quite a few variety of leathers, and your choice will determine your success. Vegetable tanned leather is what is used for pieces with a lot of tooling and/or molding. Leather can be hardened several ways, the most common being heat. Leather is dipped in water, molded to shape, then dried. Heat helps set the collagens (glue) in the natural fibers. The shaping of the leather is done when wet when it's malleable. To color leather, a dye, acrylic paint, or chemical compound is used- most commonly spirit dyes, oil dyes, and water based dyes. Paints can be used on leather, but run the risk of cracking if the item is flexed much. A beautiful finish can be attained by simply lightly oiling the leather and placing it in the sun. Other options may include using Ferric Acetate, aka vinegaroon, and an age-old recipe in which a piece is dipped in a heated mixture of oil and beeswax. The result of the latter is a somewhat darkened, quite a bit harder, and very moisture resistant finish. You may see this type of finish on period knife sheathes at Ren-Faires.

After molding and coloring, the leather must be sealed to prevent further absorbtion of moisture. This is done with acrylic waxes, natural waxes, oils, or lacquer finishes. The composition of the finish helps determine the "shinyness" of the item.

I'd like to suggest doing a search for posts my member "Daggrim". He does a lot of helmets, and may be able to give you some specific pointers.

[Bauer]

Thank you for quick reply!

That is a very nice outline for things I need to know! I will do more research, I probably should just go to Amazon and look for some books...

the sad thing is that I have to wait until next spring to be able to actually try any of these things.. which means ample time for research

I will contact Daggrim if he has anything else to say.

[douglais]

Hello Bauer,

Daggrim here. I was away from my computer all week, and just found your post. I can't help you with any laquering information, but I can let you know what I do for leather hardening.

I generally use 4.5mm leather, but 2mm would work, especially if it's already hard. Soft leather, even if it's thicker, will make softer hard leather. By the tme it gets hot enough for the cuir buoilli effect, it's already beginning to shrink and curl.

I place leather which has been soaked in room temperature water for maybe 10 minutes, into water that is about 175 degrees F. I leave it in there for about 2 to 3 minutes, watching carefully for any shrinkage and curling on the edges. The edges is where you'll notice it first. Get it out right away if it starts to darken or shrivel up.

180 degrees seems to be the very hottest , by my thermometer, that will work. At 180, just 5 degrees hotter than 175, your time in the water will be reduced down to maybe 45 seconds, and when it starts to shrink, you only have a couple seconds to get it out. 170 will allow you much more time, up to 4 or 5 minutes, but it will not get as hard.

With your 2mm leather, it will be a dance between shrinking, and hardening, but it's possible...especially if it's already stiff. Stiff leather makes the best water-hardened leather, and it never needs to get above 175, so it's easier to make. I'd try it at 170, for a longer duration.

If the leather is not as stiff as you want, after the cuir buoilli, you can always soak it again, then dry it in an oven at 190 degrees F. Support it with wood, as metal will scorch it.

Run some tests, until you know how your leather will act.

It sounds like a difficult project to get it molded in one piece. I'd say you may need to make two or three test helmets before you commit your best leather. I made 3 or 4 helmets, before I had one I thought was good enough to sell.

Also, if you send me a personal message, or an email, I can let you know what I use for a mold, to shape the helmet dome. I can give you the measurements I use for the helmet parts, just to help get you closer on your first attempt.

Regards, Daggrim (Doug)

Thank you for quick reply!

That is a very nice outline for things I need to know! I will do more research, I probably should just go to Amazon and look for some books...

the sad thing is that I have to wait until next spring to be able to actually try any of these things.. which means ample time for research

I will contact Daggrim if he has anything else to say.

[douglais]

Here's a picture of my attempt at a Samurai helmet. Not really very accurate, but it captures the overall appearance.

Edited November 6, 2010 by douglais

[Bauer]

Oh thank you very much! Great answers! These will be most useful for me!

I was thinking of molding the helmet in two halves, then doing to top support and rims + the forehead protection. I don't think I could mold it in one peace, but we'll see...