Leather Edging/burnishing

[JackFrost]

Ive really realle tried, but i just cant get the hang of it .___.

i own this kind of Wax:

Link to My edge Wax

and for some reason, i just cant get the hang of applying it to the the edges .__.

What i do is, i take a moist cloth, and damp it on the edge. then i apply the wax, and then smooth the edge with a piece of bone.

The best result I've gotten so far is this:

Link to my pathetic Edge work

and it is not really the result seen beneath .__.

It is as if the wax is much thicker on this pretty piece of work. and my work is just sad .__. - my biggest disapointment, is not to be able to "connect" the two pieces of leather. (so it looks like one smooth piece of leather)

Ive looked a lot on the Internet, and found that people use machines, which i don't have.

anyone have a good guide to finishing edges, preffereble a video?. or maybe just some good tips!

and is this, the thing I'm trying to do, the same as burnishing? (I've seen this word a lot, but I'm not sure if this is it)

the best I've found is Bob Parks guide, unfortunately, I'm too stupid to understand it ._.

Thank you in advance!

- Jack

[terrymac]

From your pictures, it doesn't appear you are beveling your edges or sanding them. Sanding is an important part of finishing edges and you are correct, burnishing is the correct term. If you can get hold of some old fashioned saddle soap, I think you would like the result better. Another important tip I picked up from Bob Parks is to use glycerine soap before applying the saddle soap. It really helps the leather begin laying down. If you have a piece of canvas or an old pair of jeans, you can these to get a pretty good edge, it just takes an awfully lot of work. Without dying your edges, I don't know if you will ever be able to hide the glue line between the two pieces. Bob's tutorial is really the best advice I have ever seen, and it really isn't very complicated. Hope this helps.

Terry

[JackFrost]

From your pictures, it doesn't appear you are beveling your edges or sanding them. Sanding is an important part of finishing edges and you are correct, burnishing is the correct term. If you can get hold of some old fashioned saddle soap, I think you would like the result better. Another important tip I picked up from Bob Parks is to use glycerine soap before applying the saddle soap. It really helps the leather begin laying down. If you have a piece of canvas or an old pair of jeans, you can these to get a pretty good edge, it just takes an awfully lot of work. Without dying your edges, I don't know if you will ever be able to hide the glue line between the two pieces. Bob's tutorial is really the best advice I have ever seen, and it really isn't very complicated. Hope this helps.

Terry

So many advices all at once!

So i should use sand paper to sand down the edges? - how so, just run it across ones or what?

Saddle soap instead of the wax? is that what you mean? - and where do i get this? - from my Leather dealer?

Ive used a little more elbow grease now, and it looks a lot better, the line between the two pieces are still very visible though. :/

Thank you very much for the reply!

[Art]

You will need a sanded or cut edge for burnishing. Do edge the outside layers, do not edge the inside edges.

Art

Ive really realle tried, but i just cant get the hang of it .___.

i own this kind of Wax:

Link to My edge Wax

and for some reason, i just cant get the hang of applying it to the the edges .__.

What i do is, i take a moist cloth, and damp it on the edge. then i apply the wax, and then smooth the edge with a piece of bone.

The best result I've gotten so far is this:

Link to my pathetic Edge work

and it is not really the result seen beneath .__.

It is as if the wax is much thicker on this pretty piece of work. and my work is just sad .__. - my biggest disapointment, is not to be able to "connect" the two pieces of leather. (so it looks like one smooth piece of leather)

Ive looked a lot on the Internet, and found that people use machines, which i don't have.

anyone have a good guide to finishing edges, preffereble a video?. or maybe just some good tips!

and is this, the thing I'm trying to do, the same as burnishing? (I've seen this word a lot, but I'm not sure if this is it)

the best I've found is Bob Parks guide, unfortunately, I'm too stupid to understand it ._.

Thank you in advance!

- Jack

[TwinOaks]

My edges used to look like that!!!

First off, be sure you're gluing the leather right to the edge with a good contact cement. This bonds the leather AT the edge. You may want to cut the pattern a little bit large so you can have the right size after you sand the edge. Once you've got the pieces glued together, sand until you have an even edge. You can use a drywall sanding sponge for this, and it works well.....or just a piece of sand paper; your call. It doesn't have to be perfect, just even. You need to remove the outside corners from the joined pieces. You can either do that while your sanding, or use an edge beveler (which is faster, neater, and more consistent). Now, moisten the edge and start rubbing down the edge. This is called slicking, and the purpose is to lay down all the little fibers that want to jump up and make the edge look bad. I use a piece of cocobola that I cut a groove in, and just go back and forth, very rapidly. When you hear a slight 'clicking' noise, that means that you are starting to get a burnish on it, and it should have a nice shiny appearance to it...keep moving down the edge until you've got everything done. Once you've got most of the little fibers laid down, start using canvas or denim. I wipe the fabric across an open can of saddle soap to just barely pick up some saddle soap. Then start rubbing the edge. Go fast and use as much pressure as you can. You are now burnishing. You'll want to rub fast enough that the fabric gets uncomfortably hot....then switch to another spot on the cloth. Keep this up until you get a consistent edge, all the way around. The saddle soap is to lubricate the edge so you can glide over it and build up heat instead of pulling up the fibers you just slicked down.

Slick with a tool, then burnish with fabric. When you get your edge, you'll want to put a finish coat on it- you can use the wax for that.

If you want to make the edge black, you'll need to dye it when you've completed the sanding and bevelling, then touch up the edge color before the final top coat. Go back through Bob Park's tutorial and substitute "rub until your arm hurts" for any step that he mentions a machine.

[Kevin]

Is that veg tanned leather or chrome tanned leather?

Kevin

[alb]

After the two pieces have been glued, if you have much leather to remove from the edge to even things up, and you don't have a machine, you can use a broken piece of glass, held at about a 30 degree angle to scrape along the edge. Use the glass to remove leather and get things pretty even, then use the sandpaper/sanding sponge.

Ann

My edges used to look like that!!!

First off, be sure you're gluing the leather right to the edge with a good contact cement. This bonds the leather AT the edge. You may want to cut the pattern a little bit large so you can have the right size after you sand the edge. Once you've got the pieces glued together, sand until you have an even edge. You can use a drywall sanding sponge for this, and it works well.....or just a piece of sand paper; your call. It doesn't have to be perfect, just even. You need to remove the outside corners from the joined pieces. You can either do that while your sanding, or use an edge beveler (which is faster, neater, and more consistent). Now, moisten the edge and start rubbing down the edge. This is called slicking, and the purpose is to lay down all the little fibers that want to jump up and make the edge look bad. I use a piece of cocobola that I cut a groove in, and just go back and forth, very rapidly. When you hear a slight 'clicking' noise, that means that you are starting to get a burnish on it, and it should have a nice shiny appearance to it...keep moving down the edge until you've got everything done. Once you've got most of the little fibers laid down, start using canvas or denim. I wipe the fabric across an open can of saddle soap to just barely pick up some saddle soap. Then start rubbing the edge. Go fast and use as much pressure as you can. You are now burnishing. You'll want to rub fast enough that the fabric gets uncomfortably hot....then switch to another spot on the cloth. Keep this up until you get a consistent edge, all the way around. The saddle soap is to lubricate the edge so you can glide over it and build up heat instead of pulling up the fibers you just slicked down.

Slick with a tool, then burnish with fabric. When you get your edge, you'll want to put a finish coat on it- you can use the wax for that.

If you want to make the edge black, you'll need to dye it when you've completed the sanding and bevelling, then touch up the edge color before the final top coat. Go back through Bob Park's tutorial and substitute "rub until your arm hurts" for any step that he mentions a machine.