Crackling On Belts

[gareth]

i am a new leatherworker making belts, the problem is i use veg tan leather i condition the leather,and case it , tool it then dye useing fiebings pro oil dye , then use resolene to seal dye and finish with carnuba wax . however at buckle end and strap end where leather is bent i appear to have a crackling appear on surface of leather, when bent cracling dissapears, but this finish spoils overall effect. what am i doing wrong, is belt not dry before applying resolene, or am i applying to much resolene per coat should i thin resolene with water. if anyone can help it would be much appreciated thanks gareth

[pete]

why do you condition it before you case it- or are you? How much resolene are you using and how are you applying it? Is the leather really thick or hard where it bends?

We need more information.

pete

[gareth]

why do you condition it before you case it- or are you? How much resolene are you using and how are you applying it? Is the leather really thick or hard where it bends?

We need more information.

pete

leather leather leather

thank you for replying,i am usind 4mm veg tan leather,and i condition prior to casing and tooling,in order to soften leather and after applying resolene to seal conditioner within leather belt. i suspect my problem is applying resolene either to soon after dyeing [not allowing sufficent time to dry} or applying to thick a coat or not allowing sufficent time for resolene to dry ie am allowing 24 hours}. do you thin first coat of resolene with water , or should i spray first coat, it is difficult to apply resolene with consistency with brush.however crackling is only really showing at strap end where it goes through buckle rest of belt is perfect and when bent sevely crackling dissapears. your comments are most welcome as this is only my no5 belt and previous belts have not been as obvious as they have been all tooled belts for 4 daughters,this belt is mine and totally plain apart for edge grooves. thanks gareth

[mlapaglia]

Dont condition before you case. You run the risk of over conditioning by the time you are through. One time after the tooling and before the resoline. Sounds like you have too many coats of resoline on the belt. I do my first coat 50-50 resoline and water. Prevents bubbles. The second I do a light coat with full strength or 50-50 depending on how I feel that day. I let the first coat dry over night and the second about 12 hours.

Whose leather are you using? Tandy, Herman Oaks, Wicket and Craig?

When I make a belt I skive the section on the buckle end that is folded. This way the finished section is no thicker than the original leather. Did you skive the buckle end?

Michael

Edited May 17, 2012 by mlapaglia

[pete]

conditioning before casing prevents the water from properly saturating the leather.

Plus I think that you may have gotten a bad piece to begin with. Was it a pre made blank or did you cut the strip yourself?

[Sylvia]

A agree with the fellas, never condition before your casing and tooling. I also think you are over finishing the piece. One thing you'll learn doing leather working is patience.

When you say "crackling" are you speaking of a wrinkled effect when the leather is flat and not flexed? If so, it sounds to me as if you have not skived the leather where the buckle goes. When you bend the leather over to test or place a buckle, you stretch the hair side... when it is returned to the flat position is doesn't rebound so the stretched skin wrinkles. Also if you flex leather to condition it to the hair side it will leave wrinkles and such on the finish side of the leather. As far as I know there is nothing to fix this once it's done. But frankly.... the other end of the belt will overlay that and hide it when worn. So I wouldn't worry about it too much.

[gareth]

many thanks for all your suggestions gareth