Dying, Buffing, Edging

[frontlinebass]

Hey there,

I've been getting into leather belt making and am loving it! I've read up a lot on this site on dying and edging and learned a bunch, thanks everyone!

I have still have a couple of questions,

1. I've been using feibings edge kote on my belts because sometimes I like having a black edge to them. I've noticed that where there is friction on the edge of the belt from the buckle the edge kote will start to creep up on the face of the belt itself. I've have beveled the edges and slicked them after applying the edge kote, is this correct? How can the bleed be stopped?

2. I like to dye my belts different colors than usual from what i've seen on these boards, blues, reds, greens and what have you. What are some good ways to buff the dye so that bleeding doen't occur if I want a matt finish? Is hand buffing the only option?

This is my first post so I am sorry if I've posted this in the wrong section or have missed where this info already is. Thank you in advance for your help!

Edited October 21, 2012 by frontlinebass

[DoubleC]

Hi Frontline. I'm not sure I can answer your questions but they are sure interesting. I've only used edge kote once on a dog collar that was already black oil dyed so not sure it will ever show bleeding. I 'accidentally' made a tie dyed guitar strap once, LOL and decided to act as if I meant it. It cam from using saddle soap to burnish the edges before I dyed so I sorted that one out. But that light color doesn't have edge kote on it either.

I dye my edges the same color as the strap because I have a shaky hand problem and would have a darker color all over the strap itself. Then I burnish it and that makes it darker than the dye anyway.

I do all of these things by hand because I like to. I know some people use burnishers on dremel sets, or drills if they have a big set up like that.

If you mix your resolene or mop 'n glo 1/2 qnd 1/2 water it gives it a nice mellow look when buffed by hand. I use a couple of thin coats. If you use it straight and too heavy a coat it can look like kinda plastic when you've finished. I know this wasn't an enormous amount of help but others will be along to add. Cheryl

[TwinOaks]

The secret to edges can be found in Hidepounder's tutorial....right here in the 'How do I ....." section. You don't have to follow his way EXACTLY....but stay close to the guide and you'll have much nicer edges than edgekote will ever produce. Edgekote is a surface treatment...period. It's a product to produce a quick shiny edge, and it's basically painted on the leather. After slicking the edges, you also need to burnish, DYE them, buff them, seal, and re-buff.

Since you're in hotlanta, swing by the Tandy there and check out the Professional Water Stains. They might give you some additional options on belt colors, and they're getting a pretty good review.

[frontlinebass]

Thanks for the info! That's great!

Anybody want to weigh in on the best way to buff the face of dyed leather to prevent bleeding? I'd imagine there is some other good way aside from hand buffing?

[TwinOaks]

Hand buffing is the way to go. You could put a buffing cloth on a drill, but you have to worry about building up heat and making a burnished or burnt spot.

You can buff when it's totally dry and do pretty good with whatever finish you're trying for. Or, you can spray LIGHTLY with some water and start buffing. That will likely result in a glazed finish...which is sometimes a good thing. But....you said you want a matte finish, so.... Buff when the leather is dry. Your choice of top coat / sealer will also have a major role in the finish.

[frontlinebass]

Hand buffing is the way to go. You could put a buffing cloth on a drill, but you have to worry about building up heat and making a burnished or burnt spot.

You can buff when it's totally dry and do pretty good with whatever finish you're trying for. Or, you can spray LIGHTLY with some water and start buffing. That will likely result in a glazed finish...which is sometimes a good thing. But....you said you want a matte finish, so.... Buff when the leather is dry. Your choice of top coat / sealer will also have a major role in the finish.

That's great to hear as well. I really am a bit of a newbie when it comes to all of this, but lets say I wanted to use a dremel to do my buffing for the face of my leather. What would be the best way of going about this? Or conversely is that idea really just a big waste of time?

[strudell]

Speaking of edging from the Hidepounder tutorial, it works great for me except that I can't keep the saddle soap from staining the leather. I apply finish to my piece before starting to burnish, and I try to use minimal saddle soap applied directly to my burnishing canvas, and wipe excess saddle soap from my piece as soon as I've finished burnishing the section and yet I still get stains. Any advice? This is primarily a problem on undyed veg tan.

Cheers

[DoubleC]

I had the same problem on undyed leather so I always dye and put my finish coat on first before I burnish. I 'smooth' them with sand paper if need be on my guitar straps, but no saddle soap on the undyed leather. I wait until I have resolene on as a little resist and slicker finish to wipe the excess off with. Try it with your leather dyed including the edges, and your finish on first. Works best for me. Make sure your dye is really dry and also your finish.

[strudell]

Perhaps waiting the extra time for the finish to dry will be the ticket on the undyed veg tan when I don't plan on dying. Thanks!

[DoubleC]

I'm sorry Strudell, I didn't know you meant you didn't intend to dye it. Cheryl

[TwinOaks]

You can use glycerin soap (facial bar) and rub it directly on the belt after slicking. After that, it's a case of being careful and not running the burnishing cloth/wheel over on the sides.