How To Remove Smudges?

[Buckaroo58]

I'm getting black smudges on my leather while tooling. I'm not sure if its coming from my tools. At first I thought it was stain so the next time I made sure my area was clean. Is there a way to remove it?

[Cyberthrasher]

If you haven't tried anything yet, you can possibly dab on some pure lemon juice and let it evaporate - NO RUBBING. That's a trick that some old-timers used to remove "metal" stains from leather. It's not a guarantee, but from what I hear it's about the best you'll get. My guess is that your hands weren't clean. One problem I have a lot is that I tend to clench my tools pretty hard in tight spots and get some metallic rub off on my fingers. If I'm not paying attention, the second I touch the cased leather I get that same mark. Once I started noticing that happen a lot, I made sure I ALWAYS wash my hands with dish soap before I start a customer project. Then it's just a matter of making sure I'm not getting the transfer on my hands from clenching too tight.

[Buckaroo58]

Thanks so much! I think that's exactly how the stains are getting on the leather! I'll give the lemon juice a try. Thank you!

[Buckaroo58]

I tried out the lemon juice and it worked perfectly! Thanks again.

[Cyberthrasher]

I tried out the lemon juice and it worked perfectly! Thanks again.

Awesome!! I had never tried it myself, but I had high hopes since it came from some pretty well known experts.