Moisture problems with canteens

[bebah]

A few years ago I made a nice canteen cover. Nicely tooled and laced on. When I filled it with cold water on a hot day. Well, you can guess the outcome. The condensation soaked the leather. Compromised the tooling and I was not please. I had thought of putting an insulating liner between the leather and the canteen or a moisture barrier. But then I am afraid I will be creating a mold environment. Has anyone experienced this ? And is there a successful solution to wraping a metal or plastic canteen with leather and not have this problem.

Thanks for any help on this.

Bebah

[Timbo]

I've made lots of leather covered canteens and I sew the covers on tight. So it doesn't breathe by any means. I also fill them with ice and water and go out into 90 degree heat and have never had a problem with condensation. Of course this is all at altitude of 5000 to 11000 feet and virtually no humidity. But I have dunked them in the springs to fill them and gotten them totally saturated and the same when I get caught in the rain. I have never had a problem with the tooling being compromised.

I do cover them with 8-9 oz vegtan. I sew the cover half way around get it soaking wet and force the canteen up into it and finish sewing it. By the time it has dried It shrinks down some and is really tight. I think the trick is to make them fit tight in the beginning when they are wet and take alot of the stretch out of them. It will lose a little of the sharpness of the tooling during this process but it is to be expected, especially if the tooling goes over or comes close to an edge that it is being stretched around.

As far as mold goes, I finish most of mine with Bee Naturals Rudy's. It has a mold inhibitor in it but I think that after awhile the mold protection would be negligible. But like I said earlier, up here with low humidity it isn't a problem and it might be at a lower elevation with a high humidity level.

I've included a pic of what my canteens look like just so you can see what I do.

Hope this helps.

Tim

.......and by the way, I only use plastic canteens that are BPA free. I won't use aluminum due to not liking the taste of aluminum and the possibility that drinking from aluminum as been linked to alzheimers.

Edited November 1, 2008 by Timbo

[UKRay]

.......and by the way, I only use plastic canteens that are BPA free. I won't use aluminum due to not liking the taste of aluminum and the possibility that drinking from aluminum as been linked to alzheimers.

Tim, what brand of canteen do you use and would you be prepared to share the name of your supplier?

[Timbo]

Sure will. They are made by a company named Texsport, actually they are just the importers. They are made in China. To save some time, I have, in the past, contacted them and they will not sell direct and they are already in the canvas cover and boxed when they hit the states, so you can't by them bare........I used to buy them at Wal-Mart but they quit selling them. Now I order them from Campmor.......here's the link http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___21917

Tim

[Luke Hatley]

i have had no problems with my canteens, the veg tanned leather is glued and molded to the glass

bottle.

[UKRay]

Sure will. They are made by a company named Texsport, actually they are just the importers. Now I order them from Campmor.......here's the link http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___21917

Tim

That was most kind, Tim. I'll give them a call to see if they will ship to the UK as I can't find any over here.

Question for Bebah - how do you mean 'compromised the tooling' what happened exactly? I don't want it happening to me!

[TexasJack]

.......and by the way, I only use plastic canteens that are BPA free. I won't use aluminum due to not liking the taste of aluminum and the possibility that drinking from aluminum as been linked to alzheimers.

Using plastic probably helps the condensation problem because it doesn't transfer heat (in this case "cold") as fast as metal.

Aluminum DOES NOT cause Alzheimer's. When the disease was first being studied, it was found that people with the disease seemed to have higher levels of aluminum in their brains than those without the disease. The press picked that up and reported it, and it has been lingering out there ever since. Research - real research, not CNN's pop science or some stoner running a health food store - found that the aluminum level was caused by the disease, not the other way around. That has been known for at least 30 years, but it's not exciting enough to be reported.

As for plastic, it is incredibly hard for anything to migrate through plastic. That includes BPA, dyes, solvents left over from manufacture, etc.

Sorry for the rant - I just have a thing about 'pop-sci'. Not blaming you, of course, it's the stupid media that plays up every event as a 'crisis'.

Just be thankful you didn't get me started on global warming.........

[Dually]

Howdy Timbo, would you mind sharing how you cover the cap of the canteen. I've done many canteens, but never the caps.

Thanks

[Timbo]

The only thing that bothers me about aluminum is the taste..........but as far as the rest goes it is just to go along with the "knowledge" the general public thinks it has. BPA free........hell, I have no idea what a BPA even is, but people are glad to know the canteen doesn't have them.

Covering the lids.......Take your cap with you to the hardware store and find a pvc pipe cap that will go over the lid plus room for the leather.........they are cheap so buy a few different sizes as they are just plain handy to have on the bench. I keep 5 on my bench.

You can do this with different weights of veg tan even 9-10 oz. I try to find a piece that is very stretchy from the neck or belly of the hide. Don't skimp on size, leave yourself enough to flange out on the bottom. Throw it in the sink and let it got soaking wet all the way through. Place your cap on a hard surface and put the leather over it. Now before you put the pipe cap over it, drill a small hole in the top of it for air to escape from. Put the pipe cap over the leather and canteen cap and drive it down with a hammer.

That's the basics of it. I leave it in the pipe cap to dry for about half a day them take it out and let it dry fully. When it is about half way dry I will turn the excess flange down and it dry this way as it makes trimming easier.

If there is anything I haven't made clear enough, please let me know.

Tim

[MADMAX22]

Using plastic probably helps the condensation problem because it doesn't transfer heat (in this case "cold") as fast as metal.

Aluminum DOES NOT cause Alzheimer's. When the disease was first being studied, it was found that people with the disease seemed to have higher levels of aluminum in their brains than those without the disease. The press picked that up and reported it, and it has been lingering out there ever since. Research - real research, not CNN's pop science or some stoner running a health food store - found that the aluminum level was caused by the disease, not the other way around. That has been known for at least 30 years, but it's not exciting enough to be reported.

As for plastic, it is incredibly hard for anything to migrate through plastic. That includes BPA, dyes, solvents left over from manufacture, etc.

Sorry for the rant - I just have a thing about 'pop-sci'. Not blaming you, of course, it's the stupid media that plays up every event as a 'crisis'.

Just be thankful you didn't get me started on global warming.........

Actually it was aluminum oxide that they thought was causing it, the regular ol aluminum wasnt the cause, would hope not considering aluminum is the most prevelant mineral on the planet.

Agree with ya on the media, its such a pain and the fact that the general public in most cases because they see it on the news beleive it atleat too a pretty big degree.

[Kowboyboots]

Timbo, thank you for sharing that info.

[TrooperChuck]

Thanks, Timbo, for sharing your technique for covering the canteen caps. I've made about 20 leather covered canteens, which sell pretty good in my area. (It seems that almost everyone with a horse and a western saddle NEEDS a leather covered canteen!) Your technique seems a lot simpler than how I was doing it.

Once the leather cap is molded and dries, do you do anything to keep it permanently attached to the plastic cap? I've tried drilling tiny holes in the rim at the bottom of the plastic cap and stitching the leather there, but that is pretty tedious.

Again, thanks for sharing!