What To Seal The Backside Of The Leather With?

[lel]

I've been using Fiebing's Bag Kote for flash side of a leather and I like the result. At the same time I'm quite disappointed with TanKote. I used TanKode by itself and in combination with Acrylic Resolene on a grain side of a leather for bags and folders and it does not protect the leather the way I expected - plain water leaves stains or washes it away. So far the best finish I've tried for grain side is Sno-Seal Wax.

[Halitech]

I'm with lel on this one. I asked Chief what he used on the back of his guitar straps that weren't lined and he advised to use sno seal. warm the leather up a little bit then apply the sno seal and then warm it up with a hair dryer to get it to soak in good.

[splitrail]

Thank you all for the great tips,

I have been searching for sno seal here in Texas, not suprised that it's not readily available at the local outdoor stores.

I never thought of burnishing the back side with glass. I will try that for sure as well.

I also think the higher the grade of leather the smoother that back will be in the end.

[Colt W Knight]

Thank you all for the great tips,

I have been searching for sno seal here in Texas, not suprised that it's not readily available at the local outdoor stores.

I never thought of burnishing the back side with glass. I will try that for sure as well.

I also think the higher the grade of leather the smoother that back will be in the end.

You can get it at Wal Mart, and I have even seen it at Lowes.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sno-Seal-Wax-8-oz/22229564

[Sona]

A think that might be worth mentioning is the Quality of the leather, too....
If you got some bad leather with very loose fibres on the back you can apply what you want to it. If you bend it over time, it will break, wear, just disappear. I normally just take some beeswax/balm and apply it heavily on the back (and front). When I use colours like black, or "colours" other than Brown stuff, I tend to use some Tan-Kote quite thin, but I really don´t like the appearance of resolene, even if a lot of People in this Forum recommend it.
The Thing is: my leather is flat and smooth already when I buy it, and it doesn´t change that status... the fibres are so dense that I have to wait some time, before water even thinks about soaking in without (!) any finish. So before you think "everything is possible" Keep this in mind and maybe just think about lining such a strap next time

[Red Bear Haraldsson]

I'd say finding it in Tucson makes sense since there are mountains nearby and San Antonio does not, but we have it in Walmart here in Jacksonville, FL and we just celebrated the 25th anniversary of the last time it snowed here...

[Colt W Knight]

I'd say finding it in Tucson makes sense since there are mountains nearby and San Antonio does not, but we have it in Walmart here in Jacksonville, FL and we just celebrated the 25th anniversary of the last time it snowed here...

I remember it snowing in Fort Meade when I lived in Florida in 2009.

[TomG]

Tandy has Fiebings Snow Proof... I've used it successfully on some dog collars.

I've been told it is about the same as the Sno Seal, but have no proof one way or the other.

http://www.tandyleather.com/en-usd/home/department/liquids-n/conditioners-n/2345-00.aspx

[lel]

TomG, they might be similar, but not the same. I have both, they smell differently. I should probably do some side by side testing of these 2 and Obenauf's LP that I recently purchased.

[TomG]

TomG, they might be similar, but not the same. I have both, they smell differently. I should probably do some side by side testing of these 2 and Obenauf's LP that I recently purchased.

Haha... that's why I left myself an out ....

I'd like to hear the testing results if you ever do it!.. I make a lot of dog collars and some are for water dogs, and the owners like them as waterproof as possible....

As for testing, maybe take 2 identical pieces of leather and coat all over with the product. Weight them. Soak in water for 5 minutes and then weight. That would tell you how much water is absorbed.

Maybe do some rub-off tests on white fabric?

I'm just thinking out loud here. If I had the others, I'd be glad to help.... All I've got for waterproofing right now is the Snow Proof and some Mink Oil Paste.