Super Shene Problems

[Colt W Knight]

I am having a little trouble following your process.

Why did you apply super sheene, then wipe it off with a wet sponge?

Here is how I do it

1). Case the leather - while its wet I give it a once over with saddle soap to clean - most leather is really dirty and has oily residue

2). Tool - let dry

3). light coat of neats foot oil - let dry 12-24 hours

4). Apply dyes - let dry thoroughly

5). Apply a couple light coats of clear/resist - let dry

6). apply several light coats of color ( acrylic )- let dry

7). Apply a couple light coats of clear/resist

8). Apply antique gel to highlight all the tooling - let dry

9). Apply several light coats of clear.

When you apply stain, it needs to be applied to clean dry leather, and once its dry and has enough coats to get the color saturation you need, you need to put some clear or resist on it to keep the dyes and antiques from bleeding into the color.

If you are going to brush on the clear/resist - you need to do so in such a manner as you are not wiping away the stain/color. Spraying is the only way I have been able to accomplish this. I finally broke down and bought an inexpensive airbrush. You can do it without an airbrush, but expect to get a little color bleed.

[Colt W Knight]

Just A Thank You to Colt For your answer here.

All this is in my head from years of Sign lettering,

but I could not get it out so clearly, good job !

Thanks my friend ! ------ Wild Bill46

Thanks Bill ,

I learned a lot about dyes and painting building custom guitars. Whenever you mix products - I cant emphasize TEST OF SCRAP first enough. Even when you don't mix products, you still need practice to get your thinning ratios and applications just right to where you can get good results. Folk who are new to these things don't understand how they work, and are usually disappointed when they start using more than one product on the same project. Hobby stores always make their products out to be better than they really are.

[LeatherNerd]

Indidana, how did resolene work for you?

I had this same exact problem... but with resolene. I've all but sworn the stuff off.

In my case, I tooled the leather then stained it with Tandy Eco-Flo Saddle Tan Hi-Lite Color Stain. It was absolutely gorgeous with a deep, rich tan darkening down to brown in the tool marks. When I wiped on the resolene, I wiped the whole thing back to an anemic-looking yellow, surfaces and tool impressions alike. I applied the stain again, arriving at a murky, low-contrast brown that looked nowhere near as nice as the original finish, but at least didn't look awful anymore. Then I dabbed on another coat of resolene, letting it soak and pool slightly.

The end result was a mediocre finish that, as soon as I shipped it to a friend in humid Portland, Oregon, became sticky. Oh, and the dye must have pulled up and mixed with the resolene while I was daubing it because after all that, it still stained his hands and clothes.

I have heard that resolene in particular becomes gummy if overused so the second coat was probably doomed to fail, and dabbing it on and letting it pool probably sealed my fate (but not my leather).

I'm still experimenting, and I need to try spraying. But for now one thing I've found that has a dramatic effect on my results is drying time. I applied the hi-lite stain an hour after tooling and I think the leather should have been dried overnight. And I applied the resolene the next morning, and I'm starting to think that 24 hours at a minimum might be needed to let the hi-lite stain fully cure, since it is specifically designed to pile up and thicken in crevices.

These are just my experiences so far and my thoughts for where to go next; I'm new to leather so take my experiences with a grain of salt and my theories with a grin and a big bag of popcorn.

[Blackbirdhills Andy]

Hi there,

I'm currently working on a pair of chinks with a two-tone (brown/Natural) carving. My question is:

I'm done with everything, now I'm a bit scared of oiling, because the color could get smeared, right? Or am I safe with just lightly touching it up with some oil on a sponge? I use fiebings professional oil dye... After that, I was planning to use bag kote, but I can use a can of leather sheen too if thats safer...

thanks a lot!

[Colt W Knight]

It probably wont smear, but the dye will most likely bleed some.

I always rub recently dyed leather with a cloth until it quits rubbing off, then apply the clear coat. Fiebings pro oil dye bleeds a lot less than any other dye I have used.

[Blackbirdhills Andy]

15 hours ago, Colt W Knight said:

It probably wont smear, but the dye will most likely bleed some.

I always rub recently dyed leather with a cloth until it quits rubbing off, then apply the clear coat. Fiebings pro oil dye bleeds a lot less than any other dye I have used.

Thanks; I oiled it yesterday; no problem at all... 

[Widget]

FWIW, I've used Resolene, Resolene cut 50/50 with water, and Super Sheen.  I've used sponges, daubers, old t-shirts, and sprays (I do not have an airbrush so I tried the ones you get from Home Depot, the name of which eludes me at the moment, but it's a glass container that you screw onto a can of propellant). 

I will say between the two, I get the best results from Super Sheen, even though I don't any Tandy dyes (I always use Fiebing's dyes).  I've found the keys for me are 1) very, very, very thin coats, buffed out after they're dry.  You can always add another coat, taking away, well... and 2) most importantly, make sure the dye/stain/hi-lighter, is DRY DRY DRY.  For me, that means in the humid east coast summer, I let the dye dry at least three days before I even think about coating the top.  Then I'll buff the snot out of it until the rag comes clean before laying on the first coat. 

All of that said, unless I need something to be super duper weather resistant, I'm happier with 2 light coats of Tan Kote on top.

PS  The other advice about oiling leather before the first coat of dye is spot on too...especially if you're using an alcohol dye...I've forgotten to oil a piece and had the finish crack off because the skin of the grain got too dry...

[Colt W Knight]

6 hours ago, Widget said:

FWIW, I've used Resolene, Resolene cut 50/50 with water, and Super Sheen.  I've used sponges, daubers, old t-shirts, and sprays (I do not have an airbrush so I tried the ones you get from Home Depot, the name of which eludes me at the moment, but it's a glass container that you screw onto a can of propellant). 

 

They are called Prevail sprayers. Ive had mixed luck with them. 

[Halitech]

Tandy sells them as well. for the cost of the propellant, might as well buy an airbrush and compressor.

[RoosterCogburn]

So I got this old 2002 dated Tandy super shene leather finish from my uncle and it's coagulated at the bottom but it's not completely dried out it's mushy but still has a little liquid, is there anyway I can fix this or should I just trash it