Wet moulding after dye is applied OK?

[PJ234]

Hello and Merry Christmas!

I'm a newbie learning leatherwork, and I have a knife sheath (the 2nd I've made so far) that I wet moulded and then dyed using Tandy Eco-Flo dye. (I'm having problems with this dye as well, but perhaps that's another post topic.)

Now that I'm at this point, I've decided I want to do some more shaping of the handle which will make it no longer a snug fit to the sheath. Can I still we mould it at this point, or will that screw up the dye job that's on it now?

Thanks!

[abn]

You'll definitely ruin your nice, new sheath by applying water. Eco-Flo is a great dye, but excessive exposure to water will cause it to wash off.

[PJ234]

Thanks for the advice abn. Do you have any suggestions on how I could further mould this sheath, or am I pretty much stuck with it the way it is?

[Rayban]

I don't believe there's anything wrong with getting it good and wet again, molding it, then dying it again. Sure you're gonna get your hands full of dye run off....but you can still get the job done.

Nice carving BTW.

[TwinOaks]

It might be a good excuse to switch to spirit dyes........

[PJ234]

Thanks Rayban, I appreciate the advice and the compliment. This was my first carving and second sheath, so I was pleased with how it turned out (although I messed up the layout as you can see.)

I don't know what Spirit dyes are, I'll have to research that to learn about them.

[TwinOaks]

Spirit dyes are dyes with an alchohol base instead of water. Fiebing's is one of the better known mfgrs., and they also have 'oil dye', which is a dye with a base of oil and alchohol. Where the Eco- dyes have a tendency to be very allergic to water (they run easily), the spirit dyes are more permanent. As Kate and some others posted in your other thread, all of them will leave a little residue. That residue is the unabsorbed pigments, and should be buffed before sealing.

[Rayban]

PJ...that won't be the last item you'll ever have to scrap and start over....it's a shame you may have to waste that nice carving, but it's been good practice too.

IMO, you can save that sheath by tapering the stitch line up closer to the mold line nearest the knife handle. Yes, it will look like you "saved it" but it will still be functional.

The most important thing is that you've learned by it.

To this day, I can make a half dozen sheaths that turn out just fine, by my standards, then mess the next one up just cuzz I took my eye off the ball...it happens.

[TwinOaks]

Two other options besides scrapping it- give it a vinegaroon treatment, which will wash out the Eco- color (search vinegaroon and setlle in for a lot of reading, and there are at least two colors), or go for a more traditional sheath with a waxed treatment described here under 'traditional deep sheath'