Dyeing Larg Objects

[JerryLevine]

Dwight, you'll probably be better off spraying rather than dipping. A Preval sprayer isn't that expensive.

Tim,

Have you or do you know of anyone who has tried spraying a whole hide? I got 3 sides of skirting leather in the russet that I would like to dye before cutting. I've seen film of hides being sprayed in an English tannery and was wondering if was possible to emulate it in a non-industrial setting. I've read the posts on using an airbrush (my Wife has a Badger for porcelain restoration), but that may be a little small-scale for a whole sides and I have my eye on an electric spray gun on ebay.

Any comments or tips?

Jerry

[Timd]

No, Jerry, I cut all my pieces first, then dye. I think dying the whole side will tie up alot of leather, are you making something specific?

[JerryLevine]

No, Jerry, I cut all my pieces first, then dye. I think dying the whole side will tie up alot of leather, are you making something specific?

Tim,

Thanks for the reply. I'm making my first western saddles, following the Stohlman books. It seems that they (and others, such as Dusty Johnson) makes the saddle with skirting in the russet and if required, dye the saddle after assembly. I've always made my pieces (holsters, bridles, rifles slips) from leather that I've either bought pre-dyed or dyed myself, so I gues its just me being fussy about trying to get an even colour (OK - so the 'U' in colour will tell you that I'm a Brit and prone to being fussy!) across the whole piece of leather before cutting it.

I suppose I'd rather spend a bit of money on dye (I use Fiebing's Professional Oil Dyes) that might be wasted, and then be careful about placing and cutting my patterns to minimise wastage. Having said that, I've never made a saddle before! Valerie Micheals, a British leather crafter and the publisher of a standard (on this side of the pond) treatise on leatherwork, is my model for this process, and I've always had good, even results with it. By lightly dampening the leather first, then applying a number of lighter layers of dye with an applicator, turning the piece through 90 degrees after each application. After the dyed leather has dried, it is burnished with a boxwood (or similar) burnisher to seal the surface. Its just that a whole side (3 of them) seems a bit daunting and I wanted to be a little more efficient.

Jerry

[Timd]

I'm imagining my wife's reaction when I hang a side on the clothesline and start draggin' the compressor from the shed.....

[Dwight]

I'm imagining my wife's reaction when I hang a side on the clothesline and start draggin' the compressor from the shed.....

Living next to a 4000 acre public hunting land, . . . there is absolutely NO WAY I would hang a hide out on my wife's clothes line to spray it.

Even if I had full 3rd generation body armor, . . . nahhhhhhhhhhhhh !

May God bless,

Dwight

[yaklady]

Here is how I do it and seem to have good luck. I use oil dye from Feblings as I have had the best luck with it. I use right from the bottle and buy in quarts. For a large object I pour out an amount in a plastic dish, (ok I use butter dishes) I then cut a piece of wool and cut it real short. I start by using a back and forth motion, then change directions and then go to a circular motion until well covered. I see no reason to spray on a holster and gun belt. I quit using the spirt dyes years ago because of streaking problems. I have the best results with the professional oil dye from Feblings. I have tried others but none have the results that the oil dye does from Feblings. I tried some of Weavers oil dye ONCE! Never again.

I am sure there are as may ways to dye as leatherworkers who use dye. This is just what works best for me. I like appling dye by hand as I can blend it and rub it in. I like to feel the leather. The best way to discribe this is that I can feel when the leather has absorbed the right amount of dye, something I cannot do with a sprayer. I used a sprayer once and got overspray everywhere.

One more thought. If you do not have enough dye in one bottle for a project use a new bottle. Then afterward I will mix them together as I do not want to start a large dye job with a small amount in a bottle and then open a new bottle. There is no garentee that it will be the exact color. Always blend the new dye with the old dye to have a consistant color.

Randy

I second Randy's method. The bigger the piece of leather, the bigger the sheep skin and the bigger the butter dish. Hit the leather hard and fast, with lots of dye at once, and don't spend much time in one place. Cover as much of the surface as you can in a few seconds.

Kathy

[Go2Tex]

Tim,

Thanks for the reply. I'm making my first western saddles, following the Stohlman books. It seems that they (and others, such as Dusty Johnson) makes the saddle with skirting in the russet and if required, dye the saddle after assembly. I've always made my pieces (holsters, bridles, rifles slips) from leather that I've either bought pre-dyed or dyed myself, so I gues its just me being fussy about trying to get an even colour (OK - so the 'U' in colour will tell you that I'm a Brit and prone to being fussy!) across the whole piece of leather before cutting it.

I suppose I'd rather spend a bit of money on dye (I use Fiebing's Professional Oil Dyes) that might be wasted, and then be careful about placing and cutting my patterns to minimise wastage. Having said that, I've never made a saddle before! Valerie Micheals, a British leather crafter and the publisher of a standard (on this side of the pond) treatise on leatherwork, is my model for this process, and I've always had good, even results with it. By lightly dampening the leather first, then applying a number of lighter layers of dye with an applicator, turning the piece through 90 degrees after each application. After the dyed leather has dried, it is burnished with a boxwood (or similar) burnisher to seal the surface. Its just that a whole side (3 of them) seems a bit daunting and I wanted to be a little more efficient.

Jerry

I can't imagine a good reason to dye all 3 sides before cutting. You will still get uneven color because of the nature of the leather. Different areas will soak up more than others. Then, you will still need to dye your edges. The wasted dye is a very real consideration due to the cost plus your time. Not a good idea. A tannery has no other option for offering a colored product, so they either spray or drum dye the whole thing.

[JerryLevine]

I can't imagine a good reason to dye all 3 sides before cutting. You will still get uneven color because of the nature of the leather. Different areas will soak up more than others. Then, you will still need to dye your edges. The wasted dye is a very real consideration due to the cost plus your time. Not a good idea. A tannery has no other option for offering a colored product, so they either spray or drum dye the whole thing.

Brent,

Many thanks for that; I guess I'll think again. I might have a go a a smaller piece of leather at some stage though! Thanks also to Tim, Randy, Kathy and Dwight for your input. I'll get me some sheepskin and look on ebay for a BIG butter dish!

I'll be visiting the tannery I mentioned above later in the year to see if I can get English tanned skirting in the colour I want. I might just take the sides I already have up to them and see if they'll dye them for me! Anyway, I'm off to Afghanistan on Wednesday for a few weeks, so I won't be doing much leatherwork for a while (but I will be taking my 3rd gen body armour!). Having said that, I might take the makings of a bridle and sew it up when the iPod battery dies. Unfortunately, sewing clams take up an awful lot of space in the rucksack; probably better take a sleeping bag instead!

All the best,

Jerry