Saddle Lac Sadness

[YinTx]

First experiment seems a bit successful... not quite where I want it, but infinitely better than what I was getting.  The antique seemed to stay in the textured sections with differing degrees of tenacity.

I tooled this cow skull just to see if I could, first thing I have done of this type, so don't be too harsh on the artistic quality.  Here is the process I used:

OTATC : Oiled with neatsfoot, treated with two layers of Tan-Kote, Antiqued with Medium Brown Fiebeng's paste, treated with Tan-Kote, then treated with Clear Lac.  

Here is where I did things differently:  very thin layers of Tan-Kote, to where there was no shine, it almost all absorbed into the leather.  In the past, I had been putting a heavy coat per all instructions, that set on top of the leather, which later peeled off.  The final coat of Clear Lac was 50% thinned.

I'll be doing some other trials, with different resists done different ways to see what I like best, but I am relieved to have achieved this result finally.

YinTx

[NVLeatherWorx]

1 hour ago, YinTx said:

First experiment seems a bit successful... not quite where I want it, but infinitely better than what I was getting.  The antique seemed to stay in the textured sections with differing degrees of tenacity.

I tooled this cow skull just to see if I could, first thing I have done of this type, so don't be too harsh on the artistic quality.  Here is the process I used:

OTATC : Oiled with neatsfoot, treated with two layers of Tan-Kote, Antiqued with Medium Brown Fiebeng's paste, treated with Tan-Kote, then treated with Clear Lac.  

Here is where I did things differently:  very thin layers of Tan-Kote, to where there was no shine, it almost all absorbed into the leather.  In the past, I had been putting a heavy coat per all instructions, that set on top of the leather, which later peeled off.  The final coat of Clear Lac was 50% thinned.

I'll be doing some other trials, with different resists done different ways to see what I like best, but I am relieved to have achieved this result finally.

YinTx

Next time you do a random item like this try this technique to see what a real resist looks like:

Step 1: use Clear-Lac to resist the actual tooled object by simply painting just the object with the lacquer and let it dry at least 8 hours.

Step 2: once the resist is dry you can then use your antique of choice and apply it just as instructed by the manufacturer, just make sure that you don't let it set before removing excess, do this immediately.

Step 3:  final seal with whatever finish you desire.

The object of a resist is to give different tones to the leather so you use it to block out the penetration of antiques into the areas that you want to be lighter or protected.  For example, you see these beautiful carved pieces with full color detail and darker main body finishes; to maintain the pop of the color those areas are resisted before antiqued.  You can not truly resist an entire piece because all you are doing at that point is to just try and obtain a lighter tone for the whole thing; this and resisting are two different techniques.  Clear-Lac is a resist medium and a finish; Tan-Kote is a finish only.  You can use Resolene as a resist or a finish; Satin Sheen is a resist or a finish.  Leather Balm is a finish only; Neatsfoot Oil is a conditioner; beeswax is a conditioner/finish only.  Everything does not work for everything and using any of these in heavy coatings is asking for some issues, regardless of what the manufacturer suggests.  

Regarding your tooling work on the skull: it is awesome dude!  I love how that turned out and you have a knack for the tooling arts my friend.

[JD62]

  I don't know if you

have seen this video but he has some great tutorials .

[YinTx]

1 hour ago, JD62 said:

  I don't know if you have seen this video but he has some great tutorials .

JD62,

I have seen several of his videos, and this one in particular I have watched like 4 times since I have been so frustrated with the Tan-Kote.  He is one of the proponents of putting on copious amounts of Tan Kote prior to antiquing.  I am suspecting other's perception and my perception of copious are two different things, which is why I experimented with -thin- coats.  The outcome was closer to what I had envisioned.

 

NVLeatherWorx,

I have an "experiment" in mind that is quite similar to what you are proposing.  The only things I have used as a "resist" have been Tan-Kote, Clear Lac, Saddle-Lac, Resolene, and Angelus Acrylic finisher.  Per my studies of Al Stohman's books, internet musings, videos, etc, I had been expecting varying degrees of resist from each, and to use each with different antique products (such as Angelus Acrylic antique with the acrylic resists/finishes, and Fiebings paste antique with the Tan-Kotes, Clear-Lacs, etc).  So I intend to lay them out side by side, and see what looks I can accomplish with different combinations, etc.  I hammered out some basket weave on some scrap belly with some texturing, etc today as a test bed.  We'll see how it goes!  And thanks much for the compliment, I was pleasantly surprised at how it came out, considering my complete lack of artistic capabilities in other mediums.  That is probably destined to sit under a cold beer in my brother's garage, at 3"x3" prolly 'bout the right size for the job.

YinTx

[JD62]

I had hoped you had seen it as it helps me to understand your proses as I have been following this trying to get as much

'learnin" as I can!

[NVLeatherWorx]

20 hours ago, YinTx said:

I have an "experiment" in mind that is quite similar to what you are proposing.  

I posted one here somewhere awhile back that used the Eco-Flo Waterstains as the coloring medium and about 5 different resist products as well so that everyone could see that it could be done with the waterstains but you had to be wise to what your resist was as everything does not work to resist even if it is advertised to do so.  My resist products were Tandy Super Sheen, Tandy Block Out Resist, Resolene (full strength), the Eco-Flo Professional Matte Finish, and Clear-Lac.  If I can drum up a picture of my results I will shoot it to you.

I am currently working on a full color carving that is going to be resisted then antiqued; I will shoot you those images as well if you would like.  Keep in mind, I only use Clear-Lac as my resist (it has a proven history with me and I haven't found anything else that even comes close) and Fiebing's Antique paste as my coloring medium.  You will get varied degrees of resist and those degrees can be further tightened up based on the number of coats you apply of your resist medium so there is an awful lot to take into consideration when doing this technique and your experiment. 

You know what would make that skull really stand out?  Give it a color treatment of white acrylic paint, resist it, and then hit with a dark antique paste; that would give it an aged rustic look.  Still though, damn fine carving for someone who doesn't think they have an artistic bone in their body. You sir have a knack with this carving stuff (I learned this from the get go so most of my career in leather has been carving and tooling; for me it is just simple but I know what it took for me to get there).  You keep at it because this level of detailed work is what makes Master Craftsmen in this trade.

[JD62]

I for one would  like to see your full color  carving, and agree that YinTxs' carving is great!

[YinTx]

JD62, and NVLeatherWorx - Thanks for that!

I have never been a painter or an artist, I suspect I'd get outside the lines if I had to color anything!  Maybe in the future I'll get enough gumption to give it a try.  I would like to see yours!  might be some inspiration in there...

But, now that I have finished up a couple of projects, I can get back to carving and tooling again.  I am in the midst of the antique experiment, and I must say I am a bit surprised by the results I am getting.  I am using the Tan-Kote with success, so much so I will probably be using it in the future.  I think it was as I suspected, I was using it way too thick.  I am pretty much wiping it dry after applying - this really cleans things up and keeps it from cracking or peeling.  Still have the finish coats to put on the experiment, so I will probably post a separate thread to illustrate the differences.  Even with the number of results I have, there are still a huge number of combinations that could be considered.  For now, I am trying to master a couple before I branch out into new realms... i.e. learn to walk before I try to fly! (which is kinda the opposite of how I operate)

YinTx

[JD62]

I'm not too artistic either but maybe I can figure out how to post a couple projects   in a day or two.