Finishing A Veg Tan Belt

[OLDNSLOW]

yup

[gandgphi]

16 hours ago, YinTx said:

Ok, so the OP has a bottle of ECO Flo dye he'd like to be able to use, presumably.  ECO flo dyes work differently than Fiebing's.  I have used both with success, and won't hammer on either, since I am fully aware that my capabilities are what tend to limit my results.   There are some who swear by the ECO Flo brand as much as those who swear by the Fiebing's.

All that being said, how did you apply the dye, gandgphi?  Perhaps we can see if it was applied incorrectly, or maybe using the atom wax is the wrong thing.  Certainly wouldn't have been the first seal coat that I would have thought of for Eco Flo.

YinTx

@YinTx the way I applied the dye was as such: I dampened the belt a bit with a wet sponge and then used a wool dauber to begin dyeing it black. I spread it in circular motions along the length of the belt probably 4 times until it looked even and let it dry about 36 hours. Once I had buffed it and no dye was pulling off I decided to make this finish since the leather balm with atom wax was removed the dye off a scrap piece I had dyed similarly. The beeswax concoction went on easy enough but even that was pulling dye off the leather, albeit at a much lesser rate than the atom wax. 

 

@alpha2 I definitely agree that I will make plenty of mistakes and learn on my own. I was mainly trying to see if I was doing something wrong or using a bad product because I don't want to keep spending money on dyes and finishes or whatever that people have negative experiences with. 

[byggyns]

Tandy's professional water stain is better than the regular Eco-Flo dye. I've used it in dark and light colors (not black yet) with the top coat designed for it.

https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/eco-flo-top-finish-gloss-8-5-oz-250ml

I also used resolene over the pro water stain, and it had some issues cracking after drying, but didn't have any color draw off.

 

I'm sorry I can't give you help specific to the eco-flo dye, but you should be able to get the Pro Water Stain even in Cali.

 

[YinTx]

Try this instead of using a dauber.   Use a cotton round (one of those little circle thingies, quilted, that you get at CVS, Walgreens, etc in the makeup section).  Apply the dye like a lotion, rubbing it in until it is absorbed into the leather.  If you want it darker, add some more.  You can rub in quite a bit of dye this way.  Then with a soft cloth, buff it while it is still wet, until it is dry.  Don't press down hard, just buff it lightly.  It will start to shine some.  Then, let it dry.  Here is a photo of an Iphone wallet I made a year ago using the Bordeaux Eco-Flo Waterstain.  The leather was a Tandy Alligator print... so not the best.  Also photos of the same wallet after 1 year of continuos daily abuse.  And trust me, day long daily abuse.  Like open/close fifty times a day - at least. Thrown about, dropped, tossed into the bag, wet, food spills, etc.  I don't recall putting any finish on top of it at all - if anything, I may have rubbed in some Aussie Conditioner just to give it a bit more shine.  I have not done anything else to it in the year it has been in use, either.  Never had any color rub off.  I think for all the negative spew Eco-Flo gets around here, it's held up purdy darn good.

Day 1

One year later

The Dye

 

YinTx

Edited November 28, 2017 by YinTx
wrong photo

[gandgphi]

@YinTx that looks great! This is going to be a really dumb question then but is a "finish" required? Or can I dye leather and leave it as is?

[YinTx]

gandgphi, that entirely depends on the type of dye you use and the use of the leather.  Veg tan leather that is going to be flexed like this phone case would generally require some nourishment, and the Eco flo dyes tend to prevent oils from absorbing into the leather, so I tend to put neatsfoot oil on before hand.  I think for this type of dye, you would not necessarily need a final finish.  For the solvent based Fiebeng's dyes, they dry the leather out, and you need to renew them with oil and/or other beeswax/wax/oil mixtures.  Sealing them is usually recommended as well - use Resolene, acrylic finisher, leather balm with atom wax, tan kote, bag kote, etc depending on whether you have tooled it, want a matte finish or shiny finish, etc.

YinTx

[ENC]

gandgphi: It looks like you are in CA and so you cant get the hobby size fiebings products. There are two was to get around this. 1 If you have a resale license you can order it in minimum quart sizes for professional use. They can not be put on the shelf for retail but tandy can/will custom order it for you with the right paperwork (your results may differ depending on the store manager, but I have done it.), or you can get it from Weaver or Springfield. 2 The other way is to use Angelus products. They are made in CA and don't fall under the VOC law. They are my preferred brand, and can be ordered on line.

As a side note, Angelus makes a product called luster cream. It seems to be a waxie finish and the colors have 10-20% pigment in them. I use the neutral to finish/slick the flesh side of belts among other things, rub it in well and it will even stop die from penetrating most of the time. I found this out when I got a bit on the edge and then couldn't get the edge to take die. Using the matching color to a died piece can make small scratches disappear because of the pigment in it.

Ray

[cjartist]

I have used plenty of EcoFlo dye and have never had a problem.  I think it must be the atom wax.  I've never used that.  After you dye, apply a coat of resolone or super (or satin) sheen and the dye should not come off.  I also use wool daubers with no problem.  I have mostly been using Fiebings dye for the past year or two because I got a ton of it for free.  But i do still use Eco when I want something different.  Never have I had the problems that others complain about.  i really do think it must be the atom wax.  It makes me wonder why they would ever recommend it as a finish.

[YinTx]

cjartist, thanks for piping up.  I was beginning to think I was the only to ever get EcoFlo dye to work on this forum!  I know others swear by the black EcoFlo dye because they can use it on the inside of belts without worrying about it rubbing off on clothes, like the USMC Black from Fiebeng's might do if you don't buff it so long your arm falls off...

YinTx

[battlemunky]

They recommended it because not all Tandy floor salesfolk are created equal. I ask them if they work with leather when they make a recommendation. They likely had no idea what works and what doesn't.

I went in for a new diamond awl and the dude immediately pushed me to the most expensive plastic Craftool haft they had in the store that didn't even do what I wanted.....so I asked the dude if he worked with leather and he said he didn't so I pretty much used him as a parts GPS from then on.

I have green and blue Eco Flo waterstain and it works but is nowhere close to as good, IMO, as Fiebings dye. I used SnoSeal on the pieces I've used it on. I'll try to get pics and post them even though the pic post thing doesn't like me on here....