SLC "oil tan" and yankee wax?

[DarrelT]

I was about to order 20 sqft from SLC. They call it oil tanned, which I hadn't heard of. I called them about what I can use on it for finishing, sealing, burnishing, etc.They suggested burnishing with yankee wax and burnishing wheel. I looked up this yankee wax and for burnishing it's suggested to use with an iron, which I don't have. So my questions.

1. Is oil tanned just veg tanned that's treated with oils? I'm curious if this stuff is good for items like wallets and such.
2. Have you used saddle soap or any other type of conditioner on oil tanned? I'm not sure how to maintain this material.
3. as anyone used yankee wax with a dremel and wheel to burnish oil tanned, or anything else?

Thanks!

[Rockoboy]

I have never heard of oil tanned. Is it possibly similar to greenhide? Then again, I am not sure if 'greenhide' is just an Australian term.

All I know about greenhide is, it has lots of oil on the hide either during or after tanning, therefore it will not allow dye to penetrate.

[bermudahwin]

I seem to recall that chamois leather (of car washing fame) is an oil tannage of some kind.

H

[LatigoAmigo]

21 hours ago, DarrelT said:

• Is oil tanned just veg tanned that's treated with oils? I'm curious if this stuff is good for items like wallets and such.
• Have you used saddle soap or any other type of conditioner on oil tanned? I'm not sure how to maintain this material.
• as anyone used yankee wax with a dremel and wheel to burnish oil tanned, or anything else?

If my memory serves me well, when I started working leather in the late 1960's, leather was marketed as being either oak-tan or oil-tan. When I came back five years ago, the terminology had changed to veg-tan and chrome-tan. I have some chrome-tanned and hot-stuffed Horween leather that just about drips oil, so I can see where that terminology comes from.

To answer your questions:

• I almost exclusively use non-veg-tan leathers in my work. Because they are vat-dyed and come in rich and wonderful colors, they are very good for wallets and such.
• I almost always clean my leather with saddle soap, and finish with a oil-based conditioner. There are many finishes available, so I take that into consideration.
• I typically use a Dremel tool to burnish my edges, and often with some edge coat along with a wax-based conditioner (not sure what Yankee wax is), but, again, it depends on the particular leather, and of course, the look I'm going after. But I must confess, I use a laser to cut the leather, so my edges come out of that process somewhat burnished.

[DarrelT]

I found out some more info. Apparently what SLC calls oil tan is actually chrome tan that's been treated or impregnated with oils and waxes to make it more resistant to weather and such. It also affects the surface feel.

So it's modified chrome tan and will still have the same burnishing issues. But apparently because of the re-treating process the cut edges may have a good enough appearance without burnishing. If you do want to finish it you'd have to use yankee wax with a burnishing wheel on a dremel to generate some friction heat.

I haven't tried any of this. It just the info I've been told or have read.

[Matt S]

@DarrelT I tried Yankee wax a little while ago. I understand that it's mostly used in finishing shoe soles. I found it very hard with a high melting point. My burnisher is about 2" diameter and runs at 3000RPM, so it's got a high surface speed but I couldn't get the stuff to melt so into the "oh well" box it went, where it remains. One day I might get round to trying it with a hot glazing iron.

On 1/22/2019 at 7:39 PM, Rockoboy said:

I have never heard of oil tanned. Is it possibly similar to greenhide? Then again, I am not sure if 'greenhide' is just an Australian term.

All I know about greenhide is, it has lots of oil on the hide either during or after tanning, therefore it will not allow dye to penetrate.

 

I've come across the term in a few Aussie books, by RL Williams and Ron Edwards. I believe it refers to rawhide (green meaning raw). In most bush uses it appears to have been heavily greased and staked to make it supple, using whatever fat or oil was available.

Confusingly veg tannages seem to be referred to traditionally in Oz as redhide (reddish cut edges) and chrome-tan as greyhide or bluehide for similar reasons.

[LatigoAmigo]

7 hours ago, DarrelT said:

Apparently what SLC calls oil tan is actually chrome tan that's been treated or impregnated with oils and waxes to make it more resistant to weather and such.

This is from the Horween Leather website:

CHROMEXCEL®

Chromexcel is the original pull-up leather; using time honored techniques and formulas that were developed nearly 100 years ago.  Chromexcel is still produced in the United States using a bark retannage from a proprietary recipe, and then genuine hot stuffed with our secret blend of natural oils and greases. Chromexcel is characterized by a rich pull-up in full aniline, hand rubbed finishes.  Made to this day with old world craftsmanship, modern Chromexcel carries on a long history of superior comfort and durability.

And if that is not confusing enough...

ESSEX

Essex is a vegetable tanned side leather that utilizes the same traditional tanning extracts as our Genuine Shell Cordovan.  Essex, and its waxed versions, Dublin and Derby, took us nearly three years to develop and perfect.  This tannage is marked by a high oil content and ages beautifully over time. The Essex family of leather is very versatile and can be used in a wide variety of products.

And then there's this, from the Maverick Leather website:

Latigo leather is best described by our friends over at The Tannery Row:

“Horween Latigo is a combination tan that blends the durability of a chrome tan base with a heavy veg re-tan to create an unfinished, natural look that’s excellent for molding. It holds embosses well, retains molded shapes and has both full and corrected grain versions.”

Edited January 26, 2019 by LatigoAmigo

[johnv474]

Yankee Wax is indeed very hard, but it will seal and shine the edges of even oil tanned leathers.  It takes heat, though.  We apply it with a leather wheel that spins on a motor and is coated in the stuff, then polish and smooth with a spinning brush.

With a $5 candle warmer from Walmart, it can be melted and then applied with a scratch awl, pencil, or popsicle stick.  It can then be smoothed/polished, section by section, with aggressive canvas rubbing and then lighter buffing with an old tshirt.

 

[LatigoAmigo]

2 minutes ago, johnv474 said:

Yankee Wax is indeed very hard, but it will seal and shine the edges of even oil tanned leathers.

Sounds great. Where do you buy this stuff? Does it go by any other names?

[johnv474]

Renia Yankee Wax.  It is available from shoe repair supply houses such as Frankford Leather or Southern Leather.  A triangular stick almost the size of a stick of butter should cost about $8.

[LatigoAmigo]

3 hours ago, johnv474 said:

Renia Yankee Wax.  It is available from shoe repair supply houses such as Frankford Leather or Southern Leather. 

Thank you, this is very helpful.

[HeatherAthebyne]

17 hours ago, LatigoAmigo said:

...

And if that is not confusing enough...

...

I'm not sure whether this is more or less confusing, but Horween has a nice chart of their tannages and properties at https://www.horween.com/tannages/ . None of which helps with SLC's offerings, but I've found it useful, particularly when browsing Maverick's Horween selection.