Bevel Textured Leather?

[superpacker]

I’m making a wallet out of saffiano calf. Will be use edge paints. Besides it’s hardened grain side, the textured leathers don’t seem to like being beveled. Any tips? Or should I skip beveling, get a perfectly flat edge, and build up a round edge with layers of paint? 

[Rahere]

Things only tear if your tool doesn't cut because it's not sharp enough.

[Dwight]

What he ^^^^^ said.

May God bless, 

Dwight

[mike02130]

The Saffiano has a plasticy coating making it difficult to bevel.  When using edge paint it is better not to bevel--less chance of it dripping down the sides.  Take some sandpaper and give it a light sanding just to ease the edge.  The painting will give it a roundness.  What brand edge paint are you using?

[superpacker]

Using Uniters edge paint. Thanks!

[mike02130]

Uniters is good stuff.  I use it with Giardini primer.  It's thick stuff and dries whiteish.  Easy to see when sanding and fills the voids better.

[superpacker]

Good tip!

[Danne]

When I use grained leather. I sand the edge, and burnish it laying flat. And before start painting the edge I sand the transition slightly with higher grit 800-1000 (so the edge paint adhere good at the transition between edge and the top of the leather.

[superpacker]

@Danne do you mean you use the high grit paper to sand down the sharp 90 degree edge?

[Danne]

On 4/8/2021 at 4:42 PM, superpacker said:

@Danne do you mean you use the high grit paper to sand down the sharp 90 degree edge?

Yes, round off the edge with sand paper around 400 grit. And dry burnish and slightly sand with around 1000 grit (dry burnish to flatten the grain at the edge so I get a cleaner edge when I paint. And the reason I slightly sand after 1000 grit is to promote adhesion of the paint.

 

Here you see the difference. The top wallet is without this technique, and the paint bleed into the grain.

The bottom wallet is done years later with the technique I explained, and it makes a cleaner edge.  (You have to right click and open in a new window for full size to see the difference, I should have "zoomed in" more)

 

Edited April 9, 2021 by Danne