Finishes Compared

[TomBanwell]

I have been making veg tan notebook covers and antiquing them with Tandy's Eco-Flo Gel Antique. I can get a very nice look with lots of color variation. However I have found that the water-based antique is extremely susceptible to damage from water, even days after it is made. I looked on the board to find recommendations for a non-shiny top coat sealer, and couldn't find a good comparison of different products, so I went ahead and did my own testing on raw grain-side veg tan. I compared Fiebings Acrylic Resolene, Fiebings Leather Balm with Atom Wax, Fiebings Leather Sheen Acrylic Finish, and Angelus Matte Acrylic Finish.

I used all at 100%, lightly shakened, with a small wool dauber dipped into the finish and wiped back and forth across a 3" x 3" square, starting wet and ending up dry, in a single coat. After drying for 20 minutes I spritzed water over them to check water resistance. Here are my findings:

Resolene was the shiniest and the least absorbent of water. For my purpose it is too shiny.

Angelus Matte was the second shiniest and tied with least absorbent of water.

Leather Balm was the third shiniest, and the second most absorbent.

Leather Sheen was least shiny, and most absorbent.

There is an obvious direct correlation between shiny and water absorbency. I suspect that if I used the Leather Sheen in two or three coats it would perform better in water resistance and also become shinier, but I just did the single coat for comparison. Since I'd prefer to apply only one coat of finish I am going to use the Angelus Matte. It has the additional quality of being thin enough to easily airbrush.

 

[CastleLeatherWorks]

good info... but some pictures would have been nice