Are YOU into LEATHER ??

[Shorty]

I love LEATHER.

It just has that feeling that say's LUXURY.

Here's a few pics of some leather I worked on yesterday.

12 seat dining suite.

Timber is coconut wood, made in Fiji.

White King lounge suite.

I was told that all furniture was Aniline, however, this next lot was a wax pull-up which I have to go back and complete.

Plus there is some minor repair work as well as take down maintenance kits for the owners.

As you can see, this house has waterfront views.

On the 3rd of February this year, Cyclone Yasi (Cat; 5), hit Cardwell with devastating results, here's a link with some graphic photos taken from as far north as Cairns, about 100 miles, and south of Townsville to Ayr/Home Hill, about 150 miles.

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weath ... 1acgp.html

Shorty

 

[Hoody]

Were the dining chairs, aniline, protected, or the wax pull up ?

 

[Shorty]

Dining chairs and white lounge were Aniline.

Dining chairs had "Red cattle dog mold".

Brown suite is wax pull-up.

 

[harryhides]

Is coconut wood a soft wood or a hard wood?
I always thought it was kind of "spongy" so seeing it in this form is interesting.

 

[renegade_cowboy]

What product do you guys recommend for leather cleaning?

I cleaned a ton of leather when I worked for another company back in the day and dont recall what was used.

 

[Bob Foster]

Always nice to work in a beautiful home on the water.

That storm looked like it could have been a lot worse.

 

[Hoody]

What product do you guys recommend for leather cleaning?

I cleaned a ton of leather when I worked for another company back in the day and dont recall what was used.

I've always worked with Leather Master. Although Roger Koh has his Leather Doctor product line that I REALLY want to give it a go. His whole system is very organized and well documented on problem solving different leather issues.

 

[Chris A]

For normal cleaning I like chemspec 1-step. Works well and easy to use

 

[Doug D]

awesome pics Shorty! 8)

 

[Shorty]

Hi Tony, thought this would bring you out of the woodwork. shiteatinggrin

Here's a link to Pacific Green:

http://www.pacificgreen.net/

Just Google Pacific Green and you get many sites worldwide, even in AZ & CA.

I've always thought of it as a softwood, but it appears very hard.

I've cleaned several of these over the years, and the only complaint I had was many years back when some dining chairs that were on little caster wheels, the stub going up into the timber tended to enlarge the hole making the wheel fall out.

I haven't seen wheels on their furniture for a long time now.




I would strongly recommend Roger Koh's Leather Doctor range to anyone in the 'states or Canada.

As well as a top shelf product, you also have Roger's impeccable back-up and support of all of his products and knowledge.

It is one thing to buy a product, but without training from the right person, I believe that you may set yourself up for an expensive exercise in leather furniture disaster.

Look long and hard before you jump into leather cleaning and/or restoration.

Not only does this sector pay extremely well, but the personal satisfaction one gets from seeing a beautiful piece of furniture (or clothing), have it's life renewed is priceless.

How many of you remember Harry Hides restoration photos from a few years back.??






As with many items, freight and customs are the killer importing into Australia.

Thanks also for the kind words.

Shorty.


PS::: Bob, yes, you're right, the Cyclone could have been a lot worse, it stretched over 250 miles, she was a big bugger.

All buildings built in "the north" for the past couple of decades have been built to category 5 cyclone standards.

Preparation for these storms has led to a dramatic decrease in property damage and loss of life.

You can never be 100% safe, nor sure, in these areas, but I can't imagine living anywhere else.

(And don't blame global warming/change/falling sky's etc; !gotcha! shiteatinggrin )

 

[Roger Koh]

Dining chairs and white lounge were Aniline.

Dining chairs had "Red cattle dog mold".

Brown suite is wax pull-up.

Dining chairs and white lounge were Aniline.
Dining chairs possible to be Aniline but very unlikely – check the reverse side if it is Yellow dyed through. Even if it’s dyed through – most likely it is still micro-pigmented with its telltale mono-tone look. To confirm its finish is to use “Acetone” on a cotton swab to test it out on hidden areas. Micro-pigment will crumble up with loss of finish coating, while aniline will lose color from center and rings out.

White Lounge is unlikely aniline – check the reverse suede side – is color bluish grey or almost white. If it is bluish-grey, its chrome-tanned – then the finish is pigmented – the higher end uses micro-pigment – but no difference in the cleaning process for either pigmented or micro-pigmented. If the color is almost pale-creamy-white then this could be the typical base-ball white leather – aldehyde-tanned leather or chrome-free leather – would be expensive – same as those use in high-end ladies “Chanel” and “Prada” handbags.


Dining chairs had "Red cattle dog mold".
A tannery grade fungicide is recommended; guarantee for an 8 month non-occurrence – repeat thereafter for long term effectiveness – pH of such products is 3.6 and phenol-free.


Brown suite is wax pull-up.
Brown suite is “No” wax pull-up - appearance is too-even, no evident of the typical crinkle effect of a pull-up. Unless it lightens when pulled, stretched or scratched.


Roger Koh
info@leatherdoctor.com

 

[John Watson]

Hey Short one, that Roger friend of ours even gots the X ray glasses.(made in Canadia I bet). Amazing work and your amazing ability to share it with others.. even the younguns listen. You even got that Toony guys attention.(but he aint young) My Helen's and my best to you and Miss Deila Glad she is keepin you in check.. Hey to you too Roger..

 

[Shorty]

Dining chairs and white lounge were Aniline.

Dining chairs had "Red cattle dog mold".

Brown suite is wax pull-up.

Dining chairs and white lounge were Aniline.
Dining chairs possible to be Aniline but very unlikely – check the reverse side if it is Yellow dyed through. Even if it’s dyed through – most likely it is still micro-pigmented with its telltale mono-tone look. To confirm its finish is to use “Acetone” on a cotton swab to test it out on hidden areas. Micro-pigment will crumble up with loss of finish coating, while aniline will lose color from center and rings out.

White Lounge is unlikely aniline – check the reverse suede side – is color bluish grey or almost white. If it is bluish-grey, its chrome-tanned – then the finish is pigmented – the higher end uses micro-pigment – but no difference in the cleaning process for either pigmented or micro-pigmented. If the color is almost pale-creamy-white then this could be the typical base-ball white leather – aldehyde-tanned leather or chrome-free leather – would be expensive – same as those use in high-end ladies “Chanel” and “Prada” handbags.


Dining chairs had "Red cattle dog mold".
A tannery grade fungicide is recommended; guarantee for an 8 month non-occurrence – repeat thereafter for long term effectiveness – pH of such products is 3.6 and phenol-free.


Brown suite is wax pull-up.
Brown suite is “No” wax pull-up - appearance is too-even, no evident of the typical crinkle effect of a pull-up. Unless it lightens when pulled, stretched or scratched.


Roger Koh
info@leatherdoctor.com

Thanks Roger,
both the white dining chairs and the white lounge suite had the typical effect when a cleaner was placed on the leather, ie; soaking in instead of sitting on the surface.

No top coat as such to prevent this from happening.

I did at first think maybe semi aniline, but when the liquid soaked straight in, I changed my mind.

The owner even said that some of his guests would come in from the pool and sit in the chairs and they would turn blue straight away, but would dry back to normal. ???

The brown suite had plenty of finger scratches across the surface which I believe I can remove with the correct product.

I even dragged my finger nail across to see how easy it was to scratch it.

Photos are not the best, phone camera used.

Appreciate your input, that's why I asked. !gotcha!

Now, when are you going to get someone selling your gear down under. ???

Shorty.

 

[Shorty]

Hey Short one, that Roger friend of ours even gots the X ray glasses.(made in Canadia I bet). Amazing work and your amazing ability to share it with others.. even the younguns listen. You even got that Toony guys attention.(but he aint young) My Helen's and my best to you and Miss Deila Glad she is keepin you in check.. Hey to you too Roger..

Crikey Elwood, !gotcha! ya had me worried there for a sec;

Thought you meant Ron Tooney, not the to & from Tony. shiteatinggrin

I believe that this game is all about helping others and helping them learn from my mistakes, which I've made plenty of.

If they listen, I hope they take note and learn something. shiteatinggrin

A Booomerang back to you and the lovely young Helen mate.

You probably don't remember this, who it is, or where and when it was taken.

All the best mate, and keep the pot stirrin'.

Delia & Shorty

 

[Roger Koh]

.

Thanks Roger,
both the white dining chairs and the white lounge suite had the typical effect when a cleaner was placed on the leather, ie; soaking in instead of sitting on the surface.

No top coat as such to prevent this from happening.

I did at first think maybe semi aniline, but when the liquid soaked straight in, I changed my mind.

The owner even said that some of his guests would come in from the pool and sit in the chairs and they would turn blue straight away, but would dry back to normal. ???

The brown suite had plenty of finger scratches across the surface which I believe I can remove with the correct product.

I even dragged my finger nail across to see how easy it was to scratch it.

Photos are not the best, phone camera used.

Appreciate your input, that's why I asked. !gotcha!

Now, when are you going to get someone selling your gear down under. ???

Shorty.

Thanks Roger,
both the white dining chairs and the white lounge suite had the typical effect when a cleaner was placed on the leather, ie; soaking in instead of sitting on the surface.
Absorbency does not equal to that it has to be aniline leather – I was taught to think that way too – using the simple “A” “P” & “N” code – it did not all add up. An example is napa pigment leather jacket is still as absorbent – these napa jackets is pigmented over chrome-tanned leather that has the typical bluish gray at the reverse side often shown on abraded edges of the jacket. So why are they so absorbent or permeable for breathing comfort – the answer lies in the types of “binder” in the pigment – these typical nitrocellulose binder forms “discontinuous film” – so the typical cleaner seep through these finish cracks readily. These jacket, though soaking is still “Pigmented Finished” – as they are never aniline dyed through. Have you come across Aniline leathers that are “Non Absorbent” – yes they are usually found in luxury yachts or boats – yet they are “Aniline” dyed through leathers – these aniline leathers used a heavy urethane topcoat for its non-absorbency. It can be confusing what we know in theory does not match what we see.

No top coat as such to prevent this from happening.
If topcoat used is the typical “nitrocellulose” type or “micro topcoat” or “aniline natural” it will still wet through. Example of non-absorbent aniline is found mostly in luxury yachts, example of highly absorbent aniline is the “Pure Aniline” in garments and ladies high-end bag (Hugo Boss) using the same topcoat as what’s used in nubuck to fix the color. So with different topcoat types aniline wet-ability could range from “Non-Absorbent” to “highly-Absorbent” across the board in every sector of the leather industry. Every leather types have their matching topcoats – except vachetta/vegetable-tanned or wet-white leathers/chrome-free – usually they are “naked”.

I did at first think maybe semi aniline, but when the liquid soaked straight in, I changed my mind.
Semi-Aniline are first dyed through, follows with micro-pigmentation for a more even appearance – still they are known for their “semi” absorbency for better sitting comfort – the best combination benefit of aniline permeability with pigmented clean-ability – your body contact does not feel as sweaty in humid weather. What is the implication when liquid soaked straight in – we are not merely cleaning the surface but whatever soak into the leather structure does affect the leather chemistry integrity. Then, the pH of products comes to question, as to be leather-safe the recommended pH range should be at a 3 – 5 range. Next is the after drying effect, the tendency for the leather to become stiff thereafter, where hydration and fatliquor replenishing becomes mandatory to maintain the leather for softness, suppleness and strength.

The owner even said that some of his guests would come in from the pool and sit in the chairs and they would turn blue straight away, but would dry back to normal. ???
The above I mention about the pH of products in relation to the leather chemistry integrity that may include whatever solution that may come in contact. Here the leather behaves like a pH paper; the normal pool water has an average pH of 7.5 to 8.5. It turns blue because the pool water is alkaline, similarly when you test with litmus paper. The side effect of constant alkaline overexposure will result in tackiness to the leather. And if your cleaning solution is alkaline pH above 7, you will be compounding the problem too.
Acidic products with a pH range of 3 – 5 are therefore recommended to such situation. An acidifier with a pH 2.0 is best to used to neutralize this pH phenomenon at a routine cleaning level.

The brown suite had plenty of finger scratches across the surface which I believe I can remove with the correct product.
If it is positively identified as an Aniline Wax Pull-up, then for periodic or restorative cleaning; besides the standard hydrating and primary fatliquor replenishing, the secondary wax effect has to be replenished too. This is done with Wax Effect-8.6 after Fatliquor-5.0, all scuff and scratches will disappear with the pull-up effect rejuvenated. If routine cleaning is due, then using Protection-D+ will also eliminates the scratches and scuff too.

If it is a Waxed Aniline, then matching Topcoat-59M (waxy matte) is used during periodic or restorative cleaning schedule after the hydrating and fatliquor replenishing process. For routine cleaning schedule Protection-W+ will also eliminate the scuff and scratches too.


I even dragged my finger nail across to see how easy it was to scratch it.
If scratch appears whitish – it is usually the damaged topcoat of aniline.
If the scratch lightens up – it is usually the wax effect that plays tricks.

Photos are not the best, phone camera used.
For bird’s eye view, it’s OK; will need macro or close-up to really identify the leather types.

Appreciate your input, that's why I asked.
So, do not conclude that what he may wear is Aniline Leather, when the leather gets wet under the rain. If he says that this is napa leather – it could be:
a) Pigmented napa
b) Aniline napa
c) Pure Aniline napa
How do we tell the difference?

Now, when are you going to get someone selling your gear down under. ???
You would be surprise how many kits have gone down under direct…

 

[renegade_cowboy]

Thanks for that post Roger, I signed up on your Leather Forum and looks like there is still a lot to learn about leather.