Leather hats
- Thread starter Shorty
- Start date
The Great Oz
Member
They would best be restored by sending them to Roger Koh.
If your customer doesn't think they're worth the $1,500, you'll have to ask Tony for advice.
If your customer doesn't think they're worth the $1,500, you'll have to ask Tony for advice.
You will be surprise you can do it too; when you finish reading this...
These are Vegetable-Tanned leathers; commonly known as tooling leathers; also referred to as naked or vachetta leathers.
It is not Aniline leather; as no aniline dye is used in the tanning process.
The color derives from the tannin color of these organic vegetable dyestuffs.
These leathers darken like our skin under sunlight; unlike aniline leathers that fades.
The average thickness for these tooling leathers is 3mm; thus gives the characteristic firmness of the leather; to keep finished object in shape.
The average pH value of these leathers is around pH 4.
The design we see is hand created with leather stamping tool.
Dryness is a sign of diminishing original fatliquor that need rejuvenating with hydrating and fatliquoring.
Stain in this situation comes from perspiration, other than from body oil.
Perspiration contains traces of urea; that when aged and fermented shift alkaline.
When the stain turns alkaline during hydrolysis it shifts the protein fibrils anionic (-); thus breaking the hydrogen bonding between the fibrils and the other anionic (-) leather constituents;
“like poles repel”; becomes fugitives and migrates forming rings as shown.
The leather pH chemistry integrity need neutralizing, re-strengthening and redistributing back these fugitive leather constituents in the restoring process; as foreign contamination is extracted out of the leather simultaneously.
The recommended leather-safe (pH 3-5) system to restore these hats is as follows.
Tools required:
1] Leather Brush-1 or a detailing horsehair brush.
2] Cotton Terry Towel
3] Leather Eraser-4
Products Required:
1] Acidifier-2.0
2] Degreaser-2.2
3] Prep-4.4
4] Cleaner-3.8
5] Rinse-3.0
6] Hydrator-3.3
7] Fatliquor-5.0
Procedural Sequence of Steps:
1] Dry Soil Removal:
Use leather Brush-1 especially to the seams and laces; leather Eraser-4 to the suede side concentrating on the stain areas.
2] Degreasing:
Apply Degreaser-2.2 to the grease area (both suede and leather side) and agitate with leather Brush-1; dwell a few minutes and towel extract.
3] Strip of Foreign Soiling:
Use Prep-4.4 and apply with a 3” foam brush on both sides; let dwell 30 minutes or more and towel extract.
4] Clean of Suspended Soiling:
Use Cleaner-3.8 spray and agitate to both sides and extract with towel until it shows clean.
5] Acidifier Rinse off all residue:
Use Rinse-3.0 spray and towel extract until towel shows clean to a healthy squeaky feel.
When stain areas feels tacky or slimy; use Acidifier-2.0 instead until it feels squeaky.
The squeaky feel check with hand is a simple precautionary step to ensure that the leather pH balance is right; other than using a pH meter.
6] Drying:
Put the hat over a towel covered hat dummy and stretch in place for smartness and towel extraction during the slow wicking process until dry.
A leather surface extension can be created by layering it with thin absorbent tissue paper to catch the wick-up foreign contamination during the slow drying process.
7] Dry soil Removal:
The wick-up soiling particulates may be lodged in the pores or in-between grains that need to be brushed, erased with Eraser-4 or stretch to lighten-up.
8] Inspection:
Check for satisfactorily removal of Stains; otherwise repeat the entire process until the stain is gone.
9] Leather Rejuvenating:
Hydrator-3.3 is the preconditioner for the Fatliquor5.0; not only to hydrate the stiff leathers; fatliquor to replenish for leather suppleness; but also for the aesthetic leather appearance without the blotchiness.
Airbrushing both the Hydrator-3.3 and Fatliquor-5.0 is recommended for appearance sake for even coverage.
Fatliquoring will contribute to the richness of color tone when dry.
Note:
Have to keep an eye on the tooling design; hydrating may cause the relaxing of the compressing tension; need to be prequalified.
Roger Koh
Leather Doctor®
These are Vegetable-Tanned leathers; commonly known as tooling leathers; also referred to as naked or vachetta leathers.
It is not Aniline leather; as no aniline dye is used in the tanning process.
The color derives from the tannin color of these organic vegetable dyestuffs.
These leathers darken like our skin under sunlight; unlike aniline leathers that fades.
The average thickness for these tooling leathers is 3mm; thus gives the characteristic firmness of the leather; to keep finished object in shape.
The average pH value of these leathers is around pH 4.
The design we see is hand created with leather stamping tool.
Dryness is a sign of diminishing original fatliquor that need rejuvenating with hydrating and fatliquoring.
Stain in this situation comes from perspiration, other than from body oil.
Perspiration contains traces of urea; that when aged and fermented shift alkaline.
When the stain turns alkaline during hydrolysis it shifts the protein fibrils anionic (-); thus breaking the hydrogen bonding between the fibrils and the other anionic (-) leather constituents;
“like poles repel”; becomes fugitives and migrates forming rings as shown.
The leather pH chemistry integrity need neutralizing, re-strengthening and redistributing back these fugitive leather constituents in the restoring process; as foreign contamination is extracted out of the leather simultaneously.
The recommended leather-safe (pH 3-5) system to restore these hats is as follows.
Tools required:
1] Leather Brush-1 or a detailing horsehair brush.
2] Cotton Terry Towel
3] Leather Eraser-4
Products Required:
1] Acidifier-2.0
2] Degreaser-2.2
3] Prep-4.4
4] Cleaner-3.8
5] Rinse-3.0
6] Hydrator-3.3
7] Fatliquor-5.0
Procedural Sequence of Steps:
1] Dry Soil Removal:
Use leather Brush-1 especially to the seams and laces; leather Eraser-4 to the suede side concentrating on the stain areas.
2] Degreasing:
Apply Degreaser-2.2 to the grease area (both suede and leather side) and agitate with leather Brush-1; dwell a few minutes and towel extract.
3] Strip of Foreign Soiling:
Use Prep-4.4 and apply with a 3” foam brush on both sides; let dwell 30 minutes or more and towel extract.
4] Clean of Suspended Soiling:
Use Cleaner-3.8 spray and agitate to both sides and extract with towel until it shows clean.
5] Acidifier Rinse off all residue:
Use Rinse-3.0 spray and towel extract until towel shows clean to a healthy squeaky feel.
When stain areas feels tacky or slimy; use Acidifier-2.0 instead until it feels squeaky.
The squeaky feel check with hand is a simple precautionary step to ensure that the leather pH balance is right; other than using a pH meter.
6] Drying:
Put the hat over a towel covered hat dummy and stretch in place for smartness and towel extraction during the slow wicking process until dry.
A leather surface extension can be created by layering it with thin absorbent tissue paper to catch the wick-up foreign contamination during the slow drying process.
7] Dry soil Removal:
The wick-up soiling particulates may be lodged in the pores or in-between grains that need to be brushed, erased with Eraser-4 or stretch to lighten-up.
8] Inspection:
Check for satisfactorily removal of Stains; otherwise repeat the entire process until the stain is gone.
9] Leather Rejuvenating:
Hydrator-3.3 is the preconditioner for the Fatliquor5.0; not only to hydrate the stiff leathers; fatliquor to replenish for leather suppleness; but also for the aesthetic leather appearance without the blotchiness.
Airbrushing both the Hydrator-3.3 and Fatliquor-5.0 is recommended for appearance sake for even coverage.
Fatliquoring will contribute to the richness of color tone when dry.
Note:
Have to keep an eye on the tooling design; hydrating may cause the relaxing of the compressing tension; need to be prequalified.
Roger Koh
Leather Doctor®
Thanks Roger, I read your other post over on http://www.leathercleaningrestorationforum.com/forum/
I waited in for the lady the day before yesterday, she needed them to take down south.
I printed out your details to show her but, she never showed.
Wasted some time there.
Thanks again,
Shortestwun.
I waited in for the lady the day before yesterday, she needed them to take down south.
I printed out your details to show her but, she never showed.
Wasted some time there.
Thanks again,
Shortestwun.
