Distressed leather bags fading to orange
#1
11-15-2014, 09:34 AM
Distressed leather bags fading to orange
After a few years and many thousands of happy touring miles, my distressed leather saddlebags are starting to fade to an almost orange hued light brown. Anyone ever have these professionally "re-colored" by a shoemaker/leather shop? Down for the season now...
#2
11-15-2014, 12:55 PM
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#5
11-17-2014, 07:52 AM
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#6
11-17-2014, 11:41 AM
Well sharkey,
You've got several topics about these bag's, that's a good thing, your looking for plenty of info.
Yes a pro can re-color your bags, a large set like that is going to set ya back 100-150 (pro's need to make a living) and what they'll do is what another member has already told ya;
Fiebings is the stuff, it's an alcohol based leather stain, you might need 8-12oz to do the job. In my humble opinion, your distressed bags will end up with a solid color (sans the feathered edges) but still look old now because of the years on them.
It is something you can do yourself, Fiebings can be thinned easily up to 50% with denatured alcohol, and it's hard to screw up, if you don't like the looks just go over it again. Be sure to strip the finish as described with acetone (i'd wait 24hrs). If you want to add back the distressed look, just wait till the Fiebings has dried, then work the edges with denatured alcohol to pull the color back out.
If you don't want to do the job yourself, bring them into a leather/tack/shoe repair shop and they'll give you a quote
You've got several topics about these bag's, that's a good thing, your looking for plenty of info.
Yes a pro can re-color your bags, a large set like that is going to set ya back 100-150 (pro's need to make a living) and what they'll do is what another member has already told ya;
If you really must re-color, Fiebings have leather dye that will do the job for you, however you will need to clean the bags up first to remove any protectant you put on there over time. You can use accetone to clean up but go REAL lightly with the stuff and give the bags a good hour before you start coloring to ensure all accetone has evaporated away. Follow the directions on the bottle of dye when applying the color.
It is something you can do yourself, Fiebings can be thinned easily up to 50% with denatured alcohol, and it's hard to screw up, if you don't like the looks just go over it again. Be sure to strip the finish as described with acetone (i'd wait 24hrs). If you want to add back the distressed look, just wait till the Fiebings has dried, then work the edges with denatured alcohol to pull the color back out.
If you don't want to do the job yourself, bring them into a leather/tack/shoe repair shop and they'll give you a quote
#7
11-17-2014, 08:20 PM
this is what I use on ALL my leather every yr,, just make sure it an alcohol based oil and not Water based
http://www.dressageextensions.com/images/large/1427.jpg
http://www.dressageextensions.com/images/large/1427.jpg
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#8
11-17-2014, 09:50 PM
There's a leather shop in nearby city I've used a couple of times, but never for something like this...think I'll take the bags into him on Thursday and see what he says. I know it can be DIY, but I also think I know what that stuff could smell like...and I'm hoping he has a commercial grade product available...will keep you all "posted"
#9
11-18-2014, 12:39 AM
No smell.
The acetone is nasty for the stripping part but evaporates fast, easy enough to ventilate,, But the stain has no scent,,
He'll probably use Feibings too, it's highly rated amongst the pro's.
I work with leather/hides in another venue (FurTrade era/Rendezvous) so I do understand being apprehensive of trying a large project like this as a first attempt.
Just be sure you and the pro decide/agree what color/shade you want when it's done before you start.
The acetone is nasty for the stripping part but evaporates fast, easy enough to ventilate,, But the stain has no scent,,
He'll probably use Feibings too, it's highly rated amongst the pro's.
I work with leather/hides in another venue (FurTrade era/Rendezvous) so I do understand being apprehensive of trying a large project like this as a first attempt.
Just be sure you and the pro decide/agree what color/shade you want when it's done before you start.
#10
11-18-2014, 12:51 AM
Seasoned HDF Member