Re: Leather Hardening

[mn13189@WCUVAX1.WCU.EDU]

Poster: mn13189@WCUVAX1.WCU.EDU

On Tue, 22 Jul 1997, Lance Harrop wrote:

> Well, assuming you want to melt that much wax.  I've made fairly nice
> (people tell me so) vambraces and rearbraces (sp) from waxed leather.  The
> trick I used was to set my oven on 200 degrees (F) and to put the leather
> pieces, tied into shape with waxed thread, in the oven on a cookie sheet
> with the parafin set inside the piece to melt.  Once it has started to
> melt, you move it aroundh(with tongs) and make sure it saturates the
> leather.  Because the leather is hot also, it absorbs the wax better.
> Then let the piece cool while making sure it will keep its shape.

Another way to do it that would not require melting enough wax to immerse
it in would be to melt some wax and then apply it to the leather with a
paint brush.  If you apply it liberally and let it soak in, it should also
harden the leather, although (in my experience) completely immersing it
and letting it soak gets it harder than anything else I've tried.  Note
that it will not be hard for a while afat hyou take it out.  You need to
let it cool.

> Wax harden leather softens from 1) hot weather/hot cars 2) handling 3)
> taking blows. 

Most of my leather hardening experience is with bottles, not braces, so I
don't know how they react to being beaten, but in hot weather I do need to
regularly re-wax the seams, although the leather itself stays pretty
rigid.
Aye,
Eogan

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