40 year-old western boots – Stretching, Filling Cracks and small Voids & Refinishing

For re-hydrating/re-fatliquoring of 40 year-old western boots, what would work the best? Especially for preparing for stretching?

Also, for filling cracks and small voids, what restoration product would be best? Your "stucco", perhaps? I have one pair of boots that have some cracking where I had stretched the ball area, and in that same area there's a gouge where I think the boot repair guy nicked it with the wheel when replacing the sole. I'd like to fill the cracks and the gouge.


#1
Attachment 5673


#2
Attachment 5674


#3
Attachment 5675


#4
Attachment 5676


#5
Attachment 5677

>>> For re-hydrating/re-fatting of 40 year-old western boots, what would work the best? Especially for preparing for stretching?

You may soak up the thickness of up to 72hours with control evaporation in a plastic bag.

Optimum hydration with Hydrator-3.3 is when a little moisture ooze out when pressed with fingers and thumb.

It is then very easy to stretch to your desired size and Fatliquor-5.0 is introduced at about 25% moisture level or when towel extraction shows dry. The optimum fatliquor (fat and oil) content when dry should be around 14% to gives you the optimum suppleness or course more will be softer and stronger, but check for color intrensity satisfaction.


>>> Also, for filling cracks and small voids, what restoration product would be best? Your "stucco", perhaps? I have one pair of boots that have some cracking where I had stretched the ball area, and in that same area there's a gouge where I think the boot repair guy nicked it with the wheel when replacing the sole. I'd like to fill the cracks and the gouge.

Stucco-90 is good for non-flex areas. When areas are subject for flexing Bond-3D with donor suede fiber (of the same color) would be stronger against flexing.

>>> In your first statement, what would I be soaking with? Hydrator-3.3? Also, would this still apply for thicker exotics like water buffalo?

Yes, Hydrator-3.3 is the pre-conditioner prior to fatliquoring with Fatliquor-5.0. This Hydrator-3.3 > Fatliquor-5.0 system applies to all leathers including Elephants.



>>> Regarding cracks & voids question – this isn’t suede – it’s a dress western boot, handmade by ML Leddy in the early 1970’s. I think it is either smooth cowhide or mature calf hide. Still use Bond-3D? OR maybe a mix of Bond-3D and the Stucco-90? Would I need the smoothing product (Bond-7A as I recall)?

Like mending fiberglass, the fiber used for leather is the suede (scrape off from the leather otherside, when the Bond-3D and the suede fibers bonds with the cross section of the leather (suede) it will be smooth like the grain side and no more suede of the nap side. Bond-7A is for correcting any Bond-3D repairs only method is using the Bond-7A to melt it down, it is so strong that even sanding would not help.



>>> I’d like to use as few products to minimize cost, but I do want a good result.

Stucco-90 is for an area not subject to any flex. Bond-3D + leather (suede) fibers becomes part of the leather – it is homogeneous and will not crack. The result is like a heal scar becomes stronger than the surrounding skin.

>>> So if I understand this right, to repair my ML Leddy boots, I need to buy Bond-3D only, and then scrape fibers of the backside of some scrap leather to mix into the Bond-3D, correct? And I guess if the void/gash is big enough, a little piece of suede hide placed in the void, along with the Bond-3d/fiber mix, would be the way to go?

You get it!

You want to find a scrape similar to the leather types that you have, sometime if the surface is large you can get it from the item that you work on itself.
This way the texture is correct and the colouring is right too. Any unwanted shine is corrected with the matching topcoat that comes in gloss, satin or matte. Any filling must be leather.

>>> These boots are lined, so I’ll find some black-dyed hide at Tandy, or maybe an old junk pair of boots from a resale shop.

Pardon me for another question – if I get a little messy with the Bond-3D, I use the 7A to “melt” the surface to smooth, so essentially 7A is more of a solvent, right? If so, I’ll budget in a bottle of that as well.

And one more – will the cured (and smoothed) Bond-3D take shoe polish? In this regard, also, should I buy pigment to mix with the 3D? If so, which one?

Show some pictures and I will recommend the system comprehensively, including the Bond-7A, Pigment or Dyestuff to match and also the topcoat that seals. Non-stick protection for both the inside and outsides also helps sliding in and out and sealing against sticky soiling.

>>> Thanks for the reply. Please see attached.

A bit of background: These boots have already been fatted up pretty good, but not with LeatherDoctor products (didn’t know about them when I restored them). They were previously treated with various mold killers, dried out good, then cleaned with Leather Therapy Wash (inside & out), and then treated several times with Leather Therapy Restorer & Conditioner, and then retreated each time I stretched them (from a shrunk-up A width to an A-B width). Although some of the cracking was already there, some new ones developed, so then for subsequent stretchings I used a 1/2-1/2 mixture of Leather Therapy Restorer & Conditioner & 9% white vinegar (to soften proteins in the leather fibers – worked pretty good!). The gash near the ball on the right boot appeared after having them resoled – I think the repair guy’s son, who’s in training, slipped a little on the wheel and bumped the ball area.

If you have a kit containing what I need, that might save me a few $$, please let me know. Otherwise, I’ll get what I need piece-meal. Although on a budget, I’ll spend what I need to – these boots were my fathers, and now I’ve inherited them and they are very special to me.

I also have a pair of brown that have a few minor cracking, so I will also need to get a color for those. Color is pretty close to Meltonian “congac”.

>>> Did you get a chance to figure out a set of products that would be best for my boots in the photos I sent you?

Take a look at this refinishing kit.
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/kit-sa7...finishing-kit/

There is a choice of topcoat from Matte, Satin to Gloss to suite the luster level.

Let me know of your interest and we can discuss further.

Attachment 5678

>>> I was hoping only a couple of products were required for filling,
“Filling” will require Bond-3D with donor leather fiber from the suede side.

>>> plus another for colorant of the filling.
“Coloring” system will require Adhesor-73 for primer or sealing coating, Micro-54 for color and MicroTop-54 a choice of matte, satin or gloss to seal-in the color.

>>> I didn’t realize a topcoat would needed.
Without a topcoat to seal in the color coat, the color will not stand up with cleaning or rubbing.

>>> For the pair boots I haven’t stretched yet, I figured a fatting agent and a moisturizer at the maximum. So, a total of 4 – 5 products, about $100 max, which is my budget.
Hydrator-3.3 > Fatliquor-5.0 is to rejuvenate the leather

>>> If not all the products in the kit are needed, can you identify exactly what I do need, so I can just order those?
Since you have the coloring system and to apply them you need to remove existing foreign contamination including any polish or secondary conditioners down to the leather crust. Stripper-2.3 may just do the job, thereafter with fine sanding to prepare for a smooth surface.

>>> On a side note, if a topcoat is necessary, is that for the whole boot or just the repaired area?
Topcoat is used to seal the color coat either just the repair areas or for the entire surface section otherwise the new and old may look patchy. It will also determine the luster level either to matte, satin or gloss.