Hi Roger,
Much appreciate your feedback and clarifications.
However, I am a little confused with some items . Let me try and confirm what you are suggesting .
Overall, the leather of this set is all dried out with more severe/highly visible damage to some areas with body oil/sweat stains (back cushions mostly, possibly also to armrest tops/edges, though this is not obvious on sight) with stress caused to the seat leathers by stretching and flexing.
I do have some further comments/questions that follow, but in summary, here is an adjusted restoration process proposal (with assumptions of answers to some of my Qs further below).
Thanks in advance, andre.
Kindly comment/adjust as you see fit. Except for step 2, all steps are for 100% of surface, 122 sq. ft.
1. ‘Integrated’ Degreaser-2.2 on 100% of surface - Concentrate on the more contaminated areas and feather it out to the entire chair/sofa. > Rinse-3.0
2. If needed, after the degreasing, color change on affected areas (assume 20% of surface) improved by d’Yellow-6.7 and bleeding reduced with Acidifier-2.0.
3. Leather Structure Drying Out rejuvenated by - Hydrator-3.3 > Fatliquor-5.0 > Rinse-3.0.
4. Leather Wax Pull-up Effect with - wax Effect-8.6.
5. Leather Color rejuvenating with Impregnator 26 mixed with 10% aniPure-21.
6. Adhesor73 prior to top coating.
7. Topcoat with Aniline79 (50% mix of 79G & 79M)
8. Leather Scent-D (draggy-feel) matches the wax Effect leather types
On-going TLC recommendations (no change)
1. Cleaner-3.8 > Rinse-3.0.
2. Non-Stick Protection with the classic leather scent use – LeatherScent-D.
3. Yearly leather structure rejuvenating or replenishing use – Fatliquor-5.0
4. Yearly leather wax effect rejuvenating or replenishing use – Wax Effect8.6
Comments/questions:
- The existing dyes have already been contaminated and degreasing will bring out appreciable differences. i.e.: “hydroxylation and oxidation affect the dyes”. This answers my Q. about the degreasing - there will be significant color alteration after the degreasing step, hence your recommendation to:
Use ‘Integrated’ Degreaser-2.2 on 100% of surface - Concentrate on the more contaminated areas and feather it out to the entire chair/sofa - which from your new combined Prep/Degreaser formula puts the total leather surface at the same level of ‘prep cleaning’. I gather from Jermaine’s experience and the fact that these body oil stains have been long in maturing; there will undoubtedly be a need for repeated degreasing on more contaminated areas.
If needed, after the degreasing, color change can be improved by d’Yellow-6.7 and bleeding can be reduced with Acidifier-2.0.
Using a Leather Eraser is out. I believe I understand the degreasing mechanisms that ‘break down’ the oils and wick them to the surface as a more or less loose powder that needs to be removed by brushing, or as is suggested to Jermaine in a post further extending the dwell time and some vacuum to help the wicking and dislodge the surfaced contaminants/powder.
Am I on the right track?
- Your comment: “By the way, Using Impregnator-26 is for structural repairs and it ties in with refinishing.”
Not sure what you imply. Is this part of the recommendation or not? If it is, when/how does it fit into your initial list of recommendations?
- Your comment: “Your “Chair side view – Picture” tells me that the only way to blend in the difference hue panel to be aesthetically pleasant is to “Spray coat with matching Aniline T’parent-27. If that is your concern, forget about padding. HVLP is overkill; use a Paasche single action airbrush panel by panel”.
I am not concerned about this particular variation, it’s out of sight and there are other less obvious variations on other panels that don’t take away from the overall aesthetics. In fact, on some other panels there are color tone variations (some areas within a panel that have irregular/random tone differences, not blotches or streaks) that I assign to the nature of the leather and finishing of a natural product - with a finish that does not hide or cover up these natural irregularities. Possibly, though I doubt it, they are ‘created in the finish’, but in any event I would not want to lose them in the restoration and come out with a very uniform color that would approach the uniformity one typically finds in faux synthetic leathers.
So I am left with a dilemma on dye: which one?
…with your overall observation to focus to restore the structure as a priority, I tend to go with Pure-21 in a solution with Impregnator-26
…on the other side of this dilemma, is Pure-21 a more opaque dye that would hide or cover up natural color tone variations found in the present finish? Have I got this right?
While on the subject of dye, I believe the color matching may be a little problematic. The set is a burgundy which is defined as “dark grayish or blackish red to dark purplish red or reddish brown”. In fact, I would characterize the set’s color as a ‘blackish red’, which would also tend to hide some of the less pronounced body oil stains. To get to the right color, what basic dye colors should I be working with?
Your comments: “Not all aniline pull-ups have that glossy topcoat. A more natural aniline pull-up goes without the topcoat. It solely depends on the Wax Effect-8.6 with its matching Leather Scent-D (draggy-feel).”
Unless I am mistaken a topcoat is protection from all the possible contaminants that a sofa/chair can be exposed to. I would want to finish off with a top coat, possibly as I read in one of your post with a 50% mix of matte and glossy? Our house is an empty nest now, but with 4 grandchildren and regular family & friends visits, a topcoat offers some protection against the inevitable.
Re: Padding vs. airbrush: I agree HVLP is inappropriate and padding may result in an uneven application. I am still concerned about how to deal with the tufts and folds, especially with the cushion tufts that reach between two panels and somehow would need to be padded in?
Do you have a suggested airbrush product and Canadian supplier for a Paasche single action starter kit?
I browsed on the Internet and found what I believe is needed, > Paasche H-SET Single Action AIRBRUSH KIT at
https://www.wallacks.com/catalogue/c...table=airbrush
Seems a little pricey @ $95, but then I have not shopped around much.
http://www.chicagoairbrushsupply.com/paaschehset.html
Not quite the same and comes from US.
I will also look around locally in Artist & Hobby shops as I could not find any local dealers on the Internet.