holster restoration advise

[Rob]

gentleman, with a recent purchase came a holster, its dry so i used pecards and its slowly coming back. it also has several stops where the black has been worn or scratched off. how do i repair these scatches?? i am sure others here have faced similar problems. please post a reply. thank-you rob


p.s. this is a great board with multitude of fine contributors.

[Mark McMorrow]

Hi,


Not much you can do to *repair* the scratches, especially if they are deep. But you can minimize the appearance of the scratches. Try regular black or brown wax shoe polish (depending on the color of the holster). Once the Pecards has done it's work, simply the shoe polish to the scratched areas. It's not a total repair, but your holster will look a heck of a lot better.


Mark

[Marvin]

Rob,


If the holster is dry, an application of Pecards will do it some good, but PLEASE, don't over-do the dressing, you will ruin the holsters value and damage it in the long run.


My recommendation is to apply a light cleaning to the holster, apply a light coating of Pecards, let it dry accoding to instructions, and lightly buff. Leave the scratches and roughed up finish as it is probably part of it's history. Don't use shoe polish as the polish will eventually get a light milldew coating that will require buffing off periodically. many holsters have been ruined when shoe polish has been used over the entire holster.


Once the light coating of Pecards has been applied, put a 1/4" dia roll of acid free paper, or I use a small roll of bubble wrap in the belt loops. I also stuff the inside with bubble wrap. Keep the holter in a cool, dark place out of the sun, dust and dirt. This will keep the holster safe for many years.


If you want to use the holster occasionally it is fine, but if you are going to use it on a regualr basis, get a $40 repro and use it. Remember, don't use too much leather dressing as it will soften the leather and it is supposed to be hard, and not shiney! Others may have other ideas too. The origianl holsters are getting too valuable to ruin.


Marvin

[Mark McMorrow]

Marvin,


I agree that sometimes those little scratches add to the character and exist as part of the history of the piece, but some collectors do like to minimize the negative esthetic impact thay have. I've used shoe polish for *spot* touch-ups for 25 years and never had a problem - on everything from holsters to sword scabbards. As long as it's not overdone, there should be no problem.


Mark

[lugerholsterrepair]

There is a difference between shoe polish and dye. Shoe polish is made up of oils and waxes and pigments meant to ward off water and soiling seen at foot level. A dye is a pigment carried by an evaporative liquid meant to cover with the pigment but not to repell water with oils and waxes. You must determine what you wish to accomplish when applying either to leather. Shoe polish has an objectionable odor and feel because of it's repelling qualities and dye does not. Dye will still smell like leather after application. Kiwi makes an excellent dye in a small applicator bottle sold at wallmart. It's simply called Kiwi black leather dye. It goes on and can be feathered out to blend. Then a light coat of any leather product that will preserve. I know there has been quite a discussion about that so I will let you choose. I have my own concoction. Jerry Burney

[Thor]

Glad to have a Luger repair expert on board Jerry! Jerry is making me a baby Luger holster!!! His work is ABSOLUTELY first rate! He also dabbled in LANYARDS I believe! A great guy to do business with! Lets get a picture of you Jerry! ~Thor~

[Johnny Peppers]

I have to agree with Marvin in not using anything to try and cover the scratches and scuffing on the holster. The scratches and scuffing are there, and nothing will cover them without looking like a patch job on the holster. Put a very light coat of Pecards on the holster and work it into the leather with your hands. This will help preserve the holster and will liven up the color.

[Mark McMorrow]

Right. I have my own concoctions myself. I guess it's a matter of sticking with what you know works for you.

[Rob]

well gentlemen it is time for deep thought on this matter, while one one hand the holster is not a mint collectable at this time ..in the future it might be. pecards will remain and perhaps i'll dye the really offensive stops ..perhaps not . i'll reflect on this matter deeply with a stein full of good cold german beer( st paulie girl or brecks ). i know germans donnot drink cold beer , but i'm an american pretending to be a german. enough levitity for the moment. thank-you gentlmen for kindness and your advise, have a great weekend ..break-out the lugers and blow out the cob-webs. take care .rob

[Big Norm]

Everyone talks about Pecards. But when I started I didn't know what to use on my holsters so I went to a saddle shop and asked the leather expert there. He recommended Lexol. I bought Lexol Leather Conditioner. What are the feelings about Lexol? What about leather conditioners? Lexol had other products under that name. Is Pecards a leather conditioner or are there other products under that name? Are Lexol and Pecard preservatives? I hope that my jumbled questions are understood by all?

Big Norm

[Marvin]

Big Norm,


I have used Pecards in the past and it is good stuff, but I normally use Lexol. The Lexol is a water based product and I have been "hit" hard about using a water based preservative. My opinion on Lexol with water is that the holster was tanned for use in any type weather including rain. The Lexol, when used sparingly, will indeed put a very small amount of water on the surface and some will/may soak into the leather carrying the conditioner with it. the water will then evaporate and leave the conditioner. After an overnight drying period, I will lightly buff the leather and it looks great then. I only do this one time before storage to keep it preserved. I have holsters treated this way 7 years ago and they look great today. The most important thing to remember is to keep them in a dark, cool, low humidity area and they should last many lifetimes.


I think that either Lexol or Pecards are both good products.


Marvin

[lugerholsterrepair]

Well I just have to leap in here and give my 2cents worth. I work a great deal with both kinds of leathers . New and old. The new leather I work into all sorts of parts and pieces that I make in my shop. artillery leathers, boots, straps,Navy holsters etc. This new leather is called vegetable tanned and essentially has nothing added but lots taken away by this tanning process. Fats oils and waxes need to be replaced after the vegetable tanning process. The other side of this coin is called latigo leather. It is tanned in a process where these same fats oils and waxes are pressure injected into the leather and it will last for a very long time with no further treatment. This type of leather is typically used for flat sections and straps that do not require forming as water is necessary for this process and water will not soak into latigo leather. All German luger holsters were made from vegetable tanned leather. After forming and dying the holster had to be treated with the replenishing fats oils and waxes. This changed over the war years but whatever the Germans used there is no doubt they knew what they were about. I personally have had good luck with a product called ''Dr. Jacksons Hide Rejuvinator'' It is hard like facial cream when cold and soft like butter when warm. It is a mixture made primarily of fats and oils and is grainy and globular even when in a semi liquid state. It soaks into leather and dissapears from the surface when warmed to 100 degrees by the sun or a warm environment. This makes the vegetable tanned leather soft and supple even after applying dye. It must be worked pretty good and I use a toothbrush to work it into crevaces and to work out the white filmy layer of fat that sometimes accumulates on the surface and around projections. I find this is best used in a warm room to penetrate adequately. I have used this on many German luger holsters that need a drink after all these years of neglect. I use it liberally. I smear it on and rub it in for a long time, flexing the leather gently. I do this not only on the front but on the backside of the leather where penetration is a little better since the back has no surface sheen. After a holster has had this treatment and a week or two later you cannot tell this has been done except the leather is a bit darker and soft and supple to the parts that flex a great deal, but the hardshell is still hard. I build a few holsters from the ground up, Forming the bodies and the tops from vegetable tanned leather with water. After dying, this Hide Rejuvinator gives back to the holster what has been taken away. While I am not recomending this to anyone, I wish to pass along my experience to anyone interested enough to read this. There are many other products out there besides Pecards and Lexol.

I use a product called Anhydrous Lanolin which I get from my Parmacy. It comes in a One Pint container for 9.95. It is use as a carrier for medications that must be rubbed into the skin. It looks much the same as Pecards and has done a good job on the Holsters I have used it on. If it is good enough for the human body should be OK on leather plus it does not contain a whole bunch of Chemical additives.

[Big Norm]

I have never used the Lexol on the dyed side of the holster.I reasoned that since this was a conditioner that I would want the have it soak in good so I only applied it to the bare leather side. The instructions on the container said to rub in vigorously with a tooth brush, so I did. I was afraid of applying too much because I did not want to turn the leather into mush. The leather really did suck the Lexol in like a sponge. The toothbrush and a lightly damp rag helped me reach the difficult areas. I have to admit that the word "conditioner" intimidated me. I was looking more for the word "preserver" on the container.


The words "water based" now bothers me although I can understand Marvins instructions on using Lexol lightly and letting the water evaporate. I think that what I was looking for was the avoidance of letting the leather dry out and that maybe some sort of oil would help in doing this. I guess that I will have to save some of the threads that are left and reread what has been said and try to digest the points that are being made. I never gave thought to applying Lexol or anything else to the dyed side of the leather.


I hope that I am not contradicting anything that anybody has said. I just came back from a short vacation and missed a lot of the discussion. But I have a few artillery rigs as well as 2 100 year old "Ideal" stocks and holsters. I want to do all that I can to keep them looking good and preventing dry rot for whoever takes them over after I am gone.