The deed is done. I soaked for under 15 minutes (and the water still turned bright pink, oh) and was ridiculously careful with blotting and stuffing to try to keep away from the creed on top of not stretching out the leather so here's hoping!
Coach Rehab and Rescue Club
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The deed is done. I soaked for under 15 minutes (and the water still turned bright pink, oh) and was ridiculously careful with blotting and stuffing to try to keep away from the creed on top of not stretching out the leather so here's hoping!
Just put on a coat of Renapur this morning, so it is very shiny right now, once absorbed the shine will soften itself towards a more natural look. The navy is very dark, so the bag appeared black all by itself.
Actually instead of paint, I would say more like navy paint tinted Leather CPR conditioning. The first coat while bag was damp is straight CPR. For the second CPR conditioning, I mixed in navy paint, and rub it thinnly all over the bag with a cosmetic sponge. Then seal the surplus tinted CPR in a small zipped bag. Wait for 24 hours to do another coat of navy CPR. Wait for 24 hours, the 4th coat conditioning is straight Leather CPR again. This time use a microfiber cloth, apply generous amount of conditioner on the cloth, rub on and polish the leather till all conditioner absorbed. Roughly 2 to 4
mins for each side of bag. Some floating paint color will come off but that just help to blend in the color better. Wait for another 24 hours, then finish with either blackrock or renapur.
The finished bag looks quite natural, even close up I can't tell it is color treated. But this will not work if the bag has contrast color stitches.
Black city bag as color comparison.
ETA: sorry didn't take before photos, but it was like washed , worn and pale black color.
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Wow, everyone’s results are SO impressive!
My very dried-out and stained saddle bag was still a mess after dunking and conditioning. Thanks @whateve for your suggestions! I decided to dye it but didn’t want to invest a bunch more in product, so I used 1/4 bottle of Fiebings Mahogany leather dye I already had in an immersion bath; there wouldn’t have been enough dye to paint it on and I didn’t want it to go too dark. Then several coats of Leather CPR and one of Blackrocks on top. I’m pretty happy with the results. Almost looks like an old burnished leather. Now to see if I can use paint to cover up some of the paint and felt stains.
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My very dried-out and stained saddle bag was still a mess after dunking and conditioning. Thanks @whateve for your suggestions! I decided to dye it but didn’t want to invest a bunch more in product, so I used 1/4 bottle of Fiebings Mahogany leather dye I already had in an immersion bath; there wouldn’t have been enough dye to paint it on and I didn’t want it to go too dark. Then several coats of Leather CPR and one of Blackrocks on top. I’m pretty happy with the results. Almost looks like an old burnished leather. Now to see if I can use paint to cover up some of the paint and felt stains.
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Update on Willis: 3 coats of leather CPR so far. The pipings are still ashy looking even though it's much better than when I got it!
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Should I try adding acrylic/CPR mix or go straight BR? I'm not sure the color will be returning to the pipings as the bag didn't bleed color at all in the bath.
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Should I try adding acrylic/CPR mix or go straight BR? I'm not sure the color will be returning to the pipings as the bag didn't bleed color at all in the bath.
I just finished my navy Willis ....
Before and after
Before and after
It wouldn't hurt to add a little paint to the CPR but I think it looks great! It could recover completely with BR. There is no harm in doing BR first.
My green paint arrived today so I got to mixing what seems to be a good match, only the sun will tell, to touch up my Crosby’s handle edges and parts on the strap. Before and after pictures of the painted areas tomorrow after it dries. Final pics on the bag once it gets more CPR and some brushing.
I would try blackrocks first, there have been many times that I was surprised at how well the corners and piping responded to rehabbing and BRs. Good luck!
