Question for bag makers

[chawbeef]

I would humbly ask what y'all use to weatherproof yer bags?? Would "Dubbin" be a good choice??
Seems like all I do is axe questions, but I been finding the folks here are mor'n willing to share their knowhow :hatsoff: .............Daniel

 

[gmarc]

I use a mixture of 1/1 beeswax and tallow, rubbed into a warm leather surface.

 

[necchi]

Non PC, Sno-Seal. It's Beeswax and silicon, water will bead off treated leather/hides.

 

[Black Hand]

Traditional - Deer tallow, lard, bear grease, lard/pitch/beeswax mixture
Modern - Mink oil, Pitch-blend

 

[gus13]

I use a combination of Trditional and contemporary treatments. First I heat the leather (in my wife's stove- she loves that! :wink: ) then apply a 50/50 mix of beeswax and Tallow. get that rubbed in really well. I apply a few coats of that, then let it cool and apply a top coat of Mink Oil. overkill? probably, but I like to make sure it'll be as weatherproof as I can!

 

[Stumpkiller]

Montana pitch blend. Though my cow's knee I rubbed with molten beeswax.

 

[BrownBear]

I recently tried Track of the Wolf's Mink Oil Grease patch lube on a couple of bags, and I'll be doing it again. It waterproofs well enough for my needs and does a great job of conditioning the leather.

 

[MSW]

i like necchi's idea (using the sno-seal) ... remember the ten foot rule (borrowing from renaissance faires: if you can't tell at a distance of ten feet, it's as good as HC/PC.

just one guy's free opinion, and no doubt worth every penny

 

[tg]

Huebers Shoe Grease is a great leather protector, the original owner was a friend if mine and he sold out several years ago but I think the stuff is still available under the same name, I cannpt recall where all the equipment was taken but it seems like it was somewhere in the SW, this stugff is basicaly beeswax and pine pitch very much like the old brewers pitch also good for lineing canteens.I liked to heat leather a bit before applying it as to let it "soak" in, most home remedies are probably as good as any of the many over the counter solutions, I suspect.

 

[LaBonte]

Huebers Shoe Grease is a great leather protector

That would be Hubbard's Shoe Grease.... :wink:

Hubbard's, Montana Pitchblend, etc are in fact nothing more than commercial verisons of dubbin - I used to use them but know prefer my own dubbin mix (tallow or some other form of fat such as pure lard, a bit of oil - neats foot, bear, or olive, beeswax, and I add a bit of self-collected pine pitch - love the smell...)

Sno-seal - don't believe the blather on their website about no oil on leather, whoever wrote that does not know about the currying step in the tanning process apparently - ALL leather has to be oiled/fat liquored after tanning or it would be stiff as a board - on the other hand one can over oil leather and that can cause damage.

 

[codymobley]

I use beef tallow, codliver oil, and beeswax. Equal parts of the first two and the amount of wax would be dependent on when you are making the bag. It's a period leather treatment for all leather goods and waterproofs very well.

I use it as a 'top coat' after applying several soaks of just heated tallow, the bee's wax seals it tight and the tallow and codliver oil keep it supple. Make sure to apply it very warm and rub it in thoroughly.

 

[chawbeef]

Many thanx to all the replies. Where would one aquire some beeswax without going to some fancy women folk boutique, like my ol' woman suggested??

 

[BrownBear]

Smaller quantities are available at most decent art/craft supply stores, but more expensive than some of the specialty shops on line. Factor in shipping and you're better of at the local store for smaller quantities.

 

[codymobley]

Tallow and beeswax both can be found on ebay in the candlemaking items.