Finish questtion

[snubbie]

I made my first pancake sheath roughly following or at least, inspired by, Horsewright's excellent tutorial in the How To sticky at the top of this forum. This is for my personal EDC knife. It isn't nearly as neat and professional as his, but then, sheathmaking is just something I'm learning. Standard fold over belt sheaths are simple. This pancake sheath was a bit more "involved" let's say. The greatest challenge, and one I almost messed up, was the little retention hump inside. It was sort of a guess and I guessed too small. I ended up having to literally reach in with a blade and cut it back. Too much material needed removing to use a round file as suggested. I would guess I'm within a millimeter of the stitching. So I learned something for next time. Anyway, my thanks to Horsewright.

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And all that to ask a question...

I did dye my sheath and in the past I've used resolene for the final finish, then added some Obenauf's for waterproofing, letting it set overnight. The problem with that is, the Obenaufs seems to dissolve the dye somewhat and will wipe off rather heavily on a cloth. It has to be wiped down aggressively with a cloth before using, to remove this residue else it will wipe off on your clothes. I almost feel as though I'm wiping off the Obenaufs. So why do I use Resolene and what purpose does it serve? I don't know other than it is the "final protective finish" you put on leather as suggested by a lot of tutorials/instructions, etc. I know some people DON'T use it.

So after the dye, is it okay to add some Obenaufs, rub in and call it good, eliminating the Resolene altogether? Or, add the Resolene AFTER the Obenaufs?

 

[leatherman]

Good looking sheath! Your right about the "bump" there, it looks like for all intents that you stitched the knife in there permanently.

The slots are one of the most difficult to make look nice, you pulled it off.

I have never used either one of those products so cant help you there, but I'm sure someone will come along.

 

[Horsewright]

Very nice job on the sheath! On the welt, when you are drawing your interior lines put the widest part of the knife at the narrowest point and give about 3/8" to 1/2" clearance. That will get it aobut right. I tend towards the 3/8" but I'd rather have it too tight than too loose. Always more to learn on each sheath thats for sure. Me too. Dye transfer is another reason I just won't dye sheaths. My world most guys wear a button down long sleeve white shirt daily in the summer, (I have 8 of them in my closet), its almost a uniform. Dye transfer shows up bad on those, especially when its hot and you're sweating.

I too am unfamilar with those products.

 

[sheathmaker]

The Resolene (which I do not use, TanKote instead) is a sealer of sorts and would tend to keep the Obenauf from penetrating as required. Therefore it is just laying on top of the Resolene and would pick up some of the pigment as it buffs off and will continue to do so until it dries out completely. Probably the best solution would have been
Resolene and no Obenauf, or Obenauf and a period to let it penetrate completely and then Resolene. The dye itself is sort of a sealer and will make any other finish harder to penetrate.

Paul

 

[snubbie]

Very nice job on the sheath! On the welt, when you are drawing your interior lines put the widest part of the knife at the narrowest point and give about 3/8" to 1/2" clearance. That will get it aobut right. I tend towards the 3/8" but I'd rather have it too tight than too loose. Always more to learn on each sheath thats for sure. Me too. Dye transfer is another reason I just won't dye sheaths. My world most guys wear a button down long sleeve white shirt daily in the summer, (I have 8 of them in my closet), its almost a uniform. Dye transfer shows up bad on those, especially when its hot and you're sweating.

I too am unfamilar with those products.

Maybe I'll make the next sheath without dye. I did actually mess this one up. Upon closer inspection today, I realized I did cut the stitching. If you look at that photo, you can see how loose the thread looks right at that narrow spot. That's because it IS loose! And so, I'll get the opportunity to make another one and get it right this time. I'll follow your advice and add 3/8-1/2".
Thanks for your tutorial.

 

[snubbie]

The Resolene (which I do not use, TanKote instead) is a sealer of sorts and would tend to keep the Obenauf from penetrating as required. Therefore it is just laying on top of the Resolene and would pick up some of the pigment as it buffs off and will continue to do so until it dries out completely. Probably the best solution would have been
Resolene and no Obenauf, or Obenauf and a period to let it penetrate completely and then Resolene. The dye itself is sort of a sealer and will make any other finish harder to penetrate.

Paul

That makes sense. Maybe I'll try just Obenaufs on top of the undyed leather and sit in the sun awhile to darken. Or maybe neatsfoot oil which is what Horsewright used in his tutorial IIRC.