Instruction and tips for storage and maintenance of

 leather goods for historical guns.

1. What damages old leather?

- Dryness: Old leather looses water by dryness which is bound in the fibers of the leather. The leather will get porous, crack and shrink. This damage can not be reversed.

Please note: Never store leather below 35% humidity!

- Mildew: Leather stored in a humidity with more than 70% will get mouldy. The mildew destroys the leather fibers because it is eating protein and fatty acid. These is originated by oxidation of unstable kinds of fat (vegetable and animal fats are ingredients of the most leather preserves). As well gets hydrolyses (destroying of the fiber molecules by reaction  with water) shrinkage and final decomposition of the leather.

Please note: Humidity from 45- 65 % has no negative influence on old leather. Store it airy and not in bags or closed boxes.

- Light and high temperature: Under the influence of  high temperature and extreme light, the process of decomposition is increasing.

Please note: Store old leather at room temperature of  65°- 68° F (18°- 20°C )

- Mechanical use: Old leather is like old people! Flexing hurts.

Please note: avoid overstrain!

- Dirt and lack of care:  Dirtying and fouling are the root causes for oxidation and damage the leather.

Please note: Clean the leather if it is really dirty. A regular and thrifty care prolongs the live of old leather.

2. How to treat?

Please note: All treatments and products should always be tested, if possible, at a smaller place of the leather good. At very old leather and probably due to bad tanning, may produce some unwelcome effects.

Cleaning: Old fat and fatty dirt has to be removed with clean benzene; soft and several times.

Don’t use cleaning fluids on water base.

Neutralization and stabilization:  If hand sweat or wrong care treatment (for instance saddle soap) has the leather discoloured or dried out, it is necessary to neutralize it with a mixture of 2 parts of water and 1 part of vinegar essence (ca. 25% concentration).

Don’t make it too dump but rub it with light dump and soft cloth and repeat it several times.

Mildew: It is recommended to use a mixture of 1 part of water and 1 part of vinegar essence.

If the leather is powdery, mouldy or has turned reddish, this means that it is irreversible damaged, caused by red rottenness. This can be happened as a result of use of cheaper and fast tanning material until the mid of the 19th century. Beside the use of local tanning materials, made from oak, birch or chestnut, in some cases cheaper material (Mimosa and Quebracho) from the colonies was introduced.

The use of natural colourings was later replaced by synthetic ones. For these colourings it was necessary to fix them by a treatment with, for example, sulphur acid. This method has a bad influence in long-term application.

- Conservation:  After the mentioned operation steps, the leather has to be treated on the outer surface, called grain surface, with an acid free leather preserve (for example Elephant leather grease) or with acid free leather Vaseline.

Put these preserves only in a thin layer on the leather, let it soak up and polish it with a soft cloth. The inner surface can be treated with a re-greasing fluid. For this operation is used a mixture of  20% greasing fluid with 80% water; applied with a simple plastic spray bottle.

This operation has the advantage that the dry and sticky leather fibers absorb humidity and the fat particles, dissolved in the water, lay down around the leather fibers. In case of hard and dry leather repeat this procedure several times. In any case the fat-water emulsion has to soak up. The effect can be improved by slight drumming with each operation. The soak up can be also improved by roughening up the inner surface with a small wire brush.

Please note:  In case of hard old leather, never seal the inner surface with fat; it has no soaking up effect. Attention: The use of vegetable and animal kinds of fat in leather preservation grease, saddle soap etc. distributed by the shoe and equestrian sport industry are suitable for new products of this industry but can create damages at old leather goods.

- Improvement of the surface:  Small cuts and scrapes can be repaired with leather glue (available in shoe shops or at the shoe maker) after removing the old grease.

Please note:  Under no circumstances use dubious “quick glue” or similar adhesives. They will destroy the leather. You should not try to repair or dye the leather by yourself. You need special knowledge and experience for this as well as the right tools.

If you still want to do it, please contact the address below for assistance.

- Storage:  The leather goods should be stored in a temperature- controlled room (65°- 68° F)

with low exposure to sunlight. The humidity should be between 45% and 65 %. Very dry leather can also be stored for a short time (4- 5 weeks) at a humidity of 70 %.

- Checking:  When leather is still in a good condition, it only needs to be checked once a year. It is reasonable to wipe it with the above mentioned water- vinegar solution and a bit of Elephant grease. Should be mildew visible at some places, repeat this procedure intensive.

Should you have any question, don’t hesitate to contact us!

info@ledermanufaktur-zimmermann.de