Colour Finally Going On

[Richie]

Great news!
and perhaps i'll have to put Jane in the back instead of the kids as she'd like a lighter rear end...

[VFK44]

perhaps i'll have to put Jane in the back instead of the kids as she'd like a lighter rear end...

I've often heard of Jensens being used for weddings, but it is not so usual for them to be used for separations...

[Richie]

It was back to the delicate, gentle perfume (?!?!) of thinners tonight...

[Richie]

A productive weekend...

[garyc]

Well done mate
The black looks so much better with orange than the beige
It's transformed the car
GaryC

[Grant]

Richie.. I haven't commented here on your thread .. the reason is I love beige/magnolia leather so much I just can't get my head around this, but ...it's a good job we are all different, ... I do want to say though that you have done a lovely job of the work and done it correctly by stripping back, there is nothing worse than that over painted and painted finish on leather .. well done sport .. have one of these >>

[BBD2K]

Looks fabulous! Well done!
Hope mine look as good when I get round to doing them!

[Richie]

Thanks chaps - I'm now itching to get the car out and drive somewhere!

[Fishyboy]

Hi Richie
How have your re-coloured seats lasted after just over a year?

I ask because my passenger seat that I re-restored at the same time has started to show quite a few small cracks (https://www.joc.org.uk/forum/viewtopic. ... 77#p217777" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) and not looking like it will stand the test of time.

I am about to have a second go at the drivers seat. The seatbase is in a very poor condition after only 2 years since the previous (poorly done) first attempt. Given that both my previous attempts on the passenger have not stood the test of time I am going to take a slightly different approach this time (thanks to Stuart "Mark1stu" Turner for some excellent guidance). As Einstein said "to keep repeating the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity". Fingers crossed I'm not mad.
Phil

[Richie]

Hi Phil.
I've had mixed results too. The issue for me has been the spray on sealer from the Furniture Clinic. Now, I'm quite happy for my seats to retain the patina of age and generally left the cracks in place.
The rear seats have been fine but the fronts not so good.
I'm no expert here but I'm not convinced that th cracks can be permanently filled when they're as extensive as on my seats. But I genuinely like the look. in time, the front seats will need retrimming but for now, unlike their predecessors, the fronts are on the right side of patina.

But I don't think the sealer shares my enthusiasm. I think it needs a smooth surface to adhere to. And my front seats aren't providing that.

So what I think has happened is that the sealer (which to me seems too much like having a l thin layer of cling film over the seats) forms a 'bridge' across any gaps / creases that are present. And this 'bridge' subsequently fails. Or maybe, as the front seats were already black, maybe I spent less time preparing them adequately. The rest of the interior was taken back to the bare hide.

Either way, As you can see, in some places it simply starts to peel away. This first happened on the passenger seat. Where its lifted, I was in places able to simply peel it away by fingers. I then used the Woolies sealing paste instead. And - so far - that has been fine.

So peeling and sealing is my next automotive 'lockdown' job. I suspect it may be something of an ongoing process.

[Richie]

Your seats looked great last time, so...What are you going to do differently Phil?

[Fishyboy]

Hi Richie,
I have a little bit of peeling on my seats, but only when I used using the Scuffmaster colourant which includes a plastifier. I think this gives a hard, almost brittle finish, prone to re-cracking (IMO).

The main issue I've had is that the the cracks I didn't fill have simply moved/opened and caused the colorant/top coat to crack. If you can press on one side of the crack and the other side doesn't move equally down then the crack must be properly repaired or it will just propagate in to the finish.

This time round I intend to focus my time on getting the surface prep right (like decorating at home or painting a car, prep is the key).

Firstly, I intend to really soften the leather (I'm trying Neats Foot rather than the Gliptone G11). Then for any large cracks I will repair by applying a backing patch and filling (those I did first time around have held up perfectly, I just didn't do enough of them). For the smaller smaller cracks I will either sand out (and fill) or treat with FC's Leather binder and then sand.

I am more than happy to leave creases which are part of the patina. Cracks and tears I don't really want to see.

I'll amend my original thread with some more pictures as I go along.

Phil

[Richie]

Good luck Phil
I do admire your tenacity.
I'd be interested to learn how soft you're able to get your seats with the oil.
The side bolsters on my front seats are rather firm. Though having said that, much as I like the look of my seats, I'm aware that they are on borrowed time - they have a good few years ahead of them yet, but I've taken my cue from Stuart who has advised me that when the time comes, a retrim will be needed.
But for now, I just wanna make the most of them, be sat in the car driving somewhere!!

[johnw]

That neats foot oil you bought looks super quality Phil. I started softening my latest project, 6 months ago. I will clean off any oil residue and reapply another coat in the sun we are getting now. I would not recolour for a few months after applying. It does work on top of recolours but takes longer. It absorbs more through cracks and tears, and needs time to equalise. I found some Mk1 headrests that were horrific 15 years ago and I drenched them at the time and left them. They are amazing now. The oil carries on working for years. It probably took 2 years then remained perfect for 13. If you have falling apart leather, cut a sample in two and treat one half, then test to breaking. It actually strengthens.