Hiding stitching (needle) holes in leather - can it be done?

[Edward]

In small, thin quantities, it should dry clear. Funnily enough, I regularly use Copydex in place of liquid latex for creating false wounds / rotting zombie flesh (same effect, fraction of the price), but I've never heard of it used like this before.

 

[pak]

I'm thinking any attempt to cover holes would look like a weak attempt to cover the holes and would look far worst than left as is. Patches, removed patches, scuffs and scratches are part of the jacket's history and patina. Leave as is or send it down the road.

 

[Monitor]

...yeah, you're right Pak. I'm beginning to think there's nothing that can be done to really hide the holes completely, apart from sewing in another patch. That's cool, too.

 

[ProteinNerd]

Any chance of some pics of the holes, I'm curious how noticeable they are now.

 

[Cooper A-2]

If its only stiching holes, put a soaked wet towel over the needle holes and carefully " iron " the towel.
The steam created will inflate the leather structure and close the holes (pores) . Once finished, polish it with leather balm.
Worked great for me on a WW2 A-2 where a patch was removed.

 

[Monitor]

ProteinNerd, here you go:
I cannot capture the whole thing, as the camera's too crummy to take a sharp photo at the distance where the marks are noticeable, and the shape is too large for a macro.

Cooper, that sounds like it might do the trick! I'll give it a try and will post results. Thanks, man!

 

[Cooper A-2]

Carefull with the iron...not too hot...you just need to generate steam and pressure it in the holes...
Good luck.

 

[ProteinNerd]

Thanks Cooper. That sounds like a nice trick.
Monitor, can you let us know if it works please?

 

[Monitor]

Of course, PN - It was my intention to do so anyway. I'll try this out tomorrow and report back.

 

[Carlos840]

That sounds exciting, really wondering if it is going to work!

 

[Monitor]

1st test

I recalled I had a piece of an old leather jacket sleeve lying around so I decided to do the first experiment on it, rather than risk ruining the jacket even more.

Test sample is a black chrome tanned leather, around 3.5 oz thickness and quite stiff. Very similar to the leather I'm trying to repair.
The sleeve didn't have any needle holes left on it so I had to make some. I used a thick sewing needle - the kind leather machinists would use according to the box I found it in - and I punched a few holes all the way through the leather. Below is the photo of holes prior to the experiment:


Bear in mind that the holes I made were substantially larger than the ones I'm trying to get rid off.

Next up, I've soaked a cotton rag with water, as Cooper suggested, placed it over a leather sample and carefully ironed the rag for approx. half a minute. Left a steamy cotton rag on the leather sample for another couple of minutes:


This was the initial result. As you can see there's some slight change to it, though not enough to render the holes invisible:


As the leather sample was considerably soaked due to the steam, and hot as hell, I've given it another 15 minutes of wait to see if there's going to be any changes:


Conclusion: The holes definitely did shrink a little and now they're the same size as the holes that were left after the patch was removed but I'm not entirely convinced whether this happened due to the steam inflating the leather structure, or simply because I ironed the holes and thus flattened them a bit. Once the leather dries up completely, I'll give it another go. I'm thinking this just might work on a smaller holes reasonably enough to render them invisible.

 

[ProteinNerd]

Science experiments and leather jackets, I'm in heaven!

 

[Carlos840]

Agreed! this is like MythBusters but better!

 

[Monitor]

Coming up tomorrow; another steam and ironing attempt to see if there's any plausibility about this method, and if that won't work, I've got some barge cement and... No, I won't spoil it, but stay tuned. It will be loads of fun, even if the result will end up being completely useless.

 

[Brylcreemer]

Coming up tomorrow; another steam and ironing attempt to see if there's any plausibility about this method, and if that won't work, I've got some barge cement and... No, I won't spoil it, but stay tuned. It will be loads of fun, even if the result will end up being completely useless.

Hi Monitor,

Bit late to the party here, but can I ask how you got on with this? Did the holes remain shrunk from the ironing, or did they go back to normal?; did you have a crack at the glue method?

Cheers,
Adam

 

[Monitor]

Hi Monitor,

Bit late to the party here, but can I ask how you got on with this? Did the holes remain shrunk from the ironing, or did they go back to normal?; did you have a crack at the glue method?

Cheers,
Adam

This thread is a major blast from the past. . .

No, nothing really worked and nothing can be done. I sold the jacket long ago. I tried the Leather Cement method, too but no dice.

 

[Brylcreemer]

This thread is a major blast from the past. . .

No, nothing really worked and nothing can be done. I sold the jacket long ago. I tried the Leather Cement method, too but no dice.

Fair enough, ta for the reply.

 

[Riu]

This thread is a major blast from the past. . .

No, nothing really worked and nothing can be done. I sold the jacket long ago. I tried the Leather Cement method, too but no dice.

I was wondering if actually has worked since my CR would need some help with those stitching holes, I'll probably just leave it as it is.

 

[bn1966]

I was wondering if actually has worked since my CR would need some help with those stitching holes, I'll probably just leave it as it is.

I’m going to Byson Leather tomorrow for some alterations & if my memory doesn’t fail me I’ll ask them their thoughts...

 

[Riu]

I’m going to Byson Leather tomorrow for some alterations & if my memory doesn’t fail me I’ll ask them their thoughts...

Thank you in advance, I'm starting to forget about them slowly but I'm curious what they say.