68degrees
Well-known
I love the old leather cases, but not a fan of the brown leather. Is there a process to change the color to black and make it look great.?
Change brown leather case to black?? Anyone ever do it?
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Vickko
Veteran
I'm guessing the material is real leather. Go to a leather craft store and try out leather dye.
If it is vinyl, well, I think it can still be dyed.
If it is vinyl, well, I think it can still be dyed.
FrankS
Registered User
There is a shoe leather dye. First there is a solution to remove the original dye. I've done this once with a pair of shoes.
Robert Lai
Well-known
Usually I dye leather just to restore the original color sans scuffs and abrasions. But, to change the color would be similar in principle. You may have to dye it several times.
First use acetone to remove the original glaze/wax and some of the original finish.
Second, dye the leather using leather dye. I use Fiebing's dye. It is better to use several lighter applications and be even and thorough (i.e. no missed spots), rather than to try to achieve your final color in one go. Let dry 24 hours before proceeding.
Once the color is suitable to your taste, then moisturize the leather, and seal it. I usually use Leather Honey liberally, and let it soak in 24 hours. If you want it to really soak in, use a hair dryer to warm the leather. After 24 hours, wipe off the excess. At this point, if the case had some sort of glossy finish, I use Fiebing's Acrylic Resolene to provide some water resistance. Some neutral cream rubbed in liberally will give you a very beautiful finish.
I personally hate raw leather edges, so I always use some Fiebing's Edge-Kote to provide a nice black leather edge that will not fray.
I've restored many a case this way, including a really beat up Aires III case. A few Nippon Kogaku cases for my Nikon F, F2. And, more for Leicas, Agfa Super Isolette, etc.
Although cases are worth the effort, I usually cut out and discard the old leather straps. They are going to break on you without any warning. Sometimes you have to rivet the strap to the case itself, for cameras that don't have eyelets for the strap (e.g. Agfa Super Isolette).
Doing all this properly takes up the better part of a week.
Use gloves for all of this messy work.
First use acetone to remove the original glaze/wax and some of the original finish.
Second, dye the leather using leather dye. I use Fiebing's dye. It is better to use several lighter applications and be even and thorough (i.e. no missed spots), rather than to try to achieve your final color in one go. Let dry 24 hours before proceeding.
Once the color is suitable to your taste, then moisturize the leather, and seal it. I usually use Leather Honey liberally, and let it soak in 24 hours. If you want it to really soak in, use a hair dryer to warm the leather. After 24 hours, wipe off the excess. At this point, if the case had some sort of glossy finish, I use Fiebing's Acrylic Resolene to provide some water resistance. Some neutral cream rubbed in liberally will give you a very beautiful finish.
I personally hate raw leather edges, so I always use some Fiebing's Edge-Kote to provide a nice black leather edge that will not fray.
I've restored many a case this way, including a really beat up Aires III case. A few Nippon Kogaku cases for my Nikon F, F2. And, more for Leicas, Agfa Super Isolette, etc.
Although cases are worth the effort, I usually cut out and discard the old leather straps. They are going to break on you without any warning. Sometimes you have to rivet the strap to the case itself, for cameras that don't have eyelets for the strap (e.g. Agfa Super Isolette).
Doing all this properly takes up the better part of a week.
Use gloves for all of this messy work.
68degrees
Well-known
Thank you very much Robert for your detailed instructions. I will proceed as advised.
Scrambler
Well-known
Ask for a color-change dye. Provides better blocking of the underlying color.