Mike, thanks for your initiative!
To those who receive the kit.
It is good for the forum to hear your experience on these leather safe (pH 3-5) products if you have tried them.
And for me to further explain the differences as LTT thinks pH value of cleaning products is irrelevant to leather cleaning.
It is also good to know your experience with the fatliquor5.0™.
LTT thinks fatliquor conditioning is… “I thought the object was to clean it!!!!!”
This little information on fatliquor I attached as part of my sales presentation is always welcome by my customer.
So take it as extra add-ons to your services, why not?
Let me know what you think?
Roger Koh
Leather Doctor® System
Structure Fatliquor Conditioning for Leather Softness & Strength!
Fatliquor conditioner is natural oil that has undergone an emulsification process.
Thus enable oil to be dispersed evenly throughout the entire internal leather fiber structure during application.
As an aqueous emulsion; the oil is held suspended as microscopic droplets in the water, similar to nature's milk.
Fatliquor resembles milk in appearance and penetrates and deposits oil to the leather fiber structure before breaking.
Penetration:
Non-absorbent (finished or protected) leathers especially the pigmented type; due to its heavier color and top coat formulation; sometimes with additional protective top coating cross-linked for extra toughness makes penetration into the leather internal structure impossible.
The reverse suede side, perforation holes, needle-holes, macro and micro cracks are soft spots left for penetrating these leathers.
Semi-absorbent leathers as most semi-aniline; due to its color and top coat light formulation makes it more difficult for conditioner to penetrate the leather uniformly.
Thus requires rehydrating or surface tension treatment prior to effective fatliquoring for overall even appearances.
Absorbent unfinished (aniline, naked, nubuck, suede, pure, vegetable-tanned) leathers absorb fatliquor readily.
Process:
Fatliquor is spray immediately after cleaning while the leather is still damp.
This procedure ensures uniform absorbency and distribution to coat the fibrils structure without excess.
When the emulsion is exhausted by the leather fibrils the excess water will evaporate in the drying process.
Thus leaving the inter-fibrillary spaces void for leather breathability.
Principles:
Signs of diminishing fatliquor are manifested as coarse breaks, creases and wrinkles.
Lost of leather tensile strengths are revealed as visible needle-hole splits, easily rips and snags.
Thus fatliquor lost through ageing require regular replenishing to maintain the leather's integrity and pliability.
When these fatliquor-deprived leathers go to cleaning without re-fatliquoring, the after drying leather negative conditions like coarseness and stiffness will accentuate further.
A timely fatliquoring process immediately after cleaning and before the leather dries helps solve this natural oil depletion phenomenal.
Fatliquor in leather garment usually contains10 to 20%, while upholstery leather contains 15 to 30%.
But the oils in the leather fibril structure makes up only a small 3 to 10% in relation to the weight of leather.
Effects:
Fatliquor is applied to the damp leather, ideally in a condition where the leather fibers are fully hydrated but little free water exists in the spaces between the fibers.
Application of fatliquor to completely dry leather results in rapid absorption into the fibers, often resulting in dark-colored, greasy patches.
Moreover, the resultant leather is not as soft, resilient or full as when the fatliquor is applied to the damp, hydrated fiber.
Drying:
Drying time varies depending on the amount of moisture remaining after cleanng, prevailing temperature and humidity conditions.
Leather should be dried using ambient conditions of temperature and humidity.
Forced drying, especially using heat is not recommended.
Providing proper ventitlation and air movement is highly recommended to expedite drying.
fatliquor5.0™ is a technological breakthrough that enable diminished original tannery fatliquor to be replenished from an easy ready to use spray bottle.
