Club Obi Wan

Ok, I promised a few guys that I would post some before and after pics of pecard treatment on a predistressed Wested. Here they are. Hopefully this will be helpful to people as a reference. Sorry I had to use links but no matter what I do the image function fails me http://www.imageviper.com/dip/29167/IMG_2435.jpg This pic and the next one are pre-pecard treatment. http://www.imageviper.com/dip/29168/IMG_2439.jpg

In the next 3 pics I pecarded half the jacket so the change will be as clear as possible. http://www.imageviper.com/dip/29170/IMG_2447.jpg...http://www.imageviper.com/dip/29169/IMG_2446.jpg...http://www.imageviper.com/dip/29171/IMG_2449.jpg

As you can see the color really comes back with the treatment. The surface is noticeably smoother as the leather has reabsorbed a lot of oil. I hope this will prolong its life in this dry Colorado weather As for me I love the results! I may (and this is a big maybe) consider manual distressing later, but for now I'm pleased to age it the natural way

Great pics Ransom.
I had the same pleasant surprise when I gave my Wested cowhide a Pecard treatment, the good news is that it gets better and better each time.

Regards
-K

That looks great. When you do the whole jacket, can you post those pics too?

No problem, I just need to take a few more pics.. Something remarkable about these predistressed jackets is how much pecards they can take too. I gave it two coats and the each time the next day not a drop of pecards was left on the surface. So it seems to take a while to get the surface saturated. So far I've done 3 thin coatings and I might even do a 4th just to ensure the leather is no longer dried out. The weared look will stay and hopefully the pecards will ensure no further cracking.

More pics up soon!

Whoa, nice work! Perhaps a little sandpapering around the seams to finish it off?

IJ

Has the cracking gone away with the treatment?

TFrosst wrote:Has the cracking gone away with the treatment?

The predistressed is cracked all over, I suspect you can't get rid of it because the surface has been permanently changed.

All you can now do is darken it with products like Pecards, as the surface HAS been permanently cracked, and the dryer and lighter colored under surface is now showing through the original darker top.

Regards! Michaelson

I know the cracks are permanent. My phrasing wasnt' correct. The samples I recieved felt extremely abrasive and -for lack of a better word-flakey. Has the pecard softened everything and has kept everything together?

Yes, it has when standard Pecards is used. It's not a cure all product, but it sure makes things like this a lot better.

Regards! Michaelson

Mine was never abrasive or flakey. The distressing is only a very thin layer on top of the leather. The Pecard darkens everything and makes the dark and light areas more even. It definitely softens things up and after several layers the jacket gets a nice dark brown tone.

-K

Yeah, that was my experience exactly. Pecards darkens and adds moisture back to the leather. That should be very evident on those half and half pictures. Sorry once again that you have to click the link but its worth a look.

Cracking/broken leather will not be repaired, but further cracking due to moisture loss should come to a grinding halt with regular use of Pecards.
Don't worry TFrosst, it definitely gets smoother feeling and less dry feeling as well.

Still considering a little manual distressing. And I do mean very little heh. I love this jacket the way it is

I'll get a pic of the entire jacket up asap, but I've got to get some rest first

Looks like its coming together very nicely... that may be the leather for my next wested :c) I'd like to see more pics when its done... is it "80's Fit?"

Rusty Jones wrote:Looks like its coming together very nicely... that may be the leather for my next wested :c) I'd like to see more pics when its done... is it "80's Fit?"

Does the "80's Fit" have to be special requested or is that the default cut? I only ask because I specified neither as I had no idea there was such an option or what it would mean.

I went one size up so i could fit a fleece or sweater under there, but otherwise it is a nice fit for me

Thanks for the compliment! I love this jacket, just want to bring out a few contrasts in the hues. I think I'll use sandpaper extremely lightlly and with next to no pressure to see if I can achieve this.

Its not standard, but the jacket looks great eitherway, enjoy it and dont forget to post more pics when you're done :c)