Sanding Cracked Leather Seat
The guys over at Detailing World have been chatting a little about an article I wrote a while back about wet sanding a leather seat. Some didn’t know this could be done and others were disappointed that I didn’t put any pictures up. I’m not one to disappoint anybody so today while out and about doing my usual leather repairs I came across a Chevy Suburban that I thought would be a perfect example for showing someone this little trick of wet sanding cracked leather.
It’s definitely hard taking pictures with one hand and wet sanding leather with the other but I think I got some decent pictures to give you an example. The best way to see the process would be to video it but it’s only me and that would be impossible to by myself. My boy’s been wanting us to do some video for his class at school, so maybe soon I get some video’s up too, but for now pictures will just have to do.
Cracked Chevy Suburban Leather Seat
This seat had the cracked leather bolster and also a vinyl repair along the seat side just above the switch panel, that’s the reason the panel is pulled back. I’ve found it’s easier to remove the panel rather then melt it while doing the repair, it’s only 5 screws.
I usually start with leather then move to the vinyl to give the leather repair compounds time to cure a little more before the water based leather dye is applied.
wet sanding leather seat
To do this right you need my prepping solution I’ve talked about in previous posts and sent it out in one of my newsletters, I call it “Mike’s Hard Stuff”. It works a lot like Sems Sand Free so if you’ve got some Sems it will work similar but you really need to mix up some of my prepping solution it works even better for this trick. If you need the recipe just let me know and I’ll get it to you or you can just look back at some of my other posts.
Anyways, you start by taking a pretty rough grit sandpaper like 120, spray the area and start sanding. The dye will start to soften and mix with prepping solution. It’s like it’s melting the dye as you sand. Sand until it starts to dry a bit the dye starts to ball up and roll off. You’ll notice the leather will start to smooth out and the cracks will as well. Most of the time the cracking occurs in the dye not the leather like most think. It will eventually crack into the leather if the dye is not replaced and the leather is sealed back up.
notice the dye balling up and rolling off
Switch to a finer grit paper like a 240 grit and repeat the process. At some time you will see the leather will be smooth enough to dry sand a little to smooth it all out enough to apply your compounds.
One thing to keep in mind is the top stitch, try not to sand it or it will fray the stitch and not look so great when your done. You can lay a piece of tape over it to protect it or just be careful. Because once you fray them it’s almost impossible to get them to look right again.
Nice and smooth now, ready for leather repair compounds
As you can see it really does make a difference not only in looks but it cuts your time in have and now there’s no need to cake on the leather repair compounds trying to fill the cracks. Dry the leather thoroughly too with a hair dryer to insure better adhesion with your compounds.
Apply your leather repair compounds in thin coats
Now it’s time to seal the raw leather and fill the imperfections still left in the leather seat. I do this by first sealing with a combo of Viper’s Grip Base and Flex Additive (crosslinked). I take a wet paper towel with the sealer and wipe it over the entire area. Next dry the sealer and apply your leather repair compounds. I chose to use an air dry due to the fact I had gotten this one pretty smooth and I had the Sun to my advantage to help cure things out a little quicker. Depending on the severity of the cracking will determine whether I use an air dry or a low heat leather repair compound. More severe cracking I’ll use a low heat, just seems to fill better and takes less compound. Less is always better when it comes to leather fillers. One filler I will recommend you use is Viper’s Leather Gel. It’s a clear gel that I use in just about all my leather repairs now. It’s great for laying down frayed leather like on leather steering wheels or as a top coat over your other compounds to finish the repair off. You can even imprint a grain in it using the Reverse Grain Method. I love this stuff and I think you will too.
Nice and neat
As you can see it turned out pretty good if I say so myself. The only thing I wasn’t really happy with was that I got into the stitching a bit with the sandpaper, like I told you not to. But all in all it looked pretty good and a leather repair that will last.
This trick of wet sanding cracked leather works for just about any type of leather repair. It will save you time and money if done correctly and give your customer a longer lasting better looking cracked leather repair in the end.
Talk to ya soon,
Mike “TIG”
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