It's time to start the renovation.

[Naprawiacz]

An hour ago, a parcel with an item arrived from a friend. My task is to repair the leather shell of the helmet. I start traditionally by soaking the item in water and vinegar and scraping off the polish.

 

[John Josef]

Looking forward to watching and learning

 

[Khukri]

-I'm curious to see the following steps. Thank you for sharing!

 

[Naprawiacz]

I scraped off the shellac varnish. All shellac particles will be dried and poured with 90% alcohol. After about two weeks, the shellac for painting will be ready, so carbon dating is not possible and the item will be period.During the work, an old repair was revealed. The hole will be filled in accordance with the Polish school of repair.Now I'm waiting for the leather to dry. The repair itself won't be time-consuming, but the worst thing is waiting for the next stages of work to dry.

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm II]

It will be most interesting to follow along with this.

 

[Naprawiacz]

Pour 90% spirit over the obtained shellac. In the first chemical stage, the rabbit glue will separate, which will later settle down at the bottom of the jar in a brown color. Black shellac will remain in the upper layer, which I will use to paint the object. The jar with its contents should be stirred at least once a day.

 

[k bandow]

Looks like a tough project, but I know you have handled worse cases. I look forward to the result!

 

[coert65]

And so will I, I am amazed at the restoration projects Wojtek posts!

 

[Naprawiacz]

I spent nine hours repairing the skin to make it look a little better. I patched out the holes in the helmet. The photo shows shellac after one day of soaking it in spirit.

 

[Khukri]

Ok, please tell me all about "rabbit glue"....thank you!

 

[Naprawiacz]

Ok, please tell me all about "rabbit glue"....thank you!

Protein glue obtained from ground rabbit skins. Soluble in water, with excellent adhesion. Rabbit glue solutions can be used on all surfaces and are reversible. Used in gilding, for preparing adhesives, and in the conservation of wall and easel paintings.https://www.art-konserwacja.pl/kleje/453-klej-kroliczy-250-g.html

 

[Naprawiacz]

I put the primer glue on the surface of the leather. Now it will dry for a few days and then the first sanding will be done.

 

[Khukri]

Protein glue obtained from ground rabbit skins. Soluble in water, with excellent adhesion. Rabbit glue solutions can be used on all surfaces and are reversible. Used in gilding, for preparing adhesives, and in the conservation of wall and easel paintings.https://www.art-konserwacja.pl/kleje/453-klej-kroliczy-250-g.html

Thank you Wojtek! Old crafts. Great to learn more every time.

 

[Naprawiacz]

Due to the fact that the weather conditions are conducive to work, the waiting period is significantly shortened.In the photos, the helmet after the first sanding and the second layer was applied.

 

[k bandow]

Already a massive improvement!

 

[Naprawiacz]

Sanding with sandpaper and water.

 

[Sandmann]

Looks great Wojtec, I like this finish Thank you for sharing!

 

[Naprawiacz]

I applied a layer of shellac with a brush.I deliberately did not make the repaired surface perfectly so that it would blend in well with the rest of the leather. The object then does not differ in appearance from itself and looks old for that era.After painting, I will apply the best black polish on the market, i.e. Bundeswehr shoe polish.The rest of the work will be done by the owner of the item and my role is over.

 

[John Josef]

Looks great to me , what will it end up as when fully fitted out?

 

[Naprawiacz]

Looks great to me , what will it end up as when fully fitted out?

From the information I have, the corps belongs to the dragoon regiment.