Product Overview
Shearling Nappalan Care Kit SN4, by Leather Doctor, is for cleaning, rinsing, hydrating, softening, and protecting the outer Nappalan and the inner wool face.
This Kit SN4 is handpicked to perform periodic care to keep the shearling looking smart, preventing it from appearing tired, creased, or wrinkled. It also helps to keep the wool face clean, healthy, and in bloom. This care kit includes eight products, and the links to each product can be found for more information.
The five products system for the Nappalan face include:
Clean 3.8, Rinse 3.0, Hydrator 3.3, Fatliquor 5.0, and Protector B.
Three products system for the Wool face include:
Wool 5.5, Rinse Wool 4.0, and Protector S.
Simple tools used are Leather Brush 1 for Nappalan face, Hide Brush 4 for Wool face, Foam Brush 2 for general application, and terry cotton towel for cleaning and rinsing extraction.
People Also Ask:
What is Nappalan Shearling?
Nappalan is shearling or sheepskin that has the suede side finished with a "nappalan coating" to convert it into a smooth leather surface. When abraded or worn, the suede is shown.
What are the Signs of Nappalan Premature Aging?
Signs of premature nappalan aging are often revealed in the folds, with creases and wrinkles, or they may become slightly shorter than usual.
How to Recondition Nappalan from Premature Aging?
Nappalan premature aging is reconditioned or fatliquored after dry soil removal and cleaning with the Hydrator 3.3 and Fatliquor 5.0 system, also known as fatliquoring.
What is Hydrating?
Hydrator 3.3 is a multi-functional hydrator used to relax the leather before applying Fatliquor 5.0.
It helps to separate the stick-together fibrils and open up the inter-fibrillary spaces for effective colloidal water movement within the leather structure.
It facilitates wicking up foreign contaminants to be towel-extracted when damp and erased when crispy dry.
It plumps the skin to ease away the unnatural creases and wrinkles.
It stabilizes the pH integrity of the skin and charges the protein fiber ionic positive (+ve) to hydrogen bond with the ionic negative (-ve) fatliquor more effectively.
It is recommended, therefore, to hydrate the skin to an optimum level, with moisture oozing out when gently pressed between the thumb and fingers before stretching.
What is Fatliquoring?
Fatliquoring is a combination process of hydrating and introducing fat and oil into the leather to keep it soft, reduce creases and wrinkles, and prevent easy ripping or tearing.
What is the similarity between fatliquoring and conditioning oil to soften leather?
The similarity between fatliquor and conditioning oil is that both soften the leather.
What is the difference between Fatliquor 5.0 and Conditioning Oil in softening leather?
* Appearance:
Softening leather with conditioning oil will cause it to darken in appearance, even when the leather is dry.
In contrast, Fatliquor 5.0 will only increase color intensity without causing darkening effects.
* Breathability:
Softening leather with conditioning oil can saturate or clog the breathing pores, hindering moisture transmigration and causing discomfort from sweating during prolonged wear.
In contrast, Fatliquor 5.0 forms hydrogen bonds with the ionic positive protein fibers of leather and keeps the breathing pores open for comfortable wear without causing excessive sweating during prolonged use.
* Durability:
Conditioning oils that are easily stuffed in to fill the airspace will also evaporate much more easily.
In contrast, Fatliquor 5.0 (an ionic, negatively charged fat and oil) forms hydrogen bonds with the ionic, positively charged fibers of the leather protein (+ve), and remains effective for a longer period.
Why Fatliquoring?
Fatliquoring involves introducing an emulsion of fat and oil, such as Fatliquor 5.0, into the leather to provide softness and strength as the leather dries.
Why does Leather become Stiff and Rip or Tear easily?
The fat and oil are VOC, volatile organic compounds that continue to diminish through evaporation as they age, accelerated when exposed to heat.
Water damage with alkalinity causes the fat and oil to leach out and when dry lose their tensile strength, become stiff, and rip or tear easily.
How is Fatliquor Applied?
Reconditioning, replenishing, or rejuvenating is done with “fatliquor-in-a-bottle” as a spray-on instead of the original immersion method.
What is Fatliquor?
Fatliquor, the lifeblood of leather composition derives from ionic negative (-ve) charged fats, oils, and water, in an emulsion ready to use.
How Fatliquor Works?
Fatliquor 5.0 when applied penetrates the skin and hydrogen bonds with its protein fiber.
The fat plumps the skin with fullness, the oil lubricates the individual fibrils, and the encasing water breaks free leaving the inter-fibrillary spaces void for natural transpiration.
What are the benefits of Fatliquor versus Conditioning Oils?
Effective fatliquoring will leave a non-greasy or non-oily surface when dry.
Besides softening the skin, fatliquor enhances its rip tensile strength greatly.
It relaxes coarse breaks, creases, and wrinkles and prevents cracking.
It helps to keep the skin at its optimum physical performance and prevent premature aging.
How to Lengthen the Sleeves of Shearling?
When sleeves show creases and wrinkles naturally it becomes shorter.
Leather when hydrated and fatliquored becomes stretchable to increase its dimension to satisfaction.
So to keep the leather from shrinkage this fat content when kept at a constant percentage with periodic fatliquoring will keep the healthy length of the sleeves from becoming shorter.
How to Reduce Rubbing Wear to the Nappalan Finishes?
Friction rubs are the main cause of wear when leather rubs against leather especially the swinging of the arms.
Cutting the rubbing noises also translates to reducing friction rubs with Protector B.
Protector B is a buttery feel rub-resistant protector to cut on friction rubs, with apparent less noise when leather is in motion.
Protector B Plus with its additional fortified leather scent further imparts a classic scent that charms.
Where to Begin Cleaning the Nappalan Shearling?
Nappalan shearling cleaning begins from the wool face.
The inner wool face is turned outside to begin cleaning.
After drying, the wool is turned inside and the Nappalan face starts cleaning.
When both faces are dried and the wool is groomed with a slicker comb, non-stick protection begins with Protector S or the leather scent version Protector S Plus onto the wool side, and when dry groom to bloom again.
It is then turned over to the Nappalan side and Protector B or leather scent Protector B Plus is applied, when dried it is ready to wear.
This method avoids unnecessary cross-wetting, which some people prefer, while others may prefer the 6-step procedure, on each face, your choice, which method suits you better.
How to Clean, Rinse, and Protect the Wool?
1* Soil Removal:
Dry soiling is brushed and vacuumed accordingly and proceed to cleaning.
2* Cleaning:
Wool 5.5 is applied, brush at a low slanting angle in one direction and terry towel extract until it shows clean and proceed with rinsing.
3* Rinsing:
Rinse Wool 4.0 sprayed, brush at a low slanting angle in one direction, and terry towel extract until it shows clean to a squeaky clean and proceed to dry.
4* Drying:
Let to natural drying and dry towel wipe off wick-up soiling and proceed to protection.
5* Protection:
Protector S or the leather scent version Protector S Plus is applied and brushed to distribute evenly deep and proceed to drying.
6* Drying after Protector:
When dry thereafter groom with a slick comb for a bloom for best appearance.
How to Clean, Rinse, Hydrate, Fatliquor, and Protect the Napallan?
1* Dry Soil Removal:
Dry soiling is brushed with Leather Brush 1 and extracted with a dry clean towel until the towel shows clean, and proceed to clean.
2* Cleaning:
Clean 3.8 is applied and brushed with horsehair Leather Brush 1 and towel extract until it shows clean, and proceed to rinse.
3* Rinsing:
Rinse 3.0 is applied, brushed, and extracted with a towel until the towel shows clean to a healthy squeaky clean, and proceed to hydrate.
4* Hydrating:
Hydrator 3.3 is applied and brushed to hydrate the entire thickness of the leather, and when it becomes soft, it is stretched to dimension while the leather is still damp and proceed to fatliquoring.
5* Fatliquoring:
Fatliquor 5.0 is applied and brushed following the Hydrator 3.3 path. The application is repeated in between drying as the water content evaporates.
The fully fat and oil-saturated skin is left for slow natural drying.
Then stretch and massage it before it is completely dried for extra suppleness, and proceed to protection.
6* Protection:
Protector B is a non-stick, rub-resistant protector with a buttery feel.
When applied, the excess is wiped and when dry is ready to use.
Protector B Plus is the leather scent version with a classic scent that charms.
Tips:
Smartness of appearance may be improved with a low-heat wool setting ironing.
Place a white absorbent paper between leather and iron and iron to improve appearance.
What is the Approximate Quantity or Percentage of Fatliquor in Leather?
The quantities of fatliquor (fat and oil) contents retained in the leather after a universal modern tannery fatliquoring process may vary up to 14% depending on the leather type and its usage.
This percentage drops as the fat and oil content diminishes through aging, heat or leaches through water, or pH overexposure.
How is the Percentage of Fatliquor Content Calculated?
The percentage of fat and oil is based on the dry weight of the leather.
A simple calculation is as follows:
If the weight of the skin in question is 100gm and the fatliquor (fat and oil) content meter reading is less than 1%.
Applying 80gm of Fatliquor 5.0 to it will deliver a result incremental of 13.3% fatliquor when dry as the 66.6% water contents evaporate.
Why Hydrating before Fatliquoring?
In fatliquoring the leather with softness and strength, Hydrator 3.3 plays an important role by relaxing, opening up the inter-fibrillary spaces, facilitating and redistributing colloidal water movement, protonating and pH balancing including cleaning up any excess surface remnants to leave a residue free surface.
What is the ratio usage between Hydrator 3.3 and Fatliquor 5.0?
In practice with severe dryness, the ratio by weight for Hydrator 3.3 is 2 to 1 of Fatliquor-5.0.
It works out to be 160gm of Hydrator 3.3 plus 80gm of Fatliquor 5.0 to recondition 100gm dry leather from less than 1% moisture content back to the average 14% modern tannery standard.
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The Lazarus Effect
Product Reviews -Posted by Larry Bauman on 31st Jul 2017 This product revived my 40-year-old Sheepskin coat that cracked at the touch of it after applying another company's 'Restoration' product. That other product ruined my coat, and I was about to throw it away, but took a chance on the Leather Doctor. After applying Hydrator 3.3, I saw an immediate change. I then continued with the Fatliquor 5.0 and was shocked to see the change. My coat is now as soft and supple as it was when I purchased it in 1975! Don't even take a chance on valuable leathers with other companies' products, this one will amaze you with its results.
