Treating cardboard? bellows on an Empire State View

On the 11x14 Improved Empire State view that I'm getting back into
shape, the bellows is black and on the outside of the bellows the
inside surfaces of each of the folds seems to be made of some sort of
cardboard? material being held together by what looks like thin leather
or leather like material on the outside corners of each of the folds.
Normally I have treated my other camera's all leather bellows with
LEXOL leather conditioner. The bellows is light tight but a bit stiff.
Is there any material that I can apply to this type of bellows to make
it a bit more pliable? I'm pretty sure that the bellows is original,
camera has seen little use.

Thanks

Greg

"Gregory" wrote

The bellows is light tight but a bit stiff.
Is there any material that I can apply to this type of bellows to make
it a bit more pliable?

Neetsfoot oil will make leather pliable, but it may make it _too_
pliable.

As near as I can tell, Lexol is neetsfoot oil and saddle soap
whipped up in water. This keeps you from applying too much of
the oil.

Try a bit. It might work if misted on to the bellows. After
applying the oil I put the object in a warm oven for an hour or
so. The oil is wonderful on gloves, dog collars and leashes,
work and hiking boots (followed by Sno-Seal) -- anything of
leather that you would like to make buttery soft. Just make sure
you don't put on too much or it will ooze out and get oil
all over everything.

As for longevity, I have a set of hiking boots treated with
the stuff in 1967, still good, still soft. Relegated to use
behind the rotor-tiller these days.

Wyoming Outdoor Products has the lowest price, last time I looked.

--
Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio
Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics.
To reply, remove spaces: n o lindan at ix . netcom . com
psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

"Nicholas O. Lindan" wrote:

"Gregory" wrote

The bellows is light tight but a bit stiff.
Is there any material that I can apply to this type of bellows to make
it a bit more pliable?

Neetsfoot oil will make leather pliable, but it may make it _too_
pliable.

As near as I can tell, Lexol is neetsfoot oil and saddle soap
whipped up in water. This keeps you from applying too much of
the oil.

Try a bit. It might work if misted on to the bellows. After
applying the oil I put the object in a warm oven for an hour or
so. The oil is wonderful on gloves, dog collars and leashes,
work and hiking boots (followed by Sno-Seal)

Snoseal is actually bad for leather, as it works
into the leather fibers trapping dirt and grime,
literally breaking down the leather over time.
If you're using Lexol to clean and recondition
leather, a light coat of silicon (paste or liquid)
for water proofing would be better than a snoseal wax.

-- anything of
leather that you would like to make buttery soft. Just make sure
you don't put on too much or it will ooze out and get oil
all over everything.

As for longevity, I have a set of hiking boots treated with
the stuff in 1967, still good, still soft. Relegated to use
behind the rotor-tiller these days.

Wyoming Outdoor Products has the lowest price, last time I looked.

--
Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio
Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics.
To reply, remove spaces: n o lindan at ix . netcom . com
psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

The stiffeners are usually thick Manilla, the same material that
used to be used for file folders. Outside cover is leather, inside is
rubberized cloth, usually cotton or silk. Modern synthetics last longer
than leather and don't rot like rubber. Its possible these bellows use
a material similar to the stiffener for the body and use leather only
for the flexible joints. I''ve nver seen a bellows like that.
According to the material on the Conservation On Line site at
Stanford University, there really isn't much that can be done to
leather to preserve it. Neat's foot oil will make it more pliable but
will evidently actually accelerate rotting. Silicone treatmens are also
a bad idea because they prevent the leather from "breathing". It is
important for leather to be able to exchange moisture with the air.
Probably the best treatment for leather bellows is to wipe surface dirt
off of them occasionally with a damp (but not wet) cloth. Once leather
begins to rot there is nothing that can be done to stop it. This is
especially true of bellows because they are flexed in use.
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu
--
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles, CA, USA

"Richard Knoppow" wrote

According to the material on the Conservation On Line site at
Stanford University, there really isn't much that can be done to
leather to preserve it.

Egyptian style embalming?

Neat's foot oil will make it more pliable but
will evidently actually accelerate rotting.

*** Newsflash *** "Neatsfoot Oil Good For Leather; contrary
research results expected at 11."

One has to decide what one wants: to use the bellows for
another 40-80 years or to set them on a museum shelf for 120.

Flexing dry leather will break it far faster than neatsfoot might
accelerate any 'rot'.

Going back to the Stanford U source [dedicated to preserving old
books], they describe a set of tests for leather preservation:

The four dressings used were 1) vaseline, 2) neatsfoot oil
and lanolin 60/40, 3) oil-and-tallow emulsion in water, and
4) a mixture of lanolin, wax, castor oil, sodium stearate
and water.

The authors conclude that although the dressings provided
some protection to all leathers, "their use was not adequate
to prolong the life of the vegetable-tanned leather effectively."
(They mention this because most leathers for bookbinding are
vegetable-tanned.)

If bellows leather is not 'vegetable tanned' the dressing will
increase longevity, if it is then life will not be shortened.
At the least, do no harm.

Analyzing the figures for these dressings ... [discard #1 & #4] ...
neatsfoot oil and lanolin did make a difference. One finds that
the leather treated with this dressing retained about 10% of the
strength (as measured by slit tear) that it would otherwise have
lost over the years, judging by the performance of the untreated
samples. The oil-and-tallow dressing was about half as effective
as the neatsfoot oil and lanolin.

From http://www.kb.nl/cons/leather/chapter2-en.html:

At the British Museum HJ Plenderleith's study of leather
dressings led him to develop the British Museum Leather
Dressing which has since been used in many variations by
conservators. The basic formula contains the following
ingredients: 200 gram lanolin, 30 ml cedar oil, 15 gram
beeswax, and 350 ml hexane. Sometimes 60% of the lanolin
was replaced by neatsfoot oil.

'Real Men' use neatsfoot oil followed by SnoSeal (since Hubbard's
Grease is no longer available) and set the leather by the fire
for the wax and oil to penetrate the leather. They dispense
with the Hexane, hand lotion and parfume, though a splash of
whisky now and then has been found to be anecdotally
beneficial.

There are also formulas using lanolin, neatsfoot and 'oudorless kerosene'(?).

Neatsfoot oil is rendered from cattle bones and is a close cousin
to tallow. The theory is to return the fat to the leather so
that it is 'lubricated'. Lanolin is sheep oil.

Neatsfoot oil is also used on horses' hoofs.

--
Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio
Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics.
To reply, remove spaces: n o lindan at ix . netcom . com
psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

"Nicholas O. Lindan" wrote:

"Richard Knoppow" wrote

snip..

'Real Men'

Apart from possible treatment of bellows leather using
Lexol (which I can't see would do any real harm if
used on accasion), real men are idiots...

use neatsfoot oil followed by SnoSeal

I still wear old fashioned hand made norwegian
welt leather boots. I have new and no longer made.
I would _never_ use snoseal on them. It breaks
down the leather. Period. I know people who have
been in the boot business for decades. They all
say the same. Want you leather to last, forego
the snoseal...

(since Hubbard's
Grease is no longer available) and set the leather by the fire
for the wax and oil to penetrate the leather.

Which is a sure way to add to your leather woes.
Fire - leather = bad news.

They dispense
with the Hexane, hand lotion and parfume, though a splash of
whisky now and then has been found to be anecdotally
beneficial.

There are also formulas using lanolin, neatsfoot and 'oudorless kerosene'(?).

Neatsfoot oil is rendered from cattle bones and is a close cousin
to tallow. The theory is to return the fat to the leather so
that it is 'lubricated'. Lanolin is sheep oil.

Neatsfoot oil is also used on horses' hoofs.

--
Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio
Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics.
To reply, remove spaces: n o lindan at ix . netcom . com
psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/