Good question. I'm curious about this as well, but I'm also more concerned about various additives blocking pores or permanently modifying the appearance.
Huh. You're right. I just looked at the online instructions and couldn't find it either. What's shown online is almost identical to the printed instructions that were sent with the kit, with two exceptions: the wax suggestion is present on the printed copy, and the online instructions say to use 1000 grit sandpaper to remove any imperfections. This is wrong. Printed instructions say 1500 grit.
I got "Kit#3" which includes 32oz. bottles of dye, Rejuvenator Oil, Prestine Clean (anyone else get a kick out of the fact that
pristine is misspelled?), and Prepping Agent, and 1 1/2 oz. of crack filler. I used all 32oz of RO, PC, and PA, but 32 oz. of dye is WAY too much. I used maybe 4 oz. for two seats, and that's with multiple coats.
I'm not exactly sure what you're asking here, but I'll attempt to describe the filler as best I can since the link on Leatherique's website covering filler application is broken.
The filler is basically like really thick paint. It's white, so if you're working with a darker finish (like I was) you'll want to add some dye to get a closer color match, otherwise the filled spots could show through on the finished product. Application method is similar to body filler except it's much thinner and doesn't use a chemical hardener so you're not bound by a working window of a few minutes, which makes it very easy to work with. Once applied it takes 20 minutes to an hour to set, depending on the amount applied, but I let each application cure over night before working with it.
Yes. Before, during, and after. Just like body work (did I mention I hate body work?). You have to sand down the seats to remove the old dye. I used 600 and 800 grit wet sandpaper soaked in Super Prepping Agent to do the job. For sanding the filler I used 800 and 1000 grit dry paper.
Depends on the size of the crack. As can be seen in the "before" image there were a number of sizable cracks, but what can't be seen are the countless tiny cracks (think crows feet clearcoat failure) that covered the rest of the surface. The big cracks required multiple filler applications (up to 4). I used a small plastic wedge about 5mm wide to apply the filler to the crack while getting as little on the surrounding surface as possible. The less material applied, the less sanding is required later. Unfortunately with the mini cracks this method isn't practical, so for those I dipped my finer in the filler and massaged it into a small area (about 10-15 sq in) and then scraped off as much of the excess with a 2" wide plastic scraper.
Passenger seat filled, sanded, and ready for the first dye application.
In retrospect I would not recommend attempting to restore leather that is this badly cracked. The filler is very thin and will work itself into EVERYTHING, including the leather's natural grain. My biggest complaint is that the finished product looks and feels too smooth and uniform and someone who knows what to look for will immediately recognize the seats have been refinished. But to the untrained eye they look brilliant.
Yes. I started with two and created a third when I accidentally dropped the seat back on the seat bottom, puncturing the leather.
I cut out a piece of leather from a spare swatch I had laying around, slightly larger than the split and glued it to the back side of the split (fuzzy side to fuzzy side) using a good quality bonding agent (I used Tiger Bond and it does the job nicely). This leaves you with a crack that can be filled and sanded like all the others. The result is seamless.
That's actually not an easy question to answer. I ordered custom match-to-sample dye and the first batch didn't match the sample. There was also a bit of a learning curve involve in working with the dye and I was not remotely satisfied with the results of my first couple of attempts. Each time I wet sanded off the dye and started over. Once I got reasonable results I ended up with about three thin coats...I think.
My first few (failed) attempts were with a brush. The final coats were wiped on with a wad of damp paper towel (distilled water please, chemicals in tap water will damage the dye) on the flat surfaces after working the dye into the seams and deep nooks with a brush. The results still weren't satisfactory but good enough to be workable. The problem is the dye is pretty thin and it's impossible to avoid thousands of tiny bubbles forming as the dye is applied. When those bubbles dry you end up with a very rough, grainy finish. I suspect spraying the dye may be the only way to avoid this.
Yes. This is actually the stage where I'm at presently. The "after" picture I posted earlier is after a vigorous buffing with a microfiber towel. Most of the roughness is gone and the finish is smooth and not too shiny or too dull. There are still some brush marks showing in a few places that will require something more aggressive than a microfiber towel. I tried dry sanding with 1000 grit paper as per the instructions online. That damaged the finish. That's when I noticed the print instructions says 1500 grit. I'll be paying Home Depot yet another visit tomorrow.
Yup. If each step of the process was done correctly, including the initial application of Rejuvenator Oil way back at Step 1 it should last for many years with just the occasional application of Prestine Clean. The key to Rejuvenator Oil is heat and time. I removed the seats from the car and set them up in a spare room and a space heater. Liberally coat the leather with the RO, crank up the heat (85-90 degF) and let it sit for 24 hours. Spray down the seat with Prestine Clean and wipe off the sticky residue. Repeat until the R. O. comes up clean. For my 20 year old cardboard dry seats it took 7 applications.
No worries! I'm glad I could help. Just keep in mind that I am not a professional and this was my first attempt at a project of this magnitude, so please take everything I said above with a grain of salt.
rops:
lol. 
