OT: Need tips on undieing a holster

[J Miller]

I have a brown leather holster that was died black many moons ago. I'd like to remove the black and restore the holster to it's original brown.
Anybody know how to do that?
It's one I can use for my short barreled Ruger BH and my Cattleman.

Joe

[kirkwood]

Depends on how it was dyed. If drum dyed, the dye would be soaked throughout the leather and you can't undo that by bleaching it. I don't think it matters if it was water-based dye or not. Once it soaks in, you can't pull that dye out well enough to look good with a new, lighter dye. You can only re-dye to a darker color, but you are already at black so you may be stuck.

On the other hand, if it was not a soaking dye, but surface dyed or leather paint, you can get a leather deglazer and take that black off and possibly redo the color. Many shoes are actually leather painted and they can be deglazed and repainted going from dark to light to dark again. Also if the holster was topcoated with something to protect the finish, that would have to come off first before tackling the color. How it is taken off depends on if the topcoat is wax or a synthetic finish.

Your best bet might be to take the holster to someone who custom dyes shoes, boots, and coats in your area (check with dry cleaning stores or custom shoe stores) and get their opinion on your options. I think they will want to look at it first before saying if it can be done or not and if it is worth doing. I suppose if the black won't fully come out, you can always dye it fully black again and no one would be the wiser that you tried.

[BenT]

If it is a top coat die , acetone ( finger nail polish remover ) is what is used .

[Doc Hudson]

If you dyed it with an alcohol based dye like Fieblings, you are SOL (Slap-Out of Luck)!

Leather paints can be removed, but dyes are pretty well permanent. A good alcohol based dye will penetrate the top layers of the leather, not just stay on the surface.

The deglazer Kirkwood mentioned will remove paints, and even sealers such as Super Sheen or Satin Sheen, but it won't touch the dye underneath.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

[J Miller]

I do not remember what the die was made of. The holster was died 31 years ago with Kiwi liquid boot die. The stuff in the bottle with the cotton ball on the wire handle. It stunk like crazy.
Right now it's faded and worn to a reddish tint so some of the color has gone away.

Joe