Maintaining best finish- get a bunch of paper towels, start wiping off excess stearic acid immediately after removing from hardening bath. Shake briskly immediately or swing overhead. DON’T do that outside in winter- crystallizes too fast. Continue rotating the piece quickly and wiping until it cools enough to no longer run out of the leather. Using a heat gun and rag later ruins the finish and makes it chalky. Dip back in the liquid pot and wipe to remove spots. Once it’s fairly cool and not flowing, you can stick it in the freezer to quicken the cooling. You can also briefly stick back in the acid bath and heat to soften and adjust the shape.
Polish the finished piece by rubbing briskly with the grain side of a piece of veg tan.
Hinges
Edges polish very well- do NOT use burnishing agent- just sandpaper. I took it up to 7000, then buff with a soft cloth.
Barge fails during hardening- stitch everything.
Stamping definitely possible before hardening, stearate doesn’t pool like I thought it would.
Dye gives a much more appreciable aesthetic effect than I thought it would. In fact, I don’t particularly care for the color of plain X1.
2nd, brief phase of bubbling @ ~200F. What’s that about? Does it affect any properties?
ONI 