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Restoring / dyeing a vintage white turbo saddle?

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Restoring / dyeing a vintage white turbo saddle?

Old 04-12-22, 08:53 PM
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PapaGanoosh
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Restoring / dyeing a vintage white turbo saddle?

Curious if anyone has had any luck restoring or dyeing a vintage saddle? I have a vintage turbo saddle that has seen its fair amount if use and curious if I can just dye it with white leather dye?

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Old 04-12-22, 09:09 PM
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repechage
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White cows don't grow that white.
the white is paint, not dye
typically a version of lacquer with a flex agent.
think automotive leather, how do you think the car companies get all to match so well? ( setting aside Ford Kings Ranch interior option)

to get the new paint to stick will really require it to be cleaned very aggressively, think MEK
which will shorten the leather use.

I would find some fresh white leather and have it skived down to .4 mm or so and recover
bye bye turbo on the back. Peeling off the original carefully- a bit of 3M adhesive remover carefully dispensed will get the adhesive loose enough to not damage the foam.

"barge" cement of the solvent type - won't find that in California.

what I just mentioned materials wise will set you back $80-120

maybe a saddle in better nick?
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Old 04-12-22, 10:47 PM
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Selle Italia has reissued this saddle and you can get it on Amazon in white, black or brown suede for less than 70 dollars USD.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0178GLO94...EA47Q5884SRA2Q
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Old 04-13-22, 06:58 AM
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repechage - Thanks for your reply. I have the same issue. Tried white shoe polish to without success. Patina in the raw.
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Old 04-13-22, 07:48 AM
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repechage
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White automotive leather seats have appeared in cycles, then the warranty claims hit and the color gets dropped.

Tesla does white... in "vegan leather" aka vinyl.
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Old 04-13-22, 09:20 AM
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I have not tried white, but attempted changing brown hues (which should be easier I think) using Feibing’s leather dye and sealant. Poor results. It looked good initially but didn’t hold up at all to riding/sweating.
In the future I will only recover saddles with factory dyed pieces.

Recovering a Flite isn’t too hard. I would look on eBay or Etsy for a suitable scrap of white goatskin. You want something thin and pliable - close to 1mm if possible. I have done saddles with regular upholstery leather which is more like 2mm. It’s doable but gets tricky at the nose.

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Old 04-13-22, 10:01 AM
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Originally Posted by PapaGanoosh
I think it looks good. A well worn classic, like a badge of honor. And from what I can see, it's a great looking bike.

What's it look like when you're sitting on it?
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Old 04-13-22, 10:11 AM
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Originally Posted by SurferRosa
I think it looks good. A well worn classic, like a badge of honor. And from what I can see, it's a great looking bike.

What's it look like when you're sitting on it?
Ha, fair point. You won't be able to see the saddle at all. Sounds like it would be quite a bit if trouble to restore it so I might leave it as is. Thanks everyone for the comments!
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Old 04-13-22, 12:11 PM
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Angelus Leather Paint is paint made for leather, as the name implies. It is sold with a "deglazer" which is a solvent that should take off any wax or other leather treatment, which in this case would be necessary. You can probably get both bottles and a brush for under $10 and will make that saddle as white as new.
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Old 04-13-22, 12:27 PM
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This is why I miss those tight stretch saddle covers they used to sell in the 80's. They were made with like a thin vinyl rubber membrane backed with lycra, similar to the material used on some ski boot liner cuffs. Came in all sorts of colors too.
They were cheap enough that I bought a couple of them every season as wear items and preserved my saddle from wear and water damage. I also used them to cover bad scuffs and crash damage on my saddles.
Somebody should make those covers again. I can't even find them NOS anymore despite them being carried by so many bike shops back then. I guess they all got used up.....
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