I dye'd my seats with Leatherique dye (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Oct 30, 2006
Threads
70
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680
Location
Columbus, OH
I finally decided to bite the bullet and re-dye the aged and cracked seats of my LX450. I appologize for not having before pictures, but my wife left the digital camera at work. My seats were like everyone else's, the color was cracked and worn on the side bolsters.

Image 1 shows the final result. The image is a little pixelated from reducing the quality to get a size that can be posted.

Image 2 shows a close up of the seat along with the 16 oz bottle of dye. It looks like it took about 7 ounces to do both front seats. Also, it will take about a week for the color to completely darken. Notice the bottle of dye is a little darker than the seats.

Image 3 shows my 20 year old Binks model 115 detail gun. This is what I used for the application. You can use a brush, but the dye really needs to go on razor thin. The detail gun was perfect for applying a thin dry coat. Three coats were done to each seat. They took a total of about 30 minutes.

If I were to do the job again, here is what I would do differently:

Where rubber gloves while using the prep agent. I dont like rubber gloves and never use them. This stuff literally eats your hands.

I thinned the color about 10% before spraying. I would probably do 25% next time. When dry, the final finish was a little rough. Thinning the color would help. I did use some 600 grit sand paper and lightly wiped the seat and the grit immediately went away.

Finally when choosing your color, I would use this site http://www.leatherrepairkits.com/repair_kit.htm to get your color codes. The Lexus dealer could only give me the Oak color code for the interior. He said the seats were Ivory. Lexus has three different variations of Ivor for different models. If you need to adjust your color, SMALL amounts of water based acrylic paint can be added to the dye.

Total cost with shipping was around $150. This included the 32 OZ bottles of Rejivinator and Prestine clean and enough dye to do my whole vehicle, along with the prep agent and crack filler. For those who dont know, Krysti at http://www.leatherique.com/ offers a very generous discount to "Land Cruiser Forum" members. Their Rejuvinator Oil does wonders on hard leather. There are threads that can be searched for results. In the end I would rate this a :banana: :banana: job due to the fact I had to disassemble my spray gun and clean it after spraying the dye
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You really need to remove the seats so you can work to do the job right. It is only 4 bolts and an electrical connector.
 
Nice.
 
Looks really nice to the point they look brand new. :) Now if you did not live in OH I would have asked you to help me with mine. :cheers:
 
Looks really good!!
 
Looks amazing. I need to do something like that to mine. Of course, if I had 150 dollars, I'd probably spend it on some sort of mod. Leather conditioner will work until I become rich.... :rolleyes:
 
Did I make a mention ... I love leatherique? :D

Did you get the good MUD discount? :cheers:
 
John,

Which ivory color code did you end up using?

-VT92
 
what does this stuff feel like when spraying? is it a plastic like product that makes a hardish coat?
how come it didn't fill the seam holes? seems to cover very well the flat areas though...

tell us in a while how well it holds up too, if you don't mind...
 
Looks really good. Hows it feel? does it feel like leather or paint?
 
When i was searching for a cruiser I found a 97. I called about it and the guy said the leather was in great condition with no holes or cracks. I went to look at it and it had something on the seats that looked and felt just like thick paint. I guess its better than cracks..
 
I am not sure about the code, the dealer was not able to give me a code for the seats. He said that they are ivory. So when I ordered the dye, I said Ivory for my LX450. Later I found out that there are different variations of Ivory, and at the moment I am not sure if I have the correct version. When I received the dye, the wet dye looks like the proper color, almost gray. I test painted some on a piece of paper and it looks like it is in the ballpark of the right color. My seats are currently going through a series of color changes, starting out a light beige. Yesterday, they were a butter cream. See picture. I was starting to panic with this color. My color dabs are next to the seat in the picture. Today I think they are a little darker. It will take up to a week for the color to get to its final shade. Until I verify that I picked the correct color, I dont want to give out the code on the bottle and have other repeat my possible mistake. If it is not the correct color, I will find the correct color and do the job again. It wasnt that bad to do. I originally did not plan to post this picture or my current dillema for fear of comming accross as sh!tting on a vendor that a current member worked with to get us a nice discount. But I was asked about colors and wanted to give some form of answer. Krysti has been very responsive to my questions and concerns about the color. She has been great to work with and I have nothing but praise for Leatherique.
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what does this stuff feel like when spraying? is it a plastic like product that makes a hardish coat?
how come it didn't fill the seam holes? seems to cover very well the flat areas though...

tell us in a while how well it holds up too, if you don't mind...

The dye is water based and sprays like Latex Paint. You do have to watch your gun carefully for plugging. In fact, Kysti recommends agains spraying due to possible buildup on edges and seams. I used to paint cars for a hobby so I know how to spray, well sort of. Also, the detail gun is the key here. The product needs to go on THIN. That is why the seam holes did not fill up. In fact if you put it on thick enough to do so, it would look like a Tammy Fay Baker makup job. If you look at a new car I dont think the seam holes are filled. Finally, it is not a hard plastic coating. It is soft exactly like the original finish. it is very flexible. After my test areas on paper dried, I folded and creased the painted spots in an attmempt to get the finish to crack and it wouldn't
 
you think it'd go on OK brushing?
 
John, just as an informational, it is not practicle to count on codes; the ONLY way to work this is to send something such as a headrest or something similar that has had its life IN the vehicle. Leatherique will then make a match that is totally perfect for you. Its just like painting a car; after awhile the color changes due to the elements and you really cannot count on color codes unless the paint is factory fresh. I know that leatherique will make this right for you but I would suggest that prior to pursuing this project any further you stop and send a headrest to them to match 100%. I'm afraid you will work round and round to get it right otherwise. Just some hopefully friendly help. :cheers:
 

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