Oil Skin Cloth - A Tailors Perspective


J

Jay M. Hercules

Tracker
Joined
Apr 5, 2018
Messages
22
Likes
251
Ok before I start let me give you my pedigree. I’m not an expert. I am a guy who has been a professional tailor for some 30 odd years. Iv done everything from hem pants to aircraft interiors. Am I experienced? Yes. Am I an expert, No. So, this is one mans viewpoint from his personal experience and knowledge base. Knowledge gained from many sources over time.

Oil cloth is a great fabric for many applications where staying out of the rain is the goal. However, it is not the ideal fabric choice it has been made out to be.

In my opinion since nylon started its take over of the outdoor market in the late 60’s the rush to use it and only it caused us to discard the knowledge base we had for natural fabrics applications in the outdoors. So, now that these fabrics are being used again, there are few people out there who know their history and best use guidelines. This has resulted inwhat I call the “BOOM STICK EFFECT “. Just like native people thought guns were magical because they lacked understanding we regard oil skin cloth similarly.

Oil skin cloth is very old and has been in use for generations. It works well because the base fabric, canvas has inherent water resistant capabilities. Then, on top of that, it is saturated with a mix of hydrophobic oils, waxed and resins that saturate the fabric fibers. This treatment cures to become a polymer and from that point on are stable and fixed. So basically you have a plastic saturated fabric.

So, all this sounds great, sign me up! Hold on a second, what I just explained are also oil cloths inherent weaknesses! Let’s look deeper into it.

The real problems that polymerizing of the treatment. Fabric is at its best when it flexible and moreover when it’s weave has the freedom to stretch and give. This ability to stretch and give is the stuff of nightmares for us tailors but at the end of the day it’s one of the best qualities of cloth.

What happens with oil cloth is that the treatment essentially glues the fibers & yarns of the weave together. So over time and use they act more like a plastic sheet than cloth. Therefore, though very rugged at first, over time oil cloth will take on wear and tear that is cumulative. Yes it lasts longer than nylon, poly (recognize that?) or plastic tarps but it’s still very much a finite life span.Furthermore, due to its polymer coating, it had issues with abrasion and tear resilience over time that is also very much a cumulative situation. Oil skin lacks viable repairability and maintainability over its lifespan.

Also, this is of some concern too. Modern oil cloth is almost exclusively made in China. Traditional oil cloth was made using linseed oil and pine resin. Modern made stuff is using toxic petroleum distillates and chemicals. Oh, and just try asking what’s in it, see how much info you get.
Alternatives, if you want to stay in the natural fiber world are better than they have ever been.

Firstly, the 1000 pound gorilla amongst them is waxed canvas. It’s always been the arch enemy of oil cloth. It has that anything you can do I can do better thing going on and it’s very much the case that it can. Wax treatment (proper wax treatment) on canvas never stabilizes. Therefore it is always possible to rework it and retreat it. It lets the fibers and yarns stay flexible and independent of one another. It provides UV resistance, mold and mildew resistance and better abrasion resistance. In fact the wax often acts as a lubricant in an abrasion situation protecting it from scuffs, rips and holes.

Secondly, old school tent woven canvases are great tarp fabric choices. These are available in treated and untreated options and are very good for tarp construction. As with all canvas options maintenance will be necessary but the benefits out weigh the hassle.

Lastly there are some very good blended fiber fabrics out there. Not 100% cotton but the blend adds water repellent bang for the abrasion resistance and overall resilience buck of canvas.

So, If you really want oil cloth I get it. Just be an educated consumer. Research your purchase and buy well. Clearly, I’m of the opinion it’s not my speed, that’s not the right choice for everyone. It’s only my goal to explain the details about this fabric that are often left out. You decided what’s best for you.
 
Jay M. Hercules said:
Ok before I start let me give you my pedigree. I’m not an expert. I am a guy who has been a professional tailor for some 30 odd years. Iv done everything from hem pants to aircraft interiors. Am I experienced? Yes. Am I an expert, No. So, this is one mans viewpoint from his personal experience and knowledge base. Knowledge gained from many sources over time.

Oil cloth is a great fabric for many applications where staying out of the rain is the goal. However, it is not the ideal fabric choice it has been made out to be.

In my opinion since nylon started its take over of the outdoor market in the late 60’s the rush to use it and only it caused us to discard the knowledge base we had for natural fabrics applications in the outdoors. So, now that these fabrics are being used again, there are few people out there who know their history and best use guidelines. This has resulted inwhat I call the “BOOM STICK EFFECT “. Just like native people thought guns were magical because they lacked understanding we regard oil skin cloth similarly.

Oil skin cloth is very old and has been in use for generations. It works well because the base fabric, canvas has inherent water resistant capabilities. Then, on top of that, it is saturated with a mix of hydrophobic oils, waxed and resins that saturate the fabric fibers. This treatment cures to become a polymer and from that point on are stable and fixed. So basically you have a plastic saturated fabric.

So, all this sounds great, sign me up! Hold on a second, what I just explained are also oil cloths inherent weaknesses! Let’s look deeper into it.

The real problems that polymerizing of the treatment. Fabric is at its best when it flexible and moreover when it’s weave has the freedom to stretch and give. This ability to stretch and give is the stuff of nightmares for us tailors but at the end of the day it’s one of the best qualities of cloth.

What happens with oil cloth is that the treatment essentially glues the fibers & yarns of the weave together. So over time and use they act more like a plastic sheet than cloth. Therefore, though very rugged at first, over time oil cloth will take on wear and tear that is cumulative. Yes it lasts longer than nylon, poly (recognize that?) or plastic tarps but it’s still very much a finite life span.Furthermore, due to its polymer coating, it had issues with abrasion and tear resilience over time that is also very much a cumulative situation. Oil skin lacks viable repairability and maintainability over its lifespan.

Also, this is of some concern too. Modern oil cloth is almost exclusively made in China. Traditional oil cloth was made using linseed oil and pine resin. Modern made stuff is using toxic petroleum distillates and chemicals. Oh, and just try asking what’s in it, see how much info you get.
Alternatives, if you want to stay in the natural fiber world are better than they have ever been.

Firstly, the 1000 pound gorilla amongst them is waxed canvas. It’s always been the arch enemy of oil cloth. It has that anything you can do I can do better thing going on and it’s very much the case that it can. Wax treatment (proper wax treatment) on canvas never stabilizes. Therefore it is always possible to rework it and retreat it. It lets the fibers and yarns stay flexible and independent of one another. It provides UV resistance, mold and mildew resistance and better abrasion resistance. In fact the wax often acts as a lubricant in an abrasion situation protecting it from scuffs, rips and holes.

Secondly, old school tent woven canvases are great tarp fabric choices. These are available in treated and untreated options and are very good for tarp construction. As with all canvas options maintenance will be necessary but the benefits out weigh the hassle.

Lastly there are some very good blended fiber fabrics out there. Not 100% cotton but the blend adds water repellent bang for the abrasion resistance and overall resilience buck of canvas.

So, If you really want oil cloth I get it. Just be an educated consumer. Research your purchase and buy well. Clearly, I’m of the opinion it’s not my speed, that’s not the right choice for everyone. It’s only my goal to explain the details about this fabric that are often left out. You decided what’s best for you.
Click to expand...
Thankyou. It's good to have an informed opinion.
 
Jay M. Hercules said:
Ok before I start let me give you my pedigree. I’m not an expert. I am a guy who has been a professional tailor for some 30 odd years. Iv done everything from hem pants to aircraft interiors. Am I experienced? Yes. Am I an expert, No. So, this is one mans viewpoint from his personal experience and knowledge base. Knowledge gained from many sources over time.

Oil cloth is a great fabric for many applications where staying out of the rain is the goal. However, it is not the ideal fabric choice it has been made out to be.

In my opinion since nylon started its take over of the outdoor market in the late 60’s the rush to use it and only it caused us to discard the knowledge base we had for natural fabrics applications in the outdoors. So, now that these fabrics are being used again, there are few people out there who know their history and best use guidelines. This has resulted inwhat I call the “BOOM STICK EFFECT “. Just like native people thought guns were magical because they lacked understanding we regard oil skin cloth similarly.

Oil skin cloth is very old and has been in use for generations. It works well because the base fabric, canvas has inherent water resistant capabilities. Then, on top of that, it is saturated with a mix of hydrophobic oils, waxed and resins that saturate the fabric fibers. This treatment cures to become a polymer and from that point on are stable and fixed. So basically you have a plastic saturated fabric.

So, all this sounds great, sign me up! Hold on a second, what I just explained are also oil cloths inherent weaknesses! Let’s look deeper into it.

The real problems that polymerizing of the treatment. Fabric is at its best when it flexible and moreover when it’s weave has the freedom to stretch and give. This ability to stretch and give is the stuff of nightmares for us tailors but at the end of the day it’s one of the best qualities of cloth.

What happens with oil cloth is that the treatment essentially glues the fibers & yarns of the weave together. So over time and use they act more like a plastic sheet than cloth. Therefore, though very rugged at first, over time oil cloth will take on wear and tear that is cumulative. Yes it lasts longer than nylon, poly (recognize that?) or plastic tarps but it’s still very much a finite life span.Furthermore, due to its polymer coating, it had issues with abrasion and tear resilience over time that is also very much a cumulative situation. Oil skin lacks viable repairability and maintainability over its lifespan.

Also, this is of some concern too. Modern oil cloth is almost exclusively made in China. Traditional oil cloth was made using linseed oil and pine resin. Modern made stuff is using toxic petroleum distillates and chemicals. Oh, and just try asking what’s in it, see how much info you get.
Alternatives, if you want to stay in the natural fiber world are better than they have ever been.

Firstly, the 1000 pound gorilla amongst them is waxed canvas. It’s always been the arch enemy of oil cloth. It has that anything you can do I can do better thing going on and it’s very much the case that it can. Wax treatment (proper wax treatment) on canvas never stabilizes. Therefore it is always possible to rework it and retreat it. It lets the fibers and yarns stay flexible and independent of one another. It provides UV resistance, mold and mildew resistance and better abrasion resistance. In fact the wax often acts as a lubricant in an abrasion situation protecting it from scuffs, rips and holes.

Secondly, old school tent woven canvases are great tarp fabric choices. These are available in treated and untreated options and are very good for tarp construction. As with all canvas options maintenance will be necessary but the benefits out weigh the hassle.

Lastly there are some very good blended fiber fabrics out there. Not 100% cotton but the blend adds water repellent bang for the abrasion resistance and overall resilience buck of canvas.

So, If you really want oil cloth I get it. Just be an educated consumer. Research your purchase and buy well. Clearly, I’m of the opinion it’s not my speed, that’s not the right choice for everyone. It’s only my goal to explain the details about this fabric that are often left out. You decided what’s best for you.
Click to expand...
Well written my friend. A lot of good information,like you said everyone has different likes,needs and dislikes but thank you for taking the time to put the information out here.
Blessings.
John.
 
hello, and kind of welcome to the forum!

thanks for the infos!

i have a side question: i made some violin varnish out of home refined linseed oil and rosin...if cooked together, they co-polymerize and the stuff is kind of flexible (for a varnish) but i have a hard time imagining it on cloth...do you have more infos about that? im quite interrested in the reenactment side of it.
 
Guillaume Longval said:
hello, and kind of welcome to the forum!

thanks for the infos!

i have a side question: i made some violin varnish out of home refined linseed oil and rosin...if cooked together, they co-polymerize and the stuff is kind of flexible (for a varnish) but i have a hard time imagining it on cloth...do you have more infos about that? im quite interrested in the reenactment side of it.
Click to expand...
It’s flexible yes but it still binds the weave together and that limits the ability of the individual yarns to flex.

here’s a good example think about Micarta scales on a knife. They are canvas layered and trapped in a polymer. Different polymers sure but it’s still not canvas any more. It now behaves like wood or plastic even. Once you add the polymerizing treatment your canvas is now a polymerized product known as oil skin.
 
Jay M. Hercules said:
Ever

Yes every day. I don’t use oil cloth at all however. If I could get some that was made without toxic chemicals I would gladly. However it’s all coming from the east and it’s all made with petro chemicals now says.
Click to expand...

I do not have any oilcloth. But I do have a load of waxed canvas. None made in the East. Do you do alternations = repairs ?
Where are you based ?
 
Jay M. Hercules said:
i don’t use oil cloth at all however. If I could get some that was made without toxic chemicals I would gladly. However it’s all coming from the east and it’s all made with petro chemicals now says.
Click to expand...
Jay M. Hercules said:
It’s flexible yes but it still binds the weave together and that limits the ability of the individual yarns to flex.

here’s a good example think about Micarta scales on a knife. They are canvas layered and trapped in a polymer. Different polymers sure but it’s still not canvas any more. It now behaves like wood or plastic even. Once you add the polymerizing treatment your canvas is now a polymerized product known as oil skin.
Click to expand...

let me ask again: do you have any historical reciepe for oilcloth?

i am one of those crazy people who do refine linseed oil by hand, 18th style, pre-industrial technology: no acid degumming nonsense, no need for metallic salts to make it dry.

i could probably make you some, but with the time and materials, the cost would be ridiculous. :33:
 
Guillaume Longval said:
let me ask again: do you have any historical reciepe for oilcloth?

i am one of those crazy people who do refine linseed oil by hand, 18th style, pre-industrial technology: no acid degumming nonsense, no need for metallic salts to make it dry.

i could probably make you some, but with the time and materials, the cost would be ridiculous. :33:
Click to expand...
The best historical recipe Iv found is linseed oil iron oxide. Iv never done it I stay with waxed.
 
I will say oilskin or waxed cotton are not stronger than nylon or polyester; they are merely most often used in heavier weights. Most canvas starts at 8oz; while most nylon used for shelters is between 1 and 2 oz. If you use the same weight of nylon as cotton it is at a minimum 3x stronger, but often more.
 
Historically, the garment or tarp was made, then the oil solution was applied. See Bouquet's 1764 Expedition against the Ohio Indians for a description of how they modified already produced check shirts to make oilskin watch coats. Today we have pretty much abandoned function for profit.
 
It works well because the base fabric, canvas has inherent water resistant capabilities. Then, on top of that, it is saturated with a mix of hydrophobic oils, waxed and resins that saturate the fabric fibers. This treatment cures to become a polymer and from that point on are stable and fixed. So basically you have a plastic saturated fabric.

Furthermore, due to its polymer coating, it had issues with abrasion and tear resilience over time that is also very much a cumulative situation.

I don’t disagree with your assessment of the merits and drawbacks of oil cloth and waxed canvas but there are some misrepresentations of the chemical and physical properties of oil cloth.
A. Canvas has water resistant capabilities but is a relatively poor choice for that purpose. Canvas is water resistant because it absorbs water and when it becomes saturated the pore size of the fabric is small enough to maintain the surface tension of the water. But don’t touch the inside of your tent when that happens because you will break the surface tension. Other common tent materials resist water more effectively.
B. The treatment does not “cure to become a polymer”. Polymerization is a chemical reaction.
C. If the treatment were to form a polymer coating, odds are the abrasion resistance would increase substantially, not be reduced. But this is a moot point because there isn’t a polymer coating
 
Griz Macgillie said:
Historically, the garment or tarp was made, then the oil solution was applied. See Bouquet's 1764 Expedition against the Ohio Indians for a description of how they modified already produced check shirts to make oilskin watch coats. Today we have pretty much abandoned function for profit.
Click to expand...
Just read the section concerning the oilskin watch coats, now I`ll have to read the whole book. Thank you, SM
 
Papa JB said:
I don’t disagree with your assessment of the merits and drawbacks of oil cloth and waxed canvas but there are some misrepresentations of the chemical and physical properties of oil cloth.

A. Canvas has water resistant capabilities but is a relatively poor choice for that purpose. Canvas is water resistant because it absorbs water and when it becomes saturated the pore size of the fabric is small enough to maintain the surface tension of the water. But don’t touch the inside of your tent when that happens because you will break the surface tension. Other common tent materials resist water more effectively.

B. The treatment does not “cure to become a polymer”. Polymerization is a chemical reaction.

C. If the treatment were to form a polymer coating, odds are the abrasion resistance would increase substantially, not be reduced. But this is a moot point because there isn’t a polymer coating
Click to expand...

My misrepresentations? I’d say your calling things I say misrepresentations because you do not understand this topic. Based on your statements I’d say your bought into this the bad general information that’s currently being preached. It’s often difficult to let go of what we have felt we know for years that’s human nature.

A. Once the fibers in canvas have gotten wet and swollen up to lock in they will accept no more moisture regardless how long they are exposed to more. Furthermore, because of this canvas dose get soppy wet. The weave is to tight, for soppy wet you need gaps in the weave. Canvas water repellent nature has nothing to do with surface tension. Now, tent makers through history have made products from sub standard stuff, perhaps your experience is with such a product.

As to the touching the inside that is condensation from the air and / or you. Has nothing to do with soak through if the shelter is made from proper canvas to the task. That’s at least a 10oz shelter tent cloth.

Now, this is the way canvas behaves so it is inherent to it nature. Therefore

B. Ok, I almost don’t want to address this one because it is almost not worthwhile. However, since there is an educational effort and principle at stake I will. “Curing” is simply the word I used to describe the underlying process by which the oil becomes stable and fixed. Originally oil cloth was made with linseed oil. Now it’s made with all manner of things but a base oil that is a “drying oil” is required. The reality is I could have explained this by saying you start with raw flax seed oil, then you boil it, then you …. No, I didn’t do that before I won’t now. Do the research, ask a scientist or biological chemist whatever but whether or not you believe it polymerizes it dose. By your assessment linoleum flooring is another example of natural oils not becoming polymers?

C. Here is an experiment you can try to test your theory on the super toughness of polymers. Take out your garbage and drag it across the driveway the whole way. That bag is a polymer so it will handle it just fine, trust me.

I encourage discussion, I don’t mind being wrong. Furthermore, if I’m wrong I like finding out so I can learn. I stated when I posted this I was not professing to be an expert. That said, please don’t try to discredit my post by calling what I say “misrepresentations” as that implies I was not just wrong but trying to mislead. It’s especially bad form to do if your facts are in error.
 
Griz Macgillie said:
Historically, the garment or tarp was made, then the oil solution was applied. See Bouquet's 1764 Expedition against the Ohio Indians for a description of how they modified already produced check shirts to make oilskin watch coats. Today we have pretty much abandoned function for profit.
Click to expand...
Yes they were and that’s because trying to sew it after will cause tearing. This is something Iv taught repeatedly trying to repair oil skin stuff.
 
i just scratched the surface on the subject, but from what i read in french, oilcloth (oil paint or oil varnish) was only used to cover stuff (luggages in the back of a coach, fragile hat, etc.). supporting the logical observations of OP.

for heavyer use / protection of gear, tarred canvas would have been used. mostly on ships.

for garments, boiled/felted wool is the one that pops up. then, leather. but i found a mention of a waxed cloak.

obviously, leather would have been prefered for waterproof pouches and boots...

now what about the gray areas? what about wax/oil mix? and what about that 1627 pattent for a tar/wax/oil cloth??:33:
 
The talk of polymerization carried on to the point where I considered it worth settling the semantics of the matter. It is a technical term and might as well be used correctly.

While we can surely say that not all hardened surfaces arise as a result of polymerization, we can also say that chemical reactions do occur quite readily under ambient conditions. Indeed, the spontaneous ignition hazard of boiled linseed oil is generally better advertised on its packaging than any of its primary functions.

I found the most compelling confirmation that polymerization is occurring in the following paper (the title of which is a bit on-the-nose):

You needn't read much further than the first paragraph or so to have the general mechanism described. Citations can be a bit of a shallow metric for determining the standing of the work, but this review paper seems to have stood the test of time.
 
I'm not sure what your point is. Maybe go back and read the little paragraph that starts with "Firstly, the 1000 pound gorilla amongst them is waxed canvas. "
 
Guillaume Longval said:
let me ask again: do you have any historical reciepe for oilcloth?

i am one of those crazy people who do refine linseed oil by hand, 18th style, pre-industrial technology: no acid degumming nonsense, no need for metallic salts to make it dry.

i could probably make you some, but with the time and materials, the cost would be ridiculous. :33:
Click to expand...
A period description of oil-cloth making was printed in the Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly, 24:1. I started my experiments with oilcloth then, but being young and dumb had to substitute various materials and didn't keep good enough notes. Since then, I've been able to pretty-much duplicate the stuff described, and have done some experiments on durability etc. The process described is basically stretching canvas in a frame and painting it with oil paint--but some of the details discussed in the article are important. I've played with making it several times over the years, and continued watching for period references as to how it was made (not a lot out there, but some info from artists' oil painting references has helped).

Keep in mind that our experiments today have a high degree of subjectivity. You and I may not be starting with the same oil/pigment/fabric, have different conditions in our washing/painting/drying. Like a lot of experimental archaeology, without a master-apprentice system or guild we don't have continuity of knowledge--and we don't have continuity of terminology, which is frustrating in describing some of it! I've written a description of some of my experiments below, maybe it will give you enough info to do some experiments of your own. I have to qualify what follows by noting that I'm home sick today and may be forgetting some details: don't hesitate to ask if I'm not clear or seem to be missing details, because I'm certain to be overlooking some obvious points.

First off, any sizing has to be washed from the fabric. Second, it needs to be stretched tight in the frame. Third, the paint mix needs to be "right": the right oil, the right pigment, and the right mix. Fourth, after the paint dries, you need to work the oil cloth much like softening a fur after you tan it: this helps make it more-flexible, and seems to reduce stiffness/tearing/tackiness.

First (1988-89) experiments were done with cotton canvas. It was washed 2x in hot water and line-dried in between washes. I sewed it in my hide-stretching frame with stitches around the perimeter about every 2" (what is that, roughly 5 centimeters for those who can't understand honest measurement? ;) ). I mixed hardware store "boiled linseed oil" with commercial red ochre (sold to color concrete mix) and painted the cloth with a trowel. The resulting fabric worked (for some definitions of "work": it was fairly waterproof, and matched period visual descriptions). It also was very sensitive to abrasion, got brittle on cold (sub-freezing) mornings, and never stopped sticking to itself. As a groundcloth, it lasted about a year's worth of weekends on the trail.

From the old descriptions, the lifespan seems about right--oil cloth in the fur trade was an essentially disposable product intended to last long enough to protect the merchandise long enough to trade it for furs. It was used along the trail for tarps/improvised tentage/ground cloths. I've not run across mention of the "sticking" problem, and nothing from the fur trade about brittleness at cold temps.

Round 2 of the experiments began after I started experimenting with various period recipes for boiled linseed oil and varnishes (a friend referred to this as "The Mad Scientist's Pyromaniac Years"). Still using cotton canvas prepared as before, I used actual boiled linseed oil made as per period descriptions, similar red ochre, and application methods. The resulting product was still sensitive to abrasion, not as "sticky", and not as brittle.

During this period, I found that the actual boiled linseed (VS hardware "boiled" linseed oil) seemed to more-completely polymerize, reducing stickyness. Drying in sunlight (UV?) seemed to accellerate drying for both types of oil. I also learned that it seemed I was using too much pigment, and probably needed to have smaller particle sizes.

Round 3 was done about 5 years ago. This time I had the funds to source actual Russian sheeting (linen canvas), and also began some experiments with hemp canvas. I washed it twice in hot water to remove any sizing, sewed it tightly in the frame while wet, and dried it in the sun to stretch it as much as possible. Use strong thread: as the fabric dries there is a lot of tension.

I used two types of oil. Both started with raw linseed oil. One was boiled, with about double the usual limestone added to ensure the acidity of the oil was neutralized. The other was some raw linseed I had set in the sun in a jar, with some limestone added to the jar (don't bother with this one--the stuff never fully polymerized).

The red ochre was sourced from an art supply company. It was finely ground, intended for oil painters to use mixing their own paints, and cost through the nose.

The pigment was mullered with the oil to try to ensure it was mixed completely. In hindsight, I could have used my usual source for ochre and mullered it with the oil, saving almost a third of the cost of the experiment. Best paint seemed to be when the oil was carrying enough pigment it would just barely start to separate in about 15 minutes on a piece of vertical glass, with the pigment ground finely enough the oil itself was tinted red.

Per period descriptions of oil cloth manufacture, the frame and fabric were propped up vertically. The paint was troweled on the fabric, forcing the paint through the pores in the fabric (the back side looked like it had freckles before the oil started to penetrate the threads). Then I painted the backside, before the front dried. After painting, I squeegee'd both sides with a stiff squeegee as used to clean windows. (Floor squeegee was too stiff, cheap window-cleaning squeegee was too "mushy". Corners at each end of the squeegee were rounded so as not to leave lines on the fabric.)

When I was satisfied with the panting, I dried the oil cloth in the sun, flipping it every couple hours. All told, it got about 40 hours of sunlight.

The "sun-boiled" oil never fully dried. The stuff made with boiled oil was the best I've made so far. It would still stick, if you left it in the sunlight touching itself, but in handling it you didn't notice the tackiness. Exposed to the weather, it lasted through 4 seasons before breaking down, and seemed to exhibit a failure process similar to what was described in the 19th century (stiffness accompanied by brittleness, breaking along flex lines). It worked well as a tarp or groundcloth, but was still sensitive to abrasion. Some of my experimental pieces lasted 90 days tarping pactons on a canoe trip, and about a season as tarps on packsaddles, consistent with period descriptions.

Enough babble. Hope it gives you a starting point Guillaume!
 
This is interesting stuff, thanks for the experience! I messed with a mixture of beeswax and commercial boiled linseed oil as a leather treatment, it really adds rigidity to a sheath. I wonder if a neutral PH boiled flax and wax combo would be more durable than the pigmented "paint"? Should the oil have its PH brought up after or before boiling?
 
Guillaume Longval said:
i just scratched the surface on the subject, but from what i read in french, oilcloth (oil paint or oil varnish) was only used to cover stuff (luggages in the back of a coach, fragile hat, etc.). supporting the logical observations of OP.

for heavyer use / protection of gear, tarred canvas would have been used. mostly on ships.

for garments, boiled/felted wool is the one that pops up. then, leather. but i found a mention of a waxed cloak.

obviously, leather would have been prefered for waterproof pouches and boots...

now what about the gray areas? what about wax/oil mix? and what about that 1627 pattent for a tar/wax/oil cloth??:33:
Click to expand...
Historic uses and mixes and practices weren’t the focus of this particular post. I was addressing current trends of pushing the oil cloth tarp as the go to Bushcraft tarp.

However, the historical uses of oil cloth proves very much what I was saying. It’s not always the best resource for the application it’s pressed into now days.

I wasn’t even trying to say it’s inappropriate for tarps. It’s just not great for them either and that’s my issue is it’s being touted as the best more often than not.
 
Jay M. Hercules said:
Historic uses and mixes and practices weren’t the focus of this particular post.
Click to expand...
your opening post (OP) was an excellent post. this is a thread. i thought it was interresting and quite on topic to discuss reciepes of the various wax and oil cloths, but if you say its off-topic, we will go start an other thread.

its a little rude as this is a forum, but its your thread.

Jay M. Hercules said:
However, the historical uses of oil cloth proves very much what I was saying.
Click to expand...

as i said:
Guillaume Longval said:
supporting the logical observations of OP.
Click to expand...



Jay M. Hercules said:
I wasn’t even trying to say it’s inappropriate for tarps. It’s just not great for them either and that’s my issue is it’s being touted as the best more often than not.
Click to expand...

Everyone agrees, nobody is attacking you. we all are coroborating your opening post. we are discussing about it. its a thread on a forum!!

it would be an easyer chat around a campfire or a coffee table, but im too far away, so this is the next best thing...very sorry if it upset you.
:44::)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top