Part 116

In bleaching, shellac is brought into contact with an acidified solution of chloride of lime for some time, then washed, kneaded in hot water, placed back into the chloride of lime solution, and brushed. Through this treatment with the chloride of lime solution the bleached shellac sometimes loses its solubility in alcohol, which, however, can be restored if the shellac is melted in boiling water, or if it is moistened with a little ether in a well-closed vessel. A quantity of ether in the proportion of 1 part to 20 parts shellac is sufficient. Great caution is recommended in the handling of ether. The ether vapors easily ignite when in proximity to a burning light and a mixture of ether vapor and atmospheric air may cause most vehement explosions. After an action of the ether upon the shellac for several hours, the alcohol necessary to dissolve it may either be added directly or the shellac moistened with ether is placed in the open air for half an hour in a dish, after which time the ether will have evaporated and the shellac can then be dissolved by the use of alcohol.

Bleached shellac is known to lose its solubility in alcohol, especially if treated with chlorine in bleaching. This solubility can be readily restored, however, by first moistening the rosin with 1⁠/⁠20 its weight of ether, placing it in a closed vessel and allowing it to swell there. Shellac thus treated becomes perfectly soluble again.

«SHIMS IN ENGINE BRASSES.»

In taking up the wear of engine brasses on wrist pin or crosshead pin when the key is driven clear down, back out the key and instead of putting in sheet-iron shims, put in a small piece of pine wood of just the right thickness to allow the key to come even with the under side of the strap, then pour in melted babbitt. A hole must be drilled through the flange of the brasses to allow for pouring the babbitt.

Every engineer knows the trouble it is to put several shims between the brass box and the end of the strap, especially if the box is a round-end one, as many are. By using the method described, brasses may be worn up much closer, even if worn through; the babbitt will form part of the bearing.

«Shoe Dressings»

(See also Leather.)

«Acid-Free Blacking.»—

Lampblack 27–36 parts Bone black 3 parts Syrup 60–70 parts

Put in a kettle and under gentle heat stir together until a smooth, homogeneous mass has been attained. In another kettle put 3 parts of finely shredded gutta percha and warm over an open fire until it begins to run, then add, with constant stirring, 5 parts of olive oil, continuing the heat until the gum is completely dissolved. When this occurs dissolve in 1 part of stearine, and add the whole while still hot in a slow stream, and under diligent and constant stirring, to the mixture of syrup and blacks. Continue the agitation of the mass until it is completely homogeneous. Now dissolve 4 parts of Senegal gum in 12 parts of water, and add the solution to the foregoing mass. Stir well in and finally add sufficient mirbane (about 1⁠/⁠5 part) to perfume.

«Blacking Pastes.»—While shellac is not soluble in water alone, it is soluble in water carrying borax, the alkaline carbonates, etc. In paste blacking the object of the sulphuric acid is to remove from the bone black the residual calcium phosphate. The ordinary bone black of commerce consists of only about 10 per cent of carbon, the residue being chiefly calcium phosphate. This is the reason that we cannot obtain a pure black color from it, but a dirty brown. To make a good blacking, one that is of a black in color, either use purified bone black, or a mineral acid (sulphuric or hydrochloric acid) with crude bone black. The residual acid is entirely neutralized by the sodium carbonate and has no bad effect on the leather. The following formula contains no acid and makes a good paste:

I.—Marseilles soap 122 parts Potassium carbonate 61 parts Beeswax 500 parts Water 2,000 parts

Mix and boil together with occasional stirring until a smooth, homogeneous paste is obtained, then add, a little at a time, and under constant stirring, the following: {632}

Rock candy, powdered 153 parts Gum arabic, powdered 61 parts Ivory black 1,000 parts

Stir until homogeneous, then pour, while still hot, into boxes.

The following makes a very brilliant and durable black polish for shoes:

II.—Bone black 40 parts Sulphuric acid 10 parts Fish oil 10 parts Sodium carbonate crystal 18 parts Sugar, common brown, or molasses 20 parts Liquid glue, prepared as below 20 parts Water, sufficient.

Soak 10 parts of good white glue in 40 parts of cold water for 4 hours, then dissolve by the application of gentle heat, and add 1.8 parts of glycerine (commercial). Set aside. Dissolve the sodium carbonate in sufficient water to make a cold saturated solution (about 3 parts of water at 60° F.), and set aside. In an earthenware vessel moisten the bone black with a very little water, and stirring it about with a stick, add the sulphuric acid, slowly. Agitate until a thick dough-like mass is obtained, then add and incorporate the fish oil. Any sort of animal oil, or even colza will answer, but it is best to avoid high-smelling oils. Add a little at a time, and under vigorous stirring, sufficient of the saturated sodium carbonate solution to cause effervescence. Be careful not to add so freely as to liquefy the mass. Stir until effervescence ceases, then add the molasses or sugar, the first, if a soft, damp paste is desired, and the latter if a dryer one is wanted. Finally, add, a little at a time, and under constant stirring, sufficient of the solution of glue to make a paste of the desired consistency. The exact amount of this last ingredient that is necessary must be learned by experience. It is a very important factor, as it gives the finished product a depth and brilliancy that it could not otherwise have, as well as a certain durability, in which most of the blackings now on the market are deficient.

III.—Soap 122 parts Potassium carbonate 61 parts Beeswax 500 parts Water 2,000 parts

Mix and boil together until a smooth, homogeneous paste is obtained, then add

Bone black 1,000 parts Powdered sugar 153 parts Powdered gum arabic 61 parts

Mix thoroughly, remove from the fire, and pour while still hot into boxes.

«Boot-Top Liquid.»—

Solution of muriate of tin 3 drachms French chalk (in powder) 1 ounce Salt of sorrel 1⁠/⁠2 ounce Flake white 1 ounce Burnt alum 1⁠/⁠2 ounce Cuttle-fish bones (powdered) 1 ounce White arsenic 1 ounce Boiling water 1 quart

«Brown Dressing for Untanned Shoes.»—

Yellow wax 30 parts Soap 12 parts Nankin yellow 15 parts Oil of turpentine 100 parts Alcohol 12 parts Water 100 parts

Dissolve in the water bath the wax in the oil of turpentine; dissolve, also by the aid of heat, the soap in the water, and the Nankin yellow (or in place of that any of the yellow coal-tar colors) in the alcohol. Mix the solutions while hot, and stir constantly until cold. The preparation is smeared over the shoes in the usual way, rubbed with a brush until evenly distributed, and finally polished with an old silk or linen cloth.

«Heel Polish.»—

I.—Carnauba wax 5 parts Japanese wax 5 parts Paraffine 5 parts Oil of turpentine 50 parts Lampblack 1 part Wine black 2 parts

Melt the wax and the paraffine, and when this has become lukewarm, add the turpentine oil, and finally the lampblack and the wine black. When the black color has become evenly distributed, pour, while still lukewarm, into tin cans.

II.—Melt together Japanese wax, 100 parts; carnauba wax, 100 parts; paraffine, 100 parts; and mix with turpentine oil, 500 parts, as well as a trituration of lampblack, 10 parts; wine black, 20 parts; turpentine oil, 70 parts. {633}

«LIQUID BLACKINGS.»

The following formulas make a product of excellent quality:

I.—Ivory black 120 parts Brown sugar 90 parts Olive oil 15 parts Stale beer 500 parts

Mix the black, sugar and olive oil into a smooth paste, adding the beer, a little at a time, under constant stirring. Let stand for 24 hours, then put into flasks, lightly stoppered.

II.—Ivory black 200 parts Molasses 200 parts Gallnuts, bruised 12 parts Iron sulphate 12 parts Sulphuric acid 40 parts Boiling water 700 parts

Mix the molasses and ivory black in an earthen vessel. In an iron vessel let the gallnuts infuse in 100 parts of boiling water for 1 hour, then strain and set aside. In another vessel dissolve the iron sulphate; in another, 100 parts of the boiling water. One-half of this solution is added at once to the molasses mixture. To the remaining half add the sulphuric acid, and pour the mixture, a little at a time, under constant stirring, into the earthen vessel containing the molasses mixture. The mass will swell up and thicken, but as soon as it commences to subside, add the infusion of gallnuts, also under vigorous stirring. If a paste blacking is desired the preparation is now complete. For a liquid black add the remaining portion of the boiling water (500 parts), stir thoroughly and bottle.

«Patent-Leather Polish.»—

Yellow wax or ceresine 3 ounces Spermaceti 1 ounce Oil of turpentine 11 ounces Asphaltum varnish 1 ounce Borax 80 grains Frankfort black 1 ounce Prussian blue 150 grains

Melt the wax, add the borax, and stir until an emulsion has been formed. In another pan melt the spermaceti; add the varnish, previously mixed with the turpentine; stir well and add to the wax; lastly add the colors.

«Preservatives for Shoe Soles.»—I.—This preparation, destined for impregnating leather shoe soles, is produced as follows: Grind 50 parts of linseed oil with 1 part of litharge; next heat for 2 hours to the boiling point with 1⁠/⁠4 part of zinc vitriol, which is previously calcined (dehydrated). The composition obtained in this manner, when perfectly cold, is mixed with 8 parts of benzine and filled in bottles or other receptacles. To render this preservative effective, the soles must be coated with it until the leather absorbs it.

II.—Dissolve ordinary household soap in water; on the other hand, dissolve an aluminum salt—the cheapest is the commercial aluminum sulphate—in water and allow both solutions to cool. Now pour the aluminum salt solution, with constant stirring, into the soap solution, thereby obtaining a very fine precipitate of aluminum oleate. The washed-out residue is dried with moderate heat. By adding 10 to 30 per cent to petroleum with slight heating, a solid petroleum of vaseline-like consistency is received, which may be still further solidified by additional admixture. A 10 per cent solution of aluminum oleate in petroleum is a very excellent agent for preserving the soles, a single saturation of the soles sufficing forever. The sole will last about 1 year.

III.—The following mixture is prepared by melting together over the fire in an enameled iron vessel: Vaseline, 400 parts; ceresine, 100 parts. The melted mass, which is used as a grease, is filled in wooden boxes or tin cans.

IV.—The oleic acid of the stearine factories is heated with strong alcohol and sulphuric acid. Take 16 parts of oleic acid, 2 parts of alcohol (90 per cent), and 1 part of concentrated sulphuric acid. The oleic-acid ether formed separates as a thin brownish oil. It is liberated from free sulphuric acid and the alcohol in excess by agitation with warm water and allowing to settle. This oleic-acid ether is mixed with the same weight of fish oil, and 4 to 8 parts of nitro-benzol are added per 1,000 parts to disguise the odor.

«TAN AND RUSSET SHOE POLISHES:»

«To Renovate and Brighten Russet and Yellow Shoes.»—First, clean off all dirt and dust with a good stiff brush, then with a sponge dipped in benzine go over the leather, repeating the process as soon as the benzine evaporates. A few wipings will bring back the original color. Then use a light-yellow dressing and brush well.

The liquid application consists usually of a solution of yellow wax and soap in oil of turpentine, and it should be a matter of no difficulty whatever to compound a mixture of this character at least equal {634} to the preparations on the market. As a type of the mixture occasionally recommended we may quote the following:

I.—Yellow wax 4 ounces Pearl ash 4 drachms Yellow soap 1 drachm Spirit of turpentine 7 ounces Phosphine (aniline) 4 grains Alcohol 4 drachms Water, a sufficient quantity.

Scrape the wax fine and add it, together with the ash and soap, to 12 ounces of water. Boil all together until a smooth, creamy mass is obtained; remove the heat and add the turpentine and the aniline (previously dissolved in the alcohol). Mix thoroughly, and add sufficient water to bring the finished product up to 1 1⁠/⁠2 pints.

II.—Water 18 parts Rosin oil 4 1⁠/⁠2 parts Spirit of sal ammoniac, concentrated 1 1⁠/⁠5 parts White grain soap 1.93 parts Russian glue 1.59 parts Brown rock candy 0.57 parts Bismarck brown 0.07 parts

Boil all the ingredients together, excepting the pigment; after all has been dissolved, add the Bismarck brown and filter. The dressing is applied with a sponge.

III.—Beeswax, yellow 2 ounces Linseed oil 3 ounces Oil turpentine 10 ounces

Dissolve by heat of a water bath, and add 1 1⁠/⁠4 ounces soap shavings, hard yellow. Dissolve this in 14 ounces of hot water.

IV.—A simpler form of liquid mixture consists of equal parts of yellow wax and palm oil dissolved with the aid of heat in 3 parts of oil of turpentine.

V.—Soft or green soap 1 ounce Linseed oil, raw 2 ounces Annatto solution (in oil) 7 ounces Yellow wax 2 ounces Gum turpentine 7 ounces Water 7 ounces

Dissolve the soap in the water and add the solution of annatto; melt the wax in the oil of turpentine, and gradually stir in the soap solution, stirring until cold.

The paste to accompany the foregoing mixtures is composed of yellow wax and rosin thinned with petrolatum, say 4 parts of wax, 1 part of rosin, and 12 parts of petrolatum.

«Paste Dressings for Russet Shoes.»—The paste dressings used on russet leather consist of mixtures of wax with oil and other vehicles which give a mixture of proper working quality.

A simple formula is:

I.—Yellow wax 9 parts Oil of turpentine 20 parts Soap 1 part Boiling water 20 parts

Dissolve the wax in the turpentine on a water bath and the soap in the water and stir the two liquids together until the mixture becomes sufficiently cold to remain homogeneous.

Another formula in which stearine is used is appended:

II.—Wax 1 part Stearine 2 parts Linseed oil 1 part Oil of turpentine 6 parts Soap 1 part Water 10 parts

Proceed as above.

Carnauba wax is often used by manufacturers of such dressings instead of beeswax, as it is harder and takes a higher polish. These dressings are sometimes colored with finely ground yellow ocher or burnt umber. If the leather be badly worn, however, it is best to apply a stain first, and afterwards the waxy dressing.

Suitable stains are made by boiling safflower in water, and annatto is also used in the same way, the two being sometimes mixed together. Oxalic acid darkens the color of the safflower. Aniline colors would also doubtless yield good results with less trouble and expense. By adding finely ground lampblack to the waxy mixture instead of ocher, it would answer as a dressing for black leather.

«WATERPROOF SHOE DRESSINGS.»

I.—Caoutchouc 10 parts Petroleum 10 parts Carbon disulphide 10 parts Shellac 40 parts Lampblack 20 parts Oil lavender 1 part Alcohol 200 parts

Upon the caoutchouc in a bottle pour the carbon disulphide, cork well, and let stand a few days, or until the caoutchouc has become thoroughly gelatinized or partly dissolved. Then add the petroleum, oil of lavender, and alcohol, next the shellac in fine powder, and heat it to about 120° F., taking care that as little as possible is lost by evaporation. When the substances are all dissolved and the liquid is tolerably clear, add the {635} lampblack, mix thoroughly, and fill at once into small bottles.

II.—A waterproof blacking which will give a fine polish without rubbing, and will not injure the leather:

Beeswax 18 parts Spermaceti 6 parts Turpentine oil 66 parts Asphalt varnish 5 parts Powdered borax 1 part Frankfort black 5 parts Prussian blue 2 parts Nitro-benzol 1 part

Melt the wax, add the powdered borax and stir till a kind of jelly has formed. In another pan melt the spermaceti, add the asphalt varnish, previously mixed with the oil of turpentine, stir well, and add to the wax. Lastly add the color previously rubbed smooth with a little of the mass. The nitro-benzol gives fragrance.

«Waterproof Varnish for Beach Shoes.»—

Yellow.—

Water 150 parts Borax 5 parts Glycerine 3 parts Spirit of ammonia 1 part White shellac 25 parts Yellow pigment, water soluble 1 part Formalin, a few drops.

Orange.—

Water 150 parts Borax 5 parts Glycerine 2 parts Spirit of ammonia 1 part Ruby shellac 22 parts Orange, water soluble 1 part Brown 0.3 parts Formalin 0.1 part

Pale Brown.—

Water 150 parts Borax 5 parts Glycerine 2 parts Spirit of ammonia 0.25 parts White shellac 25 parts Yellow, water soluble 8 parts Orange 0.3 parts Formalin 0.1 part

Stir the glycerine and the spirit of ammonia together in a special vessel before putting both into the kettle. It is also advisable, before the water boils, to pour a little of the nearly boiling water into a clean vessel and to dissolve the colors therein with good stirring, adding this solution to the kettle after the shellac has been dissolved.

White Shoe Dressing.—

I.—Cream of tartar 3 ounces Oxalic acid 1 ounce Alum 1 ounce Milk 3 pints

Mix and rub on the shoes. When they are thoroughly dry, rub them with a mixture of prepared chalk and magnesium carbonate.

II.—Water 136 parts Fine pipe clay 454 parts Shellac, bleached 136 parts Borax, powdered 68 parts Soft soap 8 parts Ultramarine blue 5 parts

Boil the shellac in the water, adding the borax, and keeping up the boiling until a perfect solution is obtained, then stir in the soap (5 or 6 parts of “ivory” soap, shaved up, and melted with 2 or 3 parts of water, is better than common soft soap), pipe clay, and ultramarine. Finally strain through a hair-cloth sieve. This preparation, it is said, leaves absolutely nothing to be desired. A good deal of stiffness may be imparted to the leather by it. The addition of a little glycerine would remedy this. The old application should be wiped away before a new one is put on. This preparation is suitable for military shoes, gloves, belts, and uniforms requiring a white dressing.

SHOES, WATERPROOFING: See Waterproofing.

SHIO LIAO: See Adhesives, under Cements.

SHIP COMPOSITIONS AND PAINTS: See Paints.

SHOW BOTTLES FOR DRUGGISTS: See Bottles.

«SHOW CASES.»

Dents in show cases and counters, and, indeed, almost all forms of “bruises” on shop and other furniture, may be removed by the exercise of a little patience, and proceeding as follows: Sponge the place with water as warm as can be borne by the hand. Take a piece of filtering or other bibulous paper large enough to fold 6 or 8 times and yet cover the bruise, wet in warm water and place over the spot. Take a warm (not hot) smoothing iron and hold it on the paper until the moisture is evaporated (renewing its heat, if necessary). If the bruise does not yield to the first trial, repeat the process. A dent as large as a {636} dollar and 1⁠/⁠4 inch deep in the center, in black walnut of tolerably close texture, was brought up smooth and level with the surrounding surface by two applications of the paper and iron as described. If the bruise be small, a sponge dipped in warm water placed upon it, renewing the warmth from time to time, will be all-sufficient. When the dent is removed and the wood dry, the polish can be restored by any of the usual processes. If the wood was originally finished in oil, rub with a little boiled linseed cut with acetic acid (oil, 8 parts; acid, 1 part). If it was “French polished,” apply an alcoholic solution of shellac, and let dry; repeat if necessary, and when completely dry proceed as follows: Rub the part covered with shellac, first with crocus cloth and a few drops of olive oil, until the ridges, where the new and old polish come together, disappear; wipe with a slightly greased but otherwise clean rag and finish with putz pomade.

SHOW-CASE SIGNS: See Lettering.

SHOW-CASES, TO PREVENT DIMMING OF: See Glass.

«Siccatives»

The oldest drier is probably litharge, a reddish-yellow powder, consisting of lead and oxygen. Formerly it was ground finely in oil, either pure or with admixture of white vitriol and added to the dark oil paints. Litharge and sugar of lead are used to-day only rarely as drying agents, having been displaced by the liquid manganese siccatives, which are easy to handle. E. Ebelin, however, is of the opinion that the neglect of the lead compounds has not been beneficial to decorative painting. Where these mediums were used in suitable quantities hard-drying coatings were almost always obtained. Ebelin believes that formerly there used to be less lamentation on account of tacky floors, pews, etc., than at the present time.

Doubtless a proposition to grind litharge into the oil again will not be favorably received, although some old master painters have by no means discarded this method.