anybody restored a 7 day case?

I'm wondering if anybody has restored an old 7 day case and has pictures of it taken apart? I wonder how they attach the leather on the outside to it. got a case that's not in that bad of shape, I think recovering it would make it pretty darn nice. wondering if I could just go down to leather store and get some thin leather and.....

thanks guys.

Red

Haven't seen one taken apart but the two ways to do it are sewing or contact cement.
If its a soft case that you roll chances are its sewn together. If its a hard case then the leather is most likely contact cemented down. If its cemented it might be difficult to separate without damaging it.
Post some pics and let us see what you have


Bob

I'm wondering if you could vacuum-bag a thin layer of leather over the case. It would require a vacuum (shop vac would work), a large plastic bag that would seal completely, and the leather and some type of fairly slow setting glue. You would put a thin layer of glue on the case, apply the leather over the glue, put all this in the plastic bag, seal the bag, hook the vacuum up to the bag (or already have it hooked up the bag preferrebly), then turn the vacuum on and wait for it to pull all the excess air out. Unless you have a valve to hold the vacuum, you would want to keep running the vacuum until the glue set up... so maybe a faster setting glue would be better. I'm just thinking out oud here, take it for what it's worth! ;)

I'll carefully disassemble it. I think it is going to have to be contact cemented over, I can't see how I would sew one on. I have seen fine gun cases that had stitching at the corner, but my guess is they either did that by hand with some serious needles or they sewed it up then cemented it on. but what do I know. if it looks like taking the old leather off is a problem I'll get the nasty pieces off and then put nice new leather over the tope of it. it is solid so I don't think I'll have problems with it slipping.

the vacuum idea is interesting, I don't know though if it is necessary. I do have one of those kitchen vacuum thingies, you put food in special ziplock type bags with little valves in them, hook this up and it sucks the air out. works good for marinating meat.

Red

They used to fit leather to contoured surfaces by getting thin (sometimes called moroccan) leather and dampening it. It then becomes pliable and easy to stretch. You pull it over the surface and fix it in place until dry, then cut the bunched-up bits off and glue it. another 'skirt' of leather around the sides of the case hide the cuts from top and bottom coverings.

Regards,
Neil.