Question about Albion Huskarl grip color
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http://www.albion-swords.com/swords/albion/ne...photos.htm

Just wondering if anybody knows how to get this (or a similar) color? Is it dyed or treated with something? It doesn't look dyed to me, at least not the same way as many other grips, but I'm not exactly an expert in the field. I'm asking since I'm currently in the process of regripping my SL Vinland and I quite like that particular color. You don't seem to see it that often either.

Thanks in advance!
At a guess its eaither a very light tan dye or its naturally aged leather. Leather goes a really nice brown with exposure to sunlight and general handling.
Dan R wrote:
At a guess its eaither a very light tan dye or its naturally aged leather. Leather goes a really nice brown with exposure to sunlight and general handling.


Thanks, I guess I have to go find a dye then! If I fail to do that I might as well just go with a darker color again. Olive oil is cheap and gives a nice oxblood/dark brown color. :p
Hi Sonni!

I'm not sure of the exact processes & products Albion uses for their wraps, but I'm pretty sure olive oil is not involved. Hoping somebody else will back me up here, but that doesn't sound like something you wanna put on a grip. If you really want to do it right, then leather dye (which hardly costs more than olive oil) and a clear wax or shoe polish product would serve you much better in my humble opinion. I don't have many wrap projects under my belt yet, but I've done alot of experimenting with dyeing techniques so I'll give you my own suggestions for what it's worth.

If I were to try to recreate the "campaign-worn grip" in that picture, I'd start with light brown leather dye. After the string over-wrap has done it's job and the grip is dry, I might take a small amount of black leather dye (or a "tone" of brown) diluted with alchohol and "dribble & dab" it here and there on the grip to get the stains. Then after the "stains" have dried, I would dip a small cloth or another piece of chamois into a small amount of black dye and let it fully dry. Once the dyed cloth was dry, I'd lightly rub the cloth over the grip to bring out the string texture and risers to give it that "years of dirty hands" look. After that, I'd seal it up with wax or polish, buff it and call it done.

Alternately, even if you use no dye, you can get a darker brown color from just clear shoe polish by applying liberally to the grip, then heating it with a hair dryer. The wax imediately starts to soak into the chamois/leather turning it a good deal darker. (I found this out by accident.) After that, apply some more wax and buff to a nice finish.

Particularly with regards to weathering techniques, I hope others might jump in this thread and share theirs. I really love how a worn-looking grip contrasts with the beauty of steel. It truly emphasises "this is a tool ...for killing."
Or, you can do it by simply oiling down the leather repeatedly (every day or so) with something like a beeswax/ lanolin mixture (available from any leather outlet), and just keep handling it. This will naturally darken the leather in the most realistic style! Don't wash your hands before you pick it up, get those grubby mitts all over the leather handle! Let it develop the patina the actual way! heh Seriously, this works best IMHO, and looks best too.
Oh, I didn't expect Albion to use olive oil but I've used it myself on knife sheaths etc. before and while it looks good enough, it's probably not as good as dye when it comes to a grip.

I'm probably leaning more towards dye atm but I'll be sure to try out some of your theories on smaller pieces of leather before trying it on the grip. Thanks for the responses so far!

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