Processing The Leather
Most of the hides used by Connolly's came from Scandinavia, where the quality was better because the cattle spent most of their lives inside to escape bad weather. Nor were the Scandinavian hides threatened to the same extent with damage from barbed wire and warble fly (small grubs which burrow their way through hides). The size largely depended on the age of the cow, the older they got the bigger they grew, the average being 45-50 square feet. The largest hides came from Southern Germany and the largest ever seen by Connolly was a vast 120 sq. ft. From the abattoir (where the cattle were skinned) the hides passed to the hide market or a fellmonger, from where they were bought by the tanner. From the tanner they passed to the currier, which is where Connolly Bros. came in, to prepare and finally finish them before selling them to the leather-using trades. Curiously the hides were sold by the piece from the abattoir, sold by weight at the hide market, sold by the tanner to the currier by the length and finally passed on from the currier by the square foot. At the tannery any remaining flesh is scraped from the hide, soaking in chemicals loosened the hairs at the roots and these were then scraped away, leaving the characteristic leather grain.
The tanning process itself, in which the hide is soaked in numerous other chemicals and oils, the mixture depending upon the softness required from the leather in its eventual application (saddles as distinct from clothing, for instance), was to make the leather last without rotting and to give it some degree of colour fastness as well as to control the softness and feel. At the tannery too the hides are split, the top part being the leather hide as we know it, and the bottom part being the suede, or "split", as it is known in the trade. Connolly's had their own tannery in Canterbury, the stiff and dry tanned hides arriving at Wimbledon in seven-foot-long bales of about 25, each of which was given a total of 12 inspections and code-stamped to denote quality, source, date and so on. Very badly damaged hides were naturally rejected. The first process was to soak them in water to make them workable, using a machine designed by Wilf Connolly, which like the rest of the processes draws water from the artesian wells beneath the factory, a geological accident which strangely didn't exempt Connolly from paying water rates! Machines with fast-revolving, blade-covered drums trimmed the hides to a consistent thickness. This varied, upholsterers demanding usually 1?It mm thickness while some leather goods manufacturers required 3 to 4 mm and clothing manufacturers as little as 0.8mm. Waste shavings were sold to a fertiliser manufacturer. The hides then received a secondary tanning in a battery of huge vats which revolved much like a ferris-wheel. Hides for the garment trade were dyed right through in the same process, because the edges of the leather would be exposed in the clothing. Afterwards most of the water was squeezed out in huge mangles before the critical stretching and drying process. Stretching was necessary to control the amount of natural stretch to be left in the leather: too much and the upholstery leather would bag and "puddle" after little use; too little and trimming would be made almost impossible.
Stretching The Leather On The Rack
Since the leather industry began, stretching had been done manually on a rack, however an Italian innovation was the development of a hydraulically operated rack. Drying used to be carried out in the open air, but by the mid 1960's the hides were being dried gently by big fans blowing through widely spaced stacks of racks or, in the case of the hydraulic rack system, by being passed through a huge "oven" in which the temperature was that of a hot summer's day, too much heat causling the leather to harden. Then followed the second major inspection in which hides were selected to meet individual customer's needs. Consistency of the leather didn't vary - the difference in quality lay in the graining and in the amount of damage on the surface of the hide. Rolls-Royce insisted on nothing but the best, while some of the furniture trade too was very particular because of the large, continuous areas to be covered by one hide. Surface marks, so long as the scars were healed before slaughter, were of no detriment to strength and, in the case of furniture application, these were often seen as a good feature to have as it made the leather look natural, not like plastic rolled off a machine. Hides which were too badly marked had their outer surface skimmed off and artificial grain embossed by hydraulic presses.
The contents of the finish remained for many years a well-kept secret: a long row of rollers mangled up the solid pigments which were subsequently mixed with a cellulose liquid. Colours could be mixed to order, even for one-off restoration jobs, though the colours which were standardised by the car manufacturers were stored in rows of dustbin-like drums. The Connolly finish needed to be something quite special: it had to be able to breathe; it had to allow the natural grain to show through; it had to be flexible enough to withstand the rigours of use; and it needed to be in the most part waterproof. It is somewhat of a pity any finish at all has to be put on leather as in it's fully tanned but unfinished state it feals and looks superb. Unfortunately though in that condition it is absorbent, can be affected by strong light and is prone to getting scruffy and dirty. Notably absent from the Connolly colours available was pure white, which Connolly could, but refused to do, as they deemed the finish to be susceptible to premature discoloration. Simply put, if a Rolls-Royce customer demanded white upholstery, Rolls would have to obtain it from a different source. The most popular Rolls colour over the decades was Magnolia.
Applying The Colour
To apply colour a cellulose base coat of the chosen colour was sprayed on the hide in an automatic spray booth, from which it was then fed through a dryer. A special roller machine then massaged the leather to put back the suppleness before the final finish was applied in a huge fully-automated spray plant and oven. Finally car upholstery hides were piled into another battery of rotating drums, this time in the dry state, to be pummelled and rolled amongst brass and wooden knobs to return the natural suppleness to the hide and "crush up" the grain. Car hides thus treated were known as Vaumol and upholstery hides as Wandle. For most hides this was the final process, except for final inspection and the measuring of area for pricing either by a light-beam machine or the old fashioned machines which gave a reading from mechanical "fingers" reacting to the leather as it is passed through them. Some hides, including some of the Jaguar ones, were given a Luxon antiquing treatment, which involved swabbing a contrasting dye over the proper finish to highlight the grain. Once the hides left Chalton Street and found their way into the appropriate leather-covered product, care of the leather was vital if looks and qualities were to be retained.
Tips For Renovating Leather Upholstery
If you are thinking of renovating a Connolly leather interior, or any leather interior in fact, start by ensuring the interior is thoroughly cleaned with glycerine soap (or use mild toilet soap, not caustic nor detergent soaps for routine wiping over). Use a small nail-brush to remove ingrained dirt. Avoid flooding and wipe off the residue. Whilst still damp, apply a coat of CeeBee hide food, which will restore the original suppleness and nourish the fibres. Allow this to be absorbed for 24 hours, after which any surplus should be wiped off and the result should be a nicely-polished surface. If the original colouring has worn away, new lacquer can be applied. This should be swabbed on evenly and sparingly using one or two coats. Unfortunately cracked or torn leather, caused by the cracking of the foam-rubber base, will have to be replaced. This can be avoided if you cover the foam with linen before stitching on the leather upholstery.
