I know that some folks on here treat their leather with a tallow/beeswax mixture to help protect it, and it helps with water resistance as well.
While there are a bunch of ways to "waterproof" fabric, from oilcloth to paint, I chose to go with straight beeswax on a couple of little cloth bags. I just didn't want to fool with linseed oil/turpentine when the weather is as unpredictable as it has been. I have a bunch of beeswax on hand.
So, I shaved off little bits of beeswax onto the fabric, covering it, then placed it in on a foil covered sheet in the oven at 150 degrees. The result was a fabric impregnated with wax. It's a little stiff but once you work it in it's not too bad. Water rolls right off it. It's a few shades darker than it started out
Another method would be to melt the wax and brush it in - probably the historical way - and it works pretty well, you just have to dig into it a bit.
I'd venture to say it would work with a knapsack, too.
Figured I'd share. It's probably not a shocker to most on the forum but in case anyone doesn't want to mess with linseed oil, here's another method.
While there are a bunch of ways to "waterproof" fabric, from oilcloth to paint, I chose to go with straight beeswax on a couple of little cloth bags. I just didn't want to fool with linseed oil/turpentine when the weather is as unpredictable as it has been. I have a bunch of beeswax on hand.
So, I shaved off little bits of beeswax onto the fabric, covering it, then placed it in on a foil covered sheet in the oven at 150 degrees. The result was a fabric impregnated with wax. It's a little stiff but once you work it in it's not too bad. Water rolls right off it. It's a few shades darker than it started out
Another method would be to melt the wax and brush it in - probably the historical way - and it works pretty well, you just have to dig into it a bit.
I'd venture to say it would work with a knapsack, too.
Figured I'd share. It's probably not a shocker to most on the forum but in case anyone doesn't want to mess with linseed oil, here's another method.