Edge Finishing Calculator

This calculator scales two very different processes off the same two measurements -- Total Edge Length and Finishing Layers -- because both burnishing and edge painting are applied per pass, per foot of edge. Burnishing Time assumes 2 minutes of work per foot of edge for every layer/pass at your chosen Finishing Method (1 or 3), which covers the friction-and-water (or gum tragacanth/beeswax) technique of compressing and sealing raw leather fiber into a smooth, rounded edge. Edge Paint Needed assumes 0.5 mL of product per foot per layer at method 2 or 3, which is a rough middle-of-the-road figure -- thin, watery edge paints go further per coat while thick acrylic edge coats use noticeably more. Total Edge Length is what actually moves both figures: it's a straight linear multiplier on whichever of Burnishing Time or Edge Paint Needed applies for your chosen method, so doubling the length you're finishing always doubles the time or paint needed at a fixed number of layers.

Finishing Method itself changes which figures apply (method 2 produces zero Burnishing Time, method 1 produces zero Edge Paint Needed) rather than scaling anything up or down. Total Time Estimate adds a further assumption whenever edge paint is involved (method 2 or 3): on top of the material-volume figure, it assumes 1 minute of hands-on painting time per foot per layer -- the same per-foot/per-layer shape as the burnishing rate, just a separate assumed pace for the painting motion itself. What this calculator does not account for: leather thickness or edge porosity, both of which change how many coats of edge paint actually soak in before you get a sealed, glossy result, or the dry time between coats, which is real elapsed time but not hands-on work time.