The WK-100 High Performance Leather range from Packer Leather boasts advanced technologies designed for all types of watchstrap.

Specifically engineered through intensive research and development and based upon our successful gloving technology, this leather achieves the highest strength properties, good abrasion resistance, superior water resistance and dry soft characteristics, enhanced perspiration resistance, ultra colour fastness properties, whilst maintaining the necessary softness and flexibility.

The WK-100 range is available to look very elegant and traditional or indeed have such aesthetics as textures and effect prints, metallic, pearl and iridescent looks, and can also be infused with other technologies such as anti-microbial properties, phase change material thermal management and more. Further explanation is detailed below of this world class leather and its core attributes:

1. Strength

The structure of Kangaroo skin makes it the strongest natural fibre structure found anywhere in the world. Its internal matrix comprises of a flat weave of triple helix proteins, resulting in super strength. The fibre bundles are reinforced by a secondary fibre structure and each fibre in the bundle is made up of a much more compact fibril, and it is for this reason coupled with the low angle of weave that the ultimate strength is gained.

This allows thinner leathers to be used without fear of tearing.

2. Water Resistance

The WK-100 High Performance Leather has been engineered with a permanent water repellence technology based upon advanced polymers. The treatment will resist the action of wetting both in dynamic and static conditions from either water or perspiration. Furthermore, this technology allows the leather to dry faster and remain soft while retaining its original shape.

3. Persiration (Sweat) Resistance

The human body generates a great amount of perspiration, especially in hot weather and high adrenalin situations. One problem faced by most thin leathers in the world is their poor ability to withstand the damaging action perspiration can have on the leathers tannage, where the Lactic Acid component of perspiration cleaves the tanning bond in the leather, resulting in detannage. Ultimately perspiration damage will lead to leather becoming hard, cracky and become much darker in colour on pastel to medium shade colours. It will also reduce the strength of the leather, allowing perspiration damaged areas to tear easily like paper.

The WK-100 High Performance Leather has a special secondary reinforcing tannage, permanently incorporated into the leather, which resists degradation due to perspiration. This prolongs its life ensuring it’s performance and appearance remains almost unchanged.

4. Colourfastness

Colourfastness is critical for any product in direct contact with the skin, which are subjected to perspiration, water and rubbing to name a few. Traditional dyeing technology for leather does not yield the performance required for high performance colour fastness properties, particularly to perspiration. This is primarily due to the poor ionic attraction strengths between the dyestuff molecules and the leather when subjected to high pH conditions as produced by human perspiration. This reaction causes the bond to be broken allowing
the dye to bleed.

Through innovative technology research, Packer Leather has developed its Hi-Fast method of dyeing leather. The result forms an ultra strong bond between the dyestuff and the leather, and thus gives higher colour fastness values.

Technical Specifications

	TEST	METHOD	UOM	SPECIFICATION
	SUBSTANCE (Dependant upon end use)	SLP 4	mm	0.6 – 0.7
	BAUMANN TEAR STRENGTH	BS 3144	kg/mm	>8
	STATIC WATER UPTAKE (after 20 minutes)	BS 3449	%	<25
	STATIC WATER UPTAKE (after 60 minutes)	BS 3449	%	<40
	COLOUR MIGRATION WATER FLESH	SLF 421	Grey Scale	> 4
	COLOUR MIGRATION WATER GRAIN	SLF 421	Grey Scale	> 4
	COLOUR MIGRATION PERSPIRATION pH=8.0 FLESH	SLF 426	Grey Scale	> 2.5
	COLOUR MIGRATION PERSPIRATION pH=8.0 GRAIN	SLF 426	Grey Scale	> 2.5

PLM denotes Packer Laboratory Method
All colour migration results are reported in greyscale units according to ISO 105-A03: 1993, BS EN 20105-A03: 1995, BS 1006-A03: 1990, SDC Std Methods 5th Edition A03