The discussion on coating pouches peaked my curiousity and so I
thought I might just add my two cents, too.

    I have used a thinned-down solution of 111 Dow Corning pure
Silicone Grease on new pouches. I'll tell you why in a minute. Lifter
disks are put on by dipping 3/16" dia. cloth punchings into hot hide
glue, centering them, and placing the lifter directly on top. That way,
glue doesn't spread around under the lifter and stiffen the working
portion of the pouch too much.

        Carter's rubber cement has been recommended for years to do
this sealing bit, I realize. Several very good rebuilders still use it
faithfully. But if one would just go back through their kindergarten
art their mother saved for them, they would also discover that Carter's
rubber cement is hygroscopic and turns to powder in a few year's time.
What you thought was glued together for all eternity has long ago
disintegrated.

    If you think that players are different, I would invite you to look
inside of an old Ampico which used rubber cement on the pouches, and
you will find some of the STIFFEST pouches in the business, as well as
some of the leakiest. The reason is that after awhile, rubber cement
sort-of "work hardens" and the pouches form a "donut." The very place
where such a pouch works the hardest is right at the edge of the hole,
and this is where the rubber cement is probably the thickest, if the
pouches were sealed after they were placed.

    If you want to prove this, it's simple to do. Pour a little dye
stain into the rubber cement sample and using your fingers or a brush,
just paint a few pouches with it as you usually do. Don't try to get
the colored cement "even." Don't cheat yourself. Just see where it ends
up. And you'll then notice that the edge of the hole squeeges the glue
off the applicator and ends up getting the darkest.

    Mink oil is just more baloney, in my estimation. First, it isn't a
very good sealer because under low pressure conditions, it creates a
vapor pressure and distributes itself as a fine, oily film all over
everything inside the player.  That means metal valve seats,
especially. Now as moist air is pumped through, the oily fim
being lighter than the moisture traps the moisture under it, and after a
few years, you get a beautiful, green trim growing around the edges of
the valve plates. Proof of mink oil, or any other oil or grease used as
a sealant, if that grease is lighter than water.

    Silicone grease is best, because it is heavier than water, it
doesn't form a "vapor pressure" under any conditions, it is absorbed
perfectly into the leather, it doesn't migrate, and it truly preserves
the pouches while not causing them ever to be stiff.

    I still use trichloroethane to thin it down, but lacquer thinner
works just fine, too. Once you have a sealing solution, seal a few, dry
them thoroughly, and test them for tightness. If they still leak a
little, make your solution a bit heavier. Once you get the solution
right, write it down so you can make some more. Talcum the pouches (do
not use cornstarch. Bacteria can turn the starch in cornstarch into
sugars that draws insects, and encouraging bacteria growth accelerates
pouch disintegration). Talcum powder repels insects--even destroys them
in the same manner that diatomaceous earth kills insects. And as far as
mink oil goes, it too is edible and tempting to insects, mold, smut,
and bacteria.

    I really urge rebuilders to remember the principles and to do it
right the first time.