Taking care of leather

SeaCat

Hey, my Halo is smoking
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Sep 23, 2003
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Okay so I know some of you here have leather.

How do you take care of it? What do you use to keep it supple and in shape?

Cat
 
Leathaphane. Use it for everything from leather lounges to coats.
Dubbin for boots it's a waterproofer and softener.

I assume similar products are available in the US
 
Yes, would like to know too. Especially on footwear. How does one keep the leather footpad of a sandal clean without it cracking?
 
Most shoe store carry some line of leather cleaners and such. Hubby uses Mink oil which seems to work well for him.
 
What carrie-on said about shoe stores.

There's a product called Soccer Lube that softens and treats leather shoes.

There's a product whose name I can't recall right now (Leather Food, maybe?) that I got from a local Jaguar dealership that I use on my car seats to keep them supple.

Then there's Lexol and saddle soap.

If your thinking about your bike's seat - your local Auto Zone (or whatever you have) should have a lot of products (McGuires, Zaino, etc...).

Things like Neatsfoot oil and Mink oil can darken leather.
 
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Lexol and mink oil are great! For softening and cleaning, nothing beats saddle soap.
 
Most shoe store carry some line of leather cleaners and such. Hubby uses Mink oil which seems to work well for him.

Mink oil is an old standby [and I mean old as in came around over a hundred years ago]

Shoe polish from Kiwi works well on boots

If you really want good stuff...go to your local camping store [NOT WALMART] or go to www.rei.com or www.ems.com . They're diehard camping stores...so they'll have things for leather boots etc
 
Mink oil is an old standby [and I mean old as in came around over a hundred years ago]

Shoe polish from Kiwi works well on boots

If you really want good stuff...go to your local camping store [NOT WALMART] or go to www.rei.com or www.ems.com . They're diehard camping stores...so they'll have things for leather boots etc

Saddlesoap and Neatsfoot oil take great care of our saddles, but I would suggest visiting a local tack store, and talking to the people there for their advice.
 
Saddle soap - though a rub down with a willing virgin helps.
No!!!

Saddle soap cleans leather, but doesn't soften it-- in fact, it removes the oils. You have to re-oil the leather after you've cleaned it. I guess that's where the virgin comes in, huh?
Neatsfoot, is great, Lexol is good- Lexol is synthetic, which has an advantage that your cats won't try to eat your leathers.:eek:

You can rub Butcher's brand floor wax into boots and jackets for waterproofing. Start by wetting the leather with water, so that the micro-crystalline component can soak in real good. Then you'll want to let it air out for a while to get rid of the turpentine smell-- but water just rolls off after that.
 
Saddlesoap and Neatsfoot oil take great care of our saddles, but I would suggest visiting a local tack store, and talking to the people there for their advice.

That works quite well indeed. Either way...tack shops and hiking stores are your best bet...they are the ones whom know the need for tending to leather...hiking for your boots etc and tack shops for your other needs ;)
 
Most shoe store carry some line of leather cleaners and such. Hubby uses Mink oil which seems to work well for him.

This was a staple around our house, with all the boys and male cousins. There seemed to be a never ending supply of catcher's mitts and ball gloves that needed breaking in.
 
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