Re: [RC] cleaning leather saddles - Sisu West Ranch
"...damage the stitching and not to use them..."
Claim has been circulating form many years. Since
the thread used to stitch leather is either linen (flax), cotton, or nylon none
of which are harmed in the slightest by oils*, I could not figure out the basis
of these observations.
One day while reading a story it came to me. The
usual observation is that the boot or saddle, while older, was fine until I put
(insert name of oily product) on it, then it fell apart. I realized that
when assembling leather goods, they are glued to hold them in alignment before
the stitching. In the good old days, they used hide glue, which is water
soluble but not oil soluble. I'll bet during that time the story was "my
item was fine until I got caught in the rain storm and the stitching
rotted".
Armed with my suspicions, I looked at the label on a
bottle of glue sold at a leather shop. Bingo, it was a modern contact
adhesive that was not water soluble, but was at least somewhat oil
soluble. The story was now complete. An old item has the stitches
worn weak, but is being held together by the glue. A liberal application
oil and the glue dissolves.
My youngest saddle was purchased in 1990, my oldest I
purchased used in 1973 when I bought my first horse. Both are worn, but
working good. I have had to restitch some seams over the years.
Here is what I do:
1. Wash with mild hand soap and water and rinse when very
muddy or salt impregnated. Allow to dry naturally and slowly.
2. Treat with Neat's-foot oil or Neat's-foot compound
if feeling cheap. Allow to soak in for a few days.
3. Work up a good lather with saddle soap, allow to dry
and then buff. On riding boots I have used a boot oil that contains some
bee's wax instead of the saddle soap. (the beeswax in both the saddle soap
and the shoe oil stays around better than just the oil) By the way, shoe
oil is great on leather reins, they stay supple and non slip.
Note, I am not giving trade names because I have used
various brands over the years with similar results. I look at the
ingredient label.
Ed
*I worked with fibers, mostly synthetic, for 30 years in
industry.
Ed & Wendy Hauser 2994 Mittower
Road Victor, MT 59875
