Leather dressing: Which do you prefer?

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Texas Moon

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Which brand of leather dressing do you folks prefer?

Need to care for a new holster and was wondering which one was best?
 
If you use Neatsfoot oil just be sure it is pure neatsfoot and not neatfoot oil compound.

I use some pure neatsfoot, lexol conditioner is good, I also like Skidmores leather cream.
 
Texas Moon said:
Which brand of leather dressing do you folks prefer?

Need to care for a new holster and was wondering which one was best?
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Pecard Leather Dressing is the last word in leather conditioning. Even museums use Pecard products to preserve antique leather. PECARD CHEMICAL CO., INC., 1836 Industrial Drive, Green Bay, WI 54302.
 
That, plus it softens leather over time.

Something you don't want to happen on fitted holsters.

rc
 
I bought a pair of Kirkpatrick holsters for cowboy action competition. I asked what they recommended and they said to repair the scuffs with Kiwi boot polish or Kali-Leather Life, but avoid the other stuff because they will soften the leather too much.
 
Hey all!

I've got a set of powder horns that were made by a local black powder rifle builder about 25 to 30 years ago. I got them to go with the fellow's flintlock when I bought it last year from the son that simply could not bear to shoot his dad's gun and which just sat, which he couldn't bear either.

He was very happy that it was going to be staying and used within the group that his dad shot with for so many years.

BUT! The leather of the shoulder band is made from a light and supple deer skin that is folded over a ribbon of cow leather inside the dear skin sheath. Due to poor storage for some time the leather came to me with a rather musty smell. I put on some good clear shoe creme shortly after I got it and figured that the musty smell would go away.

Well, it hasn't and whenever I get my nose at all near to it or open the rain coat from over it to load I get a nose full.

So what is a good product or method for cleaning out the musty smell? Something that furthers the protection of the leather would be nice.
 
I usually clean with Saddle Soap, the old school solid kind in the can.

Then I use Mink Oil in the can as a dressing/treatment.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr
 
recently in a pinch...

Not so long ago I was holstered up and damp weather was threatening. I used some traditions wonder lube 1000 and it not only kept moisture at bay, had that pleasant spearmint aroma, but also seemed to really improve the overall condition of the leather... who knew?

Given a choice I generally go for saddle soap on those rare occasions where cosmetics matter to me and mink oil for a protective dressing...
 
Out here in the Sonoran Desert; I stick with Fiebing's Neatsfoot oil. Lexol (Cleaner and Conditioner) is pretty good; but I somehow end up with less Lexol than Neatsfoot at the end of the day. Winter's a'comin; so I'm cleaning and wiping a lot of crud off the saddles, one per week.
Just finished cleaning a big ol' All-Around saddle that I've had for a few years. Bought it from a guy that had been "storing it" ever since his daughter aged out of the 4H Horse Show ring a few years before then. He'd pull the saddle out of his garage twice yearly and used a full can of saddle soap (the hard stuff) to "keep it clean".
I've had the saddle for 6-7 years now; been working that saddle over regularly. Haven't gotten all of the saddle soap stripped off it yet; there are still places where it sounds like the bed springs in the "top floor office" of an 1850's House of Ill Repute.

I've been overmolding my own holsters for a couple years now. Usually just wrap up in Saran Wrap whichever revolver is getting its holster re-molded. 3-5 minutes in a pail of hot water, stuff the hogleg in the holster; and leave it alone for as long as you can possibly wait for it to start drying off. Molding into all the nooks and crannies is good for arthritic thumbs, too!

(OBTW.... I DO use saddle soap for one thing. My oilcloth duster slicks up pretty as can be when I use saddle soap instead of the slick compound sold to touch up 'wet spots'. The saddle soap also lasts a bit longer in keeping those wet spots from re-forming.)
 
If it's new, leave it the hell alone! Seriously, if it's a quality product, it doesn't need anything for at least a year or two or three. Even then, anything you put on it should be done very lightly and not more than once a year.

Lexol or Skidmores. I like olive oil over neatsfoot. Either should be used very sparingly.

Shoe polish does nothing to preserve or nourish leather, it's only a protectant.


That, plus it softens leather over time.
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Only if it's overdone.
 
I use some Harley Davidson leather cleaner and a separate bottle of cleaner for my jackets and slings. It appears to be mink oil to me but I was given two bottles for Christmas many years ago and they have served me well, even though I am not a Hardly man......
 
Yeah, Skidmores is great. Pure neatsfoot oil, as others have indicated, will soften the leather. Neatsfoot oil compound does have petroleum oil (not sure it's 10W30), but it will darken AND soften the leather. Not good for most applications although I have used it on horse tack where color is not important and protecting from horse sweat is.
 
Pure neatsfoot oil, as others have indicated, will soften the leather.
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One more time for those perpetuating this myth and apparently not reading the thread, neatsfoot is only a problem if overdone. That is, you don't soak you holster or gun belt in oil like you did as a kid with your baseball glove.

IF NEATSFOOT WAS A UNIVERSALLY BAD IDEA, JOHN BIANCHI WOULD NOT DIP HIS RIGS IN WARM NEATSFOOT BEFORE FINISHING.
 
Coyote3855 said:
Yeah, Skidmores is great. Pure neatsfoot oil, as others have indicated, will soften the leather. Neatsfoot oil compound does have petroleum oil (not sure it's 10W30), but it will darken AND soften the leather. Not good for most applications although I have used it on horse tack where color is not important and protecting from horse sweat is.
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Pure neatsfoot will only soften quality leather unless you REALLY over do it. I very heavily oil new rigs I make with pure neatsfoot oil. John Bianci actually dips his and even shows how he does it in his video.

Lexol and even Skidmores will soften leather far more than pure neatsfoot oil will. If I want to soften leather neatsfoot oil is not what I grab off of the shelf.

Now notice I said quality leather, if you are using the cheap spongy imported leather, then yes, it will turn into a dish rag with much oil but that doesn't matter which kind.
 
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