I’ve now used the soap on several different pieces of tack, and I’m definitely SOLD! My only complaint is that it didn’t help my saddle to sell on ebay, but it sure looked good :lol::lol::lol:
I would definitely buy the 2 ounce sample size assortment to give as gifts to horsey friends. Or to keep for myself. 
The 8 ounce container stays in my barn bag, and it would be nice to leave that one at home and have a 2 ounce container to carry around instead.
If you make 2oz sample sizes I will be ordering them for all sorts of people.
Count me in on the sample sizes too! I have many horse friends that need to be introduced the fabulousness
I received my soap on Friday. Padded envelope was fine for shipping 3 jars, they all arrived in good shape. Love the jars, nice sturdy plastic & it will be very easy to get to the bottom – no wasting of soap! The candies were a nice touch. I found the scents to be very subtle, which was a pleasant surprise as I am sensitive to ‘perfume-y’ scents.
DH and I can’t decide if we like the Rosemary Mint or Lavender Vanilla better, although the vanilla might win by a nose. The Citrus Ginger was a nice, light scent as well.
First up were DH’s farrier boots. They hadn’t been cleaned for months. Now they look amazing; the dirt and grime came off with minimal scrubbing. Next I cleaned my custom boots – they had been stored in the basement and had a bit of mildew on them (eek). Now they look like new and I really like the way the leather feels – it’s even better than if I used the old Vogel’s leather conditioner (and I really loved that stuff!).
Found a few bridles in the basement as well; they had been stored for about 2 years and were clean but the leather felt stiff and dry. The soap softened the leather nicely although I would still like to use a conditioner (I will report back after the leather balm arrives!). When I wiped down a set of laced reins, I used a little less water on the sponge and there was no residue to clean out of the lacing! With glycerin or other soaps, I would have to use a toothbrush to get the gunk out – not the case here. Love that.
I have one cheap schooling bridle that is leather but doesn’t really act like it – if I were to condition it, some areas would get super soft & floppy, others would stay stiff as a board. The soap did a nice job on this odd leather!
I brought a saddle home on trial today and the leather feels okay – not horribly dry, but not great either & I can’t wait to see how it looks after it’s cleaned with the soap! If I end up keeping it, the leather balm will go on that too!
Overall, the soap left all grades of leather softer & I like the somewhat matte finish it gives the leather. I noticed the leather seems to get “richer” looking & feeling after using the soap a few days in a row.
I also like that it doesn’t leave any sticky residue on your hands at all – it made my hands feel softer after using it; almost like a very light application of a hand lotion!
So…I regret I waited this long to buy the soap and I apologize for taking this long to write this! I’m anxiously awaiting the leather balm – I’ve got thirsty leather over here! 
I love the idea of 2 oz. sample sizes! They would certainly last long enough - like others, I’ve hardly put a dent in my soap! Please PM me when you get pricing on those - you know how many I would need. Would you consider doing a gift sampler - 2 oz. soap and 2 oz. leather balm?
-Taryn
PS: I do have before & after pictures, have to get them off the camera.
Well, I thought the saddle I took on trial was reasonably clean. It was actually filthy! Here’s an album of before & after photos - https://picasaweb.google.com/111905546578685545738/DirtyCleanTack?authuser=0&feat=directlink
Thanks again for developing a wonderful soap. The dirt on the saddle just melted off!
-Taryn
Taryn – Thank you soooooo much!
My packing/shipping/planning VP is out of town at the moment, so we haven’t run the numbers on the 2 oz sizes, but as soon as I have an idea, I’ll send you a PM back!
Your thorough report was awesome!!
My coach events, and I found her nasty jumping boots in the tack room the other day. I asked her if I could test out this soap on them, since my tack wasn’t very dirty. She was thrilled that I was volunteering to clean tack!
They are lovely Antares leather boots that didn’t look all that lovely after show jumping, but cleaned up beautifully.
Pictures (public FB album):
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152853683970085.1073741831.651830084&type=1&l=57c8f795a4
After so many good reviews on this Bensmom soap, I think I’ll have to try some! I have a CWD…does anyone know if the soap is fine for the higher-end leather?
Works wonderfully on my Dev.
[QUOTE=McKenna95;6994082]
After so many good reviews on this Bensmom soap, I think I’ll have to try some! I have a CWD…does anyone know if the soap is fine for the higher-end leather?[/QUOTE]
My CWD monoflap liked the soap very much. I had to condition it after I used the soap the first time, but now that I’m using it regularly, the leather is staying supple and moisturized nicely. You should totally do it!
Just placed an order for the Rosemary Mint…can’t wait to try this soap out! I’ve been using a friend’s Schleese that is badly in need of a good cleaning and conditioning.
I have been using this on my tack and am loving the results, especially how easily it gets through the nasty on my half chaps. My next trial will be the leather seats in my car!!!
[QUOTE=Jo;6994656]
I have been using this on my tack and am loving the results, especially how easily it gets through the nasty on my half chaps. My next trial will be the leather seats in my car!!![/QUOTE]
ETA: I use this on a Beval and several of my Schleese saddles and it works great on all of them!
I also just placed an order for some soap! Had a hard time deciding between rosemary mint and vanilla lavender; went wih the rosemary! If it was straight lavender, I wouldn’t be able to get it in my Etsy cart fast enough!
I put my username in the notes as well, Bensmom.
[QUOTE=McKenna95;6994082]
After so many good reviews on this Bensmom soap, I think I’ll have to try some! I have a CWD…does anyone know if the soap is fine for the higher-end leather?[/QUOTE]
My Dev liked it the second time around. The first time I think it just hated its life and would have been weird with anything. It’s since learned to cope. I like Bensmom’s soap on it better than I like the soap that came with the saddle.
I’m the one with the sad Edgewood bridle. A month of this soap later, and the bridle looks and feels great. I’m going to take another round of pictures (I took some before use and at 2 weeks also) for show and tell and then do another round of oiling. The bridle now looks 3 years younger!
I was laughing at myself yesterday as I cleaned tack. I’ve got nothing but dregs left of my sample and I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my new jar!!! I was picking up the little bits of soap and rubbing it on my sponge.
Love this stuff so much. Didn’t know it was possible to love tack cleaner this much! :lol:
You guys – are you sure someone is paying y’all to say such nice things?!! :lol:
YB – you should have your new one today! It shipped on Wednesday. But, apparently, you just never know. I had one package that should have arrived at the latest, last Saturday. It didn’t show up until Wednesday and the soap’s lid had been knocked off and cracked. 
Other than that first silver lid that had an issue, no one has reported any abused jars until now.
It is such good info to get the feedback, because I shipped the package that arrived worse for wear a little differently that I have shipped the most and and now I know not to do that again!
I’m working on the conditioner still, to make sure it is right. After all, the soap was in a testing phase for 9 years! :lol: As far as packaging on that, should it be the same? Slightly different? The cobalt jars come in a squared shape as well. Should the jars be the same with different labels? I could do a clear jar, but I hate to get away from the cobalt jars as a “signature.” On the other hand, I hate to have someone grab the wrong jar in the store and then be frustrated because you can’t instantly tell them apart. Thoughts?
Thanks!
Libby
I like the idea of the square cobalt jar. I would like to be able to tell apart the soap and conditioner easily in my tack box. Plenty of other brands have different shapes for the two so I don’t think it’s going to be upsetting to anybody! The Equipe Soft Clean and Soft Grease that I was previously using is two totally different shapes - one is a taller rounded bottle, and the other a squat round tub.
I think square jars sound very stylish!
