I know there have been posts about this leather care product, but I’m curious, will it save my dressage saddle.
It has very tiny hints of change of colour from sun/wear. The saddle is only 3 years old, so I’m rather disappointed that it’s already ‘fading’.
Will HSLC help? The products that I have seen cleaned on the internet look amazing. Curious about other experiences.
I use HSLC to deep condition my saddle. Honestly the cleaner does clean, but it’s REALLY drying on both my saddle and strap goods (bridles, breastplates, etc.) I use Belvoir cleaner instead with much better results.
It’s never really changed the color of my tack, but my tack has never faded/changed colors on me before so I can’t really speak to that.
The conditioner is really nice for my saddle, but I don’t like it on strap goods. It makes things too tacky/sticky/residue-y. I use Belvoir conditioner for all other tack (boots, bridles, breastplates, etc.)
There is weird strange bleaching and then there is the natural wear patterns of leather that create a patina and IMHO contribute to the beauty of good quality leather.
In any case you can’t do much about either except keep your gear well.conditioned with a good product.
It’s a Prestige Saddle, only 3 years old which I find rather quick to have minor colour change. It’s extremely minor though, most can barely see it, but I do see it.
Unfortunately the leather warranty is only 2 years, or I would contact Prestige about it.
is it the lightening that happens when the leather is dry?
i have not seen much a difference in color from using HSC regularly. it is a nice product though.
if you want to hide some blemishes or colors in the hide, i’ve seen belharra conditioner soap + belharra balsam make the best difference in turning a saddle from nag to beautiful, patina wise.
Contact prestige anyway. Maybe they can do something. HS will not darken, there are some conditioners that can. Blue ribbon has one that has a small amount of dye in it to help darken.
HSC does not darken in my experience. If the saddle is already very dark I’ve used a straight oil like olive oil to carefully darken a patch that has lightened due to wear. However, unless the surrounding area is already havana or darker, you risk having a chocolate spot on a medium brown section of leather.
Is it calfskin, and are you using Prestige or other calfskin leathers? I just got a Prestige dressage saddle and was told that when customers are having issues with wear, it’s due to using leathers that are too stiff/not calfskin (assuming this is where you’re seeing the wear).
The wear is on the pommel only, not even with my leathers. Which my leathers are from Prestige and are also calfskin.
I think it could be my full seat breeches causing it from posting? But truly hard to say.
Ah, calfskin. So beautiful; so *&^%$% fragile. Haven’t had pommel issues with mine but even with calf leathers I sometimes get rubs from them on the flap. Belharra balsam (your fault, Beowulf!) or Oakwood conditioner completely fix them. Good luck.
I find I get pommel rubs if I wear breeches that don’t fit ‘high and tight’. If the crotch gapes at all, it’ll tent over the pommel and create rubs. I find some brands of breeches fit better than others in this respect.
Ok - my guess now is it’s from when you dismount. Coming from personal experience, the pommel on my Amerigo jump saddle was getting scuffed and it turned out it was from me dismounting. Be careful of belt buckles, things in your pocket (ie. I’ll put my phone in a vest pocket), zippers/buttons on your shirt or jacket.
You could try cleaning and conditioning or oiling the pommel right before you get on, then check after you’ve ridden but before dismounting (to see if it’s your breeches) and after dismounting (to see if you rubbed something on it getting off).
Either that or riding with very low hands that rub the pommel? I’m trying to imagine even coming near the pommel when I post. Sounds crazy painful! When I dismount I tend to scratch the flaps with my zipper jacksts not the pommel, trying to figure out how I’d ever come near it. Interesting problem. It does sound like its a wear issue though.
I think it’s the crotch of my breeches unfortunately 
It’s on both my dressage and jump saddle, but dressage more as it’s my more used saddle.
Definitely not my hands, that habit was broken long before buying these saddles. If anything I get in trouble for them being too high lately, woops!
It sounds like you’ve managed to get some good feedback on what’s causing it! In my experience, our product won’t change the color of your tack, though I’ve had some folks say that it has worked miracles on dry or scratched tack. I had a customer send me a message with pics of her saddle that had slid on concrete when her horse fell, and cleaning and conditioning with her HSLC made the saddle look like new – we don’t make claims that it works miracles, but I happily share them if the customers say so! 
But, I think contacting Prestige is a good idea, and it is always my first suggestion, as they know more about the leather they use in manufacturing than anyone else does. There are also some products on the market that will darken, and some that are designed to darken, both of which I’ve used myself in the past.
@skipollo I do apologize that the soap has been drying for your tack – that is something I’ve never heard before, and the soap itself has conditioners in it, so that you can use it and only condition with the balm once in a while. Hmmm. Now I’m wondering why that is happening! Also, if you’ve found it too thick for strap goods, it may be going on too thick. My favorite way to use the balm is to let it melt in my hands and rub it on by hand to avoid it going on too thick. And my hands get a deep conditioning that way too 
@LadyB Hopefully, Prestige will have some good suggestions for you!
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