Wondering what everyone’s thoughts are on neatsfoot oil. I got a pair of used side reins, and they’re a bit brittle. They’re not cracking or anything, but definitely not soft and supple. No idea of the quality of them really, maybe they don’t have the potential to be lovely and supple, but anyways. I’ve used my regular lexol cleaner and conditioner on them and haven’t seen any improvement. So today I picked up a container of lexol neatsfoot oil. I did a quick google search and learned that using neatsfoot oil is a real hot topic in the leather community.
Do you use neatsfoot oil? Should I use neatsfoot oil on these side reins? If not, what can I do to help restore them to their (hopefully) supple former glory?
I revived a dried out bridle very nicely with Effax Leather Balsam: https://www.bigdweb.com/product/code/119EF.do?gclid=Cj0KCQjw-r71BRDuARIsAB7i_QOJKmvWBE_CfZvUwwxXLaVYZMI4nzoU1plnuAS8bZW0JtNvLwMgcG8aAnSQEALw_wcB
I’ve revived old tack with both neatsfoot oil and mineral oil. It will get dark and look old. I would only use it on functional stuff that you didn’t really care how it looked.
I used to keep a 5 gallon bucket of neatsfoot oil in my tack room. I’d dunk the piece of tack for 24 hours or so…then I had a tack hook above the bucket and would let the tack piece hang/drain over the bucket until it stopped dripping. Worked well for me. I revived a VERY dry old saddle using “Leather New”…THAT was very satisfactory!
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I’m currently renovating a western saddle. I read that dry/brittle leather needs water. That you can neatsfoot oil it/condition it all you want, but it needs water. So, I’ve been wetting down this saddle I bought once every few days (after having done a thorough saddle cleaning), then covering it in neatsfoot oil. I’m pleased with the results so far, it’s a LOT more supple. I think it also depends on the quality of leather, and of course it does have a tendency to darken leather. This is not a problem for the saddle I have right now, it is actually looking newer with it, but again, it’s a western saddle. Oh. And I make sure not to wet down the fleece only the leather parts. Good luck!
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I would not use water on an english saddle. The leather is a different type.
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Post before and after shots. Those would be real fulfilling
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If you Google “neatsfoot oil” you’re going to get a wide variety of opinion ranging from “white magic stuff” to “black magic Devil’s brew.” A lot of this depends on whether your dealing with pure Neatsfoot or a blend (where you might not know what is in the blend). And the type and age of the leather can make a BIG difference in what you want to select to “rejuvenate” it. Different tanning processes can react differently to Neatsfoot oil.
I’m a long term user of Stubben Hammonol and have had good luck with it across the board with saddles, other horse tack, gun leather, even an old pair of leather shoes I found in the back of a closet.
Another product I’ve used lately on “strap goods” (reins, belts, and the like) is pure beef tallow. You can buy it at Whole Foods (at least on their website). It works very well as “softener” for slightly dry leather and when I was getting ready to make a some new pouches I found an older, partial leather side under my workbench that had been there for several years. It was pretty stiff and likely to crack if worked. A couple of treatments with the beef tallow allowed it to soften and become functional again. It was a cheap way to save a $100 piece of hide!!!
Whatever you chose buy the smallest quantity you can and check it on an old piece of tack you really don’t care about. If it does what you want you can “scale up.” If it doesn’t you’re not out much.
Good luck going forward.
G.
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I use olive oil. The smell of neatsfoot oil makes me nauseous. It’s worked well for me.
Neat’s foot oil was about all there was in the Olden Days. All sorts of new leather care products and various brands started taking over the market but it has survived. It is still in use, probably mostly by people who used it during the Olden Days. Pure neat’s foot oil may be okay for leather in really bad shape, especially if it iis headed for the trash, but that still appears to be under discussion. There also have been formulas that contains the oil, but the pure is supposed to be the best.
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My understanding of the old “problem” with neatsfoot was that it could rot stitching, but that was back in the days when stitching was most often done with natural fibers, versus the synthetic used today. And the issue was supposedly with the compound, not the pure oil.
I just used it in a new bridle I bought in March, right before everything shut down. I tend to use it on brand new tack, or something that’s gotten very wet and needs a deep condition. I do not use it as a regular conditioner- I prefer something like lederbalsam for that.
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I use neatsfoot oil on nearly all of my tack, from new to very (!!!) old, and it is all in wonderful condition. Be sure to use the pure oil, and do not over oil (better to use a little bit several different times than to soak it and have the leather go to mush.). Also be cautious that the oil isn’t saturating any padding, like the wool in the panels.
I like the Effax leather balsam and the Stubben Hammonol. I have used Neatsfoot oil on tack before, and while it may make the leather supple, I feel it makes the leather slick. The 2 products I mentioned, and others have up thread, leave the leather supple, but not slick.
I’ve used pure neatsfoot oil since the olden days of the 1980s, and some of that tack is still in use today. If you use it, make sure it’s pure neatsfoot oil, and not neatsfoot oil compound. At least that’s what they used to say about the stitching. Today’s stitching is probably okay either way.
Neatsfoot is fine, not my favorite for very sad cases of old tack though, which is Effax Lederbalsam.
Neatsfoot compound though is an absolute no go. The (generally petroleum-based) added oils can speed up the decay of leather over time.
https://www.mannapro.com/products/leather-care/lexol-neatsfoot-leather-conditioner is the stuff I currently have sitting on my counter, if anyone has thoughts on this specific product.
I’ve placed an order for Effax Lederbalsam, so I think I am going to try that first and see how it goes. I will keep you all posted:)
