Oiling to darken a Calfskin CWD saddle. Yes or No?

[LuvRedHeads]

I have a new-to-me CWD saddle in great condition. I bought it secondhand, not from the retailer, which is why I am turning to COTH for advice.

The saddle still has a somewhat orangish-red hue. It isn’t as dark as I would like. I clean it with TLC Saddle Soap and condition with Lederbalsam.

What can I do to darken to that gorgeous deep brown, near black color? And would this effect re-sale value, should I ever decide to sell it down the road?

I’m nervous, as I have never attempted darkening tack and don’t want to do any harm.

[short_strided]

You can try oil, or you can strip and dye. I bought a used CWD that had a hideous orange/red coating on it. I stripped it with acetone and dyed it brown. It actually worked great!

[Pancakes]

I darkened my CWD with tons of the CWD conditioner. It’s a bit less greasy than lederbalsam and darkened the leather after several good conditionings.

[IPEsq]

Those dark brown CWDs come that way from the factory. It’s a different initial dyeing process. What kind of leather is it? If it’s got a mix of leathers or if it’s buffalo, I’d be hesitant to use a darkening oil because it may not come out evenly.

[BAC]

I let CWD oil my saddle before shipping, it was a gorgeous dark brown, but they didn’t oil my leathers. When I asked what to use so that they would match they told me to use the CWD crème conditioner that they sent with my saddle and despite my misgivings it worked great and matched perfectly. I would never have expected a conditioner could be used to darken, so I would recommend using that. Also, it just happens to be a great product IMO. BTW my saddle was grain leather with calf seat and knees if that matters.

[LuvRedHeads]

2 votes for the CWD conditioner. — I’m just not sure, now that the saddle is not brand new, if it will be effective enough?

Other options:
Neatsfoot Oil
Hydrophane Oil
Olive Oil

Thoughts?

[jonem004]

Start with the CWD conditioner. You can always level up to the oil. That Hydrophane is kind of rough stuff though. I’ve used it to darken saddles and other tack, and while it works, it has a definitely inorganic smell. I tend to think it’s derived from or mixed with petroleum products, which are not great for your leather or stitching long term. I would use it after a couple of weeks of cleaning and conditioning with CWD or animal and plant based oils don’t get you where you want to be. It likely will work, but wouldn’t be the first thing I grabbed off of the shelf.

[HJdaydream]

I have always been told (including by a French saddle rep) to never use oil on a calfskin saddle. I wouldnt try it personally. The CWD conditioner is quite nice, definitely try that first!

[BAC]

I would use the conditioner for a while, you can always go to oil if necessary but I don’t like to use too much oil. If you must oil my favorite is Walsh’s Blue Ribbon product, it’s my favorite oil for darkening because it contains a little bit of stain so it darkens more quickly without having to use excessive amounts of oil. But I still think you are better off with the conditioner.

[merrygoround]

Hydrophane does have a darkening oil. And it is a great conditioning oil.

[paintedpony]

Mink Oil

[annairb]

I highly recommend against neatsfoot oil. It breaks down the fibers in leather and can ruin leather, either by making it wear quicker or whatever. I feel that it may bring down the value a bit if someone knows it has been oiled that way. It also has a specific smell that seems to never go away. I purchased a used Devoucoux bridle that seemed to not have been well conditioned recently but had that neatsfoot oil smell on it. I resold it as the leather wasn’t nice looking and I personally do not like neatsfoot because of the smell and what it does to leather.

I recommend contacting CWD to ask what they think is best for the leather.

Based on my experience as a nice-quality-leather-fanatic, especially if it is calfskin or buffalo, I highly recommend Leather Therapy Restorer and Conditioner. It makes most leathers buttery soft and definitely has darkened a few things for me. It also serves as a wonderful conditioner to maintain the leather and its condition. CWD leather balsam seems to not darken as quickly, if at all, and saddle company’s leather care products are just really expensive in my eyes for not being “magic.”

I have heard well of olive oil. If you want to use a true oil, that’s the one I would try. But I would try the Leather Therapy over this - I swear by their products (including their “wash” cleaner)!

[BAC]

@annairb

. .
Based on my experience as a nice-quality-leather-fanatic, especially if it is calfskin or buffalo, I highly recommend Leather Therapy Restorer and Conditioner. It makes most leathers buttery soft and definitely has darkened a few things for me.

While I agree that Leather Therapy products are excellent, the label on the Restorer and Conditioner specifically states "will not significantly darken leather " so I’m surprised you seem to think it has darkened your tack. I always use it on tack that I don’t want to get any darker.

[annairb]

@BAC

While I agree that Leather Therapy products are excellent, the label on the Restorer and Conditioner specifically states "will not significantly darken leather " so I’m surprised you seem to think it has darkened your tack. I always use it on tack that I don’t want to get any darker.

Oops, sorry for the delayed response!

I had a pair of Millbrook stirrups that I used the Restorer and Conditioner on and they turned from a medium brown to almost black. It may just be on certain types of leathers, but I do feel it has very slightly darkened my saddles as well.

[NO-CTRL]

Another vote for mink oil. Different league as far as quality goes obviously but two coatings with warm mink oil on this Pessoa Legacy. I ended up doing a third coat and it’s lovely chocolatey brown. I do maybe one coat every year to maintain it otherwise just cleaned normally and conditioned.

[Jolie1]

I have the same thing - used calfskin that was more orange in color than anything, but fit horse perfectly and was comfortable.

The only thing that darkened it was mink oil. Still not the perfect dark that my delgrange is, but definitely darker.

I am not sure the long term effect of the oil as have just had saddle for a year but tried other oils/conditioners and nothing would darken our take out the orange until I used mink. I just used twice and it helped enough that it doesn’t look so “off” with other tack and now I use a soap/conditioner mix that I found from a western store that I have no idea what brand it is (they put it in a Rubbermaid container) but it leaves my tack supple, no streaks and just enough stick

[beowulf]

my experience with oiling that newmarket/orangey color is that even post luxurious oil-bath, it’s still more red than brown.

meaning, if you want that beautiful brown patina, you need to strip the dye and re-dye it brown.

conditioning the newmarket, in my experience, just makes it a richer shade of mahogany. not a bad color in my opinion, but not the rich brown you are going for either.

some conditioners i have noticed do a better job than others with patina:
belharra (this is probably my favorite product for making a rich patina)
akene
effax lederbalsam

[BAC]

@NO-CTRL

Another vote for mink oil. Different league as far as quality goes obviously but two coatings with warm mink oil on this Pessoa Legacy. I ended up doing a third coat and it’s lovely chocolatey brown. I do maybe one coat every year to maintain it otherwise just cleaned normally and conditioned.

I have never tried mink oil, but the difference in the before and after is impressive. That saddle is beautiful now.