Softening leather

[Dewey]

I have an Ovation martingale. It was a bit stiff when I bought it, but several applications of neatsfoot oil softened it right up. It is very soft now and a bit darker than it was at first as well.

[Llewellyn]

@findeight

Lard is sold as Crisco in the grocery stores and, yes, it’s an option, so is Lanolin ( from sheep). just keep a towel handy for your hands and use a small amount massaging it in. Warm is better too, opens the pores of the leather. Good for the fingernails too.

Wait, where are you located where lard is the same as Crisco? Crisco has always been vegetable shortening (and only vegetable shortening!) to me. Maybe it’s some sort of trademark dilution? I have to go to butcher or the Mexican grocery store to get actual lard, can’t get it in my local supermarkets.

[Llewellyn]

@Dr. Doolittle

I found this: https://thornews.com/2012/04/02/norwegian-children-have-to-drink-tran-cod-liver-oil/

Looks like cod liver oil, not whale oil. “Tran” is on the Effax label - but only for the oil, not for the softener.

Actually that makes sense. They’re a German company and der Tran (net en Watt mer hen uff unsere Mundart!) means both whale oil and fish oil.

[Dewey]

@findeight

Lard is sold as Crisco in the grocery stores and, yes, it’s an option, so is Lanolin ( from sheep). just keep a towel handy for your hands and use a small amount massaging it in. Warm is better too, opens the pores of the leather. Good for the fingernails too.

Lard is animal fat; Crisco is vegetable shortening. I can buy lard in the grocery store, but it’s sometimes hard to find.

[rhymes_with_orange]

@Dewey

I have an Ovation martingale. It was a bit stiff when I bought it, but several applications of neatsfoot oil softened it right up. It is very soft now and a bit darker than it was at first as well.

That is good to hear. I bought these because I remembered the Ovation products that I had had in the past being soft, and these are not soft. I am planning to sit down and attack them with neatsfoot oil this weekend.

[eq6375]

I use fiebings Aussie conditioner and neatsfoot or comparable oil after. I start by conditioning with a heavy layer, wipe excess off after it has sat for a while, and then I add neatsfoot after. Depending on how stiff the leather is I’ll dunk it in neatsfoot and let it soak in after letting the conditioner soak in. Hope this helps!