Hi everyone, I’ve been riding and cleaning tack now for several years and I have always taken pride in how clean, supple and well taken care of my leather tack is. However, I am always on the look out for ways to improve how I clean my tack or to further educate myself. In the past I have used the Lexol products, Horseman’s One Step, Castile Soap, Effax, and Neatsfoot Oil. However, I have heard that people use amonia, vinegar, Murphy’s Oil, vegetable oil, ect. I would really like to know what everyone’s thoughts are and what they do personally. I clean my tack regularly and it is supple and the green gunk around the brass is easily removed. But are some of these products causing the green gunk? What about products like Belvoir, Passier, Oakwood? I would love to hear from as many people as possible about the products they use and the reasoning WHY they use those products vs other products. Thanks!
Stay away from the Horseman’s One Step. It is horrible for tack.
I prefer a good conditioning tack soap. I use Higher Standards (lots of reviews on it over on the eventing forum. Look for threads about Bensmom’s sadde soap), but even just good old Fieblings is great (stinky, but great). Lightly damp sponge so as not to get foam, and rub it on. I will take a damp rag over things before hand if it’s really gunky. But otherwise, I RARELY condition. I just don’t have to.
I know a lot of people get really into their tack cleaning with multiple steps and such, but I just don’t feel the need. Once you use a good soap and do it regularly, it takes little effort to keep up with it.
I will oil new tack or very abused tack, using Hydrophane or olive oil.
And I have used ammonia on really disgusting, neglected tack or tack that has been really funked up with bad products and just needs to start over.
Ammonia in water works well in mold-prone areas and if you have the kind of dirt that seems to never come off once it’s mixed with sweat. The Effax cleaner also works well if for deep cleaning if you are in a drier climate–doesn’t dry out the leather.
I’m usually a glycerine soap wipe down kind of person on a daily basis, though.
I have used Higher Standards for a couple months and really like it. My very picky, tack cleaning master father approves, so it must be good! I also have some of the Passier conditioner, I use it on stuff that really has gotten dry.
An old, soft, toothbrush is a great tool to really scrub stuff likes reins.
About that glued-on dirt/sweat hard-as-rocks mixture that adheres to the leather like glue - I get it nice and wet with saddle soap, let it “soak” while I wipe down the not so dirty bits, then scrub with one of those green sponges that you use on your teflon pans (I think they’re called scrubbies). Voila! Gunk gone!
ammonia, vinegar, murphys etc – caustic agents – are used when tack is very filthy (from sweat or rime) and all you need is a glug or two in a 5 qt bucket of hot/warm water. use the sponge to wipe the tack down. the ammonia is great as it removes built-in dirt (the type of filth that is absorbed from thirsty, ill-cared for tack).
ammonia is also useful for breaking in brand NEW tack and getting the waxy layer on the leather off - that wax is used to prevent surface scratches and mold.
if you clean your tack regularly, you should have no use for either ammonia or vinegar. those are really best reserved for the moldy or nasty tack you inherit but don’t want to throw out just yet.
the green gunk you are seeing is the brass oxidizing, which cannot be prevented. brass is a zinx/copper alloy, and overtime it does corrode – the oxidization, believe it or not, helps prevent that. just wipe your tack regularly. personally, i like to use baby-wipes on my brass hardware after each ride – this helps keep the oxidization from building up. you’ll want to follow up with brasso, in my opinion it does best keeping the green film at bay the longest.
the best products for your tack depend on how your tack was tanned. most tack will do reasonably well with the standard treatment: glycerin and oil. some tack that is aniline dyed does best with this method, IMHO. rawhide leather and very coarse grained leathers do best (in my experience) with a soap cleanse (glycerin or castille) and an oil of your choosing. i prefer a 50/50 mix of olive oil & neatsfoot.
as far as soaps, both castille and glycerin are very drying - they clean up beautifully, but do not have any conditioning properties really. if you clean with either you should always follow up with oil or conditioners.
oils: there are a variety of different oils, each which can be employed for different purposes. the rougher/grainer the leather, the more it likes a viscous oil type (IME). in theory, you can oil leather with ANY oil - mineral oil, motor oil, it really depends on your preference. if you want a darker patina after you oil, go with a thicker and darker type oil - IE, select olive oil over a light oil like peanut oil. mineral oil is cheap, and mixes well with olive oil - it has no nutritional value but is great for conditioning leather.
most oils, if not all, do darken leather. in my experience, canola and vegetable type oils (besides olives) do not darken as deeply as olive and mineral oil.
conditioning is an entirely different aspect of cleaning - some leather types that are very soft such as lambskin, pigskin (surprisingly durable), calfskin, etc, do better with a conditioner. again, it always depends on how the leather was tanned.
for instance, a great and balanced conditioner is HAMMANOL, which is made by stubben. a good conditioner has lanolin in it, but some conditioners can make do without. oakwood conditioner is also good, but darkens leather quickly - one of my favorite conditioners is BELHARRA, which is made by devoucoux. it is better than passier leaderbalsam and effax leaderbalsam, and lasts longer. it is not waterproof like passier.
conditioning soaps, which are usually glycerin based with some sort of oil or extract in them - IMHO, unless it is belharra conditioning soap or some sort of glycerin bar with proprietary ingredients (higher standards, M.O.S.S) or effax leder-combi, i would stay away from them. it would be like mixing your hand lotion with your hand-soap and smearing it on your skin – it usually leaves a filmy or sticky residue and is really only appropriate when you are in a rush.
there is a science behind what you apply when, as well – for instance - i would not wipe down my tack with glycerin before a raining cross-country ride. i would be inclined to wipe down my tack with a warm rag and then apply passier lederbalsam (waterproof) to it.
you have to remember that leather products are essentially skin, and need to be treated as such – you can, in theory, use any skin product on them with very good results. i have a friend that cleans her tack (very nice tack, too) with a dove bar of soap, wipes it down with dove bodywash, and then conditions it with aveno lotion. would i be that brave? no.
so basically, the saga aside – what method you use, what conditioners/soaps you use, how effective they are, and how happy you are with the products, depends entirely on how the leather was tanned and how it was treated.
here are some parts of my tack cleaning arsenal, listed from highest use to least use:
belharra line (soap conditioner & lederbalsam)
higher standards conditioning soap
glycerin soap bar
castille soap (liquid)
effax lederbalsam (used for strap-goods)
higher standards balm
passier lederbalsam
brasso & neverdull, tooth brush, rags, baby wipes are all very well used too.
also, if you’re feeling creative, you can make your own soap at home:
melt a bar of glycerin in microwave (its usually 2 cups)
stir in milk or cream to preference (usually 1/4-3/4 cup) - it will not curdle
herb of choice (dried lavender, mint, etc)
essential oil of choice (i like citrus or eucalyptus the most)
a couple tablespoons olive oil or oil of choice
i usually also add a couple drops of castille soap as well.
mix everything together (you have to be quick, before the soap re-solidifies) and store it in an air-tight container (think a cookie tub). once the soap hardens, you have a new conditioning soap to use!
I love Higher Standards Saddle Soap. Bensmom - you rock. Really cleans the tack, leaves the leather soft, and the smell is lovely (my favorite is the Rosemary Mint). I have not tried her balm yet.
I’m a Lexol lover. I believe that their conditioner is the best and the price is great. I also LOVE the CWD conditioner. Its greasy- but my tack appreciated a good coat of this stuff!
To revive old, grimy tack – ammonia mixed with water (thank you COTH for that recommendation). I recently bought a leather halter through a Facebook page. Loved it, but it was just grimy. Did this trick, then conditioned – it is up there with my Quillins halters now and I paid a fraction of the price.
Nothing strange here… I clean my tack with regular glycerin soap (damp sponge, rub it on the bar, and go to cleaning), and occasionally use a conditioner made by Albion. Otherwise I just wipe it down after I ride with a damp cloth. That keeps the gunk from building up.
?
Bridle: dunk in water trough right after use,
saddle: in hot texas weather, have hose out and ready to use. Hose horse off immediately with tack still on,
take tack of and let air dry,
then finish cooling off horse.
It’s worked great for me my entire life!
Which brand of lederbalsam smells like old fish?
My dad had a tub of the stuff when I was a kid, and it was fabulous for the 2x a year deep, deep condition, but OMG did it smell BAD.
[QUOTE=IPEsq;8104914]
Which brand of lederbalsam smells like old fish?
My dad had a tub of the stuff when I was a kid, and it was fabulous for the 2x a year deep, deep condition, but OMG did it smell BAD.[/QUOTE]
stubben hammanol smells like animal fat to many people, because it is. could it be that, possibly?
I don’t think it was Stubben, but it was a German name, so maybe. And it was most definitely a strong fish smell not lard like. Almost had a fishy kind of texture to it as well…
My brain wants to say it was Passier but it was vastly different from the current product.
ETA – it came in a tin that had a paint can like lid on it, and it had an orange label.
My personal daily regimen is to wipe off sweat with a damp cloth, and give it a go over with Leather Therapy Wash spritzed onto a dry sponge. Tack and boots get this with each use.
If I am stripping everything down, I will give tack a scrub with Castile soap since it works really well on greasy gunk and metal wear points. I’ll let it dry. If it needs deep conditioning, I’ll use Stubben Hammanol (bacon grease smell and all), light conditioning Leather Therapy Restore. Then I will give it a final go over with Stubben glycerine soap.
One thing to note, my regimen in Virginia is way different than when I was in Montana: humidity makes all the difference. In someplace dry like MT, I’d condition a lot more than I do here. If I keep leather too conditioned here, it molds in no time. If it does mold, I lay everything out in the sun for a few hours, then wipe it down with 50/50 vinegar and water, then clean as above.
[QUOTE=IPEsq;8105121]
I don’t think it was Stubben, but it was a German name, so maybe. And it was most definitely a strong fish smell not lard like. Almost had a fishy kind of texture to it as well…
ETA – it came in a tin that had a paint can like lid on it, and it had an orange label.[/QUOTE]
Did it look like cranberry sauce? It might have been Ko-cho-line. I like it if I’m going to store something for a stretch of time.
[QUOTE=WNT;8105357]
Did it look like cranberry sauce? It might have been Ko-cho-line. I like it if I’m going to store something for a stretch of time.[/QUOTE]
It was on the darker side and not smooth texture but I wouldn’t describe it as cranberry sauce, no.
ETA - the tin is similar but the one we had definitely was a product of Germany and said Lederbalsam on it. The Ko-cho-line looks to be British.
Has anyone used NAF’s products for leather cleaning? I’m especially interested in Leather Cleanse/Quick Clean, Leather Food and Leather Balsam.
But do NOT use glycerine soaps. They fade the leather.
Also, Equipe’s stuff is excellent!
To me Hammanol smells a bit like unappetising bacon.
Over conditioning can make leather too floppy, I like it to have some life in it but still be flexible and feel it has some moisture and feel right.
I’m also a fan of the Higher Standards cleaner, but not so much the leather balm. I find the balm too difficult to work with, it’s too hard and solid. I have trouble with my sponge flaking apart and leaving bits of yellow on my tack because I’m rubbing the jar of balm so hard to get any. I recently started using leather honey as my conditioner and love it! It’s in a liquid form that you squeeze right on to a sponge or towel. A little big goes a long way and it works great. I cleaned all of tack last weekend for a clinic and it had never looked better, and I’m a regular tack cleaner!
[QUOTE=beowulf;8104197]
ammonia, vinegar, murphys etc – caustic agents – are used when tack is very filthy (from sweat or rime) and all you need is a glug or two in a 5 qt bucket of hot/warm water. use the sponge to wipe the tack down. the ammonia is great as it removes built-in dirt (the type of filth that is absorbed from thirsty, ill-cared for tack).
ammonia is also useful for breaking in brand NEW tack and getting the waxy layer on the leather off - that wax is used to prevent surface scratches and mold.
if you clean your tack regularly, you should have no use for either ammonia or vinegar. those are really best reserved for the moldy or nasty tack you inherit but don’t want to throw out just yet.
the green gunk you are seeing is the brass oxidizing, which cannot be prevented. brass is a zinx/copper alloy, and overtime it does corrode – the oxidization, believe it or not, helps prevent that. just wipe your tack regularly. personally, i like to use baby-wipes on my brass hardware after each ride – this helps keep the oxidization from building up. you’ll want to follow up with brasso, in my opinion it does best keeping the green film at bay the longest.
the best products for your tack depend on how your tack was tanned. most tack will do reasonably well with the standard treatment: glycerin and oil. some tack that is aniline dyed does best with this method, IMHO. rawhide leather and very coarse grained leathers do best (in my experience) with a soap cleanse (glycerin or castille) and an oil of your choosing. i prefer a 50/50 mix of olive oil & neatsfoot.
as far as soaps, both castille and glycerin are very drying - they clean up beautifully, but do not have any conditioning properties really. if you clean with either you should always follow up with oil or conditioners.
oils: there are a variety of different oils, each which can be employed for different purposes. the rougher/grainer the leather, the more it likes a viscous oil type (IME). in theory, you can oil leather with ANY oil - mineral oil, motor oil, it really depends on your preference. if you want a darker patina after you oil, go with a thicker and darker type oil - IE, select olive oil over a light oil like peanut oil. mineral oil is cheap, and mixes well with olive oil - it has no nutritional value but is great for conditioning leather.
most oils, if not all, do darken leather. in my experience, canola and vegetable type oils (besides olives) do not darken as deeply as olive and mineral oil.
conditioning is an entirely different aspect of cleaning - some leather types that are very soft such as lambskin, pigskin (surprisingly durable), calfskin, etc, do better with a conditioner. again, it always depends on how the leather was tanned.
for instance, a great and balanced conditioner is HAMMANOL, which is made by stubben. a good conditioner has lanolin in it, but some conditioners can make do without. oakwood conditioner is also good, but darkens leather quickly - one of my favorite conditioners is BELHARRA, which is made by devoucoux. it is better than passier leaderbalsam and effax leaderbalsam, and lasts longer. it is not waterproof like passier.
conditioning soaps, which are usually glycerin based with some sort of oil or extract in them - IMHO, unless it is belharra conditioning soap or some sort of glycerin bar with proprietary ingredients (higher standards, M.O.S.S) or effax leder-combi, i would stay away from them. it would be like mixing your hand lotion with your hand-soap and smearing it on your skin – it usually leaves a filmy or sticky residue and is really only appropriate when you are in a rush.
there is a science behind what you apply when, as well – for instance - i would not wipe down my tack with glycerin before a raining cross-country ride. i would be inclined to wipe down my tack with a warm rag and then apply passier lederbalsam (waterproof) to it.
you have to remember that leather products are essentially skin, and need to be treated as such – you can, in theory, use any skin product on them with very good results. i have a friend that cleans her tack (very nice tack, too) with a dove bar of soap, wipes it down with dove bodywash, and then conditions it with aveno lotion. would i be that brave? no.
so basically, the saga aside – what method you use, what conditioners/soaps you use, how effective they are, and how happy you are with the products, depends entirely on how the leather was tanned and how it was treated.
here are some parts of my tack cleaning arsenal, listed from highest use to least use:
belharra line (soap conditioner & lederbalsam)
higher standards conditioning soap
glycerin soap bar
castille soap (liquid)
effax lederbalsam (used for strap-goods)
higher standards balm
passier lederbalsam
brasso & neverdull, tooth brush, rags, baby wipes are all very well used too.
also, if you’re feeling creative, you can make your own soap at home:
melt a bar of glycerin in microwave (its usually 2 cups)
stir in milk or cream to preference (usually 1/4-3/4 cup) - it will not curdle
herb of choice (dried lavender, mint, etc)
essential oil of choice (i like citrus or eucalyptus the most)
a couple tablespoons olive oil or oil of choice
i usually also add a couple drops of castille soap as well.
mix everything together (you have to be quick, before the soap re-solidifies) and store it in an air-tight container (think a cookie tub). once the soap hardens, you have a new conditioning soap to use![/QUOTE]
This post wins most useful post thus far for 2015!
[QUOTE=VTMorgan06;8106030]
I’m also a fan of the Higher Standards cleaner, but not so much the leather balm. I find the balm too difficult to work with, it’s too hard and solid. I have trouble with my sponge flaking apart and leaving bits of yellow on my tack because I’m rubbing the jar of balm so hard to get any. I recently started using leather honey as my conditioner and love it! It’s in a liquid form that you squeeze right on to a sponge or towel. A little big goes a long way and it works great. I cleaned all of tack last weekend for a clinic and it had never looked better, and I’m a regular tack cleaner![/QUOTE]
with leather honey, you don’t find that it catches a lot of residue? i tried it once on my kieffer and hated the result. it caught flies, dust, residue… i think the mistake was i used it on my dressage billet and it looked like a shedding cat had rubbed up and down them…
i symphathize with the HS balm, having the same issue with my sponge – but i do so love how soft and non-sticky the balm is once applied. so i suck it up by popping a cut out chuck of the balm in the microwave for like 5 seconds… turns it nice and soft.
p.s, yes, hammanol does smell like bacon to me too! more specifically, it smells like barbecued…
