the freewheeler

Of course! I frequent bikeforums, but The Classic & Antique Bicycle Exchange (The CABE) is actually a much better resource for classic bicycles. I suggest making an account if you do not yet have one. Unfortunately, tears of this kind are well documented on these saddles. As you said, it was overtightened and dried out, and would have torn as soon as someone put additional weight on the saddle. I think I mentioned, but I am not doing anything else to the bike aside from cleaning...it's a piece of history and needs to show its wear - to tell a story. I only would like to repair the saddle to a point that the tear is not immediately apparent, and do not intend to make the saddle rideable. Thanks! Let me know if you'd like to see some more photos of the bike itself. I actually own two and one is currently listed for sale.

Wow, thank you for the exhaustive response. It's incredibly thorough. In the end, I want the saddle to look exactly like what it is: a 75 year-old piece of leather that has literally been through war. I'm definitely not after a "showroom quality" look, and want to maintain the patina that's evident on the rest of the bike. It needs to tell a story. The most reasonable option appears to be using a backer to reinforce the split area - either leather or nylon. So you would recommend using an all purpose contact cement (Barge), and not a product like Tear Mender? After conditioning with Frye cream, I will try one of your suggested filler methods (polish and/or paste wax). Do I need to do both, or is it ok to just use a paste wax? I do have some Meltonian I could also use if completely necessary. For what it's worth, here are a couple photos of the bike... http://i465.photobucket.com/albums/rr16/mbbowers/IMG_3432_zpslhysk1ru.jpg[/img] http://i465.photobucket.com/albums/rr16/mbbowers/IMG_3443_zpsdjkbbmqw.jpg[/img] Thanks for all of your help.

Hello All - I am a new member, and this is my first post. I'm excited to begin learning from this community. I have an antique bicycle saddle that has split on the "nose," where it was riveted to the metal subframe. I'm debating whether or not I should try to reconnect the leather in this area, but do not want to experiment anything with the process. The value of the saddle is ~$300, so I do not want to risk devaluing it. Having said that, I've been looking around and seen a few products advertised to "glue" leather (Tear Mender). Would this be a safe method to use? In addition to this, should I use any other products to glue the leather to the steel subframe...was considering some kind of epoxy for this because it will be hidden once the leather itself is mended. Finally, is there anything I can use to fill the joint and color to match the rest of the leather? (see 2nd photo) I will not ever actually use this saddle to ride on, so I am not concerned with any weight stresses that would otherwise occur. The bike will only sit on display. Please see the photos below and let me know your thoughts! Thank you!