How do I deep clean a saddle?

[roncal]

How do yall really deep clean a saddle? Then what do you use to re-oil?

[Mike Craw]

Hey Roncal!

Sorry nobody responded to your question, but I missed it somehow. I think a lot of times when you do some sort of post, and then somebody posts a different question or photo right after you do, only the more recent post gets viewed, and I'm guessing that's what happened with yours. I feel extra bad that a new member got ignored, because we all really appreciate questions from folks who just joined, and everybody here is really interested in helping out everybody else any way we can.

Anyhoo...how do we deep clean a saddle? I help out a buddy at his saddle shop in Kingsland, GA a couple days a week. While we will jump all over an order for a custom saddle, we get way more repair and restore jobs! Most saddles come in looking like they were dragged behind the pick-up rather than riding in it.

We use good old soap and water...lots of water. We use liquid Ivory soap almost exclusively now, since it doesn't seem to leave residue like bar soap occasionally does. I use a small fingernail brush, especially on tooled saddles, because that's where most of the dirt hides. I scrub until I get a really good foam built up, and then rinse with a sponge full of clean water. Keep this up until the foam is a clean white color, meaning there is no more dirt left. Rinse again, and then towel the area, removing all the excess water. A little water will remain in the leather, but it should dry fairly quickly.

I like to oil the leather with "pure" neatsfoot oil or Leather Therapy. Some folks use Lexol, also. I think you'll find that saddlemaker have as many different ways of restoring a saddle as they do of building one, and their's is the RIGHT way. I don't claim to have the only answer, but I do believe that doing something is better than doing nothing! I'm amazed at the number of people who will spend good money on a nice saddle and then treat it like it was made out of Kevlar. They never knock the dust off, never wash it, never dry the rain water off it, never oil it, and then they are shocked at what you want to charge them to replace the rotted and work out parts.

Hope this answers your question, and it may start a whole new discussion!

Happy cleaning...

Mike

[Don101]

ERM ups Sorry i some how missed this one too, yes as explained above a bit of soap and warm water not hot water goes a long way, then i just oil and then use a leather restorer that also has beeswax in it, it is a cheeper version than black rock but does the same job, here are two pics before and after, Don

[Hidemechanic]

Spending a lot of time

with 4-H and saddle clubs I have gotten in the habbit of trying to educate people as to how the treat their horse and their equipment. Suggesting the they incorporate a few minutes for cleaning and inspection of their horse and their gear. I explain how it can help avoid problems on the trail, as well as add life to their tack which translates into saving money replacing things that ware out prematurely.

Makes sense to some, others don't care if it looks like it was 'drug behing a truck'. In my case I am able to set a saddle outside,(exept winter) and drag the hose out, I do want to add thought that you never want to 'soak' the leather, just enough to get the job done.

The only thing I do extra before washing is using an air hose to blow the dinglebarries out of the nooks and crannies. You'd be surprised how much junk you'll find hiding in there. Helps fluff up the wool too.

It has been my experience from cleaning and repairing hurds of saddles just for one dude ranch(of course they own 5) especially the saddles drilled for strings, juniper and pine needles find their way through the holes in the trees and settle at the bottom between the tree and the skirts and create a lump. Beleive it or not a small lump(epecially in front) can lead to white spots and soars on the horse. Yes even through a pad.

We found that I save them the cost of replacement saddles, by digging a little deeper to get the debris out.

So keep in mind that sometimes cleaning may involve pulling some nails and screws to get the job done right(or really well, if I were to be PC).

This has also helped to locate an impending catastrophy that may not have been detected without a deeper look.

Best wishes all.G.Hackett

[Randy Cornelius]

Am I the only one that will take a really dirty one to the car wash??? No soap just the pressure wash.Boy it gets them clean and the sheeps skin, come out really nice and white again. Just don't use the wax!!!

Randy

[Hidemechanic]

I don't know Randy, You may prove my reasoning wrong, but I think the carwash is too much water and too much presure(unless you leave it on low). My consern would be that the wool being soaked would dry so slow that it would allow the rott process to take effect.

With the condition of some saddles I would only want to do a sponge bath on anyway.

Just sounds like too much water to me, but proof is in the puddin I guess.

May Dad's St.Bernard used to love getting a bath at the carwash. Woohoo!! G.H.

[Cora]

I've often used Murphy's oil soap and a soft to medium bristle toothbrush for the real dirty ones, and I also really like Leather Therapy and lots of elbow grease.

Cora

[OzarkMountainGunleather]

If you can find it they make stuff called show me cleaner

this stuff will litterly take the dye out of the leather.

Mix the Show Me Cleaner (comes in a blue jug)

One part show me to 20 parts water in a spray jug

One part show me to 10 parts water if you want to strip dye and everything

Get a good bristle brush and scrub scrub scrub alternating spraying on the show me cleaner and rinsing with water

Allow to dry (inside) to keep from cracking the leather

If Leather is extremly dry and cracked I recomend dipping it in kerosene (yes it works) can get a bit risky though

Wipe the leather down extremly well after the kerosene bath allow to dry

If not cracked and to dry (or after a kerosene bath) i use weaver top grade saddlers oil (it wont rot your stiching like other oils, it dosent leave a greasy residue, and it will not discolor the lightest of leathers)

Now here is the key to a fine restore job

take a piece of sheepskin that you should have laying around your shop

use "Leather New" Liquid saddle soap (avaliable at most feed stores) and polish with the sheep skin scrap.

finally for a nice top coat finish use "Black Rock" on a rag and rub in lightly

If You want a high polish shine and you really want to seal the oils into the saddle I recomend you use Leather Sheen Spray

the only draw back of leather sheen is that you have to strip the saddle in the manner mentioned above with the show me cleaner

just to oil the saddle but it sure dose make em sparkle

follow these steps and your saddles will look better than the day they were made

Luke

[rharris]

Roncal

I have used a pressure washer on a couple of old saddles. It gets the dirt off but you have to be careful to not get the nozzle too close, will take more than the dirt off. I have been using Oakwood Liquid Saddle Soap and Oakwood Saddle Conditioner. Works great. I found out about the Oakwood products from my local tack & feed store. They use it on all of their saddle they take in on trade.

Russ

[Warren]

Have you guys ever heard of some stuff called URAD? I bought some at the National Cowboy Symposium here in Lubbock back in September. It was selling like hotcakes there. The lady who was selling it demoed it on the boots I was wearing. These were my work boots that I wear for my side job which is a lawn maintenance business. It pulled dirt out of the leather like saddle soap and left a nice shine when it dried which only took a few minutes. She told me she uses it on all of her saddles and tack. I found it on the web later by googleing Urad leather cleaner. It's kinda pricey at around $20 a jar but worth it in my opinion.

Warren