HOW TO TREAT A NUBUCK/SUEDE JACKET?

[LeatherLover]

Hello fellows,

A quick question about the nubuck treatment. I have found a bunch of threads how to treat leather, but can not find anything on Vtg nubuck. I ordered a cool nubuck pilot jacket from overseas and want to treat it right when I get it.
Will Pecard conditioner work for nubuck? I'll appreciate you sharing your experience!

Thanks a bunch!

 

[JMax]

Hello fellows,

A quick question about the nubuck treatment. I have found a bunch of threads how to treat leather, but can not find anything on Vtg nubuck. I ordered a cool nubuck pilot jacket from overseas and want to treat it right when I get it.
Will Pecard conditioner work for nubuck? I'll appreciate you sharing your experience!

Thanks a bunch!

I recently used a cleaner (Lincoln or Bickmore) and cleaner kit (Angelus) on a new suede jacket. The jacket cleaned up really well. Both the cleaner and kit are marketed to work on suede and nubuck.

 

[TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead]

Hello fellows,

A quick question about the nubuck treatment. I have found a bunch of threads how to treat leather, but can not find anything on Vtg nubuck. I ordered a cool nubuck pilot jacket from overseas and want to treat it right when I get it.
Will Pecard conditioner work for nubuck? I'll appreciate you sharing your experience!

Thanks a bunch!

No, don't use Pecards on suede or nubuck unless you want to darken it a few shades and give it a waxy texture. Angelus is a good suggestion. Generally speaking though, you can go a little harder than what most people say. I thoroughly washed a suede jacket in the bathtub with shampoo. I'm sure purists out there let out a huge gasp. Jacket is fine even though you're not supposed to get suede wet.

 

[LeatherLover]

I recently used a cleaner (Lincoln or Bickmore) and cleaner kit (Angelus) on a new suede jacket. The jacket cleaned up really well. Both the cleaner and kit are marketed to work on suede and nubuck.

Thank you JMax!

 

[LeatherLover]

No, don't use Pecards on suede or nubuck unless you want to darken it a few shades and give it a waxy texture. Angelus is a good suggestion. Generally speaking though, you can go a little harder than what most people say. I thoroughly washed a suede jacket in the bathtub with shampoo. I'm sure purists out there let out a huge gasp. Jacket is fine even though you're not supposed to get suede wet.

HaHa, I do the same thing with most of my Vtg leather jackets, I wash them and let it dry and never had a problem. Thanks!

 

[LeatherLover]

What about a water repellent? Would you put it on the nubuck jacket? Thanks again!

 

[Monitor]

Only brushes & water or water based leather conditioners if absolutely needed. NEVER use anything greasy or waxy as it will absolutely & completely ruin your suede. Pecard's will leave a permanent, greasy spot where you've applied it and you'll have to literally machine-wash your jacket a few times to get it out. Or use de-greasers which might make things even worse.
What @TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead said, best way to go about cleaning and keeping your suede or nubuck healthy is washing it in water. Few suede jackets that I had were all thrown into the washing machine the moment they arrived and each one came out looking 10x better.

 

[jonbuilder]

I was reading about waxed suede on the internet as a way to weatherproof and protect suede referring to suede boots

 

[navetsea]

I got similar question for sometime
But finally I believe suede doesn't need conditioning.

Smooth leather needs conditioning so the grain layer won't dry out and crack and look ugly from sun or salt/ sweat, so from time to time it make sense to condition this outer layer to stay flexible over the corium/ flesh inside.

while the leather flesh inside that called suede or nubuck I imagine has structure similar to this kitchen scrub pad

when new sure it feels crisp if you squeeze it abit more than overtime it feels softer, but the fibers interlocking together and it is totally preserved , after thinking about it I come with another personal theory as my conclusion it won't need conditioning to preserve it.
Try imagine have this scrubber wet with water or oil, would that make this scrubber stronger or longer lasting?
I don't think so, would that make bigger chance bacteria or mold to grow on it, I think so.
so that is my point of view.

 

[Monitor]

I got similar question for sometime
But finally I believe suede doesn't need conditioning.

Smooth leather needs conditioning so the grain layer won't dry out and crack and look ugly from sun or salt/ sweat, so from time to time it make sense to condition this outer layer to stay flexible over the corium/ flesh inside.

while the leather flesh inside that called suede or nubuck I imagine has structure similar to this kitchen scrub pad
View attachment 344133
when new sure it feels crisp if you squeeze it abit more than overtime it feels softer, but the fibers interlocking together and it is totally preserved , after thinking about it I come with another personal theory as my conclusion it won't need conditioning to preserve it.
Try imagine have this scrubber wet with water or oil, would that make this scrubber stronger or longer lasting?
I don't think so, would that make bigger chance bacteria or mold to grow on it, I think so.
so that is my point of view.

I agree.

I wanted to say the same thing - I too don't believe at all that suede needs conditioning at all, other than washing - but as it'd mostly be just my own experience with suede, I can't claim it to be 100% true but yeah, I too strongly believe that's how it works. Top layer cracks and then the leather stays that way with the underside getting no worse for wear for ages to come.

 

[LeatherLover]

Only brushes & water or water based leather conditioners if absolutely needed. NEVER use anything greasy or waxy as it will absolutely & completely ruin your suede. Pecard's will leave a permanent, greasy spot where you've applied it and you'll have to literally machine-wash your jacket a few times to get it out. Or use de-greasers which might make things even worse.
What @TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead said, best way to go about cleaning and keeping your suede or nubuck healthy is washing it in water. Few suede jackets that I had were all thrown into the washing machine the moment they arrived and each one came out looking 10x better.

Thank you Monitor! It's very informative and helpful!

 

[LeatherLover]

I got similar question for sometime
But finally I believe suede doesn't need conditioning.

Smooth leather needs conditioning so the grain layer won't dry out and crack and look ugly from sun or salt/ sweat, so from time to time it make sense to condition this outer layer to stay flexible over the corium/ flesh inside.

while the leather flesh inside that called suede or nubuck I imagine has structure similar to this kitchen scrub pad
View attachment 344133
when new sure it feels crisp if you squeeze it abit more than overtime it feels softer, but the fibers interlocking together and it is totally preserved , after thinking about it I come with another personal theory as my conclusion it won't need conditioning to preserve it.
Try imagine have this scrubber wet with water or oil, would that make this scrubber stronger or longer lasting?
I don't think so, would that make bigger chance bacteria or mold to grow on it, I think so.
so that is my point of view.

Thank you Navetsea for sharing your experience and the theory!

 

[LeatherLover]

Thanks to all of you guys for sharing your experience! It was really helpful! This is a nubuck Soviet made 1978 pilot jacket that is called "Nagolnaya kurtka". It's got a real sheepskin on the inside and nubuck outside and looks super warm to wear it in Boston, MA where I live I can't wait for this jacket to arrive because it is a rare jacket that's been out of production since the early 90x. The jacket is coming all the way from Ukraine and it has already safely arrived to the NY USPS distribution center, so I know I'm definitely gonna get it in a few days, haha My concern buying from those countries in overseas had always been for a reason that it used to be known for the local post offices losing the packages, but I guess the time has changed and so far they've been doing a much better job delivering packages, at least in my case.
This is a 2nd Soviet pilot jacket that I have ordered from Ukraine. The 1st one I got a few weeks ago is called "Shevretka" and it is dated to 1975. Those kind of jackets were worn by the Soviet military and civil pilots. You can see Yuri Gagarin wears "Shevretka" on the old pics. It's a really cool, functional jacket with the quality pockets that I've never seen in any other tons of US made jackets that I own. As much as I LOVE all those old American pilot and other civil jackets, their weakest part has always been the pockets in my opinion. Most of vtg US made jackets that I got had holes in their pockets, the materials they were made from were usually thin cotton I guess, and it just did not hold up for many years. I always had to saw those vtg pockets Those old Soviet jackets are a completely different ball game when it comes down to the way they made those pockets. The pockets are big, so I can throw an elephant in there, super thick and made of a very pleasant, I'd say a little fluffy material. The jackets they used to make could be trashed, but the pockets were still there, solid. On those jackets, the left chest pocket was made for a Makarov hand gun, so it is that strong to hold a pretty heavy gun. Also the reason for having all metal made Makarov next to your heart made a total functional sense. During the air battles the gun right in the chest pocket could safe the pilots's life, that would make it difficult for a bullet to penetrate the heart. It also has all natural cotton lining and a big solid zipper. I'll make sure to post the pics of the new coming jacket when I get it if you guys are interested