Leather sweat band care?

[RJR]

Pecard's or Bick 4 for me.

 

[tommyK]

Welcome to the Lounge, SET.

1) I've heard rumors that Gary White the custom hatter is the only hatter that stocks the onionskin. I'm not sure, though.
His website: www.custom-hatter.com
I agree with Dinerman that the onionskin often creates more issues than it solves.

2) In my experience, the simplest solution is to carry large white cotton hankies with you. Wipe the sweat off the front section of the leather sweat and off your forehead, and do it as frequently as the heat demands. What's most destructive to the leather is of course the dried salts contained in the sweat; if you wipe off the sweat while it's still watery you will also remove most of the salt along with it.

When you return home from the heat, wipe the leather band with a damp cloth to remove the superficial salt stains that may have accumulated during the day. Apply a small amount of water-based leather conditioner to give back the oils. I use a water-based cream with almond oils that smells good and is quickly absorbed by the leather. Terpertine oil based or petroleum based leather conditioners wouldn't smell good and wouldn't be absorbed as quickly. Else you can use whatever is within reach - sometimes I only had sunscreen handy.
It's a bit like shoe care - you don't have to do it every day, just regularly.

+1 on Rabbit's advice here. In my youth I watched local farmers wipe the sweatbands of their hats and wipe their foreheads frequently. I don't treat my sweatband with conditioner every time I sweat a lot but I do wipe them as I'm sweating and with a damp cloth at the end of the day. I only condition them once or twice a year. Time will tell if that's enough.

 

[Brother cavefish]

Picars has a petrolem based conditioner I wonder shea is better

 

[Joao Encarnado]

+1 on Rabbit's advice here. In my youth I watched local farmers wipe the sweatbands of their hats and wipe their foreheads frequently.

That is what I do.

 

[gtdean48]

Have used Lexol wipes for years...

 

[ManofKent]

I like Lord Sheraton Leather Balsam (beeswax based) not sure whether its available outside the UK though.

 

[Brother cavefish]

I like Lord Sheraton Leather Balsam (beeswax based) not sure whether its available outside the UK though.

this one sounds like a better idea, i just tried shea butter, it seemed to do well and not retain unwanted waxes for any long period of time, the picards, was petroleum based i wrote them ----- i don't like petroleum based anything, natural waxes seem to be the best-------

 

[AbridgedPause]

Hello everyone. I found this thread looking for leather sweatband care. I gave one of our hats a naptha bath and the leather sweatband took a good beating from it. (this thread: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/step-by-step-naptha-bath.43157)

So now I need to condition it. There seems to be a lot of different opinions on what is "best" for the leather sweatband. After reading all your responses, it seems that some believe that water-based is better, others that anything petroleum-based in bad, and others that go for beeswax products. On this forum I've read people suggest different types of leather balms, Pecard's, Bickmore's Bick 4, Shea butter and Lexol.

This brings up two points that I want to talk about.

1: What's best for your skin.
2: What's best for the durability and health of the sweatband.

I don't want to sound like an alarmist. I'm not. I know that chemicals usually clean better than environmentally-friendly products. But I do have a sensitive skin and as an example, I need to wear gloves just to do dishes with Palmolive or clean a mirror with Windex. Otherwise my skin gets all red and dries up. So I wouldn't want to use a conditioner on my sweatband if it'll cause any kind of irritation on my forehead. I'm not even sure this is possible, but a lot of these leather conditioners are promoted as working for car interiors, boots, saddles, things that don't actually touch your skin.

The second thing that I'm curious about is about the wax content in these conditioners. Wouldn't the wax block the pores of the leather? I don't know enough about leather to know if that's a good or bad thing, but I know that on wood, finishing products that have beeswax changes the end result and seals it.

 

[alanfgag]

Leather sweatbands are thin and have a life. When they dry and become brittle, their life is at an end. Moisturizing the leather will not bring it back. It might soften, but it will have the strength of a wet tissue. If retaining the original sweatband in a hat is important to you, pay close attention to the condition of the sweatband before you purchase a hat. Don't sweat a sweatband that has seen the end of its life. It can be replaced and the hat will wear as good as new.

For a sweatband in good supple condition, the oily moisture from your forehead will be a good conditioner. Other treatment is not necessary or helpful.

 

[KarlCrow]

I have to admit I've used the same leather conditioner that I use when conditioning my italian leather sofa, just a drop each time I've got a used or nos hat. I thought you were supposed to condition them. None have seemed over dry luckily enough.

 

[alanfgag]

My opinions are the minority here. Many seem to have success cleaning hats in solvent and conditioning sweatbands with leather treatments.

 

[moontheloon]

Leather sweatbands are thin and have a life. When they dry and become brittle, their life is at an end. Moisturizing the leather will not bring it back. It might soften, but it will have the strength of a wet tissue. If retaining the original sweatband in a hat is important to you, pay close attention to the condition of the sweatband before you purchase a hat. Don't sweat a sweatband that has seen the end of its life. It can be replaced and the hat will wear as good as new.

For a sweatband in good supple condition, the oily moisture from your forehead will be a good conditioner. Other treatment is not necessary or helpful.

Honest question

Doesn't that oily moisture from your forehead contain a lot of salt that will remain when the perspiration is gone and eventually dry out the leather ?

I was always under the impression that the salt in our perspiration was the ultimate enemy of soft leather in the long run

 

[Hurricane Jack]

Don't use any conditioner that contains silicone like Armor All. Armor All is advertised for your leather dash pad for example, but silicone is what gives it the shine. Silicone is bad for leather. It is good for situations where friction between two surfaces are bad.

 

[Frunobulax]

Honest question

Doesn't that oily moisture from your forehead contain a lot of salt that will remain when the perspiration is gone and eventually dry out the leather ?

I was always under the impression that the salt in our perspiration was the ultimate enemy of soft leather in the long run

That's what I've always surmised. In fact, I had to rescue one of my Playboy sweats earlier this summer because I took a walk in it, sweated, and didn't adequately wipe it when I got back. The sweatband started to dry and pucker a bit at the front, where my forehead sweat on it. Fortunately, I hit it with Lexol a couple of times and it responded well. Kind of freaked me out because I really like the hat.

Perhaps Alan is on a salt-free diet.

I think we need to find out what those Japanese guys use when they massage their Kobe beef cattle and use that.

 

[Redfokker]

Beer

 

[Frunobulax]

Beer

I don't know exactly what you're replying to, but I wholly endorse this post.

 

[Bamaboots]

I don't know exactly what you're replying to, but I wholly endorse this post.

They get a quart of beer a day plus a daily massage. Don't know if they use massage oils, though. Sounds like a pretty good life until they become a consumable product. I do appreciate them.

 

[moehawk]

Kobe sweatbands? Now there's a new gimmick to make us part with more money...

 

[alanfgag]

Honest question

Doesn't that oily moisture from your forehead contain a lot of salt that will remain when the perspiration is gone and eventually dry out the leather ?

I was always under the impression that the salt in our perspiration was the ultimate enemy of soft leather in the long run

That sounds sensible, Anthony. I have my share of sweatband war stories. The picture below is of my hundred year old Buffalonian yeddo straw boater. (The liner stain is from a prior owner's hair pomade). It had a very soft and supple sweatband. I wore it once in 90+ degree heat on the fourth of July. I still wear it often. Not sure that any type of emollient would have helped. A waterproof coating, perhaps? Wouldn't it be great to know the treatment that was applied to Stetson's Fray sweatband?!

 

[Bamaboots]

Wouldn't it be great to know the treatment that was applied to Stetson's Fray sweatband?!

Alan, it would though I have one that I had to remove from an old Stetson in an effort to preserve it. After wearing the hat a couple of times, the sweat began to come apart. Improper storage on the prior owners part, I suspect. Maybe just old? It seemed fine when I first received the hat.