Save money! Rewax your old Barbour jacket yourself!

[DavidVillaJr]

Hi,

I think you'd be ok with a single tin of the "wax", I've done my Trialmaster one and a half times with a single 200ml tin, with a little left over.

It all really depends on how thick you apply and how "absorbent" the fabric is. Some parts of my jacket were really "thirsty" and slurped up the wax as fast as I could apply it, others not so much.

Hope this helps you out.

On another, yet related, topic.

Does anyone have suggestions as to cleaning the interior fabric lining of these "do not wash/dryclean" articles of clothing?

Thanks,

dv

 

[Doublegun]

Sorry to revive a dead thread, but I feel my questions belong here rather than in a new, dedicated thread.

So I've got a Barbour trench that I found on eBay for the low, low price of $60 - and it fits me quite well! Of course, it is in dire need of a reproofing. I just have a few questions that you all may be able to help with:

-It smells a bit musty and attic-y, despite having been worn in the rain several times and left hanging to air out in the breeze for a few weeks. Barbour's website tells me that I cannot wash, machine-dry, or dry-clean these coats because it will ruin the treatment and the coat will not accept re-waxing. Is there anything I can do to eliminate this odor?

-Will a single $12 (apparently 200ml) tin of thornproof dressing be enough to reproof a full-length, below-the-knee trench coat?

-If I screw up the DIY reproofing, would I still be able to send it in to Barbour to have it re-done professionally?

I have gone through two Barbour coats and they all smell just as you describe. Probably this is due to the nature of the materials used, the wax and the human oder that is picked up after years of wear.

As for re-waxing, get it done. What Barbour won't tell you is the coats will shrink (I mean like 2" in the sleeves) if they are not cared for properly. Once the thin cotten material dries out it's subject to shrinkage just like any other light cotten material.

Do it yourself or send it out, just get it done. BTW, Barbour should be ablel to tell you if you need more than one can of wax. I suppose the answer depends upon just how dry the coat is now. That material can suck up a lot of wax if it's really dry.

Good luck

 

[Patattack]

Good to know that the odor is not necessarily a problem with my own coat; guess I'll just get used to it!

You know, I really would probably be better off sending it to Barbour for reproofing, so that I would at least have a fresh base coat to work from the next time it needed to be done (instead of an already-weathered vintage treatment). Thing is, at this time of year, it'll probably take some time to work through the system, right? Several weeks? I should have done it earlier in summer, so it would be back in time for fall.

Oh, and DavidVillaJr, regarding the lining - the only thing I can think of is spot-cleaning if part of it gets actually dirty, and perhaps a careful application of Febreeze occasionally for everything else.

 

[gyrobroyeur]

Vintage barbours always smell. If you buy a new one, it doesn't: they changed the wax... You can reproofing your vintage jacket with the new WAX, maybe in 5 years it won't smell anymore...
A Barbour is unwashable. The lining is treated with a product, for stoping the wax (the interior don't fell greasy when you wear it). If you wash it, you can easily reproofing the outside egyptian coton, but you will wax the lining too... The only way to clean it is to separate lining ang outside coton before cleaning...
I used to rewax my garnment with the method describe above, and it works very well.
The few time Barbour rewax my jackets is when I send them back to the fabric for repairing. A Barbour never die: I highly recommend their service repair: they made an incredible work! Sometime it could cost the price of a new one, but I like this jacket with marks of use.

 

[Mr Badger]

Phew! My arms feel like they're gonna fall off! I've just reproofed my Trialmaster knock-off with some Nikwax Wax Cotton Proof spray. It does take a lot of rubbing in, although keeping the cloth you're using quite damp helps a lot. You really need to put quite a lot on, and just keep rubbing until, when you get yer mush down towards the jacket itself, you can see that the weave's full of wax. It's air drying in the back yard now...

Here's me in Paris wearing it last year:

Hopefully I'll not end up with 'orrible wax streaks all over the jacket and the next time it tips it down, I'll be nice and dry!

 

[Micawber]

You'd be hard pressed to mess up rewaxing a Barbour - it's an imminently DIY job! Even if you smother and streak the wax a going over with something like a hair-dryer or sticking the jacket over a warm central heating radiator for an hour or more will see the surplus wax blend and soak in. These (or at least the traditional models) are supposed to be rough, tough out-doors-men coats which require a regular service and maintenance to keep them in good shape - rather like a classic car.

And just like a classic car they all take on a certain aroma. Mine whiff not only of me but of old wax, wt Labrador, fired shotgun cartridges, gun oil, horse sweat / muck, dead pheasant / partridge / hare / rabbit and anything else that's been stuffed in the game pockets. I've been known to hang a coat up forgetting that I'd shoved a trapped stoat, rabbit or similar in a pocket only to be forcibly reminded days later of the presence of said dead thing by the pong :eusa_doh: Every now and again I'll turn the coats inside out, hose them down, let them dry and away you go. It's only in the last 30 - 35 years that they've become fashion items.

 

[dbulin]

Another way

Hello,

I just wanted to let you know that I have a Shire Classics wax jacket that needed reproofing and I was not able to do it myself. I found a great company that will reproof and care for your jackets, including necessary repairs. Not too expensive and they really did great work!

Green Mountain Reproofing
http://www.greenmountainreproofing.com/

 

[Doctor Damage]

Here's an old article about how to re-wax your Barbour. Some guy on flickr named "brengrip" posted it (judging by some of his photos, he might be a Barbour employee). Click for larger pics.