Ultimate Leather Conditioner Comparison (on Reddit)

[JMax]

@JMax @handymike , does Blackrock darken lighter leather? Conditioners like Pecards and Obenaufs do (at least temporarily), curious how Blackrock does in that department. Thx.

Hopefully someone else can answer. I don’t have a lighter hide right now. It doesn’t darken black

@Al 916 Ive never used sapphir. Read good things though.

 

[Will Zach]

Hopefully someone else can answer. I don’t have a lighter hide right now. It doesn’t darken black

@Al 916 Ive never used sapphir. Read good things though.

The Henry Ford method of color selection... I also have mostly black, with one exception. Online pics show that Blackrock darkens natural-colored hides one shade, to beautiful russet color. Handymike is onto something, as usual. Looks like very good stuff.

 

[JMax]

The Henry Ford method of color selection... I also have mostly black, with one exception. Online pics show that Blackrock darkens natural-colored hides one shade, to beautiful russet color. Handymike is onto something, as usual. Looks like very good stuff.

The best thing about is that it does soften the hides. It also brought some luster to my CXL (Aero). It feels a tad sticky when applied but don’t worry, it doesn’t last.

 

[Al 916]

Hopefully someone else can answer. I don’t have a lighter hide right now. It doesn’t darken black

@Al 916 Ive never used sapphir. Read good things though.

@Marc mndt mentioned Saphir. (single P, sorry my bad spelling)

It is (my observation so happy to be otherwise advised) a leather cream made in France.

Reading the ingredients
Beeswax and Almond Oil

I used it following Marc's description of his treatment of a vintage after Obs Heavy. As you say for Blackrock this also brings out a gentle luster and a subtle pleasant smell

What are the main ingredients of Blackrock?

 

[Al 916]

The Henry Ford method of color selection... I also have mostly black, with one exception. Online pics show that Blackrock darkens natural-colored hides one shade, to beautiful russet color. Handymike is onto something, as usual. Looks like very good stuff.

I would give it a go but cannot buy it in England (nearest is Spain with heavy shipping)

 

[Mawashi]

Hi all,

I've been MIA for a long time due to work but I found this thread really interesting.

I also found a YouTube video and some of the results are rather unexpected.

Cheers,

Mawashi

 

[NeutronStar]

Any long term updates from using Skidmore’s?

 

[Pliksoff]

This thread's a great read and convinced me to try using Skidmore's on deerskin as well. The results have been pretty positive so far.

I'd recently picked up a yellow deerskin jacket in rough condition, with several dry and flaking parts. The thing's went through multiple owners and is at least 15 years old (it was made by Bootleggers which later became Freewheelers). The last owner had tested oil on the pockets and shoulders, resulting in a grimey discoloration. Those areas had a stiff "crunchy" texture while the rest of the jacket was dry and brittle.

The first application of Skidmore's got absorbed really easily. It darkened the jacket from pale yellow to honey yellow, but also got rid of the dryness. I applied Bick 4 on the flaking areas for additional conditioning before sealing it with Skidmore's.

I let the first coating sit for a few days without wiping off the excess. At this point the leather was sticky and smelly but felt a lot better than before. I then applied a second thinner coating of Skidmore's and buffed everything with a soft cotton cloth. i avoided using a brush or microfiber cloth since it'd aggravate the flaking parts.

The jacket seems to be doing pretty good a few weeks later, especially after wearing it outside a bunch to clear out the residual smell of beeswax. The flaking/cracking is irreversible but the coating helps keep those parts from getting worse. I might experiment with applying an acrylic finish in the future, but I'm satisfied for now. No notable downsides as far as I can tell (besides darkening the leather).

 

[Alphahunter]

This thread's a great read and convinced me to try using Skidmore's on deerskin as well. The results have been pretty positive so far.

I'd recently picked up a yellow deerskin jacket in rough condition, with several dry and flaking parts. The thing's went through multiple owners and is at least 15 years old (it was made by Bootleggers which later became Freewheelers). The last owner had tested oil on the pockets and shoulders, resulting in a grimey discoloration. Those areas had a stiff "crunchy" texture while the rest of the jacket was dry and brittle.

The first application of Skidmore's got absorbed really easily. It darkened the jacket from pale yellow to honey yellow, but also got rid of the dryness. I applied Bick 4 on the flaking areas for additional conditioning before sealing it with Skidmore's.

I let the first coating sit for a few days without wiping off the excess. At this point the leather was sticky and smelly but felt a lot better than before. I then applied a second thinner coating of Skidmore's and buffed everything with a soft cotton cloth. i avoided using a brush or microfiber cloth since it'd aggravate the flaking parts.

The jacket seems to be doing pretty good a few weeks later, especially after wearing it outside a bunch to clear out the residual smell of beeswax. The flaking/cracking is irreversible but the coating helps keep those parts from getting worse. I might experiment with applying an acrylic finish in the future, but I'm satisfied for now. No notable downsides as far as I can tell (besides darkening the leather).

Good looking jacket

 

[Alphahunter]

This is a great thread. A few months ago I applied Otter Wax Boot Wax to my dull black 60’s Brooks CR. I first hit it with a Horse Hair brush then I rubbed the boot wax with my bare hands all over the jacket. This is the results after wearing it for a few months. It’s seen rain and still beads. It’s really brought the black back to life.

 

[NeutronStar]

This thread's a great read and convinced me to try using Skidmore's on deerskin as well. The results have been pretty positive so far.

I'd recently picked up a yellow deerskin jacket in rough condition, with several dry and flaking parts. The thing's went through multiple owners and is at least 15 years old (it was made by Bootleggers which later became Freewheelers). The last owner had tested oil on the pockets and shoulders, resulting in a grimey discoloration. Those areas had a stiff "crunchy" texture while the rest of the jacket was dry and brittle.

The first application of Skidmore's got absorbed really easily. It darkened the jacket from pale yellow to honey yellow, but also got rid of the dryness. I applied Bick 4 on the flaking areas for additional conditioning before sealing it with Skidmore's.

I let the first coating sit for a few days without wiping off the excess. At this point the leather was sticky and smelly but felt a lot better than before. I then applied a second thinner coating of Skidmore's and buffed everything with a soft cotton cloth. i avoided using a brush or microfiber cloth since it'd aggravate the flaking parts.

The jacket seems to be doing pretty good a few weeks later, especially after wearing it outside a bunch to clear out the residual smell of beeswax. The flaking/cracking is irreversible but the coating helps keep those parts from getting worse. I might experiment with applying an acrylic finish in the future, but I'm satisfied for now. No notable downsides as far as I can tell (besides darkening the leather).

I went ahead with Skidmore’s as well and was also really happy with it. And it left the jacket smelling great. I also used it on the rough out on the sleeve, which made a huge difference. I might try using Urad’s Tenderly on my next jacket.

 

[JonS1967]

Have you tested this Fiebing's sheen thing any further? Or is there something of this kind that you would recommend? I want to coat my new Walter Dyer jacket with something as it's just too... naked, there's absolutely no finish of any kind, and I'd like to add some sheen to it.

Never got around to it. But I will now.

I’ve never found anything that truly lasts on naked leather. I’ve tried a bunch of stuff. I end up overdoing it too.

Dr. Jackson’s is great for thirsty vintage hides though. For small nicks, etc, leather milk balm.

Sorry to revive this old thread, but was curious if either of you ended up trying Fiebing’s Leather Sheen. I have a jacket that is a bit too matte for my taste as well and would like to add some sheen to it. Both Fiebing’s Leather Sheen and Resolene look like they could be good options.

 

[Monitor]

Sorry to revive this old thread, but was curious if either of you ended up trying Fiebing’s Leather Sheen. I have a jacket that is a bit too matte for my taste as well and would like to add some sheen to it. Both Fiebing’s Leather Sheen and Resolene look like they could be good options.

Cheq-Brill actually turns matte, near suede leather into mirror-shine finish. And just one thin coat of it will do the job. I've applied two coats on a pair of gloves and it was an overkill that left residue.

Also, get colorless version.

 

[Monitor]

I'm making fingerless gloves out of a few ancient pairs that I got and these is the comparison between the glove that I finished and coated with Cheq and the original one. The left glove is near-suede like while once coated, it became high-gloss, beautiful, grainy leather.

 

[Pkshfo74036]

I've tried a lot of different leather conditioners over the years. My favourite is Otterwax Boot Wax. Pure Beeswax and Lanolin. Simple natural ingredients. The wax content is high.

My preference is for a high content wax conditioner that also protects and gives a long lasting natural sheen which continues to polish out over time. The Lanolin is to help put some moisture into the leather.

I also find higher wax content conditioners / water protection products don't absorb so deeply so fast, so they tend to not darker leather as much, and it's hard to over saturated the leather deeply, any over application mostly just sits on top and can be removed if needed.

 

[Bawheid]

These 3 are what I use in Australia, depending on what each jacket needs. All work well and are easily available here.

Pecards , Chamberlains etc not so much

 

[JMax]

Sorry to revive this old thread, but was curious if either of you ended up trying Fiebing’s Leather Sheen. I have a jacket that is a bit too matte for my taste as well and would like to add some sheen to it. Both Fiebing’s Leather Sheen and Resolene look like they could be good options.

I’ve never used Leather Sheen on an entire jacket but have on spots and areas where the topcoat had worn off or were rubbed off. It worked well and the spots are indistinguishable from the rest of the jacket. Still good after a few years.

 

[JonS1967]

Thanks for all the great feedback, everyone! I’ve been considering using Leather Sheen or Resolene on a fairly new jacket solely to give it more (lasting) shine. @Monitor, the Cheq-Brill looks like it brought a nice sheen to your gloves. I feel like this is a big decision that probably won’t be reversible so I want to be cautious with my decision. Here are a few photos of a sample (leftover leather from my jacket) on top of my jacket.

 

[JonS1967]

I’ve never used Leather Sheen on an entire jacket but have on spots and areas where the topcoat had worn off or were rubbed off. It worked well and the spots are indistinguishable from the rest of the jacket. Still good after a few years.

This is encouraging. Do you have any photos of the jacket?

 

[JMax]

This is encouraging. Do you have any photos of the jacket?

Pretty sure the issue was on the right side of the zip. Honestly, not sure now.