leather conditioners? General Motorcycle Discuss leather conditioners? in the Motorcycles forums; just got saddlebags and wondering whats good product for leather care ?lexol?connoly hide food? saddle soap? beeswax? thanx for any info...

[black denim]

just got saddlebags and wondering whats good product for leather care ?lexol?connoly hide food? saddle soap? beeswax? thanx for any info

[Gas Man]

doc baileys leather black or leather tonic

Doc Bailey's Leather Black, Leather Clear and Leather Tonic. Available At ValueTeck

[frisco-rigid]

Hi Black

I've been working leather for decades and have made my own saddle bags and chaps for just as long..

I found myself always going back to and now I simply stay with Dr. Jackons "Hide Rejuvenator"..
Farnam "Leather New Hide Conditioner"..
And Lexol..

I guess if I could ONLY have one it would be Lexol..

[HDDon]

I have a 94 Softail will the Lexol also help with the fadeing or do I have to use some type of dye before I use the Lexol?

[HarleyCruiser]

New leather very seldom needs anything. After you have it for a while then that changes.
What you use on it should depend on the type of leather, your use of it and your riding conditions.
Mostly your riding conditions.
The oils in Leather dries out over time and getting wet or in the sun helps speed this.
Water brings the oils to the surface and will wash it off.
The sun just plain bakes it out.
Most leather treatments are either a wax or oil base, depending on the condition of the leather will determine what you need to use.
If the leather is dry then you need to add oil.
There are a ton of different leather oils out there, mineral, animal and vegetable based.
Personally I prefer Neatsfoot oil, it is cheap,it is a animal based oil, and you can get it at any farm store.
Most leather is chromium tanned, then sealed with a lacquer based sealer.
These are pretty water resistant.
If your leather bags are custom with a lot of tooling then it will probably be vegetable tanned tooling leather.
Unless they are sealed then they are not water resistant at all, and will take water like a sponge.
You also need to think of the different quality of leather.
If you paid less then one fifty for your bags then they are probably split leather that has been sanded and buffet to look like top grain leather.
Split leather is the bottom layer of the leather that has been cut in half, it is like suede, then smoothed.
Split leather will need more care oil to keep it nice.
Saddle soap is a soap. It is not intended to be used as a conditioner.
It has oils and waxes to keep from striping the natural oils from the leather.
You use water while using it and use it like a soap.
Using waxes, especially bees wax is to water proof leather. Waxes can also be polished to make the leather shine, but you need to be sure not to get a build up or they can turn dull white and will collect dirt.
Most waxes use oils to thin them down to make them easer to apply.
Mink oil is a good example of this, so is that snow something waterproofing.
You can also use heavy greases, the Harley saddlebag conditioner is basically Vaseline.
If you live in damp humid conditions and you ride your bike, then the most important thing that you need to protect you leather from is mold.
Mold is a leather killer. One you get it there is no killing it.
Mold is a fungus that grows like a cancer and travels through the leather like a vine.
Anything that you use to completely get rid of it will ruin the leather.\
And I have tried about everything, including bleach and baking it in the oven.
The only thing that I have found to control it and protect leather from getting moldy is Leather Therapy. It is not cheap but worth it.
If you live in a humid condition I would not use anything else.
Vegetable oils just feed the mold.
If your leather gets wet get it dry as soon as possible. Sun light is best, in the house is second.
If the leather is wet or humid for more than a couple of days you are asking for mold.
I try to get my bike in the sun at least every other day, or keep it dry. At least twice a year I try to condition it depending if it looks dry or if I just want to water proof it.

[HarleyCruiser]

Originally Posted by HDDon

I have a 94 Softail will the Lexol also help with the fadeing or do I have to use some type of dye before I use the Lexol?

If you are going to dye it do so before you use any oil.
You can get leather dye from Tandy leather, I would thin it down.
Or there are a lot of bees wax dyes, like shoe polish. and there are a lot of color rejuvinators/leather condioners that are basicly wax with dye. Only problem is they have a tendency to rub off on your wifes white paints.

[HarleyCruiser]

Originally Posted by frisco-rigid

Hi Black

I've been working leather for decades and have made my own saddle bags and chaps for just as long..

I found myself always going back to and now I simply stay with Dr. Jackons "Hide Rejuvenator"..
Farnam "Leather New Hide Conditioner"..
And Lexol..

I guess if I could ONLY have one it would be Lexol..

Frisco, cool I did not know that, you got any photos?

[frisco-rigid]

I only make My Own bags, chaps, and weight-belts, etc etc..
I am Not commercial so I've never had a reason to shoot photos of my stuff unless it was just part of or background of another photo..
In this photo, from about '02, the Shovel is wearing the bags I made in 2001..



Inside and out I sew in straps & pockets for Flash-light, "defense" & Mags for same,, Garage door opener, Misc, etc etc etc..

I always condition new leather.. Those bags for example..
I got a 23 sq. ft. half hide.. I layed it down, Bottom (rough side) up, and it drank 12 oz.'s (2 jars) of Dr. Jackson Hide Rejuvenator.. Flipped it over and the top-grain side sucked up about 3 more oz.'s if I recall..

Your question about photos reminded me of something I shoulda included in my first post but, well, the old Sliverback doesn't always remember stuff in the proper order..

This is SteveB's Leather site.. He used to be the Moderator on this AIM site BTW.. He's the real thing, a Pro..

SteveB Leatherworks - East Coast

His Photos show his Exquisite Leather work and he also might have more info about Leather conditioing..

Hey--- I thought you had me on your "ignore" list and wouldn't see my posts..
Guess it doesn't work so well huh..

[HarleyCruiser]

Originally Posted by frisco-rigid

I Hey--- I thought you had me on your "ignore" list and wouldn't see my posts..
Guess it doesn't work so well huh..

No I never had you on ignore, I suggested you and bigincher to put each other on ignore.
I’m not mad at you, never have been.

[street bob]

I use the Doc Baileys leather treatment. I recommend it only because of how it has worked for me. When I apply it to my boots, it leaves a nice black color and waterproofs at the same time. I use it on my saddle bags and same thing, waterproofs and brings back that nice black color. I have used it on my leather jacket, chaps,and gloves, all with the same result, beautiful black color, water proof, and restores the original look.
No... I don't work for them or have any affiliation with them, they just have a great product.. IMHO.........