Triple Goodness: Pears Soap, Passier Lederbalsam, Leather 'N' Rich

September 15, 2018

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Projects

After recently pilfering my mom's tack room, I returned with some of forgotten treasures in need of a little attention, restoration and rehab.

Seeing a heap of leather that needs cleaning and conditioning can seem overwhelming, but if you attack the pieces a little at a time, it will get done. You figure, maybe a half hour a night while watching television or listening to a podcast as a distraction, the task doesn't seem as daunting.

One piece in particular, an old tooled breast collar with some sterling trim, was particularly neglected. The back side was dry, cracking, and had layer upon layer of old sweat and dander.

Heavy duty dirt, sweat, and superficial cracking of the breast collar leather required deep cleaning.

No, this is not a job for something generic like Leather New, although in the case of neglect, anything - even Leather New - is better than nothing. To get the deep down dirt off and clean out all the little cracks and crevices, I reached for my go-to handy, dandy, baby-soft toothbrush and Pears soap.

After getting the leather good and wet with lukewarm water in the sink, I very gently scrubbed with Pears soap, rinsing each area thoroughly afterwards. A tack sponge would work almost as well as my softie toothbrush, but I wanted to be sure I got in between the tooling and the multitude of cracks that had developed to remove every last trace of filth.

Pears soap, water, a soft toothbrush, microfiber rag and your fingers can remove sweat and grime from dirty leather. Care must be taken when leather is wet to avoid scratching or stretching.

Trust me, mud came off with the consistency of shaving cream. Pears soap and water really cleans!

Time cleaning: 10 minutes.

After the leather was rinsed clean, I patted dry with a towel and put down an extremely light coat of Passier Lederbalsam with my fingers. It's been my experience that distressed leather can sometimes dry to an almost nubuck texture after being wet and "supercleaned," and the Lederbalsam seems to keep the grain tighter and smoother as it dries.

Pat dry, light coat of Passier Lederbalsam: 5 minutes.

I left the breast collar to dry flat on a towel overnight, then rubbed a total of three coats of Lederbalsam in by hand, both front and back side, allowing each coat to penetrate completely and wiping with a soft cloth between coats.

The back side of the breast collar absorbed the first coat of Lederbalsam in record time. Cleaning the leather thoroughly beforehand removed damaging dirt and sweat and allowed the conditioner to penetrate deeply.

After just one application of Passier Lederbalsam, the tooled side of the leather is already beginning to appear moisturized, supple, and the color restored.

Three coats of Lederbalsam, buffing in between: 15 minutes.

The conditioning effects of Passier Lederbalsam are legendary, and the breast collar was no exception. The leather had become supple, richly colored, and the areas with previous cracking much more flexible and nourished feeling. While no leather conditioner can repair cracked leather, conditioned leather is much stronger and less prone to additional cracking and damage. Particularly with vintage leather, keeping the leather conditioned is paramount to its longevity.

After 3 applications of Passier Lederbalsam, the leather became supple and glowed with the effects of a thorough conditioning.

The breast collar had a very natural low gloss from the Lederbalsam, but I know after a day or so the finish tends to revert to matte. To enhance the tooling and preserve the appearance, I broke out my secret weapon: Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich.

When I want something to look fancy, fancy, fancy, but don't want the more artificial appearance of a topcoat or wax, Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich performs like no other.

Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich gives a nice sheen to fine leather, enhancing its natural colors with an almost HD effect.

Certainly, Blackrock can be a little tricky to use. It takes a bit of finesse to get the right effect and can work against you if used incorrectly, but it delivers results nothing short of amazing. When people ask how I make my collection pieces look so good, or how to make their "good" tack look brilliant, I enthusiastically recommend Blackrock. And trust me, if it didn't work, I'd use something else. I have zero loyalty to products that don't perform.

Blackrock is sticky, and a little goes a long way. For this reason, I only apply with my fingertips, and very lightly at that. Even the thinnest coat over already-conditioned leather is sufficient. Once I've rubbed it in, I step back and leave it alone.

I've learned the hard way - don't touch! No soft towels. No buffing. Nothing.

When it no longer appears wet, I'll rub over the surface with my fingertips to smooth the finish and enhance the gloss, and that's it. I'm done.

Blackrock finish time: 10 minutes.

If applied correctly, there's no excess sticky residue, and Leather 'N' Rich will give a long-lasting finish that looks like you just cleaned and conditioned your leather, even months later. It enhances the natural colors of leather to such a degree it's like viewing in high definition. Best of all, you haven't smothered your leather in an acrylic or wax that makes future cleaning or conditioning difficult.

Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich over conditioned leather gives a piece that extra something-something that gives ordinary vintage tack a museum-quality finish that lasts. You can even see the outline of the silver reflected in the leather surrounding it.

Absolutely beautiful. Perfection. "I'm ready for my closeup, Mr. DeMille."

Before: Sad.  /  After: Glowing. A little time well spent.

It took just over 30 minutes total to clean, condition, and make the tired old breast collar sexy again. That's one sitcom or a podcast-worth of time, but what a payoff.

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My Leather Rescue Kit

May 06, 2018

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Pears Soap

Over the years I've accumulated quite an assortment of leather care products, but there are a handful of tried-and-true products I simply can't live without. Because I work with so much used, abused, and neglected tack, I've put together a triage kit to remedy the most common problems I seem to encounter.

Deep Cleaner:
When I want something clean, I want it deep down clean, and that means all the dirt and grime gone with no residue. I can't get that type of stripped-down clean with traditional saddle soap. I've found Pears Soap will suds up, remove the dirt and grease, and rinse clean without gumming up stitching or leaving a waxy or tacky finish. Because it has a slightly drying effect on leather, following up with a serious leather conditioner is mandatory.

Cleaning with regular Pears Soap and water gets tack deep-down clean without leaving a waxy or sticky residue.

Maintenance Conditioner:
Passier Lederbalsam is the bomb to keep everyday work tack pliable, moisturized, strong, protected, and looking great. It has a Vaseline-like texture, but less greasy and more waxy. It smells fabulous, absorbs completely, and leaves a subtle sheen when buffed out. If I have well-maintained leather without any major problems, Passier Lederbalsam is my go-to conditioner to keep it in top condition year after year.

Deep Conditioner:
Because I work with so much abused and neglected leather, Oakwood Leather Conditioner is my old standby. When something is crusty, stiff as cardboard, dry, blotchy, or basically on its last legs, Oakwood can practically resurrect the dead. It's my absolute favorite on hard, dry, heavy saddle leather because of its ability to penetrate deep down to restore moisture and pliability.

Yeah, it's a bit greasy. Yes, it can darken leather, but I feel the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks. Oakwood Leather Conditioner is easy to use, economical, and it works. Definitely on my HG product list.

Oakwood Leather Conditioner Before (left) and After (right). Easy to use, and reliable results, particularly on distressed leather.

Non-Darkening Conditioner:
When light oil and natural colored leather positively, absolutely, needs to remain light, or the color unchanged, I reach for Bickmore Bick 4. Bick 4 is excellent to soften and restore distressed leather, and keeps new leather looking new. Bick 4 soaks in easily and leaves no residue, so leatherwork is less prone to attracting dirt and grime. As an added bonus, a nice buff afterwards leaves a very nice, natural-looking sheen. An excellent choice for show tack, particularly pieces with a lot of detail or deep tooling.

Vintage buckstitched halter treated with Bick 4 (right side) is brighter, cleaner, and better conditioned than untreated side (left), without altering the leather's natural color.

Top Dressing/Conditioner:
Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich is an excellent "sealer" on fine leather goods that have already been conditioned. It imparts a very natural looking luster when buffed, and seems to enhance underlying dyes and colors, almost with an HD effect. As a standalone conditioner, I find it works very well on well-maintained or light duty leather, but it isn't my go-to deep conditioner for leather that's been distressed or abused. While Blackrock softens leather, it maintains body to the leather rather than becoming limp and oily, making it an ideal conditioner for lighter weight leathers and bridlework. Hands-down, Blackrock is my favorite "fancy" finish for leather bridles and halters.

Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich gives a nice sheen to fine leather, enhancing its natural colors with an almost HD effect.

Cotton T Shirts:
I like old, heavy, 100% cotton T shirts as rags for just about everything. You can wash them seemingly forever, bleach them, abuse them, and they just keep performing. Since they're past their prime, they've already shed most of the lint they're ever going to shed. The "harder" cotton fabrics are excellent to buff out top finishes to a nice shine.

I love heavy, old, cotton T-shirts as rags for cleaning, polishing, and rubbing off excess dye.

Microfiber Rags:
They wash well, outlasting most cotton rags, and maintain just enough texture to work surface dirt loose without damaging the leather's surface.

Baby Soft Toothbrush:
I shop for the softest children's toothbrushes I can find, and use them to clean leather with soap and water, get sludge off hardware, clean engraved silver, and get into dirty stitching.

A super-soft toothbrush, soap and water can lift even the worst dirt from neglected tack.

Round Toothpicks:
Toothpicks can get in all the little crevices around buckles and hardware, plus clear out buckle holes after cleaning and conditioning.

Round toothpicks are super handy to clean out dirty stitching lines, get in small spaces around buckles, and clear cleaners and conditioners from punched holes.

I have a shelf full of leather care potions, cleaners, oils, conditioners, and some of them pretty decent, but these are the items I reach for time and time again because I've found they work the best for me.

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Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich

May 02, 2018

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Resource Center

Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich is one of several "secret recipe" tack conditioner formulas on the market, touted as "as a proven alternative to soaps, oils, water repellents, and other conditioners." While not anything as greasy as something like Oakwood Leather Conditioner, it's definitely sticky, presumably from some type of wax, possibly beeswax.

I don't consider Blackrock a "cleaner" in any sense of the word, unless your cleaning regimen consists of adding a sticky coating over dirty leather, with no concern where the dirt went. No, I only apply Blackrock to leather that's already been cleaned, as a conditioner.

Because of the stickiness, you need to be careful applying around decorative stitching or deep tooling, as any residue will attract dirt and dust. If you like your stitching to remain bright white or don't want to clean out your tooling with a toothbrush, Blackrock may not be the product for you, particularly if you like to slather things on, give it a quick wipedown, and call it done (you might prefer the simplicity of Oakwood Leather Conditioner or Passier Lederbalsam). There's a lot more rubbing and buffing involved with Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich.

I tend to use Blackrock as a final sealer over already-conditioned leather, or a standalone conditioner on lighter-duty items like fine bridlework, for a finer finish than most conditioners alone. I love the smell, the texture, and how easy it is to apply just with fingertips. It's much easier to control than some of the heavier, oilier conditioners. A little bit really does go a long way.

Blackrock Leather'N' Rich applied over leather conditioned with Passier Lederbalsam (top) takes on a higher sheen and adds richness to the natural leather colors. Passier Lederbalsam alone (bottom) doesn't have quite the sheen or color enhancing characteristics, though it's a superb conditioner in its own right.

The presumed mystery waxes in Blackrock's secret formula will impart a luster when buffed, but only if applied in very light coats and allowed to dry completely between. Heavy coats of Blackrock turn to a gooey mess that attract lint and dirt like a magnet, and your polishing rag will drag through that Scheisse like hot tar on a summer's day, making for a miserable experience.

Depending on the original leather color, Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich may darken significantly, but in my experience it darkens dry and distressed leather the most. In such case, the darkening effect may actually be from restoring the leather's original color, which appears much lighter in its parched state.

Blackrock Leather 'N' Rich applied to dry, neglected leather deepens the color significantly. Once the Blackrock has been rubbed in, absorbed, and buffed - it seems to restore lost color more than it actually darkens.

As Blackrock is absorbed after rubbing in with just fingertips, the original color is restored, making the piece appear deeper and darker.

Overall, if I have a nice piece of leather I'd like to have a fancier finish on, and understand I'll be spending some time rubbing in and buffing off, Blackrock is my choice for that final step.

Ingredients:
Not Available

Website:
https://blackrock-leather.com

Buy It:
Amazon

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