Leather treatment

T

Temper

Joined
Oct 30, 2002
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Of all the leather treatments available what do those of you that have leather boots prefer to use?

I have heard that mink oil actually damages the leather, Ican't rember the specifics of it and my be wong but IIRC it was something to do with the tanner taking a lot of time to remove a kind of fat/oil and rubbing Mink oil back into it was just reversing what the tanner had attemped to do.

I use Kiwi neutral but am thinking of Snoseal or Nikwax, anyone have any experience with either of these?
 
Yeah, I used it in the army as only Kiwi was recomended and not the Parade Gloss either. IIRC its due to the canaubu (sp) wax that is apparently superior to other leather treatments on the same ilk.
 
If I'm not mistaken, the leather treatment depends on the way the leather material was tanned.

Chrome tanned boots do well with silicone wax treatment, like Sno-Seal.

Oil tanned boots do better with an oil treatment like mink oil.

Of course, this may have changed in the last few years, but this information should still be appropriate.
 
Do not use anything with silicon in it unless the leather started out silicon treated. Use silicon once and you are married to it, as it corrupts the leather from being trated with anything else, ever.

Oak tanned leather can be treated about once a year with a good grade of neatsfoot oil and protected with a good wax. Lexol and Kiwi are standards.

Rough out leather should not have anything put on it, unless the manfacturer scecifically says what to use.

So-callled chrome tanned leather is more a description of the dye process than the tanning. It is fine to use with mink oil. I've got a 12 year old pair of Danners that are going strong with mink oil.

I also ride a 33 year old saddle and a 21 year old saddle which get saddle soaped whenever dirty (glycerine based soap) and neatsfoot oiled about twice a year. Sun is harder on leather than water, BTW. Salt (sweat) is also drying, so it is important to keep clean.

Any oils will darken leathers. Lighter grades such as Lexol less so. Be careful about oiling any boots with GoreTex. The oils can clog the pores and defeat the purpose.
 
Thanks guys and for the links posted previously.

I guess I will stay with the old Kiwi stuff then. What exactle does Oak Tanned mean? I have a sheath from Jamie Briggs that is Oak Tanned I used Kiwi on that as I expect to give it a thorugh field testing in the next couple of weeks. It smells fantastic! :D
 
I use Vasque Nature seal boot cleaner, as well as their waterproofing and leather conditioner. The combination works great to keep my boots in top condition.
 
m_calingo said:
Chrome tanned boots do well with silicone wax treatment, like Sno-Seal.
Click to expand...

I believe Sno-Seal is beeswax-based not silicone. I've used it in the past with good results, but found it needed to be re-applied more often. The problem I've heard with Neetsfoot or Mink oil were that they tended to soften and weaken leather over time. Of the two, Neetsfoot always worked the best for me for waterproofing.
 
The best product I have used (I have tried almost everything out there) is by far Nikwax Aqueous Wax.

It is significantly more waterproof than than Mink Oil, Sno Seal, the Vasque stuff, and the mink oil -like wax sold my Nikwax. The Aqueous wax does not soften the leather at all they way many of the others do, like Mink oil.

With new boots I sometimes use regualr wax or mink oil to help break them in, but after that, I want them to retain their shape to give more support and last longer.

Something to watch out for with Sno Seal is that they recomend heating the boots to melt the wax. Be careful with this, heat will eventually lead to cracked leather.

Here is a link to the product I use: http://www.rei.com/online/store/Pro...8000&productId=25&parent_category_rn=40001852

Will
 
I've always used Castor oil (actually in paste from) and it has worked fine for me, it does darken the leather though, I wonder if it has the same effect you mention with Mink oil. In Mexico I haven't seen any of the stuff mentioned here.

Luis
 
For my Red Wing and Irish Setter (non-insulated) loggers, I have found Sno-Seal to work great. As for heating the boots, the key is to not get them hot enough to destroy the leather itself. A few feet away from the woddburner gets them warm enough (as would a hairdryer). Two good coats and pretty darned water-resistant. I have done this for the last 5-6 years with positive results. I tried Mink Oil (LOVE that smell) but I agree, it tended to make them a bit too soft, especially in the ankle area where support is needed the most.
As for my 1000-gram insulated Hermann Survivors (sadly, now made offshore and NOT near the quality of boot they were 15 years ago), they are silicone based to begin with and still get 3-4 treatments every winter and I prefer the pump bottle as you don't waste so much of the silicone as with the aerosol.
 
IIRC Nikwax earned a bunch of awards a while back. Finding it here withough having to sell your first born though can be a pain, although with deflation in its 10th year I suspect the price has come down somewhat. I might look into this. Don't they make one for fabric too? I have an older Berghaus rucksack that could use a waterproofing.
 
I have been using different types of boot grease/wax for the last 35 years and am now a wild land fire fighter.

I have to use some thing that is extremely resistant to a lot of things.

Obenauf's is by far the best I have ever used or come across..

I have two pairs of Hawthorn Smoke Jumpers and have put a large bottle of Obenauf's into each pair.

They now handle a very good fire season with out needing reapplications all of the time, it is easy to put on and soaks in very well.

I have not put any on my boots in the last year and a half and can still hose the mud and dirt off my boots with out my feet getting wet after working in goop all day...

Russ...
 
here on the wet coast of Vancouver BC, i treat my boots prior to an outing by melting beeswax and carnuba wax (pure, in stick form) in a tin and brushing it on to form a thick hard outer shell that gradully wears off, but keeps my feet bone dry and the boots from getting scuffed. looks a bit ugly, but function over fashion ANYDAY! :D
 
If you’re not over Gore Tex Sno-Seal is good stuff kept my feet dry through several bad northern winters. I have switched to Nikwax waterproofing wax about 8-10 years ago and think it is a very solid water proofing system. I worked around water 8-12 hours a day for several years in steel toed Redwings treated with it and never had damp feet even after hosing them of a few times with a pressure sprayer (I know not a good idea but with what I was working in there was little choice). All my new boots get treated with it before they see the outdoors and I have been happy with the results. Your shoe polish is not quite as shiny but it does not seem to bother my boots much.
 
Great results with Biwell Classic and Snowseal.

There is a difference between leather nurishment and waterproofing.

I am not a gortex in boots fan.

Skam
 
Temper said:
Of all the leather treatments available what do those of you that have leather boots prefer to use?

I have heard that mink oil actually damages the leather, Ican't rember the specifics of it and my be wong but IIRC it was something to do with the tanner taking a lot of time to remove a kind of fat/oil and rubbing Mink oil back into it was just reversing what the tanner had attemped to do.

I use Kiwi neutral but am thinking of Snoseal or Nikwax, anyone have any experience with either of these?
Click to expand...


Don't know, my dad applied Mink oil to his elk hide Browning snake boots, and they still work 20 years later. But clear kiwi seems to work just fine.
 
i use sno-seal as well, and it is beeswax based (it pretty much is just plain beeswax). it takes awhile to get it worked in properly - if you just grab a new pair of boots and treat them once, then go out tramping around in slush you will probably get leaks. this is generally what happens to people who post in forums saying 'beeswax doesnt work'.

i start treating my boots long before winter, and once youve worked in several good coats it holds up very well. the first time you treat them, rub a thick coat in with a soft cloth, making sure to go over all welts and seams, working it in with your fingernail through the cloth. youll notice that you can see the yellowish wax building up on the seam - i get out my zippo and lightly pass over it to warm it till it runs into the seam and is wicked up a bit (you have to do this quickly or youll end up lighting your seams on fire). i let the stuff dry, then i go over it again and repeat. the third time around i just rub the wax in - no need to heat it up. after that i just reapply a light coat now and then.
this seems to work well for me. if you start in summer, when its hot, and wear your boots on long hikes, it seems to work into the leather far better. most people around here start waterproofing after the first snowfall, and by then its pretty much too late - the ice cold wax just doesnt bond very well.

ive used silicone treatment sprays, but i find these need to be reapplied often and they do not work on leather very well. i use them on my half leather/half rubber snowmobiling boots (theyre sortof like a 'ducky' style, with the lower part rubber and uppers of leather). i just spray the hell out of them before i go out, and make sure i get plenty in the seams. (id recommend beeswax for leather hiking boots though, and silicone for synthetic boots) ...in winter you have to spray the silicone inside (you cant spray it outside in -40 degree weather) and it stinks like hell.
also, learn from my mistake and spray it over a lot of newspaper -- i was in a hurry once and just held my boots in my hand and sprayed them standing over linoleum, then i nearly broke my neck over the spot on the floor as i walked over it with socks. it took a lot of scrubbing to get it off. this stuff is *very* slippery, heh.
 
What ever wax treatment you use, warming your leather with a hair dryer will help work the treatment into the leather with out the risk of burning yourself or the leather. You can do with a hair dryer in a few minutes what it would take weeks to do if you tried to work it in by hand. The seams really soak up the wax once they are warmed a bit. After the leather quits absorbing the wax you will need to give the leather a quick wipe down to remove the excess wax as it cools. This will leave a well protected boot that does not attract too much dirt. The excess wax that would otherwise a dirt magnet.
 
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