Softening and sealing seat leather

[fatcatvera]

I've recently purchased a 1938 Ruby and I'm  in the process of making it suitable to use. Part of this is to make the seats a half decent place to sit..... so I have treated them with Neatsfoot Oil which is what my research led me to and seems to have done the job, but this has now led me to a new issue:- the seats are now oily (obviously!), and they'll damage clothes if sat on.

So, whats the consensus for dealing with this new issue?

1. Keep going over them  with a dry cloth/rag until I've dired them out a bit?
2. Leave them to air and eventually they'll settle (sit on cover in the meantime).
3. Treat them with something else to seal them?
4. something else?!


Thanks in advance,

Ray

[Peter Johnson]

How about saddle soap?

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=saddle...ent=safari

Peter

[stuartu]

Peter's saddle soap suggestion is well worth a try but I suspect that you will just have to keep wiping off the neatsfoot oil - unless you have some unwanted flannel trousers?

I use this as a dressing

http://www.carrdaymartin.co.uk/product/k...-dressing/

which one finds in horsey places. One still has to wipe off the excess after a day or two but usually that's it. Perhaps for the future?

Regards,
Stuart

[Austin Carr]

I think that you will have to wait for the Neatsfoot oil to dry naturally but give it a little help with a dry cloth. On a very old leather sofa, I use a hide cream once a year, not too much, polish and no messy clothes.

I would not try sealing the leather even when dry, although I do use Scotchgard on Nubuck shoes.

If you want to use the car before the leather is dry and not spoil your clothes, put a sheet/dustcover on the seats.

You could always read up on car leather care products.

["Slack Alice" Simon]

My saddler friend advises the use of olive oil.

When I have used it on old seats I thought were fit only for the bin the leather has revived to the point where, despite appearances, it was usable, and the oil had soaked in and gone.

The leather should soak up the oil, these far gone seats took half a dozen brushed on coats over a week or two.

Simon

[Michael]

A favourite on t' continent is a Reckitt and Bencksiner (spellling?) product called 'Sa Va Seul'.

https://www.dutchexpatshop.com/en/brands...ather.html

It is a form of spray on leather milk. The secret is to rub it in then cover with cling film to prevent it drying for as long as poss and giving it a chance to soak in. Then a quick wipe, leave to dry and you are ready to go. Excellent on old dry leather and highly thought of by various continental clubs. Not oily or smelly at all and cleans in the process.

Get some when you are next in a foreign supermarket. You won't find it here (helpful eh?!).

I wouldn't seal old leather.

[Chris KC]

Are we talking original Austin seat leather? Or has the car been re-upholstered?
A lot of modern upholstery leather is in fact 'plastic' coated (and general advice as far as I can tell is not to treat it with anything).

[fatcatvera]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I think the first approach will be to keep buffing the seats without giving them any other coating or treatment and hope that very warm weather we're having at the moment will do something to dry them out a bit (ironic really as I've done everything I can to undo their extreme dryness in the first place!).
If that doesn't get a useable result I'll look in a bit more detail at the other coatings you've suggested.


Ray

[Nick Turley]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I think the first approach will be to keep buffing the seats without giving them any other coating or treatment and hope that very warm weather we're having at the moment will do something to dry them out a bit (ironic really as I've done everything I can to undo their extreme dryness in the first place!).
If that doesn't get a useable result I'll look in a bit more detail at the other coatings you've suggested.


Ray

Hi Ray
Like you I tried all sorts on my Austin 20 seats which are original without success I might say.
In the end I called in a guy who not only managed to make them totally soft but invisibly repair any damage (there were quite a number of rips).
The result is astounding, two years on I am still delighted. Send me a mail and I will pass his contact details on (he is near Harrogate)

Hope this helps.