By Kathy Satterfield
The longevity of any saddle, headstall,
or any leather tack in general, is directly related to the care and maintenance
you give it. If you use your saddle daily for working cattle or for sporting
events and competitions, then you will need to clean your saddle more
often. If on the other hand you only
ride occasionally, you will not need to clean your leather products as often.
Any activity that exposes your leather gear to dirt, mud, sweat or rain, will
require cleaning more than the average person. It also makes sense to clean and
moisturize your saddle, headstall and breast collar before storing for winter,
before a competition and of course before selling one. There are six easy steps
to keep your saddle in good shape. Each person can modify these steps to best
fit their usage and lifestyle.
1. First, your tack needs to be taken
apart. For Western saddles remove the
stirrups, cinch, and rear flank to clean separately. Get your shop vac or vacuum cleaner out; take your saddle
and flip it over onto a blanket then vacuum the sheepskin. This lets you see
its condition, helps to fluff it and remove any unknown stickers or other
foreign particulars that do not belong.
Next set the saddle on a saddle stand, remove dust from the saddle with
your vacuum cleaner, or use a soft brush or rag. Remove any dirt under the saddle skirt,
around the horn, gullet, under riggings dees and conchos. An old toothbrush works well for small
or tight areas. Use the vacuum cleaner to clean the seat of your saddle.
On English saddles, the stirrup leathers
and girth need to be removed. Remove
dust under the saddle flap and billets.
Next grab your headstall and remove the bit
and reins. Now it is time to gather your cleaning supplies.
There is a long list of leather cleaning
products on the market. Your local tack store should offer a great selection or
you can go online and see the plethora of products available.
Here is a suggested list of what you need
to properly clean and shine your leather.
•Small container of warm water
•Leather Cleaner or Saddle Soap (see our
recommendations)
•Leather Conditioner or Oil
•Silver polish for the silver Conchos and
plates
•Sponges
•Towels (micro fiber or old tee shirts
work well)
•Bristle Brush—not to stiff (an old
toothbrush works great)
2. Now that you have removed all the loose
dust, dirt, mud, and hair from the saddle, take your damp sponge and go over
the leather, wring out and rinse the sponge frequently. Change the water often
to avoid rubbing dirt back into your saddle. Go through the same process with
your headstall and reins. Using saddle
soap like Fiebings’ Saddle Soap, a clean sponge and warm
water work up a good lather. Pay extra attention to the fenders, leathers and
stirrups, or any place that is in direct contact with the horse. *Note: Do not
soap a suede seat or suede on your saddle skirt, use a suede brush gently.
3. Rinse the soap off the leather. Do not be
afraid to rinse well. As long as the leather is allowed to dry immediately it
should be fine. If you leave saddle soap on the leather, it can cause dirt
build up. Sticky spots attract dirt and
grime so rinse well. If you still see
some dirt in the tooling or crevasses you may need to use an old toothbrush or
small bristle brush to work the dirt out.
Make sure your rinse and dry well.
4. After the saddle has dried overnight the
leather needs to be conditioned. Apply a leather conditioner. Conditioners help
keep leather pliable and prevent it from drying out. Saddles should be
conditioned more often in dry climates. Fiebing’s neatsfoot oil, Leather Therapy are two that are on
the market, whatever you choose be sure to test the product on a small
inconspicuous spot before applying it to your entire saddle. Apply a thin coat, let it absorb then apply
additional light coats if your leather needs it. Some oil based products may darken your
leather, read the direction carefully. Pay close attention to the areas that
touch your horse, as these area need the most protection. Be sure to oil or
condition the underside side of the fenders too. Pull the stirrup leathers down and oil where
they fit over the bars. On very dry
leather several light applications are better than one heavy application. For English saddles I would suggest a leather
dressing.
Your leather bridles, reins, and breast
collar also may need a light application of leather conditioner.
5. After the oil or conditioner has dried
use a soft cloth to polish the leather
6. Once your saddle and gear has been
properly cleaned, it must be stored correctly. Bridles and halters should be
hung on a bridle rack . If you hang your bridle on a nail or narrow hook it can
cause the leather to fold or crease sharply which in turn can weaken the
leather. Saddles should be likewise stored on racks with good air
circulation. Western saddles should have
a wooden dowel inserted in the stirrups to keep the twist in the stirrup
leathers.
Your saddle is likely your most expensive
piece of gear, therefore is pays to take a few minutes to wipe down your
saddle, headstall, breast collar and bit after every use. Then every few months or as needed, schedule
the time to give your gear a good cleaning.
Photo courtesy of www.saddleonline.com
Scott Kravetz, Vice President of Sales at Fiebing Company says, “The biggest piece of
advice I always give folks who are cleaning and oiling their saddles and tack
is to make sure they do not over oil.
After cleaning with saddle soap, oiling of a saddle should be done in
steps. The first coat should be nice, even thin coat which should penetrate a
dry saddle fairly rapidly. Additional
light coats should be added until the leather no longer appears to be absorbing
the oil. Saturating the leather with too
much oil will leave the surface wet and oily—very undesirable. Once the saddle has been over oiled only time
and sunlight will get it back to its natural state. It is not ruined permanently but it probably
will be out of commission for a while until natural absorption and evaporation
of the oil is complete.”
as seen in Cassidy: Winter 2013
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