What is the Best Saddle Cleaner?
Regular cleaning of leather tack is crucial to its appearance and condition. A quality saddle cleaner can remove dirt, salt, and grime from your tack to restore it back into pristine condition.
Most saddle soap contains astringents to tackle stubborn stains, lubricants like neatsfoot oil, and waxes for nourishment and prevention of brittleness. Here are some top-rated cleaners on the market.
Fiebing’s Saddle Soap
Fiebing’s saddle soap is a trusted product that consistently tops lists for best leather cleaners. As a liquid, this solution was specifically created to clean tack as well as other leather items like shoes, jackets, bags and more. Formulated to remove dirt and sweat marks while strengthening leather’s elasticity for longer use; with added glycerine to moisturize its fibers as it works, making this ideal for everyday use and keeping tack looking its best!
Applying saddle soap regularly is also helpful in keeping your tack from becoming overly dirty, lightening salt stains and discoloration as well as keeping leather pieces supple for longer. While a thorough clean should take place after each ride, doing a deeper clean once weekly will help ensure its durability for years.
Though it can be hard to pinpoint exactly what constitutes the ideal saddle soap, they all include some form of astringent to remove dirt and oil from leather as well as fat like tallow or neatsfoot oils to moisturize it. Many also contain some form of wax to protect leather against water penetration and help it remain strong.
Lexol offers an effective all-purpose leather cleaner in their Tack Cleaning Product from Lexol, making it suitable for cleaning tack, baseball gloves, belts and gun holsters among other leather items. Plus, its blend of non-toxic ingredients leaves leather soft and supple – ideal for horse equipment!
Fiebing’s offers an excellent liquid saddle soap in a convenient spray bottle format for those seeking an easy way to clean their horse saddles without dealing with a messy solid bar of soap. Simply spray and wipe away. As with any leather cleaner product, always test a small area first in order to ensure colorfastness before proceeding further with its use.
Kiwi Saddle Soap
Kiwi saddle soap is a traditional blend of ingredients designed to effectively clean, soften and preserve smooth leather surfaces. Additionally, its quality wax provides additional protection for leather products like shoes, bags jackets and sports equipment. Although suitable for most uses including shoes bags jackets and sports equipment it should be avoided for delicate suede or nubuck leather surfaces which would require separate products.
Before applying saddle soap, first wipe your tack to remove any extra dirt or debris. A sponge works well; one with a softer texture will be more gentle on leather than others. Once clean, apply a thin layer of saddle soap on every article of saddlery; rub the surface to create lather by rubbing with your finger for best results. This will help lift embedded dirt, grime, and oil that has built up over time and return its lustre – giving your tack its original look back again!
Saddle soap can also be used to address old stains and discolorations, provided you apply only as required, being mindful not to overwork the area. Excessive use can strip leather of its natural oils while raising its pH level too quickly which could dry it out and lead to cracking of cracking leather surfaces. To avoid this happening, choose saddle soap that features moisturizing ingredients like lanolin and beeswax as moisturisers for best results.
Saddle soap also offers another great benefit – lightening the color of leather. This feature can be especially important in boots that get dirty easily or accumulate salt stains over time, making them look old or beat up. With some careful application and mink oil treatments, saddle soap may restore them almost back to original condition!
One great benefit of saddle soap is its affordability; quality bottles can be purchased for under $10, making it more cost-effective than many of the alternatives on the market. Furthermore, liquid form cleaners tend to make them easier and more user-friendly than solid ones.
Angelus Direct Saddle Soap
This saddle soap features an all-in-one formula designed to clean, condition and waterproof leather items. While its primary use is on equestrian equipment like saddles, chaps and bridles it can also be applied on shoes, bags, belts and furniture with great results. Ideal for cleaning saddles but also effective in lightening their color if discolored by salt stains or other causes – simply apply using sponge, dauber brush or cloth before drying quickly!
This product features an alluring scent and does not contain any chemicals which could be dangerous to people or animals, making it easy and effortless to use on various leather items – highly recommended for outdoor footwear like shoes and boots to protect them against water and staining, keeping their leather soft, supple, crack-free, and peeling free.
Use saddle soap regularly to keep leather products looking their best and extend their lifespan, but only as necessary; most leather items only need mild cleaning with damp cloth or leather wipe, rather than daily. Mild cleaning alone won’t get all of the grime off of its surface; in fact, too frequent mild cleanings could actually damage it by stripping away some of the oils and waxes essential to keeping its strength.
Saddle soap is a cleaning agent comprised of lanolin, beeswax and castile soap which moisturizes and protects leather fabrics. Many saddle soaps also include small amounts of petroleum jelly which acts as waterproofing agent. Ideally, the best saddle soap should have a low pH level as leather has natural acidity levels which are affected by alkaline substances; saddle soaps with high pH levels could dry out or damage leather due to raising its acidity levels.
Oakwood Liquid Saddle Soap
Oakwood Liquid Saddle Soap leather cleaner is a neutral pH leather cleaning soap designed to deep clean leather saddles, harness gear, shoes and other leather tack equipment. With its glycerine base which hydrates as it cleans so the leather won’t crack as you use this heavy-duty product with or without water; Oakwood recommends pairing this product with Oakwood Leather Conditioner for best results.
This saddle soap, produced in the US using premium ingredients like beeswax and lanolin, is safe to use on all kinds of leather such as boots, belts and furniture upholstery and works wonders in protecting them against moisture damage and sun damage – plus no harmful chemicals are included!
This liquid saddle soap is simple and straightforward to use; no mixing necessary! Simply apply to a damp cloth and rub into leather surfaces until completely saturated; use a clean towel to wipe off excess, before conditioning leather using quality leather conditioner. Colorfast means this product won’t discolor leathers over time!
Bickmore Saddle Soap Plus is another excellent saddle cleaner, featuring both lanolin and neatsfoot oil to gently cleanse and condition leather surfaces. While safe to use on all types and colors of leather, its quick drying time makes it more challenging than other options to work with; Bickmore leather conditioner is recommended alongside this product for optimal results.
Before using any saddle soap, it is wise to conduct a preliminary test on a small section of leather fabric to ensure its safety for your material. Some products contain harsh chemicals which could potentially harm it; the key is finding products which both clean and protect. These aforementioned saddle soaps may provide the most comprehensive options available; but there may also be others on the market.