Question:
Anyone got any ideas? My current regiment is to clean with Permatex
mechanic's hand cleaner with lanolin (really! it works! does a great
job on old, hard vinyl too) then smear another coat on, let the "goo"
soak into the leather, buff dry with towel. Then if the seats are still
hard, soak them with some neatsfoot oil until they're soft, then
continue care with normal leather care products (Lexol, etc.)
Problem is, I'm having a hard time finding a new bottle of neatsfoot
oil. If someone has a better idea let me know before I go online and
order some...
Reason I am asking is I bought some old Porsche seats at a swap meet
just for the parts; got them home and did a half fast cleanup on them
and they actually look better than the ones in my car and are "half
leather" whereas my old ones had aftermarket vinyl covers on them, and
the power adjustments all work perfectly. They are hard as rocks,
however...
Answer:
Ace Hardware carries it. Personally I prefer using the "boot oil" from
Red Wings shoes... it's a little thicker and takes longer to soak in, but
it's a neatsfoot oil blend that seems to last a bit longer than the usual
neatsfoot oil.
Note that neatfoot oil and related products will darken leather. Depending
on the finish, it could darken it a whole lot or just a little bit. Also
note that if you have really old leather, it may take a few months worth of
weekly soak-downs with neatsfoot oil for the stuff to soften up.
I have heard of the stuff, and mostly good, but the name didn't pop
into my head until I read your post... I guess if the oil doesn't
work I will have to give it a try, although the stuff appears very
pricey!
Follow up: I put some of the neatsfoot oil on the seats friday night
and by this morning the seats were noticeably softer. I put some more
on this AM because I will be gone all day and it should be nice and
sunny. Stuff appears to be working!
