Leather Sheath Care

[RomanCandle]

Obenaufs is recommended by some professional sheath-makers including Reid of Sharpshooter Sheath Systems.

[I am Al]

I've been making gun belts and holsters as a hobby. Up on the boards for professional holster/gun belt makers here's what I typically see recommended:


If it's a prefinished item and there's nothing wrong it, you just want to keep it in good shape, use some Kiwi neutral shoe polish every once in a while. Most sheath and gun leather gear has either an acrylic or a lacquer final finish. It just needs some polish.


If it's unfinished leather or an existing item where the finish has worn off and the leather obviously needs to be reconditioned then...

Use an old t-shirt or a brush and rub on a light coat of one of the following on the smooth grain side (don't add oil to the rough side of the leather):

1 - Pure Neatsfoot oil. Pure Neatsfoot oil is made from rendered cow shin bones. Don't use Neatsfoot compound. It's cheaper than pure neatsfoot oil, but it has some other stuff in it (like mineral/motor oil) that can damage stitching. One problem with Neatsfoot oil is it will darken the leather.

2 - Pure Neatsfoot oil mixed with either Beeswax or Beeswax and Paraffin. People heat it up in a crock pot and brush it on as a liquid. Still the same problem with neatsfoot oil darkening the leather.

3 - Cold pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Cold pressed EVOO won't go rancid, other types of olive oil will. I see quite a few professional gear makers have gone to EVOO. I'm just an amature, but I prefer EVOO over Neatsfoot. The big advantage of EVOO is it won't darken the leather.

Like someone mentioned in a previous post, just use a light coat on the surface of the leather. You don't want to soak the leather or the sheath may loose it's stiffness.

If you are reconditioning, let the oil soak in for a couple days, then apply a couple coats of a 50/50 mix of "Mop and Glo" and water. Let it dry overnight between coats. Yeah, that's the floor stuff from the grocery store. It's the same acrylic as the more expensive acrylic coatings you can get from a leather store. Mop and Glo also gets used pretty frequently by professional gun leather guys.


There are other good conditioners out there like Obenauf's and Lexol, but the three above are what I see used most frequently.