I have a I believe is a Tex Tan Show saddle. It has some pretty bad water damage done to the front end. Its not a huge amount, but good enough that the edges are curled, but not cracked, blackened and hard and dry. What is the best product to help make the leather soft and supple again? We dont care if the color doesnt come out we might be dyeing the saddle black anyway. I am currently using Horseman's one step cleaner and conditioner...but it really only works on stuff that just needs a lil attention. And this saddle needs some love! Its not really old. Maybe...3-4 years old the tree is made of I believe a plexy plastic of some sort. ^_^ the tree is not damaged at all, we checked it its just the part in front of the horn, and the stirrup leathers
The best way to bring your saddle back is to first clean it real good with saddle soap. Wash all of the saddle soap completely off of the saddle. Make sure you get the saddle good and wet, except for the seat. Let it dry completely. After it is dry, spray saddle oil, or neetsfoot oil on the rough sides of the leather. Spray it on the smooth sides where you can't get to the rough sides. Allow the oil time to soak into the leather and then wipe away any excess oil. As long as the leather isn't cracked, it will come back. I have restored several saddles this way.
