Copied from Horse and Hound.
Another point is all you are trying to do is replace the fat that was once naturally in the hide when it was living, you don't need all these polishes and silicones that are artificially added to some of the commercial products, the polishes seal the fibres too much and don't allow the hide to breathe or asorb any further conditioner.
The true craft of the currier is old fashioned fats and waxes as well as hard work to do it thoroughly!
When I get any saddlery it that needs tlc as it's filthy dirty, covered in horse grease and rock hard I get a bucket of fairly warm water with fairy liquid in and scrub the leather with a soft brush or sponge, the soap gets all the grease off and dirt, then chuck it in clean warm water to rinse, hang it up until it's still damp but not soaking wet then apply the leather conditioner and follow above instructions.
I never use saddle soap, fairy liquid is better, just remember, you have removed alot of grease from the leather by cleaning it that way so you HAVE to replace it afterwards with conditioner, if you don't it will go even harder and crack, Oz
Home made leather conditioner (traditional) recipe:
My own recipe is a secret one I have perfected over many years but what I will give you a basic one, get hold of any beef fat (I make my own tallow but you can use beef dripping), beeswax and some lard (pig fat, again I make my own), do roughly a 50% beef fat, 25 % beeswax and 25% lard, melt it down and mix it thoroughly.
Let it set, when you use it if it has melted because the weather is warm, shove it in the fridge for 10-20 mins to get the right consistency.
When conditioning the leather, wipe it with a warm wet cloth (just warm water) and whilst still wet/damp get some conditioner on your fingers, the heat from your hand and your fingers are by far the best way to apply any conditioner, it's a mucky job but forget sponges, cloths or brushes at this stage!
By putting the water on first it acts as a medium that aids the penetration of the fats right into the fibres of the hide.
The flesh side of the hide is far more porous than the grain side,try to imagine a funnel shape to the fibre with the wide open mouth end as the flesh side (flesh side is the underside where the flesh used to be) so allow a little more conditioner that side, you don't need alot anyway as it goes a long way.
Rub it all over and massage it into the hide, then leave it to dry naturally in a dry room and not in any sunlight or near artifcial heat,it can take 3 days or more to dry out and be asorbed into the hide, depends how much you use!
When it's dry, then get a lint free cloth, I use old bath towels cut up, the bobbly bits of the towelling act like a polishing stone and this is where it gets hard work, you need alot of elbow grease.
It's basically good old fashioned saddlers grease which most saddlers, leatherworkers and cobblers would have made years ago and none of the commercially made rubbish you get today.
The idea is to rub the hide fast and fairly hard, not too hard to scratch it, the friction heats up any fats you have left on the hide (the white stuff) and gets it further into the fibres to add to the already asorbed conditioner that you put on it a few days before.
Lastly, this where it looks like I am contradicting myself about saying not to use oil on hides but I do, I use cod liver oil (NEVER neatsfoot which quite frankly is rubbish)and wring a cotton cloth out in the cod liver oil so almost dry and put a very LIGHT film on both sides of the hide,wipe off any surplus and give it another gentle polish to buff it up with a bit of clean, dry bath towel, you are merely giving it a final dressing with the cod liver oil NOT conditioning or feeding it, it also gives the hide back it's leathery smell, a good trick of the trade to know if you sell second hand saddlery or leather, people love the smell of leather!
When completed you should have hide that is fairly stuffed full of fat and wax which is what it was designed for and it will have a nice bloom/shine to it, it should feel slightly moist/clammy but not sticky, if it is sticky you need to rub it more, it should feel heavier too.The conditioning will act as a rain barrier to keep the wet out.
Sorry for long post but I think it's worth mentioning all this.
Happy polishing!
Another point is all you are trying to do is replace the fat that was once naturally in the hide when it was living, you don't need all these polishes and silicones that are artificially added to some of the commercial products, the polishes seal the fibres too much and don't allow the hide to breathe or asorb any further conditioner.
The true craft of the currier is old fashioned fats and waxes as well as hard work to do it thoroughly!
When I get any saddlery it that needs tlc as it's filthy dirty, covered in horse grease and rock hard I get a bucket of fairly warm water with fairy liquid in and scrub the leather with a soft brush or sponge, the soap gets all the grease off and dirt, then chuck it in clean warm water to rinse, hang it up until it's still damp but not soaking wet then apply the leather conditioner and follow above instructions.
I never use saddle soap, fairy liquid is better, just remember, you have removed alot of grease from the leather by cleaning it that way so you HAVE to replace it afterwards with conditioner, if you don't it will go even harder and crack, Oz
Home made leather conditioner (traditional) recipe:
My own recipe is a secret one I have perfected over many years but what I will give you a basic one, get hold of any beef fat (I make my own tallow but you can use beef dripping), beeswax and some lard (pig fat, again I make my own), do roughly a 50% beef fat, 25 % beeswax and 25% lard, melt it down and mix it thoroughly.
Let it set, when you use it if it has melted because the weather is warm, shove it in the fridge for 10-20 mins to get the right consistency.
When conditioning the leather, wipe it with a warm wet cloth (just warm water) and whilst still wet/damp get some conditioner on your fingers, the heat from your hand and your fingers are by far the best way to apply any conditioner, it's a mucky job but forget sponges, cloths or brushes at this stage!
By putting the water on first it acts as a medium that aids the penetration of the fats right into the fibres of the hide.
The flesh side of the hide is far more porous than the grain side,try to imagine a funnel shape to the fibre with the wide open mouth end as the flesh side (flesh side is the underside where the flesh used to be) so allow a little more conditioner that side, you don't need alot anyway as it goes a long way.
Rub it all over and massage it into the hide, then leave it to dry naturally in a dry room and not in any sunlight or near artifcial heat,it can take 3 days or more to dry out and be asorbed into the hide, depends how much you use!
When it's dry, then get a lint free cloth, I use old bath towels cut up, the bobbly bits of the towelling act like a polishing stone and this is where it gets hard work, you need alot of elbow grease.
It's basically good old fashioned saddlers grease which most saddlers, leatherworkers and cobblers would have made years ago and none of the commercially made rubbish you get today.
The idea is to rub the hide fast and fairly hard, not too hard to scratch it, the friction heats up any fats you have left on the hide (the white stuff) and gets it further into the fibres to add to the already asorbed conditioner that you put on it a few days before.
Lastly, this where it looks like I am contradicting myself about saying not to use oil on hides but I do, I use cod liver oil (NEVER neatsfoot which quite frankly is rubbish)and wring a cotton cloth out in the cod liver oil so almost dry and put a very LIGHT film on both sides of the hide,wipe off any surplus and give it another gentle polish to buff it up with a bit of clean, dry bath towel, you are merely giving it a final dressing with the cod liver oil NOT conditioning or feeding it, it also gives the hide back it's leathery smell, a good trick of the trade to know if you sell second hand saddlery or leather, people love the smell of leather!
When completed you should have hide that is fairly stuffed full of fat and wax which is what it was designed for and it will have a nice bloom/shine to it, it should feel slightly moist/clammy but not sticky, if it is sticky you need to rub it more, it should feel heavier too.The conditioning will act as a rain barrier to keep the wet out.
Sorry for long post but I think it's worth mentioning all this.
Happy polishing!
I do a little leatherwork, and use a little Neatsfoot, I have no idea about cleaning tack, except what I read. It just goes to show , don't believe all you read. Thanks for the headsup. 
