How to clean and condition a saddle and tack

How do you clean and condition a saddle?

Wipe off sweat and dirt with a damp sponge after every ride. Every week or two, take the saddle and bridle apart, clean each piece, let it dry, then condition with a thin coat worked into the flesh side and the grain side. Do not soak it in oil. Leave suede seats and knee rolls alone.

Why tack dries out faster in Australia

Heat, dust and sweat. Salt in sweat draws moisture out of leather, red dust is abrasive, and a hot tack shed in February bakes whatever oil is left. The parts that suffer first are the ones that bend and carry load: stirrup leathers, girth straps and reins.

The routine

1. After every ride. Wipe the sweat and grit off the saddle, girth and bridle with a damp sponge.
2. Every week or two. Strip the bridle and leathers. Clean each piece with Renapur Leather Cleaner Spray on a sponge, paying attention to buckles and keepers where grease builds up.
3. Let it dry, away from direct sun.
4. Condition. A thin coat of Renapur Leather Balsam on both sides, working it into folds and holes.
5. Check the stitching at stress points while it is apart.

Oil or balsam?

Traditional oils such as neatsfoot soak right in, which is useful on very dry, old tack, but they darken leather noticeably and too much leaves it limp and stretchy. A wax balsam goes on thinly, conditions without over softening, and leaves some water resistance behind. Many riders use oil once on neglected tack, then a balsam for routine care.

What about saddle soap?

Saddle soap cleans and conditions lightly in one go and has been used on tack for generations. Rinse the residue off properly, because dried soap left in the leather attracts dirt. A pH neutral cleaner followed by a balsam does the same two jobs separately.

How do you soften new tack?

A few thin coats over a couple of weeks, with plenty of handling and use in between, does more than one heavy coat. New bridles in particular need working, so flex the cheekpieces and reins as you condition them.

Suede seats and knee rolls

Which size should you buy?

A saddle and bridle take more balsam than a pair of boots. The 500ml gift box or the 1 litre bucket make sense for a tack room, and saddlers use the 1 litre.