Most people tend to use too much cleaner, so the maker of the kit says to use a hair dryer in order to avoid water staining the leather. I never use the hair dryer for the cleaner, but I know to go lightly with it. And yes, you can make your own cleaner, its just as good.
I find the included cloths not to my liking very much, I just prefer a larger microfiber cloth.
The Moore and Giles Conditioner is unbeatable on all burnished and pull up hides, its the best there is. Takes longer to apply though since its a paste and not a liquid.
Hope that helps!
Duane
Duane Collie
Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.
Both of them, Pull-up hides are oil and wax infused, so you use both. Oil first.
Duane Collie
Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.
All the burnished leathers are built atop pull-up crusts so the oil and wax would apply.
However, in my opinion, the Moore and Giles # 33 Conditioner is 5x better on burnished leather than that kit. But it takes more time to apply and costs more, too!
Duane Collie
Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.
Thanks for the advice...it definitely helped.
I'm still not sure I used enough of the conditioner on the Tilton lager sofa. It isn't as obvious on the Tilton leather as compared to the burnished where you have already conditioned. For the M&G conditioner on the burnished....I can feel the difference easily in the texture and pliability of the leather. Perhaps it's because we use the sofa (Tilton) much less than the Author's chair (burnished) or perhaps it's because the authors chair is "older" having been in our home for over a year at this point compared to just 6 months for the sofa. Should I be able to tell as easily on the Tilton where I conditioned?
Another comment/question is I find with the M&G conditioner...that at 24 hours and maybe even slightly at 48 hours...that the conditioner still seems to be working its way into the leather. Am I imaging this lol. Do you give the burnished pieces a "absorption coo, down time" after treating them?
Lastly...I would rather do the more expensive M&G conditioner and only do 2 passes versus doing the three passes...the extra time is worth the cost in my mind! And I enjoy rubbing it in with my hands lol...it's much easier than the cloth and I like feeling the leather change in stiffness as it gets treated...sounds weird when I write it but it's the truth!
Cheers!
Not all Anilines are created equal. The Tilton is a South American processed hide, the Burnished leathers (all of them) are from Italy, and those are Old World techniques that rally benefit from the Moore and Giles # 51. The Tilton, not so much, that M&G tends to ride on the surface more of the Tilton. And yes, you have to massage that Moore and Giles product into the hide. It's just like hand lotion, if you put hand lotion on your skin and didn't rub it in, then it would still be there a day later. So reduce the amount of product used and rub it in well. Do that and you get rewarded with a soft glow in the leather and add to the suppleness and quietness of it. On the Tilton, use the more liquid Leather Solutions product.
Duane Collie
Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.
Ok....will do...Thank you for the feedback.
I'll take these notes and use them in 6 months and follow up!!
Cheers Duane!
I did my first cleaning today on my H & M sofa/recliner. I tried to do the entire sofa and recliner but not sure if I used too little or not. Since it's fairly new should I focus most of my energy on the parts that you sit on, rest your arms on, lead back on, etc. although I tried to do the back and sides somewhat as well.
I know you have said to use it sparingly but I don't know if I'm being too stingy with it. How do you know how much is the correct amount to use? I know when it's not soaking wet but slightly damp (the cloth you're using). It dried so quickly I'm not sure if that's because I used so little maybe?
Cleaner is cheap (and you can also make your own) it's the Conditioner that is costly. I go sparingly on the latter - the more important part is cleaning anyways. On my own leather at home, I will use just enough Conditioner to get coverage.
Duane Collie
Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.