How much oil is enough? Saddle related...

[ArW-729]

I bought my saddle new in January. It was rather orange when I first got it, but I oiled it with olive oil twice during the course of the first two weeks I owned it and it is now a lovely chestnut color. I am happy with the color now and I was hoping it would eventually fade with use.

I was riding in the saddle 2-3 times a week up until July, when I had to take a month off for personal reasons. At the beginning of this month, when I started riding consistently again, I noticed the saddle looked worn, dry and over all dull. I took it home with me to give it a thorough cleaning and to oil it last night. I applied the olive oil to my hands and I massaged it into the leather with just a tiny bit of oil at a time. I watched the saddle absorb the oil so quickly that it dissapeard before my eyes. This did not happen when I first oiled it when I bought it in January. I kept applying more oil to the saddle in minuscule amounts, but I did not want to over oil it. After the last of the oil was applied, I let it sit for 30 minutes or so and when I went to cover it, it felt soft and clean, but still sort of dry.

I guess what I am trying to figure out is, how do I know when I have put enough oil on my saddle and when have I put too little? I did not want to over oil, as I have seen many posters warn about that in previous threads, but it still seems like it could use some more. I am not trying to darken the saddle anymore, just to keep it soft and buttery. Any advice?

[M. O'Connor]

You can save the olive oil for cooking--it won't do your saddle any harm, but for a fraction of the cost, you can use regular saddlery oils (neatsfoot and the like), or just less expensive regular kitchen oils.

When you first oiled your saddle, it was fresh from the maker--it had a wax "sealer" on it that kept it from drying out--finished in this way, new tack can sit on the shelf for months till a buyer comes along.

If you are going to leave your tack unused, you can protect it with a thin coating of glycerine soap; this will prevent it from drying out and losing condition. Your saddle can probably be reconditioned quite easily if you use a damp sponge on a glycerine bar--sometimes I use Lexol to dampen the sponge with, rather than water when I need a little extra on the conditioning end.