1970’s G1 - Care for dry leather

[MSC100]

Hello all,

Just received a vintage 1970’s G1 - plan is Christmas present for a relative. Leather appears to have no real damage visible, except that the leather zipper pull is torn half off. Q: Is there a product that anyone recommends for these jackets if they are very dry to the touch. Jacket maker is Brill Bros.

Thanks !

 

[RB25]

Pecards has always been my go to for dry leather that could use a treatment.

 

[veli1]

Hi,

i bought a nice 1968 Martin Lane G1 two years ago.it's genuine goatskin. i put a lot of Pecards to the "skin" altough some of the forum members said that Pecards is for HH material only. i haven't had any issues with the jacket...

 

[veli1]

one advice : let your jacket soak with Pecards at room temperature, you want to put oil on it and not greese.

 

[RB25]

Hi,

i bought a nice 1968 Martin Lane G1 two years ago.it's genuine goatskin. i put a lot of Pecards to the "skin" altough some of the forum members said that Pecards is for HH material only. i haven't had any issues with the jacket...

I’ve used Pecards on goat skin as well with zero issues. A nice light coat does the trick. Sometimes I’ll buff it a day later with a horse hair brush. Did this about a month ago with great success

 

[jeremiah]

Pecards is petroleum based and IS in a sort a grease. Oil would be neatsfoot.
If you mean the pecards will turn to oil at room temp, it won’t. The leather WILL soak up just the same though and one can wipe off the excess with rag. I used to use pecards very lightly on my roo hide bullwhip.

oil penetrates where as pecards will soak in but will not penetrate deep like an oil will. It’s why with oil you MUST be conservative.

 

[MikeyB-17]

Yeah Pecard’s is great for dry leather, but GO EASY. A light coating is the way to go. Never heard anything about not using it on goatskin, I have done so with no problems. A ‘71 Brill is likely to be cowhide, I would imagine.

 

[MSC100]

Thanks all, sounds like Pecard's will do the trick!

 

[s4rmark]

I used Renapur on my 1964 G-1 , worked fine.

 

[MSC100]

This was another resource I was checking in to - anyone familiar with it?

Leather Care Products - Conditioner, Cleaner, Protector, Polish, Softener and more - URAD.com

www.urad.com

 

[Dany McDonald]

Hello MSC100,

Yes and I did revive a Foster MIL-J-7823, that was starting to dry and felt a bit like carton. I used the cream and it did regain a little of it's suppleness, and was left glossy.
So the product will protect and rejuvenate but it has it's limits. I'd say its a good aging stopper and will look good on presentation piece. If you go that route, rub it in with your fingers and apply gentle heat before the treatment.

You can also start with a primer (very thin coat of kneads foot oil) and then finish with urad cream. Go sparingly and leave the oil time to settle and penetrate before applying urad cream.

I've come to the conclusion that dry leather will never regain it's suppleness and adipose properties. But depending on the skin itself, some will react well to different treatment. G1's family have kinf of a coating that doesn't always permit the treatment to penetrate well.

PS I live like 30 min walking distance to that shop on your link... funny.

Hope this helps!

Dany


Here's an image of the cream on the foster so you can see the result, this is after a year of lite usage:

 

[MSC100]

Thanks much Dany, and nice to be so close to a great resource there! I'm just starting to learn about these jackets - lots to know! Aside form the kind of dry feeling to this jacket, it also feels very light weight for some reason compared to a 1986 G1 that I also have from Orchard. No idea why that is - maybe just the manufacturer.

 

[B-Man2]

Thanks much Dany, and nice to be so close to a great resource there! I'm just starting to learn about these jackets - lots to know! Aside form the kind of dry feeling to this jacket, it also feels very light weight for some reason compared to a 1986 G1 that I also have from Orchard. No idea why that is - maybe just the manufacturer.

Hope you guys don’t mind if I jump in here. Orchard G-1 jackets were made with a bit thicker hide and are a bit heavier than the normal G-1 jackets. It also may have to do with the tanning process used by Orchard.
Have you noticed a little bit different odor coming from your Orchard jacket than another G1?

 

[MSC100]

Thanks B-Man2, no real smell coming from it but your explanation kind of clears up the weight and finish coming off the sleeves - certainly gives it a lived in appearance which is fine since its a daily wear piece. Sounds like Orchard only made the jackets for a short while - is that true?

 

[B-Man2]

Thanks B-Man2, no real smell coming from it but your explanation kind of clears up the weight and finish coming off the sleeves - certainly gives it a lived in appearance which is fine since its a daily wear piece. Sounds like Orchard only made the jackets for a short while - is that true?

To the best of my knowledge Orchard had a government contract for G-1 jackets for one year 1986.

 

[MSC100]

Well that’s cool kind of - limited run of sorts from that company anyway. Probably the only wear issue aside from the finish on the sleeves is the waistband - fair amount of “pilling” but I guess that is typical.

 

[MSC100]

Father-in-Law was absolutely thrilled with his G-1 Christmas present - I'm thinking he might have slept in it last night!

 

[MSC100]

On the subject of leather care for the G-1, I found this product locally at a tac shop. Tried “Effax” on my Orchard G1 after reading on an equine forum about it. Simple ingredients really: lanolin, beeswax and avocado oil. Very nice to use, the horse community recommends applying with an applicator or even your hand. Went with the hand and worked very well - no unpleasant smell and no residue.

 

[Micawber]

There are exceptional leather care products marketed to the equine community where leather not only often gets rough treatment in a harsh environment but often needs to stay fed, looking good ....and above all safe.