Mildew on original RW A-2

[PickerWilly]

Hi all, my original RW A-2 (534th BS) has some mildew issues. I’d like to rid the jacket of the mildew without causing any damage to it. Wanted to get some suggestions. It has been stored flat and in the open in my home, but that hasn’t touched the mildew.

 

[Silver Surfer]

ive seen worse, willy. I know that some here will think it heresy, but saddle soap works just fine. ive used it with no issues. apply softly so as to not remove surface color. be sure to get into the cracks, crevices, and into the stitching and stitched seams. don't forget about the pocket insides....mildew and mould like to hide in there. there may be some light spotting where the mildew has been on and in the hides for some time, and slight color may come away with the mildew. likely not, bu..t. yes, there are other products, but I have not used them. when completely dry, ya might want to gently apply vaseline, pecards, or other recommended leather dressings. keep em flying

 

[P-47 thunderbolt]

beat me to it, I was just about to say a light clean with good quality saddle soap

 

[mulceber]

ive seen worse, willy. I know that some here will think it heresy, but saddle soap works just fine. ive used it with no issues. apply softly so as to not remove surface color. be sure to get into the cracks, crevices, and into the stitching and stitched seams. don't forget about the pocket insides....mildew and mould like to hide in there. there may be some light spotting where the mildew has been on and in the hides for some time, and slight color may come away with the mildew. like not, but. yes, there are other products, but I have not used them. when completely dry, ya might want to gently apply vaseline, pecards, or other recommended leather dressings. keep em flying

Agreed - the thing to remember with Saddle Soap is that it does the same thing to leather that actual soap does to your skin. Cleans it, but also dries it out. Condition the leather right after you're done with the saddle soap treatment and you should be fine.

 

[Silver Surfer]

didn't I just write that? hahahahaha

 

[mulceber]

Missed the last sentence - sorry Vic.

 

[Silver Surfer]

if ya have time, willy, how about some full pix of the jacket.

 

[flyincowboy]

A litte bit of wash with water diluted with white vinegar and it will be fine.

 

[Micawber]

A litte bit of wash with water diluted with vinegar and it will be fine.

This.

Question is...

Are you seeing mildew or dried out / crystallised remains of a previous leather "dressing" or "treatment"? Do those areas smell?

 

[flyincowboy]

To me ACETIC ACID( WHITE VINEGAR) is used to clean leather and get rid of dirt old grease and so on...

 

[Dany McDonald]

My two canadian cents (yikes) and FLAK incoming from diverging.....

The saddle soap is a bad idea. It's designed to help remove dirt and grime from leather. It isn't a conditioner, and doesn't improve the leather in any ways. It's a basic or alkaline solution, which, like bleach will react with the acidic tannins used in the tanning process, essentially reversing the tanning process to some extent, and exposing more of the leather fiber to mold attack. At first it will give esthetic results but it doesn't deal with the spores.

First off, I would carefully and gently brushed off as much visible mold from the surfaces as much as possible. Then spray a mixed solution of distilled water and borax to actually deal with the spores that live in the fiber.

But with an original I would consider going professional.

HTH's

D

 

[Dany McDonald]

Are you seeing mildew or dried out / crystallised remains of a previous leather "dressing" or "treatment"? Do those areas smell?

Very good advice here, how bad is it?

 

[PickerWilly]

It has progressed since I got the jacket. Tried vinegar on the insides of the pockets and that seemed to work well. There was an entire ecosystem in there… what should my ratio be of vinegar to water to be effective?

As for pictures of the whole jacket, I posted a thread with some info on the vet a while back. Will circle back and link that. Here are some other pictures including one of my assistant helping me with treating the pockets:

 

[Dany McDonald]

Your jacket looks good, it's much lighter than the initial images suggested. Don't think you have to go hardcore on it. But just a wipe with vinegar may give the impression it's gone and not deal with the spores for good, just a idea.
I hope your jacket gets rid of it for good, it's really nice!

D

 

[coolhandluke]

This.

Question is...

Are you seeing mildew or dried out / crystallised remains of a previous leather "dressing" or "treatment"? Do those areas smell?

+1

Is there a mildew-like odor? It looks very much like "spew" or "white bloom" to me. Here's an example...