Milsurp After Hours

I have used a product to rehydratate the exterior of an old holster, which was never used before.

Now, it looks quite neat outwards but the inside still needs some care. Whenever you insert a gun in it you scrap alot of leather out (it was never used before).

Thus, I'm wondering whether there's a trick to rejuvenate the inside of a holster.

Good question! Too bad I don't have a clue! I will be watching this post, hopefully one of our smart people will jump in.

If the inside of the leather is just dry, try massaging in castor oil on cotton wool swabs.

I give no guarantee, but it always seemed to work in softening boots which had dried rigid ( perhaps try it on a less important item first?).

Good luck.

Tom

If the inside of the leather is just dry, try massaging in castor oil on cotton wool swabs.

I give no guarantee, but it always seemed to work in softening boots which had dried rigid ( perhaps try it on a less important item first?).

Good luck.

Tom

Saddle soap to clean leather. A coat of wax or clear shoe polish on the inside will help.

Hi, here is my two cents worth. I tend to collect older kit, alot of it being 100 year old leather. Your holster may or may not be that old, but if it is shedding leather when you holster or unholster an arm, then it needs help.

Leather of course an animal protein, it is dead skin and once gone past a certain point, extra care should be used in its handling and restoration. Red rot is a killer that can turn leather into powder. It is the death of any kit that gets it.

Cracking and flaking is due to the fibres no longer being flexible and cells no longer are elastic and slide over each other. The trick is to get moisture back into it.

Sometimes I get leather belts or pouches which are rock hard. I know from experience that if I try to flex the leather it will just crack. Straps through buckles are a good example. Leave them alone until they have been treated. In the case of something that has is dried out, soaking in luke warm water for several hours or even days to soften the leather will allow you to open up buckles or pull a holster or pouch open. The leather will be all sloppy and floppy, don't mess with it at this stage, just shape the item , prop it open, stuff it with newspaper and let it dry slowly. Once dry it will be hard again and fragile, use great care. But now you can take a good look and evaluate it to see if it needs cleaning, repairs etc, perhaps it is about to fall apart and needs help before you continue.

Apply your favourite leather preparation, soak it, again and again. I use a product called Lexol. It is a milky water based liquid that contains emulsified tanning oils. It soaks right in and can make leather soft and supple again. Once the leather is conditioned and I can flex it, I apply another product called Pecard's, inside and out. It is a soft butter like substance, not unlike dubbin. Warmth will melt it into liquid and it waterproofs and softens, massage it into the leather, work the fibres gently, they will flex again.

With your holster, the bonds between the cells are breaking down. Even with conditoning it may still shed a bit. Sometimes once dead skin is done, it's done.

Go check out the shoe care section of the hardware store. Stay away from sprays and silicones but look for stuff designed for work or hiking boots. Products that put the oils back in are what you need. Dubbin, mink oil, neatsfoot oil, even heard of some using peanut oil with good sucess.