Hunting in sand - tack care

[Shay]

This abysmal weather has us hunting on sand most meets - whereas our normal country is mostly heavy clay. In previous seasons I've only come back sand covered a handful of times - but now it is pretty much every time since December.

The constant soaking and covering in abrasive sand is really taking its toll on my tack and any tips on sandy post hunt tack care would be appreciated. (I hunt at least once most weeks - twice if I can. Two horses, two sets of tack...) I've hunted for decades - so I had thought tack care was pretty much in the bag. But this has me stumped.

I just find the sand won't come off and is starting to scratch the leather surface. (Everything is leather - other than the bits, stirrups etc!) All my tack is starting to look scratched and dull - and I'm worried that sand got into the stitching it will shorten use and could be dangerous.

I've tried wiping off wet. I've tried leaving to dry and brush off. Every piece is taken to bits and cleaned properly every time. I use a beeswax conditioner. Still there is sand in every crevice. (Of the tack - I can have a bath!) No matter how careful I am there is going to be more sand. The closest I can recall to this was the time my daughter covered her piebald in pink glitter paint for a "Pinkest pony" competition and we were still finding pink glitter in the tack a year later! But that was once - this is every week.

What do people who hunt regularly on sand find best for post hunt tack care?

 

[CrazyMare]

I find Belvoir leather conditioner in a tub is the most conditioning thing ever for tack. Goes on, rubs in then looks dull by morning but polishes up with an old duster

 

[chillipup]

No personal experience of this but how about trying - leaving it to dry then blasting with a hairdryer followed by lots of conditioner? Just a thought.

 

[Alec Swan]

Shay, I don't ride to hounds but we are (on the Brecks) in light country and I suppose that it could be called 'sand'. I'm not really sure of the answer, but would suggest that if you're using a beeswax based treatment (think 'wax' here), then you're giving the surface of your tack a medium for the sand to stick to. If I'm right, then neither washing nor leaving to dry will be of much help, firstly because wax will repel water and secondly because it won't actually dry.

Beeswax is generally used on wood (furniture) and not leather and it forms a surface and film which can be polished to a gloss. Beeswax won't really sink under the surface of the leather, which would be the ideal, as glycerine saddle soap would. Beeswax will only sit on and stay on the surface. In your shoes, I'd possibly brush off the worst of the sand film when you arrive home (or when it's dry) and then offer no further treatment until it seems that the outer and forming coat of wax has been warn away and then I'd start using either a good proprietary saddle soap (either out of a tin or via a bar of Glycerine), and providing that the surface wax has been removed, so the 'soap' aspect of the treatment will sink under the surface and leave you with a surface finish which will respond to either being washed or brushing off when dry. When clean, then further applications can be applied which will sink in to the leather. If you start by immediately applying a 'thinner' product (oil or soap) and before the wax coating has been removed, you will end up with a gooey mess. Better to remove the surface wax in use, I'd say.

One thing's for certain, whatever it says on the tin, Beeswax will not preserve or assist leather, no matter how well the marketing plan is promoted!

Alec.

 

[Shay]

Thanks all,

I'm actually using the Belvoir conditioner that Crazy Mare recommended 2 posts higher which is beeswax based. I do so on the advice of my saddler who told me that Glycerine based products caused damage to stitching - and I certainly have has no rotted stitching in the 3 odd years since we switched. I also don't put the conditioner on until the tack is dry - although Alec I can see how my post might have led you to think that I did - I was trying to be brief.

The saddler is due out for the mid season checks next week - I'll speak to him again about what best I might do.

I did discover last night a huge boar bristle brush that my husband uses for waxing delicate woodwork (He's a wood artist) which I have "borrowed" and seems wonderful!! Think something Dandy brush sized with 4" soft bristles. That seems to get right in and winkle out all that sand. If he comes looking for it don't let on will you.....

 

[Alec Swan]

One small correction for your saddler; Glycerine saddle soap doesn't rot stitching. Most of the thread used today is man-made and synthetic anyway, and in the days when hemp was the norm, it was and would remain the 'thin' oils, Neats Foot and Flexalan, those sorts of products which caused the problems. In the days when Hemp was used, the thread was treated with beeswax anyway, which prevented the invasion of the thinner liquids, water included.

Alec.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

Shay, have only just seen this.
Yrs ago, my daughters tack used to get in a pretty horrid state when dragging as also mostly sandy - and horrid to clean after!

I gave up - held bridle over the bath & used the shower hose arm on boost to hose it down in tepid water. Left it to hang & drip dry in garage, then used Belvior conditioner on it. Same went for girth & irons & leathers, tho I was never brave enough to hose off saddle!

No doubt the above would be frowned on, but I still use that method if tack is really ingrained, as I hack mostly on sand daily :redface3:

 

[Alec Swan]

TFF, with the exception of saddles, all tack should be washed, then dried when it's truly filthy and then treated with a product which will penetrate in to the leather and lubricate it. Water works well but it obviously evaporates too quickly, so the thicker the preservative, the longer it will stay in place, which is why I always recommend glycerine saddle soap. I have a bar here which is at least 10 years old and it's yet to dry out which is an important point. if it doesn't dry out in the bar, then it won't in the leather. Regular treatment with such a product will continue the life of the leather itself, virtually for ever.

Leather, when it comes from the tannery is generally coated in a micro thin type of candle wax, and it's generally left in place on the finished and made item of tack, to preserve its look of 'newness'.

Saddles; hosing them off or having them immersed in water won't do them any good, long term. It won't affect the leather that much, but a saddle contains materials other than leather and they won't benefit from total drenching. Saddle seats are another bone of contention! Many years ago, and still the best today, are made from pigskin which is just about impervious to any of the insults which man can direct towards it. Most seats today, for the reasons of economy in both material cost and the labour involved, are made from cow hide. Saddle seats should never be oiled. Even glycerine soap should be kept to a minimum. The problem is with cow hide that the more that we pour love and care on to and in to it, so the more likely we are to have the material stretch, and bag. Despite the webbing which supports the seat of a saddle, the outer surface of the seat itself is under huge strain from the weight of the rider. That said, the better quality and the frighteningly expensive saddles which today use cow hide for seats, have largely got around the problem, but the mid range both in cost and quality, haven't.

As a footnote, OZ on here (Cremedementhe) and I don't see eye to eye on this subject, so he may well come along and tell you that I'm talking total piffle! We sort of agree to disagree!

Alec.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

Lol Alec, I know about washing, but this is power jetting with ruddy good shower that I do

 

[Ditchjumper2]

In the olden days Alec we used to boot polish the tops of saddles!! Came up lovely!

 

[Alec Swan]

In the olden days Alec we used to boot polish the tops of saddles!! Came up lovely!

And probably ended up with jodhs looking like you should have 'gone' and before you went out!

Boot Polish indeed, I've heard some things on here, but that's the limit!

Alec.

 

[Ditchjumper2]

Used to work for ex army chap......all saddles boot polish top and oiled underneath. Only got saddle soaped if they got wet......honest!

 

[Shay]

Thanks Fuzzy fury - I think I'll give the power shower a go. Like you I'm not brave enough to do the saddle that way - but it would probably be more effective than wiping with a cloth getting more and more loaded with sand!

Alec -I'll take your views back to my saddler. I know the glycerine / wax thing does stir debate among leather workers. I appreciate your time.

Ditch Jumper -I've heard of the boot polish thing too for army horses. But I don't think I'll try it!

Thank you all.

 

[Ditchjumper2]

I don't use it now...use lanolin based soap. When we hunt on sandy land bridles get dunked in the sink!