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Caring for Antique and Vintage Leather Sporting Goods
by Bob Brooke

Leather is timeless. Many antique pieces of sporting equipment were made of it in whole or part. But just because leather is famously durable doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be given some care. To ensure that leather sporting goods have a long life, it’s vital to regularly clean them and perform some light maintenance.

While staining or damage can occur time, they form part of an item’s history. With proper care, high-quality leather develops a coveted patina over time that only enhances its beauty and value.

Handle With Clean Hands
The natural oils from human skin will gradually discolor leather over time, so it’s a smart idea to keep your hands clean when handling your most precious products. Body oils encourage the further aging of leather, so it’s important to keep contact with them at a minimum. Wearing white cotton gloves while handling western leather sporting goods. may also help.

Wipe Away Dust
Dust has a way of drying out the surface of a leather, so it’s a good idea to periodically dust leather products. Not only will this protect the oils in the leather, but it will help to create longevity.

Gently dusting with a specialized vacuum nozzle before dust accumulates prevents abrasion damage from particles. Monitoring for insect pests through periodic inspection also avoids harm.

More than anything, it’s important to keep your leather clean. Try to brush it down with a damp cloth at least once a week. Use a damp cloth. Start by brushing off any dirt of grime from the leather with your hand, then switch to a damp cloth. Do not use any soaps or cleansers. Then let the leather dry slowly.

Clean stains as soon as possible. Remove them as soon as you spot them to prevent extreme discoloration. For minor stains, use a mild solution of three parts ivory dish soap to one part distilled water for minor stains. However, leather corrects itself over time, so even marks that seem major will eventually contribute to the overall patina.

For faded leather, use a conditioner, as it will rehydrate and reintroduce oils into the leather. If the leather has stains, apply conditioner not only to the stains, but to the entire piece. Conditioning leather will darken it, so consider that before doing it. Apply the conditioner, let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe off the excess.

Just like your skin, leather needs to breathe, so after you have finished dusting your jacket, leave it to air out before storing it again. Leather is meant to change as it gets older, and it’s through this aging that its true value becomes apparent.

Knowing about leather preservation is essential to protect the investment.
Following a basic preservation plan can stabilize the structure and moisture content of leather artifacts and arrest or slow the rate of deterioration. Once leather becomes brittle and begins to crack, its condition cannot be reversed.

The Enemies of Leather―Humidity, Sun, and Pollution
Humidity, sun exposure, pollution, and insects accumulated over decades impact antique leather far beyond normal wear and tear. Fluctuating humidity levels irreparably warp leather as moisture causes expansion and contraction. Maintaining as close to a consistent 65 F degrees and 45 percent relative humidity where items are displayed or stored. At high humidity levels—more than 70 percent relative humidity—leather absorbs moisture, which can lead to biological infestation and microbic deterioration such as mold and bacteria growth. At low humidity levels—less than 25 percent—leather begins to dehydrate permanently, leading to shrinkage and deformation. Once dehydrated, the leather begins to weaken, lose flexibility, crack and check.

Air conditioning keeps humidity levels below 60 percent. Cold air, on the other hand, cannot hold as much moisture as warm air, and humidity levels in winter months can be dangerously low. In addition, fireplaces, central heat, space heaters, and radiators can suck what little moisture remains from the air, making winter a prime time for leather deterioration. Excessive heat can dry out leather and reduce its tensile strength which leads to cracking and splitting. Even in ideal conditions, slow chemical breakdown of fats and tannins causes leather to grow brittle and discolored over centuries. Oxidation cannot be halted, only slowed.

Both ultraviolet and visible light can cause irreversible color and structural changes to leather. Prolonged exposure to both forms can result in photodegradation, the fading of the pigments and dyes within leather. Over time this can bleach out the color of an artifact and cause differential fading on the surfaces of objects that are unequally lit. Not only does sunlight generate heat that can dry out leather, it’s also the primary natural source of UV radiation. UV radiation oxidizes collagen and breaks down the structural bonds of leather. LED lights are more energy efficient than incandescent and compact fluorescent bulbs and generate practically no heat or UV radiation.

Proper Presentation is Important
Though proper preservation practices can greatly extend the life and maintain the appearance of antique leather sporting items, all leathers will stiffen and lose flexibility. Proper support is critical to preserving the artifact's shape and minimizing stress on the leather fibers. Once an artifact has reached a moderate degree of dryness, altering its static shape is nearly impossible.

Once vintage leather goods receive any needed conservation, maintaining ideal display and storage conditions prevents further unnecessary damage.

The goal should be stabilization and preventing further damage rather than aggressively restoring every visible imperfection which may remove integral evidence like tool marks.

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