Oil removal from leather

[gnoahhh]

I bought a very nice solid 60's-vintage holster for a pre-war Woodsman off a fella online. It looked sweet as it was in the pics. He thought he did me a favor by oiling it before shipping it to me. And I mean oiled it, must've soaked it in a bucket of Neatsfoot Oil. The oil practically oozes out of the leather, making it so I don't want to put it on because it'll soak into my clothes.

Anybody have any tips re: leeching oil back out of leather? It's a very cool old Bucheimer. Help!!

[10-x]

Thats sad, Any petroleum product hurts leather and causes old thread used for stitching to “rot”. Since its probably not hot up your way dont know what to say. Usually I’d set piece in sun on hot days wrapped in an old cloth.

[wch]

I suggest you use diatomaceous earth, available as "Fullers Earth", available online from Amazon and others.
Put it on the leather, let dry for a day and brush it off; repeat as necessary.

[GregLaROCHE]

A solvent like mineral spirits or even acetone should remove it. Not sure how it would leave the leather afterwards.

[farmbif]

might try treating it with saddle soap and damp cloth

[rintinglen]

I suggest you use diatomaceous earth, available as "Fullers Earth", available online from Amazon and others.
Put it on the leather, let dry for a day and brush it off; repeat as necessary.

This is the best answer. Stuff the holster with TP or paper towels to limit the ingress of the Fullers earth into the pouch. Put the holster in a plastic bag [black, by preference] of Fullers earth and put it someplace warm--southern sunlight or in a hot parked car in the summer, in the boiler room or kitchen. Let it set for a day or two, gently shake it up periodically to bring fresh soil into contact to absorb more oil as it sits and warms. If it is as heavily saturated as you suggest, it may take several treatments. Brush the fullers earth off using a soft brush, tap it gently to dislodge any clumps. Examine the holster and repeat as necessary. You'll need some patience, but you should be able to remove most of the oil this way.

Then wash the holster, using a mild dish washing liquid, to remove the rest of the Earth. Soap and water will remove some oil as well, but it can leave the leather dry and cracking, so I would recommend discretion.

DO NOT USE GASOLINE, ACETONE OR ANY OTHER CHEMICAL. YOU WILL DRY OUT AND DAMAGE THE LEATHER.
Saddle soap will soften the leather, as will most other leather cleaners.

[gnoahhh]

Thats sad, Any petroleum product hurts leather and causes old thread used for stitching to “rot”. Since its probably not hot up your way dont know what to say. Usually I’d set piece in sun on hot days wrapped in an old cloth.

He told me he used Neatsfoot Oil, thank goodness. (I know neatsfoot oil won't rot flax stitching, but it's kind of hard to find pure neatsfoot oil these days. It's the Neatsfoot Oil Compound containing metallic salts that's the killer, and it is what's commonly found anymore.)

Thanks for the Fuller's Earth suggestions. Just finished ordering some. Good to know too I can use it to remove facial wrinkles too, haha!!

[waksupi]

You can also put it in cornstarch.

[gnoahhh]

You can also put it in cornstarch.

Thanks.

By the way that 5 gallon bucket of lube grooves I got from you ten years ago are about used up. Got any more?

[acemedic13]

Hot water works great for getting out oils and other stuff. Its also the best thing to use when casing it. If you ever need another holster for that, let me know. I make custom gun leather, saddles, halters, trap bags... You name it.

[KCSO]

I use saw dust from the table saw.

[uscra112]

Kitty litter? (The poor man's Speedi-Dry)

[Geezer in NH]

Speedy dry is cheaper than kitty litter in my are and comes without scents and other added junk.

Last 50lb bag from NAPA was 8.99.

[Mk42gunner]

Corn meal will suck the oil out of just about anything, especially if it is in a warm environment.

Summer time I would go with the black plastic trash bag in a sealed up car in the sun. Now? a roaster pan in the oven on low, ~140 degrees or as low as your oven will go.

Robert

[DocSavage]

I was thinking talcum powder or maybe baking soda.

[waksupi]

Thanks.

By the way that 5 gallon bucket of lube grooves I got from you ten years ago are about used up. Got any more?

Shake the bucket, they tend to stick in the corners! You probably have a lot more than you think!

[JimB..]

I’ve worked with diatomaceous earth and it doesn't dry my hands out like cimexa does. It’s expensive though and I’ve only used it as an insecticidal dust. Probably wouldn’t use it for this since there are inexpensive options, but just data to file away if you’re interested.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Put it in a bag of Flour. That will suck the oil out of it and not hurt anything. Works on oil soaked Wood as well.

Randy

[gnoahhh]

Well, three days packed in Fuller's Earth, followed by a good hot water + Dawn detergent scrubbing did the trick. It now has the tan color it should have rather than the almost black it came to me as. Still soft and pliable too- I doubt I'll do anything more to it except maybe a saddle soaping to give it a bit of luster, but probably not.

Thanks for all the suggestions. They all sound good!