Why leather tack needs looking after

Leather is skin, and like skin it dries, cracks and loses strength when it is neglected. A bridle that has soaked up months of sweat and never seen a bar of soap will stiffen at the cheekpieces, fray where the buckles bite, and eventually fail — usually at the least convenient possible moment. Every ride leaves behind sweat, dust and grit, and these work their way into the grain and around the stitching. Add a damp tack room and you have ideal conditions for mould, which eats into the fibres and leaves a musty smell that no amount of oil will cure. Ten minutes of care after each ride costs far less than replacing a bridle, and more importantly it keeps you and your horse safe.

Good leather care is not complicated. It is simply regular, gentle and thorough, with the right products and somewhere sensible to hang everything afterwards.

Wipe down after every ride

This is the habit that does the most work. Keep a small sponge and a clean cloth in your kit and use them before the sweat has dried.

• Use warm water and wring the sponge out so it is barely damp — leather should never feel wet through.
• Wipe the reins first, then the cheekpieces, noseband and browband, paying attention to where leather sits against leather, such as under keepers and around buckles.
• Wipe the girth, the saddle seat and any part of the panel touched by the numnah or by sweat.
• Rinse the sponge often. A sponge full of salt and grit simply scratches the surface you are trying to protect.
• Dry with a clean cloth rather than leaving tack to air-dry, particularly metalwork, which will rust and stain the leather around it.
• Take the bit off if you can, wash it in clean water and dry it properly. Molasses and saliva left on a bit quickly become a sticky mess.

Deep cleaning with soap and water

Once a week, or fortnightly if your horse is clipped and lightly worked, give everything a proper clean. Use a good quality saddle soap and warm water, and keep two sponges — one for leather, one for metalwork.

Work up a little lather and apply it with small circular movements, letting the soap lift the grime out of the grain. Never dunk a bridle in a bucket. Leather absorbs water, and a soaked bridle will dry stiff, stretched and prone to cracking. Rinse your sponge frequently so you are not simply redistributing dirt. Around buckles and keepers, use a soft brush or a cocktail stick to clear the build-up in the crevices.

Avoid washing-up liquid and household detergents. They strip the natural oils that keep leather supple, and you will spend the next month trying to put back what you have removed. If a girth or stirrup leather is genuinely greasy, use the mildest degreaser you can find and recondition thoroughly afterwards.

Conditioning without overdoing it

Conditioner replaces the oils that cleaning and everyday use remove. The golden rule is little and often. Warm a small amount in your hands, work it into the leather with your fingers, leave it to absorb for a few minutes, then buff off anything left on the surface.

• Use oil sparingly. It penetrates deeply, can soften stitching and will stretch leather that is already under load, so reserve it for older, thirsty items.
• Never oil the underside of a saddle panel or attempt to oil flocking.
• Go easy on stirrup leathers, billets and girth straps. These carry your weight — slight suppleness is good, a stretched, spongy strap is not.
• While you condition, check the stitching, rivets and buckle pins. Frayed stitching or a bent pin means replacement, not repair with hope.

Storing tack so it lasts

Damp is the enemy of leather, and so is a complete lack of airflow. A tack room that smells fusty, or a wall that runs with condensation in winter, will undo all your good work within weeks.

Hang bridles on rounded pegs or purpose-made hooks so they keep their shape; a narrow nail will crease the crownpiece. Store them in a breathable cotton bag rather than plastic, which traps moisture and encourages mould. Saddles belong on a proper rack, never on the floor or draped over a door, and a breathable cover keeps off dust without sealing in damp.

Keep everything away from bare concrete walls, unheated outbuildings and anywhere mice can reach — chewed stitching is a common and expensive discovery in spring. Metalwork should be clean and dry before storage, and bits are best kept separately so they do not knock against and mark the leather.

If mould does appear, wipe it off with a cloth dampened with dilute vinegar or saddle soap, dry the leather thoroughly, then condition it. Do not simply oil over the top; the spores will return.

A simple routine to keep on top of it

• Every ride: wipe sweat off with a damp sponge, dry, and clean the bit.
• Weekly: saddle soap everything, clean metalwork, check stitching and straps.
• Monthly: condition leather lightly and check for cracks, stretch and worn holes.
• Seasonally: empty the tack room, check for damp and mice, wash bridle bags and covers, and review anything that has been sitting unused.

Look after your leather and it will look after you — soft, strong and ready whenever you are.