New saddle - initial care?
Ok, so I've decided I'm keeping the Circuit Premier Special Eq that finally came in for me! Yay!! However, last time I had a new saddle it was like 1990 and I have no memory of if there was something special you needed to do to new saddles.
It came "lightly pre-oiled." I spoke to a lady on the phone at Dover and she seemed to think that since it was pre-oiled, nothing more needed to be done and I could care for it as I would a saddle I've had for years. Is this true? Is there something else I should do? The leather is actually pretty soft and supple already, but I have no idea if I should still oil it anyway, because that's what people seem to do with new saddles.
My current care regimen for my old saddle - which is in great shape - is a wipe down after every ride, cleaning with Effax LederCombi as needed (I ride twice a week so the saddle doesn't get grungy that fast), and then Passier Lederbasalm every couple of months.
My instinct is to slather it with some Passier Lederbasalm, which is what I use to condition my old saddle, and see how it takes it. If it drinks it up, I'll do that a bit more regularly than I do with my old saddle for awhile. Does that sound reasonable? Is there something else I should do to get it off on the right foot?
Thanks, all! This is the biggest purchase I've made in a looooooong time so I want to do right by it right from the start.
ETA - thanks for the advice on my previous post re: wrapping stirrup leathers to try the saddle - I did the sock method and it worked like a charm!
It came "lightly pre-oiled." I spoke to a lady on the phone at Dover and she seemed to think that since it was pre-oiled, nothing more needed to be done and I could care for it as I would a saddle I've had for years. Is this true? Is there something else I should do? The leather is actually pretty soft and supple already, but I have no idea if I should still oil it anyway, because that's what people seem to do with new saddles.
My current care regimen for my old saddle - which is in great shape - is a wipe down after every ride, cleaning with Effax LederCombi as needed (I ride twice a week so the saddle doesn't get grungy that fast), and then Passier Lederbasalm every couple of months.
My instinct is to slather it with some Passier Lederbasalm, which is what I use to condition my old saddle, and see how it takes it. If it drinks it up, I'll do that a bit more regularly than I do with my old saddle for awhile. Does that sound reasonable? Is there something else I should do to get it off on the right foot?
Thanks, all! This is the biggest purchase I've made in a looooooong time so I want to do right by it right from the start.
ETA - thanks for the advice on my previous post re: wrapping stirrup leathers to try the saddle - I did the sock method and it worked like a charm!