Rehabbing old leather grips

[fortun8son]

Anyone ever try Nokoma baseball glove conditioner?
I've used it on a couple of thirsty,old leather grips and it seems to restore the moisture and tack pretty well.
Cleans well, too, but it takes a long time to dry if you use too much.
Apply by hand massage, let sit, and wipe off the excess with a soft cloth. Repeat as needed.

My hands felt really soft afterwards, too.

[retrowagen]

Balmforth of England (who might know a thing or two about leather grips) recommend using denatured alcohol to clean leather grips, and a light rubbing of castor oil to restore tack and softness. I've used these products and they work well. Some stuff to remember:

Don't use too much alcohol, or rub the alcohol too hard - it can parch the leather and cause chunks to come off the edges of the grips (or make them stretch or shrink, or come unglued).

Don't ingest the castor oil.

[superdave3]

I have even used cooking oil, such as corn oil, and found it works well, but be sure to wipe off any access. This was on a Fairway grip.

[coachrick]

Back in the old days, I actually ran a couple of well-worn Fairways through the wash(I don't recall the circumstances, seems like they were stuck in a jacket pocket or some such). I let them air dry and they worked like a charm. I installed them before they were completely dry.

[Tamiya]

was thinking of trying some "leather food" as used for car seats

[mad dog1]

Originally Posted by superdave3

I have even used cooking oil, such as corn oil, and found it works well, but be sure to wipe off any access. This was on a Fairway grip.

cooking oil is not ideal because it spoils and goes rancid which stinks up the leather. if you don't want your leather grip to smell like a dead carcass, i recommend using castor oil.