Goatskin Cleaning

[Jaydee]

Hey Guys, I know some of you have a lot of experience cleaning old goat. I need some advice. I recently got a beautiful '63 G-1 jacket, condition is great with absolutely perfect, unstreched original knits! There is however a mothball like smell to the leather only, not the shearling collar or the knits. I washed the entire jacket with saddle soap on a cloth, and then rinsed with a fresh wet cloth. I let it dry well and then conditioned it with Pecards. I have aired it out in the shade now for close to a month after this treatment, and the smell is a lot less but still there. Any suggestions?

 

[deeb7]

Try placing the jacket in a dry cleaner's bag with some baking soda (bicarbonate), and seal with tape. Leave for a week or so, the baking soda should absorb the smell.

And/or pet odour eliminator sprays.

 

[Jaydee]

Try placing the jacket in a dry cleaner's bag with some baking soda (bicarbonate), and seal with tape. Leave for a week or so, the baking soda should absorb the smell.

And/or pet odour eliminator sprays.

Thanks! Do you leave the Baking Soda in the open box or do you dump some out in the bottom of the bag? How much do you put in there?

 

[deeb7]

I just poured it into the bottom of the bag, a 500g pack, so about a lb.

I also disturbed the soda every day, so there was a fresh surface.

 

[rikitiki]

I sprinkle baking soda on my jacket to deodorize the lining. After a while, sometimes overnight, I brush the baking soda off. Contrary to popular belief, baking soda does NOT absorb odors, but neutralizes the pH of odor causing chemicals which are usually acidic, so placing it at the bottom of a bag, without contact with the material, isn't very effective.

 

[Anonymous]

I believe your jacket smell is do to mold/mildew from storage in a damp/dark closet. Perfect breeding ground for micro organisms. I think a more agressive treatment of the leather is needed to get rid of the smell. The smell itself is the result of fermenting micro organisms. Just spraying or dusting with powder might not work. I suggest more scrubing with LEXOL cleaner and warm water. Its PH ballanced, wont harm the leather and the cleaning/scrubbing should remove the micro organisms that are causing the smell. Complete drying in fresh air before conditioning with Gliptone leather lotion (Smells great btw) should work IMHO. It might take a few scrubbings to work.

 

[Anonymous]

I forgot the liner. I use SPRAY N WASH and rinse with a damp sponge. It wont harm the nylon on a G-1 liner. (So much more easy to clean than the cotton A-2 liner). One of the many reasons a G-1 is better than an A-2 IMHO.

 

[deeb7]

... so placing it at the bottom of a bag, without contact with the material, isn't very effective.

I meant, as opposed to leaving it in the box.

Actually, by the time I'd messed with it for a week, it was everywhere ... had to vacuum it out of the pockets.

And in conjunction with the pet odour spray, and the airing, it worked just fine.

 

[rikitiki]

I forgot the liner. I use SPRAY N WASH and rinse with a damp sponge. It wont harm the nylon on a G-1 liner. (So much more easy to clean than the cotton A-2 liner). One of the many reasons a G-1 is better than an A-2 IMHO.

When my A-2 gets really funky, I turn my jacket inside out and actually wash the liner under a shower with a mild soap, then dry by rolling it up in a towel. This cleans the liner as if it went through a washer. But it's a bit risky on an old original jacket, so this would be a last resort if nothing else removes the odors.

 

[Anonymous]

I have tried that on funky collars that have gotten dirty, works ok but fades the cotton a bit. Thats why I think Nylon is a little better for a liner.