How do I finish an unfinished leather sling?

I got a couple of unfinished new manufacture 1907 slings for both aesthetics and also local match position shooting. I want them to have a nice dark brown color and less harshness on the edges. I have already applied neatsfoot oil to one and it did darken and get a little softer, but I was hoping for darker. I haven't touched the other. Any recommendations for how to treat the second one?

@gunbelt @chiefjason

I would use this to protect the leather.

Obenauf's Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner Natural Oil Beeswax Formula

Leather can be dyed pretty much any color. Search for leather dye and see if you can find a color that suits you. As for the edges I will let the pros advise you on that.

Put the oiled one in the sun and see if it darkens more. Just using it will patina it too. Particularly if you don’t treat it with a sealant.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

chiefjason said:

Put the oiled one in the sun and see if it darkens more.

Click to expand...

I will try that, thanks chiefjason.

I too hard heard good thing about Obenauf's.

I've never personally used it, but have heard stories from other competitive sling-shooters that claim using Neatsfoot oil "ruined" their slings. I recall reading that there is pure Neatsfoot oil and there is Neatsfoot compound, which is not the pure form. The pure oil is the one to use, if you're going to use it.

nbkky71 said:

but have heard stories from other competitive sling-shooters that claim using Neatsfoot oil "ruined" their slings..

Click to expand...

That's what I've been reading, which is why I did buy pure neatsfoot oil and only did it on one sling to see if it ruined anything. It has been a couple of months since I did that one and it doesn't appear to be breaking down. What I most notice is that it is slightly oily to the touch. I wanted to see what the local brain trust had to say about finishing before I mess with the other sling.

Good luck and I'll be curious as to the outcome. I guess it will depend on how hard you're going to run the sling too as to what kind of effects you'll see, such as stretching. I guess it will also depends on the quality of the leather too. Something like a Turner seems to be of lighter construction than something like a Weller/Tam sling.

I know that I crank down on the sling pretty hard when I use them. My old mentor always told me that if your hand/arm isn't tingling, then your sling isn't tight enough!

nbkky71 said:

I know that I crank down on the sling pretty hard when I use them. My old mentor always told me that if your hand/arm isn't tingling, then your sling isn't tight enough!

Click to expand...

Was he a Marine M1 shooter?
I've heard that from one or two of them.

I've used this on several old foreign military slings and a couple of low grade M1917 reproduction slings. It does seem to condition them well without making them stretchy. My only complaint is the smell. However, I will admit that I have hesitated to put it (or anything else) on my Turner yet, for fear of screwing it up.

wemoodydc said:

That's what I've been reading, which is why I did buy pure neatsfoot oil and only did it on one sling to see if it ruined anything. It has been a couple of months since I did that one and it doesn't appear to be breaking down. What I most notice is that it is slightly oily to the touch. I wanted to see what the local brain trust had to say about finishing before I mess with the other sling.

Click to expand...

Use a bit less then. I played organized baseball from the age of 5 until I was 18 and my father did every new glove I ever had with the pure oil. Never felt oily when I went to use them. From the el cheapo Spalding I started with in t-ball to the Wilson A2000 fielders glove and first baseman's gloves I was using when I got as far as I was going to go. Purchased in the fall and oiled, in early spring, late winter they were good to go. He coached LL for many years and he always did the team catchers mitt the same way. When he needed a new one, he would get it from the equipment manager in the fall. Back in those days they were made here out of top quality leather. The quality of the leather could be a major factor.

For the one that still feels oily, get a 100% cotton wash cloth or t-shirt or whatever, and wash it in something without anything added to the detergent like fabric softener and dry without a dryer sheet and wipe/press on it to absorb the residue you're feeling.

That's my experience with leather goods that I can pass along without going to the basement.

It's easy to get too much neatsfoot & I don't recommend it for that reason. If you're ever around this way I'll slap some dye & saddle oil on it. Now as to those edges. It chaps my ass that folks cell leather products that aren't finished. That means the edges should have been rounded & burnished. However that the biggest job & will add to the price. But its a finished product and not something slapped together by a bunch of srilankan midgets.

If you're going to be out in the elements I'd go for Obenauf's Heavy Duty LP as mentioned earlier. If not the latter posted Obenauf oil will work. I have both products and just put some Heavy Duty LP on my leather sling as I am out a lot with it in the wet Blueridge Mountains.

Limited on what I have available down range. Use this out of my boot shine kit (yes, I'm an old soldier that still polishes my boots while deployed) Used it on some M1907 slings in Kuwait a few years ago and last year on a M1907 sling here in Astan. Would show a close up of the sling but just sent it home two weeks ago. Shown on the P14 below.


CD

Thanks all for the recommendations. Right now my oiled sling is riding around on the rear shelf in my car and I'll see how the exposure to the sun changes it. (So far it has made the car smell really good and leathery) I'll also try the clean cloth trick to make it less oily to the touch. I'll probably try to track down some leather dye and one of the other treatments to try on the raw sling.

Boy, were you guys right on the sun exposure technique. I took a picture to show the progression for posterity's sake. On the left is the raw sling, in the middle is a couple coats of pure neatsfoot oil, the right is the same application of neatsfoot plus 4 weeks of sun exposure. I don't know if it shows in the picture, not only did it get darker, but there is a bit of a reddish tint to it.