How to get mink oil out of lambskin, in three parts.

[Indiana Joyce]

So, I had this jacket made of cowhide that I wanted to darken. I did a great amount of research all over the internet and here, and found just as many people for and against using mink oil on anything made of leather, nevermind using it on a jacket.

I used it on said jacket, to great success. It seemed to be a combination of sunlight and heat, that really helped work the oil in. But, Lambskin is very different...a bit stretchy, and the pores are different.

I had started applying mink oil to my Todd's standard lambskin, and ended up with a rubbery, kind of tacky section where it was applied.

From what I read, it seemed an impossible task to get it out of the leather, but, I believe I have come up with a three pronged attack in which to remove it.

Fuller's earth is used in a variety of products, including, oil dry. Now you can't expect to rub the fuller's earth into the jacket, let it sit for a few days and have it just **** up all the oil. Also, Alcohol will dry many things...but not mink oil. And Acetone, well, that stuff will kill you, also as much as it will take the finish off of leather, it wont strip mink oil.

Now if you use all three together, elbow grease, and some water, you can strip at least 95 percent of the oil off of lambskin.

I tried the alcohol first, then the acetone. The next day I ground fullers earth into the lambskin, let it sit for about 4 hours, then removed the dust with the alcohol. At the end of the day, I used water to remove what dust was left. When I got home from work, I took that section of the jacket into the shower, soaked it, and wore it until it dried. The next day, I repeated the fullers earth, in greater quantity.

I removed the dust with acetone this time, then went about distressing the jacket using the alcohol and acetone method with paper towels as described in the archives. The jacket feels much better now. It's likely that in time, with more soaking, or more distressing as I plan to do anyway, that I will get as high as 99 percent removal.

Of course, the best way to remove the oil is to not have done it in the first place, but, I wanted to share in the event someone gets a jacket with oil on it from a previous owner, or god forbid, is working on their car with the jacket on and gets an oil stain...

[Michaelson]

Excellent research, Joyce.

As has been discovered 'the hard way', and posted many times in other discussions, not all leather is the same. Lambskin is a tighter pored hide, and product will not penetrate it like it will on cowhide which has a much larger pore.

That's why in Pecards discussions different methods are recommended for different hides, as on some leather product is immediately absorbed, while on others if the same amount is used will just lay on the surface and not be soaked up due to the tighter pores.

Anyway, looks like you did some interesting work, and hopefully it will be useful for those who find themselves in like situations.

Speaking strictly for myself, I have never tried any of these methods, so proceed cautiously when trying these points.

Thanks again, Joyce!

Regards! Michaelson

[Michaelson]

And of course - never a gaurantee with how leather will respond.

Ain't THAT the plain truth!

Regards! Michaelson