Leather sheath maintaining with beeswax?

Z

ZIVANOVIC

Joined
Aug 27, 2019
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18
(sry for my english)

I just wanna ask: Is beeswax an appropriate conditioner for a thick and hard cowhide sheath?
I want to make my sheath as durable as I can, because I use it for my EDC fixed blade knife.

The beeswax give decent waterproof attribute as I see, and the leather looks softer after the conditioning.

And I have an another question: If I use this kind of wax, how frequent should I use it for maintaining? Weekly? Daily?
 
Bees wax will work just fine.
Depending on your climate and how much you use & carry the sheath. Once a month to twice a month. DM
 
Beeswax def works, but its a pain to soften and work in. For ease of use, I like Obenhauf's Leather Protectant, just the heat from your hands will be enough to melt it and make working it in easy. Sheath's I might do yearly, depending on usage. If it gets wet enough, after use, then another 6 months or so.
 
Ditto on Obenhauf's. It is mostly beeswax but very soft and easy to work in. Will strengthen the stitching as well. I only apply it once or twice a year in a sheath. But for items like boots constantly in the rain and snow I would apply once or twice a month. It is a very durable wax treatment.
 
Alberta Ed said:
SnowSeal contains bees wax and doesn't soften the leather. Good stuff.
Click to expand...

I don't "think" I still have a can of that laying around but I can't tell you how many years I used that to condition my boots for my backpacking adventures. Good stuff, indeed.

Last stuff I remember buying was some silicone impregnated wax which also did a good job without softening / stretching. Don't recall the name offhand, but I'm sure I still have some in the shop downstairs.

ETA: The stuff I was trying to remember is Aquaseal. Don't know if the formula has changed in the years since I purchased my jar. The company is still around and has a website.
 
Bees wax is a good leather protector, but not so much a conditioner. It 'seals' the leather. That said, a knife sheath doesn't need the same level of care that boots and saddles require. Since you've already used it, adding conditioner to feed the leather isn't going to be as productive as if you had used it before sealing.

Use a hair dryer set on low and warm up the leather. Get it pretty warm to the touch, then rub in the bees wax. Use the hair dryer again to melt the wax into the leather, then while still soft, use a rough cloth to wipe off all excess wax. Warm up the leather again and you'll see wax seeping out on the surface. Wipe this off too. For leather, 'less is more.' You don't need to turn the sheath into a candle.

I would repeat this process every two or three years. Not more than that. If the sheath is looking dry, hit it with the hair dryer again. You'll see plenty of wax come to the surface. Just rub it back in and you are good to go.


Stitchawl
 
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