LLT - Leather Care

[whitenemesis]

Does anyone have experience of using these products from LLT ?

There seems to be two distinct camps on the detailing forums. One advocating conditioners such as Gliptone the other saying they (conditioners) are ineffective, harmful even and promoting cleaners and protectants such as LLT products.

 

[boomtings]

I used SIMONIZ leather care cream this weekend and was really suprised with the results , much better then the autoglym cleaner i was using prior.

i know its not a specailist detailing product but the results are very good , i wish i had taken before and after pics. you can get it at halfords for £4.99
Simoniz Leather Care Cream | Products | Auto Express


regards.

 

[smiddyboy1]

Does anyone have experience of using these products from LLT ?

There seems to be two distinct camps on the detailing forums. One advocating conditioners such as Gliptone the other saying they (conditioners) are ineffective, harmful even and promoting cleaners and protectants such as LLT products.

Yeah I have it - liquid leather & lazy leather I think they're called. I'm just too lazy to use them!!!
They seem a bit watery to be honest but thats the way its meant to be. If you email Judy I'm sure she will tell you whats best.
It all pollitics behind whats used on the detailing sites, iirc Judy was giving advise to people and at the time was not an approved trader and that got the back up from the people who were. ending up with her being banned and the hardcore crew were pushing their friends / long members products more than hers.
Have a look at some of her posts. She wrote in interesting one about Leather conditioning - basically saying real leather doesn't need conditioned as all it does is sit on the top and attract dirt which grinds away the finnish bacause the leather is already sealed. She recommends wiping it with watery products hense the lazy leather / liquid leather.

 

[Will]

I vaguely remember reading something in the past about leather being porous or not and weather or not conditioners should be used.

What I would say though is:

a) Are virtually all leather treatment/cleaner/conditioner manufacturers that silly that they'd spend so much time/money selling these products for years, and likewise the consumers wouldn't know for all this time? Eg Autoglym, Meguiars etc.

b) Why does old/dry/stiff leather become supple and smooth once it's been treated if it really is non-absorbant etc? Anyone treated the rear headrests on old cars where they've been exposed to strong sunlight etc, quite an amazing difference.

I know that leather is painted to colour it, but it must have some slight porous properties otherwise the conditioners would never soak in and make it supple.

I do agree that keeping leather clean is quite important though to maintain it's long-term condition

Will

 

[whitenemesis]

smiddy, I read those posts..

I wouldn't use an oil based product, too many people have said they are not good. Leather is sealed and really only needs treating after about 6 months or so once micro-fine cracks form in the coating. It's these cracks that attract the dirt and hold it, making the leather look grubby. If not cleaned they eventually grow in size until you can see them and then it's too late and the damage is done.

Test a product on you hand if it disappears quickly, good. Any leather treatment that says you should apply then buff off is not good.

I have used Gliptone, it's water based but not "watery", love the smell

 

[smiddyboy1]

smiddy, I read those posts..

I wouldn't use an oil based product, too many people have said they are not good. Leather is sealed and really only needs treating after about 6 months or so once micro-fine cracks form in the coating. It's these cracks that attract the dirt and hold it, making the leather look grubby. If not cleaned they eventually grow in size until you can see them and then it's too late and the damage is done.

Test a product on you hand if it disappears quickly, good. Any leather treatment that says you should apply then buff off is not good.

I have used Gliptone, it's water based but not "watery", love the smell

It was a while ago so I cant remember exactly - just giving you a little info on what I knew of them, but as you've seen them you know the score.
I've not used any treatment for a long time - really should tho! got the gliptone too but the smell is a little too strong for me. Some refer the smell as being an old leather smell

 

[whitenemesis]

............ Some refer the smell as being an old leather smell

More like the old fashioned smell of new leather

 

[horsesuitedfool]

I use Swissvax leather treatments, it made my TT leather interior look like new and feel like new. I used it every 4 - 6 months or so and swear by it now. Its not cheap but it is well worth it....Especially on your nice new seats!!