Leather Tips?

SW03ES · July 27, 2003

Ah, I see! Good ;)

Now, what you want is called "303 Aerospace Protectant" it protects without adding much gloss. It adds a little, so I dont use it because I like 100% matte, but its great stuff.

You can buy it from www.properautocare.com

squarehat · July 28, 2003

The store also happened to have the 303 Aerospace (I think they actually had two different 303 products). I may try it next time, since I went with the 3M, I have read several people praising the 303. However, I'm still convinced that the 3M won't have the same harmful effects that ArmorAll does.

piggyncsu · July 28, 2003

i went shopping yesterday, bought some rags and some "diaper soft" rags....whatever.....and all they had was SHINE or PRO shine stuff......and then a HUGE section of armoral.....i ended up with something called TUFF STUFF.....tried it...found out im allergic to it...

so i give up....

also, i bought rain-x in a wipe, apparently didn't have the other kinds of it.....i didn't like the wipes, they were dry...went through at least 20 trying to get all the windows....

SW03ES · July 28, 2003

303 Aerospace, and pretty much all the good stuff wont be possible to find in a car store, you'll have to get it online.

The 3M wont be harmful like the ArmorAll no. Its a quality product.

piggyncsu · July 28, 2003

and that darn tuff stuff crap made spots on my dash......DAMNIT. im hesitant to buy online....but ill look into it

SW03ES · July 29, 2003

Why hesitant to buy online? I buy all my detailing products online?

piggyncsu · July 29, 2003

that would involve my parents credit card....since i don't have any credit...

and i dunno..id have to wait for it rather than have it right then and there...

H8R Proof · July 29, 2003

Along the lines of leather interior, can someone please post just what portions of the interior are leather, and which parts aren't?

I want to make sure I'm cleaning/conditioning appropriately :)

H8R Proof · July 29, 2003

SWO3ES - the properautocare site is awesome.

Many thanks for the tip ;)

SKperformance · July 29, 2003

tuff stuff is a cleaner not a protectant

that might be your problem with spotting

the parts that are leather are the sufaces that actually touch you when seated except for the rear seat which has the headrest that also faces the rear window it is also leather

al the sides and rea are not leather but vinyl

but it is still a good idea to treat it as well

no other parts are on the cars

doors dash or console

except the center armrest wheel and shifter+hand brake

piggyncsu · July 29, 2003

yeh, it is a cleaner.....so i guess im just gonna give up and by pro shine protectant.....or something......

SW03ES · July 29, 2003

Do you have any boating, or outdoor sports (camping, kayaking etc) stores around you? They'll have the 303 Aerospace.

piggyncsu · July 29, 2003

um...not that i know of? i guess ill look around. thanks

SW03ES · July 29, 2003

In NC I garantee there's a boat store somewhere LOL, if you live within 200 miles of the coast.

piggyncsu · July 29, 2003

im gonna look around..... and i know we have places like WATER WORLD..or something... if i can get the car that far out ;)

SW03ES · July 29, 2003

Also try places that sell fishing boats and stuff, anywhere that sells boats should have it. Kayaks, canoes, etc etc.

lex · July 31, 2003

sk, what size is your big'o vat/tub of solid cocoa butter? I've only seen a 6 oz container at the walmarts here.

spocksbrain · August 3, 2003

Yes let me second that, my walmart only has 3.5oz of cocoa butter creme, that has a lot of other stuff in it. Cannot find "pure" cocoa butter. A brand name would be much appreciated.

bbsal · August 3, 2003

i think its 6oz but i have to look at it.also there is other stuff in it.i never seen pure coco butter in a tub either.but anyway thats the one to use from walmart.im not sure what one sk uses but i think its the same as mine.

spocksbrain · August 3, 2003

Now that I have been looking around, I have found several sources on the net. One is http://www.health2go.com/cocoa_butter.htm another is http://www.craftlobby.com/butters.html . Maybe I can find it at a baking supply store of a food wholesaler or something. Anyway does anyone think that the pure stuff would be better than the stuff from walmart, or should I now worry about it?

bbsal · August 3, 2003

i think it wont matter much.they do sell pure coco butter but not in a tub.it comes on a stick that sort of looks like a big lip stick and that would be useless for us to use.just go with the one from walmart that alot of us here uses and you will be fine.i did do a test between lexol and the coc butter and as it turns out there was no big difference between either of them so what would you rather pay 8 or 10 dollars for lexol or 1 or2 bucks for coco butter?i say try and stay with the coc butter because it does work just as good as lexol.it smells good too.only good thing about lexol is its easier to put on but either way you still have to rub it in.

SKperformance · August 3, 2003

i have one that is called

"calypso" the pure essence of coco butter, solid formula,13 oz

i am not sure if i said "pure" but anything with a few indgredients should be fine

the one i have is

mineral oil,micro-crystalline wax,glycol stearate,fragrance, cocoa butter,dimeethicone,isoprophyl palmitate,golden palm oil,tocopheryl acetate(vitamin e),carotene,d &c yellow no.10

and it is made by african gold in canada

i love the stuff

and is all i have used in 3 years

but i don't drive the car much anymore plus it is always garaged

so the wear on the seats are minimal compared to anyother ES i have seen

i had throw 2 more pics of my cars interior and trunk in the gallery

as i forgot them last time

but doesn't show the seats much mainly the dash and gauges plus deck

dockerguy · October 28, 2004

After searching the Internet for far too long, I found the following web page to be the most useful. Apparently the author really swears by this stuff and says he's unbiased. Good instructions for a quick treatment or a long, drawn out (read "remove seats") treatment.

Here it is:

http://www.ferrariclub.com/faq/leatherdye.html

Hope this helps someone.

sunman · October 28, 2004

the best product i have ever used is leatherique. It is made of natural animal protien which makes sense since leather is a natural product. All the other junk like armor all seals the leather pores. If your leather is old, I would suggest you sand it with 500-600 grit sand paper and get rid of the sheen. Then apply leatherique and let it sit overnight. You will be amazed. The seat will suck all the oils in and soften it like butter. I use it all the time on 3 of my cars for years now. I never seen a product better than this. It can soften cardboard hard leather over repeated applications. www.leatherique.com