The Preparation
Tack cleaning can be one of our least favourite yard tasks, but along with the brilliant cost and weight savings that come with the Thorowgood saddles, the arduous task of tack cleaning becomes much simpler. And to make it a little more pleasant, grab a nice cup of tea and put on some good music before starting.
- To make cleaning your saddle easier, it is best to place your saddle on either a saddle stand or a gate/stable door – ideally positioned as if on your horse and at an easily accessible height.
- Prepare your tools! You will need:
- A bowl of warm water – if your saddle is really dirty, add some mild detergent to the mixture.
- A cloth to apply the water with.
- A soft bristled brush e.g a body brush – but make sure it is a clean one! Do NOT use a suede brush.
- If you have leather stirrups, or leather sections to your saddle (T8 model) have some saddle soap (Thorowgood recommend Rapide Leathergel)
- A sponge to apply the saddle soap (if needed).
The Cleaning:
Let’s get cleaning!
- Start with the body brush, brushing over the whole of the saddle to remove any loose hairs, muck and dirt. Use small, circular motions to remove dirt and larger circles to buff up the suede sections.
- Using the cloth, wipe warm water over the smooth sections of the saddle, taking care to avoid the leather (T8 model) sections.
- If you own the T8 model, apply the Rapide Leathergel to the leather sections only.
- If your stirrup straps are leather, apply saddle soap but take care to NOT apply saddle soap to the side that comes into contact with the saddle (this won’t be good for your saddle, and will be very squeaky!). If synthetic, wipe down with warm water as per your saddle.
- Leave to dry naturally, not in direct sunlight nor by a heat source.
Voila! One clean saddle in super fast time – now enjoy the rest of your cuppa!
