Why do boots need leather conditioner?

[nick123]

Other than being exposed to dirt/puddles of water/more severe knicks and abrasion, why is it that boots need to be maintained much more regularly than jackets?
If I have a Horween CXL jacket that doesn't need any conditioner for ten years, wouldn't it make sense that my boots of identical leather should be treated similarly? (or far less frequently than every 1-2 months). Is dirt the culprit?

 

[Smithy]

Boots and shoes have a far, far harder time than jackets. They also experience more stress on the leather through movement and that combined with being hot and cold, wet and dry means they need to be conditioned more than a jacket to keep the leather supple and stop it splitting and cracking.

 

[nick123]

Thanks. Probably a question I could have looked up but I appreciate your input.

 

[Deleted member 16736]

Boots need very little conditioning. The best thing for them is to keep them clean (with a damp rag) and brush them regularly with a horsehair brush. Forget the conditioning. It's unnecessary and probably does more harm than good.

 

[Flat Foot Floey]

True. Mud and dust will dry the leather out. If you keep them very clean as described above they won't need much products

 

[Smithy]

Boots need very little conditioning. The best thing for them is to keep them clean (with a damp rag) and brush them regularly with a horsehair brush. Forget the conditioning. It's unnecessary and probably does more harm than good.

Obviously it's very different where you are.

Down this way (and in Norway when I lived there) I had to condition my boots and shoes (aside from polishing) once a year otherwise I'd see cracking within a short space of time. And back in the day, if I'd left my rugby boots alone they wouldn't have last a whole season if they hadn't seen dubbin at least once or twice.

But if you only have to wave a damp rag at your shoes once in awhile and they're fine then you're luckier than me.

 

[nick123]

It's an interesting concept. Theoretically a boot or pair of shoes that sits unworn for a period of time shouldn't be unlike a jacket. That is, if you put both your boots and jacket on a chair and leave them there for a year, they should both be fine.
The main confusion I have rests with conditioning when the boots haven't been worn. I gather people still do regardless? There should be no reason why a pair of footwear should be treated more frequently than a jacket if the boots are hardly worn. (?)

I have read that with some leathers, adding conditioner before the leather begins to dry out is pointless, as the conditioner won't absorb into the leather, and can actually limit the leather's ability to breathe. I can see shoes requiring that extra care a lot faster than a jacket for some of the reasons pointed out, but I'm still left wondering if some of it is overkill. I invested in some conditioner regardless, but I feel like there are some unanswered questions in this area.

 

[Blackadder]

Different types of leather do behave differently. Correctly me if I am wrong, for example, waxed leather are meant to keep water and probably other solvents out, so applying conditioner may require removing the wax first. Also the "polished bookbinder" appears to have a coating on top which keeps water out, so it would be difficult to apply conditioner. The flip side is the rain and water won't be able to pull the oil out and dry the leather. On the other side of the spectrum is your oiled leather which was soaked in oil in the first place. They are meant to be kept soaked with oil all the time or they will crack easily.

 

[Big J]

What about nubuck?

 

[Blackadder]

If you mean how nubuck should be treated, I think there are special conditioner and coating/proofing agent for nubuck. The only pair of Nubuck I have ever had is Timberland and I never treated them despite the stains and all. In fact, the sole disintegrated before the leather, lol. And before anyone suggests a re-sole, the Timberland boots' sole was glued on and not sewed. Anyway, the boots came coated out of the factory and it lasted about a year or so depending on use.