Wood and Leather Maintenance

Although I have a few bits of the most up to date textiles and plastics in some of my kit I still prefer leather, wool and wood. Not only are they functional in a traditional way but they are also aesthetically pleasing and come within the ethos of the what I like to consider is the spirit of bushcraft and wilderness living.

There are a couple of drawbacks with using these materials though. Firstly, they tend to be heavier than modern plastics and fibres and fabrics, which is why I don't really use them a great deal when going light or when tracking. The second drawback is that they take a little bit of breaking-in and maintaining.

Every six months or so I give my wood and leather an overhaul usually in spring and autumn. This is in addition to the more regular chore of ensuring that after each excursion, blades and axes are wiped down and sharpened and any leather and wood is likewise wiped down and clean.

For the natural woods i.e. axe handles and handles of knives I use a very fine sandpaper and gently rub the surface of the wood. I like to keep the grubby patina on the wood so I don't rub too hard. I then give the handle a thin coating of boiled linseed oil.

Some people prefer other oil coatings such as Danish oil and they use a piece of wire wool to knead the oil into the wood. If you use linseed oil it's important that it isn't applied too thickly or it will take too long to dry and the handle will become slippery and dangerous to use (especially when the hand is sweating or during wet weather).

I don't tend to do much else with the handle as it should be well maintained from new. As soon as I buy an axe I soak the head in a bucket of anti-freeze for 72 hours. This will forever seal the axe head on to the handle. The water will make the wood swell and the anti-freeze will make it stay swollen.

A tip I learnt was to remember this little ditty for applying linseed oil to new axes handles:

"Once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year and once a year for life."

If you follow this then a little annual maintenance is all that's needed. I use a coating of walnut oil for any wooden spoons I use. This is the only oil I really trust for use with or near food stuffs.

Many folk apply renaissance wax to their blades. I tend not to do this, but I do check to make sure carbon blades aren't rusting. If I'm not going to use a blade for a while, I'll coat it in a thin layer of oil before returning to a dry sheath.

You can't beat giving leather items a good polish, especially leather footwear. Boots made completely of leather aren't really in vogue nowadays, however I still use a pair of Rogue Rangers and Bison tracker boots both of which are leather. After cleaning them and giving them a polish I gently warm up the leather in the sun (or on a radiator) and apply a bit of leather wax. Finally, I apply a coat of dubbin.

The dubbin works for leather sheaths and pouches as well. It puts back a little moisture and nourishment back in the leather and provides a degree of protection against moisture and water.

I believe that wood and leather are there for a purpose and not purely for show, but it doesn't do any harm to shine up your kit and make an effort to maintain it now and again. I've found that you will be rewarded by the effort.

All the best,

Pablo.