King Ranch Leather Cleaning & Conditioning MADE SIMPLE!
01-03-2014, 02:07 PM
#1
King Ranch Leather Cleaning & Conditioning MADE SIMPLE!
How To Clean and Condition King Ranch Leather
How To Clean and Condition King Ranch Leather
When you type the question How do you clean and condition King Ranch Leather? into Google, you will find multiple answers based on varying opinions. The answers that come up range from "don't clean it at all" to "I make a home-made serum in my garage, send me $3 and I'll ship a bottle your way."
Enough is enough. I present to you the definitive how-to guide for proper cleaning and conditioning of King Ranch leather, specifically the style found in Ford King Ranch trucks and SUVs.
Here's a brief history of King Ranch, brought to you by Wikipedia.
The Pinnacle of Leather Care
2013 brought a host of exciting new car care products, with the latest evolution of the Pinnacle line taking the center stage -
Black Label represents a collection of coatings, polishes, and leather care products that represent the best technology that surface care has to offer. The two products featured in this article are Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner and Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner.
Not All Leather Care Products are Created Equal
Black Label Hide-Soft leather care products are formulated without high-octane cleaners, petroleum distillates, or other harmful ingredients. Simply put, not all leather cleaners are created equal, and you should keep this in mind when picking a leather cleaner or leather conditioner for your application, especially if it's King Ranch style leather.
What Can Go Wrong
What happens if I use the wrong product? Another frequently asked question about King Ranch leather cleaning and conditioning.
You ruin the leather!
King Ranch leather that isn't properly cleaned or conditioned won't look or feel right. If you rub aggressively with the incorrect cleaner, you will create an uneven texture on the surface, along with splotchy, uneven patches. If you use the wrong conditioner on King Ranch leather, it will get stiff in spots, and will not dry to a uniform appearance (more splotchy areas). I created this guide so you can do it right the first time!
King Ranch Leather - What it Looks Like
King Ranch leather doesn't have a protective coating on the surface, like the leather upholstery found in 99.9% of vehicles on the road. The fact that the leather isn't coated makes it more susceptible to UV-induced cracking and fading, stains caused by accidental spills, abrasion caused by getting in and out of the vehicle, etc. The key to keeping King Ranch leather looking and feeling new is to clean it properly, and feed it the essential oils it needs to retain its soft, supple texture and flexibility.
This is what dirty King Ranch leather looks like:
Step 1: Cleaning the King Ranch Leather
While cleaning King Ranch leather, you want to avoid aggressive rubbing or scrubbing. If you get aggressive with it, you will create an unwanted texture that will not look or feel right.
My weapon of choice was a soft microfiber applicator. I applied a small amount of Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner directly onto the microfiber applicator and gently patted the surface. Take your time.
As the cleaner is absorbed into the leather, it will look splotchy at first. This is perfectly normal.
Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner gently removes dirt, soil, and body oil without drying out or discoloring the leather. Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner actually contains a special blend of mink oil, so you're already starting the essential conditioning process.
This is what the applicator looked like after one small section:
How To Clean and Condition King Ranch Leather
When you type the question How do you clean and condition King Ranch Leather? into Google, you will find multiple answers based on varying opinions. The answers that come up range from "don't clean it at all" to "I make a home-made serum in my garage, send me $3 and I'll ship a bottle your way."
Enough is enough. I present to you the definitive how-to guide for proper cleaning and conditioning of King Ranch leather, specifically the style found in Ford King Ranch trucks and SUVs.
Here's a brief history of King Ranch, brought to you by Wikipedia.
King Ranch, located in South Texas between Corpus Christi and Brownsville, is one of the largest ranches in the world.[3] (The world's largest is the 6,000,000 acre Anna Creek station in Australia, and the largest contiguous U.S. ranch is the Waggoner Ranch near Vernon, Texas.) The King Ranch comprises 825,000 acres (3,340 km2; 1,289 sq mi)[4]and was founded in 1853 by Captain Richard King and Gideon K. Lewis, includes portions of six Texas counties, including most of Kleberg County and much of Kenedy County, with portions extending into Brooks, Jim Wells, Nueces, and Willacy Counties. The ranch does not consist of one single contiguous plot of land, but rather four large sections called divisions. The divisions are the Santa Gertrudis, the Laureles, the Encino and the Norias. Only two of the four divisions border each other, and that border is relatively short.[5] The ranch was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961.[2][6]
In 2001, Ford Motor Company added a King Ranch edition to their F-150 truck line, complete with the King Ranch cattle brand in the logo. In 2003, Ford added King Ranch packages to its Super Duty lineup, as well as the Expedition SUV.
In 2001, Ford Motor Company added a King Ranch edition to their F-150 truck line, complete with the King Ranch cattle brand in the logo. In 2003, Ford added King Ranch packages to its Super Duty lineup, as well as the Expedition SUV.
The Pinnacle of Leather Care
2013 brought a host of exciting new car care products, with the latest evolution of the Pinnacle line taking the center stage -
Black Label represents a collection of coatings, polishes, and leather care products that represent the best technology that surface care has to offer. The two products featured in this article are Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner and Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner.
- Pinnacle Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner
Pinnacle Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner is a pH-balanced leather shampoo designed to deep clean leather and vinyl surfaces. Formulated with mink oil and lanolin, Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner forgoes inexpensive petroleum ingredients and instead relies on advanced chemistry. Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner deep cleans leather surfaces without removing the natural oils. - Pinnacle Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner
Pinnacle Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner restores, conditions, and protects new and old leather surfaces. Formulated with mink oil and lanolin, Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner forgoes inexpensive petroleum ingredients and instead relies on advanced chemistry. Designed to restore leather’s natural oils, Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner protects against cracking and fading while reducing damage caused by abrasion. Natural leather scent restores the “new car smell.”
Not All Leather Care Products are Created Equal
Black Label Hide-Soft leather care products are formulated without high-octane cleaners, petroleum distillates, or other harmful ingredients. Simply put, not all leather cleaners are created equal, and you should keep this in mind when picking a leather cleaner or leather conditioner for your application, especially if it's King Ranch style leather.
What Can Go Wrong
What happens if I use the wrong product? Another frequently asked question about King Ranch leather cleaning and conditioning.
You ruin the leather!
King Ranch leather that isn't properly cleaned or conditioned won't look or feel right. If you rub aggressively with the incorrect cleaner, you will create an uneven texture on the surface, along with splotchy, uneven patches. If you use the wrong conditioner on King Ranch leather, it will get stiff in spots, and will not dry to a uniform appearance (more splotchy areas). I created this guide so you can do it right the first time!
King Ranch Leather - What it Looks Like
King Ranch leather doesn't have a protective coating on the surface, like the leather upholstery found in 99.9% of vehicles on the road. The fact that the leather isn't coated makes it more susceptible to UV-induced cracking and fading, stains caused by accidental spills, abrasion caused by getting in and out of the vehicle, etc. The key to keeping King Ranch leather looking and feeling new is to clean it properly, and feed it the essential oils it needs to retain its soft, supple texture and flexibility.
This is what dirty King Ranch leather looks like:
Step 1: Cleaning the King Ranch Leather
While cleaning King Ranch leather, you want to avoid aggressive rubbing or scrubbing. If you get aggressive with it, you will create an unwanted texture that will not look or feel right.
My weapon of choice was a soft microfiber applicator. I applied a small amount of Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner directly onto the microfiber applicator and gently patted the surface. Take your time.
As the cleaner is absorbed into the leather, it will look splotchy at first. This is perfectly normal.
Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner gently removes dirt, soil, and body oil without drying out or discoloring the leather. Hide-Soft Leather Cleaner actually contains a special blend of mink oil, so you're already starting the essential conditioning process.
This is what the applicator looked like after one small section:
Last edited by 95stepside; 01-16-2014 at 02:58 PM.
01-03-2014, 02:08 PM
#2
Step 2: Conditioning the King Ranch Leather
Once the leather is clean, it's time to condition it with Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner. My applicator of choice for this step was my hand. I prefer to use my hand because it is much quicker than "dabbing" the conditioner on the leather with a foam or microfiber applicator. Since my skin is soft, I can gently massage the conditioner into the King Ranch leather without worrying about creating an uneven texture.
Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner is formulated using a complex blend of mink oil and lanolin. These two essential products feed and condition the leather, helping restore its soft, supple texture and rich brown color.
Apply the conditioner liberally! As you apply the conditioner, the leather will quickly absorb it. Again, if the leather looks splotchy at first, this is perfectly normal.
Don't forget the stitching!
I apply the conditioner extra heavy on all the seams and stitching. Since Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner doesn't contain any petroleum ingredients, it won't cause the stitching to dry out or fray.
During Conditioning...
As you condition the King Ranch leather, it will get dark and have a splotchy appearance in some spots. This is normal.
One really cool thing about cleaning and conditioning King Ranch leather is that scratches and scuff marks are easily removed. If there's a part of the seat where your belt or phone clip may have scratched the seat, simply apply the conditioner a little heavier in that spot and spend some extra time massaging it.
Step 3: Sit Back & Relax
It will take several hours for the King Ranch leather to return to an even consistency, so go inside and have cold one. If you have an air mover available, you can place that inside the vehicle. I simply checked the forecast and put the windows down.
This is what the King Ranch leather seats looked like about 2 hours after the conditioning step:
Finished!
After about 6 hours with the windows down and air circulating through the truck, it was time to say goodbye as the owner was on his way to pick it up. At this point the seats were about 90% dry. This is how it turned out:
Once the leather is clean, it's time to condition it with Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner. My applicator of choice for this step was my hand. I prefer to use my hand because it is much quicker than "dabbing" the conditioner on the leather with a foam or microfiber applicator. Since my skin is soft, I can gently massage the conditioner into the King Ranch leather without worrying about creating an uneven texture.
Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner is formulated using a complex blend of mink oil and lanolin. These two essential products feed and condition the leather, helping restore its soft, supple texture and rich brown color.
Apply the conditioner liberally! As you apply the conditioner, the leather will quickly absorb it. Again, if the leather looks splotchy at first, this is perfectly normal.
Don't forget the stitching!
I apply the conditioner extra heavy on all the seams and stitching. Since Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner doesn't contain any petroleum ingredients, it won't cause the stitching to dry out or fray.
During Conditioning...
As you condition the King Ranch leather, it will get dark and have a splotchy appearance in some spots. This is normal.
One really cool thing about cleaning and conditioning King Ranch leather is that scratches and scuff marks are easily removed. If there's a part of the seat where your belt or phone clip may have scratched the seat, simply apply the conditioner a little heavier in that spot and spend some extra time massaging it.
Step 3: Sit Back & Relax
It will take several hours for the King Ranch leather to return to an even consistency, so go inside and have cold one. If you have an air mover available, you can place that inside the vehicle. I simply checked the forecast and put the windows down.
This is what the King Ranch leather seats looked like about 2 hours after the conditioning step:
Finished!
After about 6 hours with the windows down and air circulating through the truck, it was time to say goodbye as the owner was on his way to pick it up. At this point the seats were about 90% dry. This is how it turned out:
01-03-2014, 02:08 PM
#3
Remember how bad the armrest was?
Before:
After:
If I had a little more time with the truck, I could have got it in even better shape.
There you have it...the definitive how-to guide for cleaning and conditioning King Ranch leather. With the right products, and a couple hours of your time, you can restore the supple texture and rich brown color of King Ranch leather seats.
If you own a Ford King Ranch edition truck or SUV, you should perform this 2-step process at least twice a year.
Before:
After:
If I had a little more time with the truck, I could have got it in even better shape.
There you have it...the definitive how-to guide for cleaning and conditioning King Ranch leather. With the right products, and a couple hours of your time, you can restore the supple texture and rich brown color of King Ranch leather seats.
If you own a Ford King Ranch edition truck or SUV, you should perform this 2-step process at least twice a year.
Last edited by 95stepside; 01-16-2014 at 02:59 PM.
01-17-2014, 11:51 AM
#7
As a current and previous Honda owner, I can say that Honda "Pleather" is THE WORST.
The CarPro PERL you guys sell is keeping mine in decent shape but tough when it is junk to begin with. I 'be found it is almost....almost too slick for Honda interior but PERFECT for the leather in my FX4. Just a tiny amount of slide to help you into the seat. Love it. Tons of other applications...
The CarPro PERL you guys sell is keeping mine in decent shape but tough when it is junk to begin with. I 'be found it is almost....almost too slick for Honda interior but PERFECT for the leather in my FX4. Just a tiny amount of slide to help you into the seat. Love it. Tons of other applications...
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01-20-2014, 12:14 PM
#8
As a current and previous Honda owner, I can say that Honda "Pleather" is THE WORST.
The CarPro PERL you guys sell is keeping mine in decent shape but tough when it is junk to begin with. I 'be found it is almost....almost too slick for Honda interior but PERFECT for the leather in my FX4. Just a tiny amount of slide to help you into the seat. Love it. Tons of other applications...
The CarPro PERL you guys sell is keeping mine in decent shape but tough when it is junk to begin with. I 'be found it is almost....almost too slick for Honda interior but PERFECT for the leather in my FX4. Just a tiny amount of slide to help you into the seat. Love it. Tons of other applications...
