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Review on Bick 4 Leather Conditioner and Cleaner - 16 oz - Non-Darkening Formula - For Colored & Natural Leather Apparel, Furniture, Jackets, Shoes, Auto Interiors, Bags & More! by Brian Smith

Revainrating 5 out of 5

One of two must-have skincare products

I love leather goods and like taking care of my stuff, so having the right skincare product is crucial. I've used a lot over the years and have settled on two that are clearly superior: Bick 4 and Leather Honey (leather conditioner with honey for leather, the best 8 oz leather conditioner). They are very different. Beak 4: I'm pretty sure North Beach Leather used to sell this under their own name. This is a lotion with lanolin and oil that really works. I use it with my bare hands and my skin is soft and comfortable afterwards. It doesn't darken the skin and cleans like it does if I wipe it off before it's fully absorbed. I used it on my wife's old Chanel handbag, an Armani jacket and some Coach gloves. In each case, it did exactly what I wanted, leaving the skin softer, more elastic, and more comfortable. Bick 4 easily wipes off unwanted areas like plastic or metal. Leather honey: Leather honey has a unique effect and makes the skin firmer and more hydrated. It's hard to explain, but it's very different from the effects of more lotion-like products, and I've tried many of them. On my favorite 10-year-old North Beach Leather jacket, the honey quickly soaked into certain spots and I added more. After two hours there was nothing to wash. An already heavy jacket feels heavier and better and the results have shown that it lasts and improves rain resistance. The new black leather seems to be more elastic. A pair of black ferragamos appear less frayed at the top. Sebago's brown deck shoes are definitely more stretchy and got really wet. The color has become darker. Which brings me to three small caveats: 1) Leather honey is not a cleaner. Because it's not water based like lotions, it leaves dirt behind. For example, on the Sebagos, the area that was slightly dirty was exactly the same, but the skin underneath was clearly treated. 2) Leather honey does not evaporate on plastic and rubber and does not rub off easily. One day after the Sebagos treatment there was still leathery honey on the soles, now a bit sticky. Of course I should have wiped better. 3) Honey for skin can darken some types of fair skin. Which one should be used? I use Bick 4 for thinner skins or skins where darkening is an issue or when trying to clean and tidy up in one step. If the words "soft", "oily" or "thin" come to mind when describing the leather to be treated, use Bick 4. It won't last as long as Leather Honey, but it looks great and does the job what you expect from a leather care product. I use Leather Honey for thick leather that I want to be more like premium leather. Imagine a cowhide on a sheepskin. I make sure the leather is clean and use leather honey when water resistance is important. I use Leather Honey when the leather is really bad because it does more than Bick 4. I use it when a little darkening isn't a problem. Leather Honey makes leather leatherier, and I mean that in a good way.

Pros
  • Wide range
Cons
  • Volume