Pecard Leather Preservative

RON

RON

Well-known member
Happy Y2K12 to all!

If a (Prussian M1915 EM) Pickelhaube had a little amount of Pecard applied to it to preserve its leather without deterring appearance that much; would it affect value/would you still buy it? (see pics 1 & 2)
Also, what do you make of the markings on the neck guard--look like a "ZUR" & a square with "1" inside followed by a "6"--and does this mean the haube was issued (I was under the impression it was an unissued War Bond helmet given the liner's mint condition) (see pic 3):
PrussianInfEMPickelhaubeM1915-4a.jpg

PrussianInfEMPickelhaubeM1915-4b.jpg

PrussianInfEMPickelhaubeM1915-4c.jpg
 
Given that these are common enough that you don't have to make do with one that's not quite how you want it, my own opinion would be not to buy it unless you can get it cheap. It's a pity how sometimes people get hold of a jar of leather dressing, and then it goes straight to their head and they apply it to everything in sight. We've all seen it done to stuff we'd much rather have left untouched.

I think the marking says 28R.

HNY to you as well!
 
Ron - I've seen many a military rifle sling succumb to red rot that could have been prevented with a little appropriate leather care. It's the neats foot oil people that have soaked rifle slings to the point of ruin.

I don't use Pecards but the application in this case looks OK to me.

I use Hide Food (now called Hide something-else because some moron tried to eat it I guess) applied lightly and buffed to a shine after a day.
 
Pecards is the best leather treatment out there IMO and is used by conservators.
As ebeeby says, foot oil is awful, as is saddle soap.
 
There are varying views on Pecard. Some people swear by it, others won't touch it. I haven't tried it so I can't say from personal experience, but from what I've heard I'm wary of it. I wouldn't use hide food, because although it stabilizes red rot, it soon dries out and hardens, plus it darkens the leather - as I believe Pecard does. I may be wrong but I get the impression that Pecard is primarily intended to get leather back into working condition, eg dried out boots, and that preserving historic artefacts is a secondary consideration.

If a leather item has absolutely got to be treated (and usually they haven't - the above helmet didn't need it if the condition of the liner is anything to go by), Cellugel will stabilize red rot and won't darken the leather. I'm told that either Talas or Triple Crown dressing are used by conservators to improve flexibility; I haven't tried them, so again, I can't comment from personal experience.

Quite a few times in 30+ years of collecting WW1 and earlier items I've seen superb, rare items ruined by well-meaning collectors who smothered them in hide food, saddle soap etc when they were fine as they were. Whatever you use, the important thing is to use it sparingly, not slap it on. Just my tuppence worth.

Add: See this very useful thread on the Great War Forum - not posted by me, but this man knows his stuff:
http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=145338&st=0&p=1393463&hl=pecard&fromsearch=1&#entry1393463" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
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