A dual action polisher (also referred to as an orbital polisher) is a handy power tool designed specifically for polishing or waxing automotive paint. Years ago, when I started working with leather I would often use the commercially available polishes on the store shelves, or the proprietary blends found at the leather craft stores. They ended up being pretty costly, but more so, they didn’t last very long and contained chemicals that seemed counter intuitive to traditional craft. So I set out to create my own. If you’re too lazy to polish daily, use a leather conditioner for your car seat that’s how simple.

My first attempt was simply a mix of paraffin wax, harvested from candles and heavy grade mineral oil. It worked, but again, I was still using chems on my work. So the formula evolved from there. As usual, I had to research. A trip to the library proved very informative. I started by looking at recipes that were nearly 1000 years old, and although they didn’t really mention ratios, they did talk about ingredients in detail. (interestingly, human urine featured heavily in most). So, I eventually made a trip to a local bee keeper and picked up some natural beeswax and started experimenting with that.

I wanted my polish to do five things:
1 – It had to soften the leather; Dying can end up removing the natural oils in the leather so I needed a way to put them back.
2 – It had to Condition; Leather should have a supple feel when you handle it and though it may not be stiff, it shouldn’t end up feeling course either.
3 – It had to protect; I mean long term protection that kept the oils inside, preventing the leather from drying and cracking, and also keep outside elements like salt and dirt from saturating.
4 – It had to shine and bring out the natural luster of the leather.
5 – It has to degrease; old leather can be pretty dirty.

Now, I have my own proprietary formula that I sell, and I’m not about to give that one up, however I wanted to offer some insight into mixing your own, personalized blend of ingredients for a polish that will enhance your work.

Here’s a caveat; This polish works on A LOT of different materials, and not just leather. I use it on wood, pleather, canvas (for oiled canvas) even metals, but does not play well with suede. If you’re not sure if it will work, I recommend trying a tiny bit on a hidden area before using it on the whole piece.

In the first image, you can see a before and after using the polish. I generally use pieces of old cotton hoodies for buffing rags, and tho they may leave a bit of lint behind, they polish extremely well. Another interesting factoid; in a different form, this polish can be used as lip balm. It’s all about switching up the ratios which I’ll talk about later. Read more about how diy leather cleaning works.