Cheap leather conditioner and personal rant (-You've been warned!)

[DIYSwede]

Whilst having a 30-ish deg C heat wave here in Stockholm, taking a pause from my mini lathe teardown & overhaul,
I figured it would be great to have my foundry PPE (suede leather gloves, apron, sleeves and boot covers) conditioned and baked.



Assignment:
-Go find the most easily acquired, priceworthy suede/ leather weatherproofing/ conditioning compound possible.

For restless readers, kick-seekers and draft- & insight-evaders too busy to follow: Please scroll further down for the conclusions.

Method: Research
Being able to read is a necessary (but not sufficient) capability in striving for maximal cheapness. You need a critical approach too.
Thus armed I searched and found a product (with almost a cult following amongst all their satisfied customers),
a producer (with a homey & small-scale, environmental-friendly rural "Guarantee" to boot).
Now, this company is not better or worse than average in marketing BS, thus I humbly doodled their "Brand" away.



"-Awww - Isn't that nice? Swarming bees and Leather Cream Cowboys?" (Whaat? - Did they really name the pic like that?)
As if that wasn't really enough, there's more:



I took the liberty to underline the sentences of importance above. We'll get back to this. (-See where this is going?)
So- what's my problem with this product and producer, you might ask?
-Nothing wrong with the product as far as I can see, as you all will notice -
it's the producers's own statements that pretty soon will get them into trouble, on the arrival of this: (-Uh-oh - here he goes!)



Right: An ordinary Material Safety data Sheet with only "Beeswax" and "Heavy Paraffinic Destillate" (no proprietary substances)
as "the finest ingredients nature can provide, derived from trees, plants and insects".
Below: its density value, from which the proportions would be derived, as long as you know the density of the constituents.
This math I kindly omitted in the following, when finally making this wonderful, natural product!

Critical approach and a search engine made the following detour before the long-awaited conclusion:
1) Search for CAS # at the regulatory agency's database, regarding any deviations from mfg's statements or MSDS.
2) Do a global search for what product that'll provide the cheapest and largest content of "CAS # 64742-54-7".

I did - and I surely found an easily and cheaply obtainable product: Auto Trans Fluid. 100% of above.

So to make ATF, you start with ordinary, fossil crude oil, which sorta IS from "plants, trees, insects" when you think about it.
Well, that isn't what the mfg sez - and when I asked about it - neither was I answered on their page, nor did I get a reply.
eBay hasn't even bothered to enter any critical comments to lower their revenues. (-Is this guy a Commie?)

CONCLUSION and Recipe:
1) Melt 55% (of weight) of beeswax - (use a water bath if you're chicken!)
2) Add 45% (of weight) ATF - cheapest is best, Dex II will do, NO synthetic stuff.
3) Heat only 'til dissolved & mixed.
4) Pour into plastic container (with preferably tapered sides) and let cool.
5) Shake the "pink soap" out - apply by scrubbing it into leather - let melt and soak in by hairdryer or in the sun.

I dunno about your price for the amount you make, but you'll be better off than the marketed 108 bucks / gallon!

Moral (if any) of this story:
"Any wealthy idiot can buy over-priced, deceivingly marketed or branded stuff (and even brag and "feel nice" about its traits),
but it takes some brains, stamina and method to be a Cheapskate!"

Statement: "Abuse of MSDS like the above post suggests is considered a Federal Crime under the Industrial Espionage Act,
but is also a formidable assault on, and a continously growing threat to Free Enterprise, National Manufacturers and Eternal Values."