screw-up on Catchers Mitt

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May 17, 2017
51
8
The other day i was going through my DD's bag and i saw her catchers mitt was dirty and needed a cleaning and some oiling its at worth liberty 34 ,, My problem is when i cleaned it i decided to warm the glove up before applying the Lexol ,,,well i had the oven to high and dried it out to the point the point that the fingers holes shrunk ,some of the laces are brittle ,, Any way i can get the the glove back to where is was or is the glove "toast" and i should be looking for a replacement ?
 
Feb 5, 2013
245
16
Yikes. If it got to the point where the finger holes shrunk, it might be toast. I'd also be a little worried about the state of the palm pad.

1. I'd condition it and put it in a sealed plastic bag for a day or so and see how it does.

2. If you know a good glove re-lacer, I'd have them take a close look at it.

3. If nothing else, it's a good opportunity to make a new purchase!
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
I would suggest coating the entire glove with Obenauf's heavy duty leather preservative then wrapping it in plastic wrap, with a ball in the pocket, for 2-3 weeks. If you do not have an old ball, put the ball in a ziplock bag before placing in the pocket. Wrap it up tight enough to hold everything in position.
obenauf.jpg
 
Jul 29, 2013
6,799
113
North Carolina
Why would you think it needed to be warmed up to apply Lexol........that’s the easiest product out there to apply to a glove! For future reference, if you feel the need to warm a glove up, throw it in the dryer with with some already dry towels for a few minutes. NEVER EVER THE OVEN OR A MICROWAVE!!

I’m sure you feel bad enough, lesson learned. Okay, I would do what JAD suggested, if you don’t have Obenauf’s or Jobsite, which you probably don’t, use the Lexol conditioner in the brown bottle.

How old and in what condition is your Liberty mitt? It may be time to help boost the economy?


Edit:
If a re-lace is needed.....Jeffrey Rous in Famers Branch, Texas.
 
Last edited:
Oct 3, 2011
3,478
113
Right Here For Now
The biggest problem you may face is not so much the shrinkage as the damage you may have done to the inserts along the outside of the mitt along the thumb and little finger stalls that form the outside edge of the mitt for lack of a better term. Many times they are made of plastic and overheating the mitt will often cause these to warp or become brittle and break rather quickly. Keep an eye on that because when they do, the mitt will be floppy and your DD will lose control of the ball while receiving (meaning pop-outs more than likely) and occasionally cause damage to the thumb joint or little finger joint since those same stiffeners help protect those joints by "feeding" the ball into the pocket in an off-center catch.

ETA: If you ever feel the need to warm a glove or mitt up again, throw it in your clothes dryer with a dry towel. Add a 1/4 cup of water to the towel to keep the leather from drying out and put it on medium for no longer than 5 minutes.
 
Last edited:
May 17, 2017
51
8
Just an update,, thank you all that have given me advice, i have ordered Obenauf’s , i have opened up the fingers and thumb and used the lexol and have the glove wrapped up ! The think i bought the liberty 4 yrs ago its it (was) in great shape lol ,,I tried to get the all star cmw3000 from Monkey on black friday but i was to late ,that was a great price $80.93 i called to see if there was any left or if i could be on a list in case some didnt get shipped out for any reason ,they told me just keep checking the site ,, YES a lesson was learned never ever use the micro or oven again ,, again thanks !
 
May 23, 2015
999
63
The internet and consensus thought never wins. I've used the oven and Lexol for over 30 years to break in literally hundreds (possibly thousands) of glove. Lexol beats everything on the market. 150-175 and that's it. It's no hotter than the trunk of your car on a southern day. Leather is skin that's it. When you warm leather it's to open the pores and thin out the Lexol for deep penetration. Much higher heat is used in the tanning process. Leather products are heat embossed, branded, and have designs burned into them.

If you really want to bring your glove back soak it in Lexol conditioner and vacuum pack it with a food saver. The vacuum will open the pores and really condition the leather. Sit it in a warm window or by a heating register for a couple of days. You'll be good to go
 

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