Product Review: Effax Leather-Cream-Soap

When I was in the local tack store (Happy Horse) recently to exchange a halter I had ordered that was too big, I was browsing around the front room and while overlooking the tack cleaning section (and they have a good selection!) I noticed the Effax Leather-Cream-Soap in it's nifty bottle with hook lid.

"Hey, that looks cool." I thought.

I've always been wary of two-in-one type products, probably because I've had bad experiences with other products, but I already have the Effax LeatherCombi and looooove it, so I figured I'd give it a try.

So I got home and set to disassembling, oiling, and cleaning my new tack items. I opened it up and
1) I love the smell, it's very clean smelling and not overpowering
2) The consistency is like a lightweight conditioner, really silkly

I used it to do the break-in cleaning for a new bridle and, I loved what it did! It left the new leather feeling soft, clean, and supple.  Granted there was no dirt to clean off but still, I was impressed with the ease and effectiveness of the cleaner.  It did not leave a gunky feeling, nor did I feel the need to wash it off afterwards as it rubbing in so well.

More recently I attempted to use it to clean my very dirty and dingy leather halter, and unfortunately it did not do much to cut through the built up gunk.  For that I had to resort back to my Effax LeaderCombi to suds it up and scrub it off with a toothbrush.  Once I got the major crusties off I then went back to using the Cream-Soap and again, I was very happy with the end result.  It cleaned off the dust from the leather and left it very soft feeling.  The dirt remining was picked up by my sponge, and again, I did not feel a need to wash it off (unlike the LeaderCombi which I prefer to wipe off using a damp rag after scrubbing away).

Overall, I give it four stars for being your go-to everyday, after ride, wipe down cleaner.  It leaves the leather soft, but it's not overkill and I don't see it being too much at all if used every day.  However, I only give it two stars for cleaning tack that has not been touched in awhile, it just doesn't have the power to cut through built up gunk.  Once you get the gunk off though, it does its job very well.

And, to top it off, it makes your hands so soft! My fingers feel great!