Quote Originally Posted by dachshund
Has anyone done this: immerse the saddle in oil over night in order to soften the leather? The guy who manages the LBS is kind of a character, so I take what he says with a grain of salt. But he said to use a product called "neatsfoot", which you get at stores that sell the other type of saddle, the one that goes on a horse...

I'm inclined to just get the proofhide and be done with it.
a slight coat of proofhide might not hurt, but remember, you don't want this to be soft like a glove. My 30 year old brooks is not soft like that.