“The grey undertone vanished overnight”
“Inherited my grandfather’s Winchester rifle with a dry, faded stock and a stiff leather sling. Followed the instructions—wiped a thin coat, buffed it out after a few hours. The grey undertone vanished, and the wood grain popped instantly without changing the factory patina. Took it to camp, and everyone asked how I restored it.”
Brings a dry, grey gunstock and stiff, faded leather back to life, from the sling and the gun case to the boots and the saddle. No stripping, no sanding, no change to the original finish.
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“The grey undertone vanished overnight”
“Inherited my grandfather’s Winchester rifle with a dry, faded stock and a stiff leather sling. Followed the instructions—wiped a thin coat, buffed it out after a few hours. The grey undertone vanished, and the wood grain popped instantly without changing the factory patina. Took it to camp, and everyone asked how I restored it.”
Try it for 30 days, starting the day it arrives. If you're not happy, we'll refund you in full.*
*Refunds are handled under our refund policy.
Free shipping on every US order. We pack each order by hand, so please allow a few days for preparation; most orders arrive within 7–13 business days depending on your location. Questions about a delivery? Our support team will help.
Each jar holds 100 ml / 3.4 fl oz of Wood & Leather Salve. Bonus jars, the applicator brush and the pre-cleaning wipes depend on the bundle you choose above.
Every piece is different: age, earlier finishes and cleaning products all affect the result. Always test a small hidden spot first and let it dry completely. Made for finished wood and smooth, absorbent leather. Not for suede, nubuck, unfinished, synthetic or bonded materials. Pemberton's isn't responsible for damage from misuse, skipping the test spot or use on unsuitable surfaces.
Watch it work
One thin coat each. Nothing stripped, nothing sanded, every ding left where it was.
Before
AfterGrey, chalky walnut that felt like driftwood, and a gouge in the butt nobody wanted sanded out. Linseed had darkened it for a week at a time, then it went grey again.
One thin coat worked in with an old T-shirt, left overnight, wiped down in the morning. The color and grain came back, the checkering stopped feeling like sandpaper, and every mark is still on it. Same rifle, same scope. It just looks like walnut again.
Before
AfterA stock gone grey and dead, scuffed whitish at the butt where it rode in a truck, checkering worn smooth where a hand sat for decades. Refinishing quotes ran into the hundreds.
Wiped down first, then salve rubbed in by hand and left to sit while the coffee brewed. Buffed off with a clean rag. No sanding, no stripping. The dents stayed. The color came up out of the wood.
Before
AfterStiff and grey as the boards behind it, cracked at the buckle, the kind of sling you stop trusting with a rifle.
Worked in by thumb on both sides one evening and hung back up. By morning it bent like leather again and the color ran all the way to the swivels. Not shiny, not sticky. Just a sling you'd carry.
Before
AfterSummers on a dashboard had it cracked like a dry creek bed. The loops were so stiff a shell barely went in.
Rubbed in on the tailgate, wiped down and loaded up an hour later. The loops loosened, the color evened out and the cracks stopped showing white.
Before
AfterChalky and dry where salt and mud sat, the toe boxes worst of all. Mink oil darkened them for a week and then just felt greasy.
Wiped clean, salve worked in by hand, left overnight by the door. Soft again, even in color, and they still look like boots that have been somewhere. Not new. Broken in.
Illustrative before and after images. Results vary with age, finish and leather type.
A grey, thirsty stock. A wrist gone sticky from the foam case. A sling as stiff as a board. Sound like the one in your safe?
At camp you'll hear two answers: strip it and refinish it, or leave it alone and let it fade. There's a third, and it's what gunsmiths and cabinetmakers did long before spray-on finishes: clean the wood, feed it, seal it thin.
Pemberton's is that third answer, and it is not a refinish. Nothing is stripped, sanded, stained or coated. The original finish stays original, and every dent and handling mark stays exactly where it has always been.
Wipe it on, give it ten minutes, buff it off. Not eight coats over a winter. Back in the safe, or back in the field, before opening day.
A grey stock hasn't lost its finish. It has lost the oil underneath it. Linseed feeds it but never really dries. Hard oil finishes dry, but they sit on top like plastic. Neither one does both.
Pemberton's does.
First, cold-pressed jojoba, shea and hemp seed oil travel through the existing finish into the wood and replace what dried out. That's why the color comes back from inside instead of being painted on.
Then, beeswax and carnauba leave a thin layer on top that buffs dry and helps shed rain and hand oils.
Feels right going on. Never quite dries, and does little to keep water out.
Dries hard and glossy. Looks like plastic on an old gun, and there's no wiping it back off.
Wipes on and buffs dry in ten minutes. No sandpaper, no stain. Repeat before every season for as long as you own it.
One jar
Stocks & forends
Slings & scabbards
Saddles & tack
Holsters
Gun cases
Hunting bootsIf it needs a gunsmith, it still needs a gunsmith. This is for everything else.
It goes on clear and deepens the color like a damp rag would, then settles back as it buffs. On a light stock, test the inside of the forend first.
The method
A buildup wipe or a rag with mineral spirits lifts grime, old oil and case-foam residue.
Over checkering use almost nothing, or tape it off.
Let it soak into the wood. Get the sling out while you wait.
A clean cloth, with the grain, until nothing comes off on your hand.
Warm it in the sun for a few minutes so it drinks. Rub in a thin coat, wipe off the excess and leave it overnight, off the rifle. A damp sling stored on the gun is how barrels and buttplates rust.
Linseed that stayed tacky. A hard finish that went glossy. A bottle with a sixteen-page manual. A gunsmith quote bigger than the gun is worth. You've heard all of it at camp.
This doesn't strip, sand or stain, so there's nothing to undo. And if the stock and the sling don't come back, you get your money back within 30 days.
Before you open the jar
While it's wet it deepens the color the way a damp rag would, then settles back as you buff. Leather behaves the same way: there's no dye in it, so no permanent color shift like heavy conditioners can cause. Try the inside of the forend or the back of the sling and judge it once it's dry.
No. Go on thin, wait about ten minutes and buff until nothing comes off on your hand. What's left is a dry wax finish, not a film. Tackiness only happens when too much goes on and isn't buffed off.
Not if you keep it thin. Use almost nothing over checkering, or tape it off. Heavy oil is what fills the points, not a thin wipe of wax.
Yes. It sits on top of the finish you already have and doesn't strip, sand or stain it. Old military shellac is soft, so clean it first and test a hidden spot.
Clean first, then feed. A buildup wipe or a rag with mineral spirits takes off case-foam residue and grime. Cosmoline has to come out of the wood before anything goes in; the salve won't pull grease out. Once the stock is clean and dry, go ahead.
Laminate, yes: it's wood under a finish. Synthetic, no: there's nothing in plastic to feed. Use the jar on the sling instead.
If it gets on steel, wipe it off. It's plant oil and wax and won't attack bluing. It doesn't remove or prevent rust either; that's still a job for gun oil. And never store a damp sling on the gun.
No. A crack needs glue and a gouge needs filler. This is for the finish and the leather. If it needs a gunsmith, it still needs a gunsmith.
It doesn't strip, sand, stain or add a hard coat, so the original finish stays the original finish. Collectors should still test inside the forend and keep it thin.
Linseed feels right but never fully dries and does little against water. Hard oil finishes dry glossy and can look like plastic on an old gun. This wipes on, buffs dry in about ten minutes, and the wax helps water bead instead of soaking in. It's not a polyurethane seal, so still wipe the gun down after a wet day.
Because the can is probably still in your garage, half full, and the stock is still grey. One jar covers every stock and every piece of leather you own, and if it doesn't bring them back, you get your money back.
A light coat conditions without collapsing the shape; if something needs to stay stiff, use less and wipe off the excess. A carry sling that has gone hard can take more and sit overnight. With no petroleum in it, it won't rot linen thread the way petroleum products can.
Once before the season and once after, more if it lives in the truck. A fingertip covers a stock. A jar covers the safe.
Your first order ships at the bundle price you choose. After that, refills ship every month at the price shown under the Add to cart button until you skip, pause or cancel, which you can do anytime from your account or by emailing us.
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