Question about Barbour Thornproof Dressing

[Danny]

Trying to decide if I want to rewax my Barbour myself instead of sending it in this year. Can any of you tell me how many coats you can wax from one $30 jar of the Barbour dressing?

 

[fishertw]

Never tried although I do have one can of dressing that came with a coat about twenty years ago. Never had the nerve to try it myself. Always send them to some place in New Hampshire I believe. Basically a chicken at heart.

 

[drpeter]

Muffy Aldrich, who runs a lovely blog called Salt Water New England about Trad clothing and New England themes and values, has detailed instructions with photographs and video clips for waxing Barbour coats. She does it as and when needed with her Barbours. She states that you will need
a tin of wax for 2-3 Barbours. Here it is:

https://www.saltwaternewengland.com/2019/09/waxing-barbour.html

Do make sure you go through the readers' comments at the end, they offer good suggestions.

Good luck in your efforts!

 

[Tom S.]

I can usually get two jackets from a tin of wax. I find it best to do this job outside (behind my workshop) on a warm day and use an inexpensive hot plate to keep the wax in liquid form (in a pan of water of course). If not kept warm, the wax will re-solidify before you can finish, leading to a blotchy mess that takes longer to fix than the actual waxing itself. As I type this, I'm starting to wonder why I don't just send mine off and pay someone else to do it!
Good Luck!
Tom

 

[mhj]

Agree with above. I tried once and it was a real PIA and didn't look that great when I finished. You can drop it off at a local Orvis store and they send to Barbour USA for you. https://www.newenglandreproofers.com/ is the other option mentioned by fishertw.

 

[drpeter]

I agree. I live in an apartment and have no place to do this myself. I will likely send mine off to that place in New Hampshire (or Maine?) for reproofing.

 

[fishertw]

Agree with above. I tried once and it was a real PIA and didn't look that great when I finished. You can drop it off at a local Orvis store and they send to Barbour USA for you. https://www.newenglandreproofers.com/ is the other option mentioned by fishertw.

These folks do great repairs of tears, rips and worn places as well as reproofing. Nothing like a good repair for a well loved old Barbour. Got a navy one going out for repairs and reproofing shortly.

 

[Danny]

Thanks for the info guys. I will likely send mine in to be done as usual, but was just trying to get a sense of it. If you got only 1 jacket out of 1 tin of wax, that would be a definite no-brainer. At 2 jackets...more to consider, but probably still a no brainer. If someone had said you can wax 5-10 jackets out of 1 tin, I'd have seriously thought about trying to do it myself. I am not sure I'd do a great job at it either way...though.

 

[eagle2250]

What size are the tins of wax they send a 'do-it-yourselfer' these days. Years ago when I did it myself the tin of wax provided wasa more than enough to re-wax the coat once, but I doubt that it would have sufficed for a second rewax. However, I don't know for sure because I always managed to loose track of where I stored the leftover wax, before it came time for the next re-waxing! Since learning that I can have the professionals do it for me, I haven't looked back.

 

[fishertw]

What size are the tins of wax they send a 'do-it-yourselfer' these days. Years ago when I did it myself the tin of wax provided wasa more than enough to re-wax the coat once, but I doubt that it would have sufficed for a second rewax. However, I don't know for sure because I always managed to loose track of where I stored the leftover wax, before it came time for the next re-waxing! Since learning that I can have the professionals do it for me, I haven't looked back.

The tin I got is the size of a small Kiwi Shoe Polish (says on the can 40ml)

 

[drpeter]

Barbour suggests another option for those jackets that are marked Lightweight (perhaps for Bedales or Beauforts?) on the inside label: The wax stick and hair dryer method. To wit:

https://www.barbour.com/us/wax-hub-lightweight-4oz-wax-care

This seems a bit less daunting than working with the tin of wax.

By the way, Barbour's website also shows instructions and video on how to re-wax their jackets.

 

[fishertw]

Making a trip to my closest Orvis store in early Nov to send off my navy Beaufort that I bought 19 years ago in London to be repaired. Several tears and small holes and need to have the velcro on the sleeve cuffs replaced and a new waxing. They do a great job and this will be something like the 4th or 5th reproofing this one has had.

 

[mikel]

@Danny this video may be helpful too.

 

[drpeter]

Making a trip to my closest Orvis store in early Nov to send off my navy Beaufort that I bought 19 years ago in London to be repaired. Several tears and small holes and need to have the velcro on the sleeve cuffs replaced and a new waxing. They do a great job and this will be something like the 4th or 5th reproofing this one has had.

I have a question about the state of the jacket when it comes back to you. Will the smell of the new wax linger for a long time after the re-proofing? Will any of it rub on to car or furniture upholstery, or other clothes in a closet?

I have three or four Barbours all acquired new or used through online or eBay outfits, and except for one, they do not smell at all. The one exception is the larger/longer model I have (bought used) which has always smelled strongly of wax since I picked it up from eBay, so I keep it in a separate area.

 

[fishertw]

The most recent experience that I had, the reproofers returned the coats in custom "suit bags" with a disclaimer that they may need to dry out a bit before wear. The bags protected the jackets and other clothing hanging in my closet until they did dry out from the new wax.

I believe these were sent through the Orvis proofing service, but it's been several years. I had no issue with wearing the coats after a week or so and I have a Volvo with light tan leather interior and have had no issues whatever with rubbing off, however, after storage during any year, there is the traditional Barbour wax odor that takes a couple of days to go away.

I have one hanging outside my hall closet right now emanating its routine smell. I just consider it part of the game. Hope this helps.

 

[drpeter]

The most recent experience that I had, the reproofers returned the coats in custom "suit bags" with a disclaimer that they may need to dry out a bit before wear. The bags protected the jackets and other clothing hanging in my closet until they did dry out from the new wax.

I believe these were sent through the Orvis proofing service, but it's been several years. I had no issue with wearing the coats after a week or so and I have a Volvo with light tan leather interior and have had no issues whatever with rubbing off, however, after storage during any year, there is the traditional Barbour wax odor that takes a couple of days to go away.

I have one hanging outside my hall closet right now emanating its routine smell. I just consider it part of the game. Hope this helps.

Thanks very much indeed, fishertw! This is useful information for me. I still haven't decided whether to send in my coat (the one that I have used the most).

One contrarian thought that has occurred to me: Why reproof at all? If the wax wears off over the years, the coat can still be worn, even if it might be less waterproof. If one can live with that, perhaps one can simply forget about reproofing!

I'm sure there will be more experienced and knowledgeable Barbour hands on deck who will set me straight on the need to re-wax.

 

[Danny]

Yes I think the reproofing comes down to...the coat being more weatherproof when waxed. You could certainly just let it turn into a cotton coat...but it would have fewer performance qualities.

 

[David J. Cooper]

The coats need the wax or they will tear or puncture easily.

Living in Canada, I wasn’t going to chance sending my Beaufort off to England or the US. My last Bean order took 6 weeks to arrive and was lost for a while.

I watched Muffy’s video and followed her technique. It turned out very well. Just don’t over wax, but if you do blend it in with the hair drier.

I did my Beaufort and my wife’s Bednale with 1 can with about .125 of the can left.

You should hang the coat for a couple of days and can even touch it up or blend the wax in with the hair drier in that time.

The coat remains waxy for about a week. I take if off before I sit in the car. It did have an aroma for about a week but is fine now.

Both jackets now look brand new. They were very dry when I started my wife’s is a decade old and this was it’s first wax. Mine is about 8 years old and this was it’s second re-wax. The first cost me $100 at my haberdasher.

 

[fishertw]

dr Peter, I’ve thought about that as well. I’ve often gone several years without reproofing and at my advancing age, I hardly spend much time in inclement weather. I’m returning a navy one now for repairs so might as well get it reproofed while I’m at it. I have an old ( nearly 25 years) Bedale that I use while splitting wood and such but really hire out most of the dirtier jobs now. Maybe just keeping them in good repair to pass on to my son or grandson is reason enough.
Cheers, Tom

 

[drpeter]

Thanks, Tom, David Cooper and Danny, for your helpful responses to my query.

Like Tom, I'm getting into an advanced age, LOL, and I don't think 70 is the new 50. I live in a rented flat in this small town, and while I do get out into the country on bicycle trips and drives, I rarely walk in woods or farms in the countryside. The woods can be risky these days with the proliferation of Lyme disease in Wisconsin! I don't do any yardwork, nothing compared to what I did when I owned a large Victorian house in a spacious town lot ages ago.

The upshot is that my Barbours are pretty much like my other fall/spring coats or field jackets, albeit very comfortable ones that look good. My activities do not require that the jacket be thornproof. So the possibility of tears or punctures is not an issue for me. I've had the most heavily used Barbour Bedale for about eight years now and it doesn't have any tears, just one small oil stain on a sleeve that seems to be disappearing. So my Barbours are pretty low-risk items.