Mitt Myth Bustin’ Blog
From the Leather Experts at Advanced Leather Solutions
How to tell the difference between the dozens of baseball glove oil products
Don't guess with your gear—check the chemistry. Walk down the glove care aisle, and you’ll see dozens of bottles making identical promises. But chemically, they are worlds apart. The secret to distinguishing a premium preservative from a damaging fat lies in one scientific metric: the Iodine Value.
In this technical guide, Advanced Leather Solutions teaches you how to evaluate oil stability. We compare the molecular structure of popular options—like Mink Oil (Iodine Value ~80-95) and Neatsfoot Oil (69-75)—against the chemically engineered, highly saturated formula of Mitt-Spit. Learn why "unsaturated" oils are ticking time bombs for rancidity and how to choose the stable chemistry that actually protects your investment.
The Chemistry of Survival: Why Unstable Oils are Rotting Your Glove
In the Science of Leather, not all oils are created equal. The difference between a glove that lasts a lifetime and one that turns brittle lies in a single chemical concept: Saturation.
Unsaturated oils (like mink, neatsfoot, and olive oil) contain unstable double-bond molecular structures. When exposed to the heat and sweat of gameplay, these bonds break down through oxidation, causing the oil to go rancid. This doesn't just smell bad—it chemically degrades the leather fibers, leading to stiffness and structural failure.
Mitt-Spit Glove Oil is different. Engineered by the restoration experts at Advanced Leather Solutions, our formula utilizes highly saturated oils with stable single-bond structures. This "low Iodine Index" chemistry resists oxidation, allowing the oil to penetrate deep and maintain suppleness without ever turning rancid [1]. Don’t gamble with your investment—choose the chemistry that preserves, not the chemistry that decays.
Baseball glove care through the Science of Leather.
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email: Kevin@AdvLeather.com