REVIEW: Pinnacle Black Label - Leather Cleaner/Conditioner

[Dr_Pain]

If you've seen some of my previous posting on leather cleaner and conditioners you know that I am a stickler on smells. My quest for a product I can live with has brought me to try every samples that AG could put in my orders.... and many more!!

The best product I had found was the Zaino product which is very similar to the Duragloss product in smell and results. I've never had a bad experience with the product but did not feel compelled to buy it again, since it had not really satisfied me.

When I saw the new Pinnacle Black Label Leather product line I was both excited and somewhat let down because to be honest the previous Pinnacle experience was a BUST!...... but I just had to try it!

Here is there ultimate kit: Pinnacle Black Label Hide-Soft Leather Kit



For the purpose of this review, I will only take about the cleaner and conditioner. The subject of this review is my Ford Raptor

As you may have read in some of my previous review, my truck is meticulously detailed and the subject of many experimentation, so for all looking to see the ability the product has to lift dirt and grime or restore some faded cracked leather, you are out of luck!!

What I am offering in this review is the first hand account of the product, packaging, ease of use, smell and post application look.

First off, the leather was vaccumed and all the remaining dirt and debris were removed. I selected a MF applicator and the cleaner and proceeded to clean the leather.



I uncapped the product to smell it and it was almost virtually odorless. The product comes with a pump which I did not like!! The colorless liquid squirted out of it and literally bounced off the applicator and a large portion got wasted. I do have a heavy finger but don't want to stick around for Christ's return gingerly depressing a pump. I think a redesign would be in order. Being that it is a liquid, I think a spray head would serve it better.

The product itself looks like water and feels like water. It works extremely well in removing any surface oil and dirt, reminding me of Leatherique. I did not need much of the cleaner to do all the leather in the truck, which was very pleasant considering its cost.

Next came the application of the conditioner. Again, I selected a MF applicator and used the pump to dispense the product. As you can see from the picture bellow, the luster/gloss of my leather is GONE!.... thanks to the cleaner removing all those surface oils and dirt!



This product, unlike the last, is very well served by the pump. It is a opaque white lotion which smell better than any other products I have in my sampling of leather conditioners. I was impressed and pleasantly surprised, since I was waiting to smell the "failure" of the last Pinnacle leather product I had tried. It does smell awefuly close to American leather (definitely not the European leather which has a very floral leather ie. Mercedes, Audi's, BMW's). It does not restore the original leather smell, but does have a very pleasant odor, which makes me happy. I sure wish they could bottle that smell!!!

After application, the smell did linger but within 20 minutes it had disappears. CURSE YOU PBMG!!!! You put out a great product and tease us with a pleasant intoxicated smell of leather, and then take it away.

Its application was effortless. I do have perforated leather, stitching, and material inserts which is always a concern however I squirted the conditioner on the applicator, started on the non-perforated hide and transitioned on the fabric, stitching and perforated leather without a single thought. It did not clog my perforated leather and did not stain the stitching or material inserts.

As for the look, it left a low gloss satin look to my leather. I would have preferred a slightly higher gloss to match the original look of the leather but was happy nonetheless. It did not leave a greasy residue and did not stain my khaki's even though I used the truck shortly after application (i.e no dwell/cure time).

Would I buy the product again? I would definitely buy the conditioner again. As for the cleaner, I will reserve my opinions until I can truly test its cleaning abilities (next super dirty leather I get). I do have to try the coating but this will be for another review....

So what does the Beast look like all spiffed up?







As usual, feel free to ask questions, comments or.....

[Paul Mitchell]

Excellent review Claude. It would be nice if the leather fragrance lasted longer.

[artofdetailing]

Id like to see a review of these on dirty leather. This is the 2nd time somebody has reviewed it with a very clean interior. Nonetheless thanks for the time and effort you took to post this!

[mg6045]

Great demonstration and pictures. Gives a very accurate representation of what to expect. Thank you

if you like that leather smell, LTT sells it as an air freshener in a tiny little trigger sprayer.

I think it smells fantastic. The Pinnacle Black label is a big step up from what PBMG offered in the past as conditioners. This one dries completely and evenly and gives the feel of protection. I never used the original pinnacle and wolfgang leather lotions in the past more than one time because I felt they overhydrated the surface. which in turn would increase dirt and dust sticking and abrading the surface.

The new wolfgang cockpit sealant and black label leather conditioner are a step up in protection from dirt induced abrasion. they both really dry to the touch and leave a protective coating. (more so the wolfgang spray).

As for the Black Label vinyl/leather sealant goes, I was not as impressed as I was with the Wolfgang leather sealant. Black Label left the seats more glossy than I liked. And it was not easy to knock that gloss down.

also, I think Autogeek should put a warning note on the product page of Wolfgang Cockpit Sealant and Pinnacle Leather/vinyl sealant that states not to use these products on analine or unfinished/uncoated leather. I learned the hard way and ruined (stained) my sister in laws 300 dollar uncoated leather boots with WG Cockpit sealant. You only want to use these sealants on finished leather. (Black Label "Hide-Soft Leather Conditioner" is VERY good to use though !)

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Nice review Claude.

Those look like some comfy seats.

[willtothewong]

Thanks for the review!

[VP Mark]

Nice review! I'm with you that scent is extremely important.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using AG Online

[CM8 6MT]

Thanks for putting this review together! Nice seats

[runrun411]

As always another great review. I have leather seats in my Honda Pilot and My Honda Accord. I am so afraid to use conditioners and cleaners on them. I hate when they get old they have that super shiny look to them. I want them to look like I just bought the car. I know that some conditioners have less gloss but over time I've seen what has happened to so many people's leather seats.

[Jrocket]

Great Detailed Review with good Pictures included.

Thank you for this write up!

My two current vehicles are 13's and the leather is vacuumed once a week and wiped down with a damp MF towel.

So I Purchased Just the Black Label Vinyl and Leather Coating to keep the leather seats in pristine condition and prevent Jean dye transfer.

I may do a very light clean w/ Leatherique Pristine Clean before applying my PBL coating.

About time for a new Cleaner and Conditioner though and may have to pick these two up.

Would love to hear your thoughts after using the Leather cleaner on dirty leather to see what kind of cleaning ability it has.

Hate to hear that the Conditioner scent is only a tease but at least it smells like leather and is a pleasant scent