[Milsurplus] Leather and canvas rejuvenation

[David Stinson]

Ben/All:
I've tried two solutions to hardened leather.
One was to soak a piece in linseed oil.  I soaked it for
months... many months.  All it did was turn it dark;
it stayed hard.  Next was to pour boiling water over it to
try and re-hydrate it.  The outer layers crumbled and came off, 
leaving a hard, ruined bit. I decided to replace the piece with
a new replica.  Anyone else find something that will work?