I think Sheldon's way offbase re oiling a brooks. Neatsfoot, mink oil are great for gloves or dress shoes that are supposed to be supple and soft but not for anything that's supposed to provide support, be it a brooks or work boots. Maybe you can put on the just exactly perfect amount to soften the surface but not undo the structure of the core of it, that's gotta be some crazy trial and error process though.