Do NOT soak the B-17 in oil. What a mess! If you want to try reshaping the skirts, soak them in WATER and then let it dry while the skirts are blocked. By the way, you don't need to immerse the entire saddle in water; you can use a sponge to repeatedly moisten the leather skirts on the inside and outside. I feel reasonably certain about this advice, as my business uses hundreds of square feet of vegetable-tanned saddle grade leather each year. Or you can also do what I did with the skirts on my B-17: cut them off and "swallow-ize" the darned thing. It'll look great.
Also, in regard to several postings of Brooks only using a select few die-cut pieces from an entire hide: most top quality hides are very consistent, with the exception of the belly portions. I find it hard to believe that Brooks wouldn't use as much of the hide as possible in crafting even their higher priced saddles.
Bill Silverman
Pasadena, CA, USA