I found just what he says about cheaper leather. It is even harder to cut. I primarily make belts and knife sheaths and once I bought a double shoulder that had loose grain. The stuff got hairier when I sanded it! So I decided to split the belts and line them with some 4 oz hi quality Oak Leaf I inspected myself at Tandy and you better know I looked at BOTH sides. I went to split this crummy leather and I was dumbfounded by how hard it was to cut. I determined the best time to split it was when it was still damp from tooling, so I'd tool and split. LOL Now Hermann Oak from Springfield is the only place I buy double shoulders from sight unseen, cuz I can't travel to Missouri from Las Cruces NM. When you're small like I am your budget is the arbiter of what you can get, but you cannot skimp on cheap leather.
I'm from las Cruces also and have bought alot of leather from tandy leather and it's crappy leather, I am about to buy a sewing machine from Springfield leather and a double butt, I will deal with Springfield leather from now on, thanks to the crew at Springfield leather for the videos !!!
Love the videos. Would love a store tour every so often. I can't get down that often, but I always wonder what's new in the store, or to get me thinking about new projects.
Both videos 1 & 2 , Great. I have watched several of your videos. I am a newby for sure as I haven't even my first project started. I will eventually make personalized gifts for friends.Thanks for taking your time and helping others. I intend to watch all of your videos.
Kevan and Rusty , thank you very much i find your videos are excellent for all the leather crafter, very well explain and helpful i always learn a lot from you videos .
I have a hard time believing less than 500 people (as I write this) found this video helpful. Come on guys ... when you watch a video, if you got something out of it, hit like!!! This video has great info contained within! Now, SLC ... we need a shop on the West Coast ... about a block from my house in Long Beach would be perfect, thank you!!!!
I have been very happy with the sides of harmen oak . 5 6 weight great stuff fine tooling leather. have also got south american sholders for belts i liked it also1. have purchase all kinds of leather workind tools dys stamps coustomer servis was great.Thank you Springfield leather.
I would like some Hermon oak but can't get it from you as there is no retailer for us in America as we live in the uk and I have always known about the waste for us it is the cost to get it after the tax and vat but a retailer would buy the leather as long as they can make a little after cost
thanks for sharing. Just one question? How can I tell real leather from fake as in a leather biker jacket without buying from a known brand and or taking it apart to see the back.
Hi, Mike! We would recommend trying to find a raw edge of the jacket. A leather jacket will have a little more "rough" or "imperfect" edges than a synthetic jacket with clean cut edges. You may find this link helpful, as well: www.wikihow.com/Identify-Genuine-Leather
Thanks Kevin, the reason I asked is that before (i.e. 20 years ago) when I bought a nice leather Jacket although not all leather is the same quality . I know that it was still 100% leather and not PU/fake leather. Its getting harder to tell now for a layman. Some jackets even just have 55% leather in it to be called a leather jacket
Hello! We try to provide the best selection of veg tanned leather to our customers. We will typically give sides with a lot of defects to our production shop, leaving customers the best selection for the grade that they ordered. A craftsman grade leather will have more defects than a B grade leather. If you have more questions about ordering leather, please feel free to call us at 1-800-668-8518. Thanks for your question! :)
I wish we had a Springfield Leather store in south east England to be able to visit and browse, as the nearest Tandy store is over 200 miles away and their prices sometimes leave a lot to be desired. As for leather suppliers here, they mainly seem to be wholesale (business) only and the one other leathercraft supplier I have found, is soley internet sales and very little in the way of sizes of hide to choose from, if in stock at all. As a beginner to leathercrafting, I feel there is nothing better than being able to go to a store and see/feel what I'm buying and get expert advice if needed. Kevin your videos I find informative and thanks for doing them, I know you also do internet sales but international shipping rates tend to make the beginner/hobbyist like myself, feel I have to make the best of what I already have available.
I use both. But I really don,t like my veg tan too dry. My old boss would ask for xtra oil on his veg tan. Plus I like the darker tan. Not a fan of that blondish leather cuz it dyes funny. Mite give U a try soon. PS. If u get that square cow I,ll be a true customer😉😎👍
I found just what he says about cheaper leather. It is even harder to cut. I primarily make belts and knife sheaths and once I bought a double shoulder that had loose grain. The stuff got hairier when I sanded it! So I decided to split the belts and line them with some 4 oz hi quality Oak Leaf I inspected myself at Tandy and you better know I looked at BOTH sides. I went to split this crummy leather and I was dumbfounded by how hard it was to cut. I determined the best time to split it was when it was still damp from tooling, so I'd tool and split. LOL
Now Hermann Oak from Springfield is the only place I buy double shoulders from sight unseen, cuz I can't travel to Missouri from Las Cruces NM. When you're small like I am your budget is the arbiter of what you can get, but you cannot skimp on cheap leather.
I'm from las Cruces also and have bought alot of leather from tandy leather and it's crappy leather, I am about to buy a sewing machine from Springfield leather and a double butt, I will deal with Springfield leather from now on, thanks to the crew at Springfield leather for the videos !!!
Love the videos. Would love a store tour every so often. I can't get down that often, but I always wonder what's new in the store, or to get me thinking about new projects.
Both videos 1 & 2 , Great. I have watched several of your videos. I am a newby for sure as I haven't even my first project started. I will eventually make personalized gifts for friends.Thanks for taking your time and helping others. I intend to watch all of your videos.
Thank you so much, I love the integrity of American homegrown business, I will buy from you from now on!
Kevan and Rusty , thank you very much i find your videos are excellent for all the leather crafter, very well explain and helpful i always learn a lot from you videos .
I have a hard time believing less than 500 people (as I write this) found this video helpful. Come on guys ... when you watch a video, if you got something out of it, hit like!!! This video has great info contained within! Now, SLC ... we need a shop on the West Coast ... about a block from my house in Long Beach would be perfect, thank you!!!!
Very good, informative, and valuable video. Thank you for doing this.
Happy days!
I have been very happy with the sides of harmen oak . 5 6 weight great stuff fine tooling leather. have also got south american sholders for belts i liked it also1. have purchase all kinds of leather workind tools dys stamps coustomer servis was great.Thank you Springfield leather.
Thanks for the video and info just starting out trying to gather info Picked up a few books 2nd hand , etc
Thank you for this informative video.
you should put a link to your site in your videos
I would like some Hermon oak but can't get it from you as there is no retailer for us in America as we live in the uk and I have always known about the waste for us it is the cost to get it after the tax and vat but a retailer would buy the leather as long as they can make a little after cost
thanks for sharing. Just one question? How can I tell real leather from fake as in a leather biker jacket without buying from a known brand and or taking it apart to see the back.
Hi, Mike! We would recommend trying to find a raw edge of the jacket. A leather jacket will have a little more "rough" or "imperfect" edges than a synthetic jacket with clean cut edges. You may find this link helpful, as well: www.wikihow.com/Identify-Genuine-Leather
Thanks Kevin, the reason I asked is that before (i.e. 20 years ago) when I bought a nice leather Jacket although not all leather is the same quality . I know that it was still 100% leather and not PU/fake leather. Its getting harder to tell now for a layman. Some jackets even just have 55% leather in it to be called a leather jacket
Once again, thank you very much.
can i color veg tan leather using acrylic leather paint like angelus
Haven't been to happy with Tandy lately, if I order a side from you guys is it guaranteed a good cut?
Hello! We try to provide the best selection of veg tanned leather to our customers. We will typically give sides with a lot of defects to our production shop, leaving customers the best selection for the grade that they ordered. A craftsman grade leather will have more defects than a B grade leather. If you have more questions about ordering leather, please feel free to call us at 1-800-668-8518. Thanks for your question! :)
The only place to buy !!
I wish we had a Springfield Leather store in south east England to be able to visit and browse, as the nearest Tandy store is over 200 miles away and their prices sometimes leave a lot to be desired. As for leather suppliers here, they mainly seem to be wholesale (business) only and the one other leathercraft supplier I have found, is soley internet sales and very little in the way of sizes of hide to choose from, if in stock at all. As a beginner to leathercrafting, I feel there is nothing better than being able to go to a store and see/feel what I'm buying and get expert advice if needed. Kevin your videos I find informative and thanks for doing them, I know you also do internet sales but international shipping rates tend to make the beginner/hobbyist like myself, feel I have to make the best of what I already have available.
what weight Hermann Oak is featured in this video?
I use both. But I really don,t like my veg tan too dry. My old boss would ask for xtra oil on his veg tan. Plus I like the darker tan. Not a fan of that blondish leather cuz it dyes funny. Mite give U a try soon.
PS. If u get that square cow I,ll be a true customer😉😎👍
Thank you.
Square cows 😂