This has been a good topic. Rickyfro I'm sorry your supply dried up, but over the years I have not seen all that much constant quality coming out of Mexico. Chahin Tannery does a pretty good job but they are tanning mostly U.S. steer hides. The other tanners down there don't seem to put out that good a product. As far as heavy wrinkles in the neck regions and scars, that is a function of age of the animal, not just sex the of the critter, though old bulls will have a little more weight, and more defects to their hide at a given age. Another problem we would have with "BULL" hide is the low numbers of mature bulls going to market compared to the number of cows or fed steers, which leads me back to my original point much of the leather we buy as BULL is infact old COW. In the cattle raising a rancher might keep only 1 mature bull to breed 25 or 30 cows, the rest of the bull calves born are steered and end up in the feedlots to get bigger and become our next steak and our new boots. That is why there aren't many places turning out bull hide, and who wants to buy something called REAL OLD COW.
I maintain to turn out a good belt and, or holster we should find a good supply of one brand of steer hide (wickett and craig, hermann oak, or even Chahin) and stay with it, as this will keep the people who buy what we make happy. When our supplier let's us down by shipping us not as advertised junk we should give them hell....... Jeff