JC Javelle

Hi Bruce, I am not a leather specialist, and I have rarely if anything to do with the living, breathing, bleeding animal side of my food. So please forgive me for a rather large amount of ignorance concerning the production side of things. But I do like to share what I know, so don't bite my head off it I may be wrong. I do like constructive criticism and learning new sides of things, probably to a fault. There is the knowledge out there, whether correct or not (it is all opinions in the end), that the big I think three or four meat production companies more or less rule the food production world. McDonalds is supposedly the biggest purchaser of beef, chicken, and potatoes in the industry. Therefore, it is probably assumed, though probably not without too much falsities likely, that the biggest produced products are geared to make the biggest buyer happy. It is considered that even the meat packed in the grocery stores is an end product of what the biggest buyer wants. Cut quality aside, it comes from the same cow that was fed with the purpose of probably being a McDonalds cow. Now, not all beef is this way surely because not all cattle breeds are raised/produced for this purpose. Corn kills cows is an indirect statement I suppose. Corn is considered to be unhealthy. It may not be to the degree that is published for the public to hear, or it may be worse. Corn is believed to cause ulcers in cows so large that they will punch holes in the sides of the animal. You can reach your hand, from outside of the cow, to inside one of the cows affected stomachs. This, among other related things likely, supposedly, can and will kill cows. That is why corn is supposedly fed during such a short period of time, and specifically at the end of their lives and not throughout them. It isn't quick though, but a gradual build up of things what corn supposedly does to their systems that will kill them if continued over an extended period of time. Out of curiosity, I would like to know how many different companies there are that do slaughter animals, and their differences in methods from feeding, storage, killing and on down to dividing. As far as I can tell, there are the big ones (whose names I can't recall at the moment), and they control the majority of food put in our grocery stores. Documentaries, even seemingly unbiased ones, can only give so much information. I am particularly interested in the quality difference between the pasture grown and, I suppose, feed lot beef hides. I would like to know if they feel any different between their qualities, like the feel of the hide, its durability, its weight, etc. Skin is skin, yes, but is there a difference between the health of the hide, if that is an applicable question?

This is a very interesting topic. And knowing that the majority of beef in America that goes to slaughter is geared towards the biggest buyer (McDonalds), a type of quality comes to mind. There are no ethics in the slaughter industry. As most cows in America raised for meat consumption are corn fed, and corn kills cows, I would rather ask the question: Which is of better quality, corn fed hides or forage fed hides? There is obviously a difference in the taste of the meat. I would assume that everything, to an extent, would be different. Now, I don't know if the hides from cows raised specifically for meat consumption are used in the leather industry or not. But if there is a known difference between the two, I would find that more interesting as a buyer of leather, than whether or not the cow died of old age, accident, or slaughter. The animal ends up in a similar place regardless of how it died. How it was raised is far more interesting to me than how it died. Just my take on things.

Thanks guys. I will ask if I something comes to mind. I look forward to seeing you there, Budd! I am going tomorrow to place my RSVP.

Leather working is completely new to me, but it has held my interests for a little while now. I recently purchased a Ruger KP90DC, and I was looking for a custom holster. Unable to find one, well, I considered making one. There is a holster making class at the local Tandy's at the end of this month, and hopefully it will be a fine introduction into leather working. This holster will likely be my first piece, and I hope to be very proud of it when I complete it. I have a long background in art, mostly drawing and painting, some clay work. Over the last couple years though I fell away from the generally common mediums. My interest has been leaning towards more talented type work, like welding and leather work. I hope to break into both this year, and I look forward to it a great deal. I can see myself doing a good amount of work with leather, for both myself, my husband, and my dogs (my kids! lol). I hope to find a great wealth of expertise here. Information, secrets, the unusual possibly. I hope to make everyone's acquaintance soon. Thank you.