StevenSiegel

Hi Dave, Send me your address, I owe you a five spot. If you are not in the US, I can send the equivalent currency in Euros. As a leather merchant for nearly 100 years, these types of things are incredibly frustrating. Most chamois is probably produced in China from sheep of origin in Kyrgystan, Uzbekestan,etc . The difference in the price of chamois produced from sheep of these regions and hair-sheep from the Alps is tremendous. If you were the guy selling "genuine chamois" made from the real McCoy (no longer possible, because this is an endangered species) or an animal skin with the same physical properties you could never compete against the "other guy" who is selling leather made from an animal skin which is a small fraction in cost from the other product???? Just my opinion. Regards, Steven Siegel siegel.leather@gmail.com

Hi, I hope that I don't get anyone upset about this, but there is no such thing as mule hide. Though mules are slaughtered, the hides are comingled with others such as horse. There is no such thing being produced. There are items produced which people call "mule hide" which are not from mules: There are 2 choices 1) Chrome/Vegetable Retanned Sides (rawstock is steers, not cows) 2) Splits which are chrome tanned and fat liquored, not colored (a typical example would be leather used for haying aprons) If anyone is interested, I can give you the reason that a) noted above was/is commonly, but incorrectly referred to as mule hide. To me, it's an intersting story of leather trivia which shows how leather can be labeled /sold as something which it is not. I do not know the origin of the misnomer of calling #2 mulehide. There are so many leathers which have acquired names which do not accurately represent from where they came for purposes of marketing, but eventually lead to public confusion and loss of value of certain leathers for everyone concerned. Challenge for fun. For a quick $5, (i'll put a fiver in the mail), what is genuine chamois? (Hint: It is not the product sold in auto stores as genuine chamois) (To be fair, see if you can find the answer in any book or publication, not on the internet.) PS Can you post a picture of the old belt that you are trying to replace??? Regards, Steven Siegel siegel.leather@gmail.com

Hi, It was suggested that I may want to post to this forum to help share some knowledge in the industry. (I have successfully woked as an expert witness in leather and engineered leathers which are unique to our company) So, I'll give it a try for a while and see how it goes. When we first started our website, about 10-12 years ago, one thing which I wanted to accomplish was to help spread good, reliable information about leather. One of these venues was to find a leather worker, well-respected, knowledgeable in a wide variety of disciplines, had no "bias" for one supplier/company over another and had good communication skills. I found such a person in Verlane Desgrange. We have archived all of the questions and answers at the following location. https://www.siegelofca.com/ask_verlane.asp Please feel; free to visit anytime, however the information cannot be reproduced without our permission. Regards, Steven Siegel siegel.leather@gmail.com

These are single backs tanned for harnesses. They will be approximately 18 sq ft/each. The width should be approximately 24-26". You could probably expect a "landed" price in USA (after freight, clearance, etc) of around $350/each. 5.5 mm = 13.75 oz ... as this is a European tanner, and in the context that they reply, this means that the leather is of this substance throughout the back.... The length is 7''6" to 8 ft in length. Don't know the tanner, but from the description, this would be my assumption. Regards, Steven Siegel, CEO siegel.leather@gmail.com

Hi, Would you mind posting a couple of pics? Thanks, Steven Siegel

Thanks for the instructions. I'll try to post the pics on Monday. Steve

Hi, We have put leather flooring in part of our office; actually the highest traffic area. It has stood up better than carpeting, looks great and is easy to keep clean. We used upper leather, approx 2-2.2 mm in thickness, which was glued and cobbled to a plywood underlayment. If anyone would like a picture, I'd be happy to send one one (can someone help me with the steps necessary to attach a photo to this site and suggested size) Regards, Steven Siegel

Hi Randy, Went to the bar at the Mart over by the hotel. It was too loud to watch the game so I headed back to the hotel. See you another time, Maybe in Sheridan. My wife is checking flights. Best Regards, Steve

Hi Johanna, I was in shock when Kevin returned my call. We have a couple of friends in common. (Or, at least my friends claim they are friends of his... who knows?) If you would like, I'll keep you posted privately about the work on our site. If so, would you mind sending me an email address where to respond?

HI, Perhaps this was a poor choice of words. Maybe this can better be expressed by our company's goals which is to offer the technical skills and know how to purchase or direct a tanner to make leather suitable for a wide variety of purposes and offer this leather in an honest manner. For example, if you were a maker who needed to know if a glutaraldehyde tannage or a zirconium tannage was better for your use and needed the leather either off the shelf or specially made, hopefully you would come to our company. If you are a bookbinder and need leather specially tanned to withstand atmospheric sulfur dioxide, we would have the leather in stock and could explain why this leather is suitable for this purpose. If you need Genuine English Bridle, not the leather made outside the UK which really has no resemblance in durability, strength or appearance then you would, hopefully, be giving us a call. If you were a chap maker and called us for "oil tanned leather" you would receive a lecture about using the wrong terminolgy, because you are probably asking for oiled off leather not leather which has used oil as the tanning agent; e.g. chamois. If you need a book on "how to build a 'whatever', or a pattern to make something or advise on stamping, we would not serve you well. If you are looking for finished products, we refuse to make/sell them because I have a personal ethical issue that this ulitmately competes with my customers. Thank you for the question. I hope that I have not been abrasive with my answer. My personal goals are to put honesty ahead of dollars, so our company does some things in a different manner than others; the most obvious being willing to offer free return freight (within the limitation of 15 days from receipt of merchandise and you haven't cut the leather up, etc) on any merchandise from our company, especially leather and a lifetime guarantee on all tools purchased from us (barring abuse, of course). Other examples are heavily discounting or replacing for free leather with hidden defects e.g. skirting which has hard spots in the leather which is undetectable until the leather is cut. Again, thank you for the opportunity to reply on this forum.

Hi,I am Steven Siegel, CEO of Siegel of California, Inc & M Siegel Co., Inc.. My grandfather started our business in 1917 on South Street in Boston which was for many years the leather capital of the world.There have been some very good comments about back order. I realize very well that if you place an order for 1Million dollars and 1 of the items is a 5 cent widget, the entire order may be useless without the 5 cent widget. To not know that an entire 1 Million dollar will be shipped minus the 5 cent widget is wrong.This is our company policy:1) Regarding "Regular Merchandise" If we are out of stock of anything your order will not be shipped without first notifying you and getting your ok, even if that means a delay of 1 day in shipping your order.2) Regarding "End of Year Special" As is stated on nearly every page of our flyer is clearly stated that we wiil not back order any out of stock items. We will do the best that we can to notify customers at the time the order is placed if we are out of stock. We will ship what is available and will not hold your order to notify you of any out of stock items.3) If you will supply the customer service person with your email address at the time you place your order, you will receive an automated email from UPS with the tracking number, value of merchandise, etc.4) You can always call us toll-free at 800 862 8956 to get the status of your order, but we are trying to automate everything, so please don't call unless it's really necessary. This will help us with lower overhead and you, the customer with lower prices.5) Most importantly, I know that many of y'all are afraid to order leather mail order. Who knows what you will receive? Well, we have a policy to pick up the merchandise freight free so you don't have to worry about the quality of anything being not what you expected. BTW, we also ship freight free, UPS ground only, for any order over $75.6) Our specialty is leather. All of the other items are incidentals to us. We cater to customers primarily with needs for all types of leathers. I am currently at Outbacks in Denver. The owners of the company are satisfied, repeat customers as are: Disney, Shania Twan, Bo Derek, Ty Warner, The NY Mounted Police Dept, some of the largest belt makers in the world (sorry, but can't mention their names), Orvis, custom saddle makers, Harvard University, The Smithsonian, etc, etc. etc. ... forgot to mention that our leather was the leather used on the last 12 Kentucky Derby Winners. 7) We do not cater to crafters. It is not our strength. I would recommend Tandy's, Hide Crafter's, etc, etc.8) If you are looking for some GREAT deals on leather sign up for our Friday Specials at: www.siegelofca.com (BTW we have recently hired Kevin Mitnick to make sure our site is hack proof. He will be starting some time next week.))9) Finally, I would like to say THANK YOU to those of you who have been understanding and supportive.

Hi, I received an email this AM about some posts on this web site. I am only making ONE public response to "Scouter". If anyone wishes to reach me, please email me at ceo@siegelofca.com 1) Re: This post from Scouter Hey Scouter,I gave you the courtesy of a reply to your insistence on speaking with me on the phone and was very polite and honest with you. I am currently at Outback's in Denver; btw the owners' of Outback are repeat satisfied customers of Siegel of California, not to mention Disney, Prince Charles, numerous 10 goal polo players, numerous custom saddle makers, and THE NY MOUNTED POLICE DEPT. I gave Scouter my time, my honesty and my empathy. I received in return an accusation of illegal activity, a fabrication of our communication and a mis-characterization of his conversation with Jake. (BTW I'm sure Jake will be happy to know that he has been promoted and Ralph is no longer President of CS Osborne. And, it's 8 generations, not 5) I don't care to give Scouter any more time. If anyone wishes to contact me directly, my email address is ceo@siegelofca.com

Hi Randy, I'm at the show also. I am only checking email once or twice a day, but, if you're not busy my plans are to be at the bar on Sat night watching the NE game. (I'm wearing a black top coat, black sport coat & will probably be drinking shots of Patron). I'll be happy to buy you a drink. Regards, Steven Siegel