SpruceMoose

Looks nice, but looks more geared towards leather crafters rather than buyers, in regards to having to sign up, sign in to shop, guest checkout is a must in this day and age, imo. There is no cart icon. Also with rifle slings, take note that paypal also has strict terms regarding any weapon accessories, and many people accept paypal. It's all in seo anyways, whether one considers that lying or not. I sell my slings as leather slings/sportsman strap. squeaky clean seo and tags is a must, never mention firearms or hunting. Category listing as well makes a huge difference in bot sweeps on certain selling platforms. It's all bots combing every word you use and category. One awful foolish thing etsy has done, is put the hunting/fishing category under the umbrella of outdoor recreation, which also has children/baby toys, which means etsy auto suggests/advertises under those, AND you get double hit by bots combing the hunting category for weapon violations, but also combing for children/baby toy safety.

For 8 years all i bought was cheap and rough tandy tooling leather and worked with it and had good luck in what i received, but my closest tandy changed management and staff awhile back, what was once a good customer experience became a piss off every box i opened and management didn't give a crap about what they sent. Either way i'm at the point where i want an approximate consistency and quality in how a hide tools, dyes and accepts finish, (as my product quality and prices have gone up) and not have to play tetris trying to place templates around marks while wasting minimal leather . I tool everything i make as well however there's often long strap pieces without anything but a simple edge and border stamp, irregular shapes, so cutting out a whole hide in the one product can be a struggle to place the highly tooled piece and the bare strap when a hide is dinged up. You know, i should really get a smaller basket stamp and stamp the whole dang thing lol, but i like the contrast of some un-tooled leather The exchange rate does suck, but it's usually the customs and duties and brokerage fees on top that make a cheap economy hide still work out to be real expensive. On average mid-high range tooling sides are at least 400-500 in Canada, buying from the states is initially cheaper until the fed ex bill comes(unless the company lies on the product value, and i know of a few companies that do this as a default). Most suppliers that have HO and W&C it's expensive no matter the grade in Canada. But like i said, i price my product high so an expensive hide still makes above and beyond. I've had decent luck with buckle guy's w&c so i may go back. I'd like to try the Sepicii tooling as well. I got spoiled for 3 bends of french pasted back tooling leather a few months ago, unfortunately unknown source, just something that was sitting on the back shelf of a local tack shop that was 10 years old, but was the smoothest, supple yet firm and cleanest most beautiful tooling leather i'd ever seen. If i could find that again lol

I normally would have sent it back but i am in a christmas order time crunch. Plus they do not accept returns for any reason so it would have been a battle. Good to know i'm not just overly expectant. Just a shame, thought the only official canadian HO distributor would have a better judgment of quality/grade

Maybe I'm crazy and my expectations are too high, I was going to buy straight a/b grade but the company owner suggested the a/b branded grade and assured me it was fantastic and it was the exact same quality as a/b hermann oak just with a brand, But to me this is utility grade with numerous huge drag marks from handling, there's a bunch vertical as well but they blend in with the fat marks, hard to photograph. Dye doesn't hide burnished in markings and scuffs from man handling. 500.00. (Note: I am not talking about the brand or the fat marks, this i obviously do not mind as it's part of leather, i buy about 6-10 sides a year over the past decade, but just the quality is getting worse or my luck as well, i just want to pay good money for good leather and am tired of companies saying what's pictured here is the best grade you can buy)

Too bad Hermann Oaks' only Canadian distributor was a bad experience. They were very nice over the phone, answered my questions, i even stated i was a new customer and have been having difficulty with quality and wanted the best money can buy, they (the owner actually) recommended a certain grade and assured that they send out quality. Received scuffed up damaged product, sent photos politely inquiring if this was what they considered quality for the grade(did not ask to return as for holiday orders it was needed immediately) they stated that it was high quality and is what is to be expected for said grade. Disappointed in their customer service and quality especially as a mom and pop shop. Trying to work around long burnished drag and scuff marks that travel almost the length of the hide is a nuisance for a 500 dollar hide, Another company off of my possible supplier list.

Good points! Thanks for sharing your experiences. Certainly every product has it's pros and cons, jus trying to find something that allows gun related leather products, many have vague worded policies for prohibited items

I've boughten from official distributors of w&c and HO and have had bad luck. I might just go direct and eat the customs and duty fees

Thanks, i thought about them as well, I use them for my domains as well, might make sense to have everything in one place.

I've been using etsy and ebay for quite some time. We all know etsy does not like anything that attaches to a gun (rifle slings) I keep getting caught in bot sweeps and having items delisted for apparent violating terms(seo terms and category) even though everything is squeaky clean. YET the stores with 10k plus in sales have all imaginable gun related seo, guns and ammunition in the first photo. Those shops seem fine and keep on selling fine, seems a little skewed imo, if i use a tag or title with 'hunting' i get nailed, with everything else squeky clean, no 'gun' 'rifle' 'ammo' 'firearm'. And don't even think about listing in the hunting and fishing category, you get twice the amount of bot sweeps, as etsy lumps the auto advertising in with recreational sports, which auto includes childrens toys, so bots sweeping for child safety and weapons. Double wham. Of course it's their right, i'm just annoyed at the biased takedowns. I've been thinking of building a website soon, something to fall back on(yes i know, much work for driving traffic). In my search for quality providers, it seems most of them prohibit anything that even attaches or holds a firearm. Very annoying, as the top providers with great and easy and secure website builders and services blanket prohibit. Even Paypals terms seem to prohibit all as well. Difficult, as I am not tech savy, coding wise. I need it all layed out on a platter, simple and secure e-commerce website. Squarespace seems good to go. Any advice?

This is what i do as well, but I use a blunt tip awl to press the still hot end down into the hole. One can also buy a cheap little pronged thread burner thingy, but i think a lighter and awl works fine. I assume withe the prong tool one could easily burn off the stitching when trying to burn the ends off into the hole.

I've actually just contacted them, i didn't realize they don't have a minimum order. The only thing that will suck is customs, duties and brokerage fees, making an already 500 dollar hide become more like 6-8. Buckle g at least, uh, omits some stuff and i barely get dinged.

I've not heard much about fiebings spray wax Leather Sheen, you say you haven't had a problem before, looks like the finish doesn't like the antique, or maybe an odd crappy batch of either product. I've occasionally had a similar thing happen with the standard pairing of antique paste and cut 50/50 resolene/water, usually only if I don't measure and have too much resolene paired with not buffing off enough paste, during the application and after the paste dries. Nice knotwork!

Yes, the whole range of grades, I even talked to the owner. I always state i am looking for the best grade. I swear i was sent a 'utility' side for a high price. I'm just surprised by the quality a bunch of good reputation businesses are sending out, especially after talking to them(sometimes the owner) saying i am looking for high quality, been having bad luck with other suppliers and am looking for a new supplier. I am not a very big business, but 5-10 sides a year of tooling leather, soon to be more. If I had the room I'd buy the tannery minimum flat of 10.

That's quit a drive from here, even Halifax (tandy). As business picks up I might have to just order tannery direct, but the minimums can be restricting.

Just a rant. I've been searching for a new supplier and have tried a few recently, that are official distributors of H&O and W&C. Tired of receiving 600.00 sides of tooling leather that is scuffed, excessively marked, rough backs etc. I just want to PAY for QUALITY. They may tool nice, but huge scuffs across the whole thing shows on dyed leather. I might as well go back to gambling with tandy's sides. Anyone buy direct from W&C or H&O from Canada and have better luck. I wish I could pick leather out myself, but no stores near me. Maybe my expectations are too high. Edit: (side note: I am not talking about natural markings, some are certainly expected, fat marks, bites, brand. I am talking about the hide being marred from handling) Or am i just having a year long streak of bad luck.