midwestwelder Report post Posted April 14, 2022 First of all, let me say that I am EXTREMELY new to leather working, so new in fact that I haven't made a single project yet, and am getting together the tools and products I will need to make a leather holster for myself, which was the catalyst for me getting into some leather work. Anyway, I was able to get hold of some leather yesterday. It is a very stiff type of leather. If I had to guess, I would say it is the 6-7 ounce weight. The size is 3'x4' sheets. I bought 6 sheets of it for $30, which I believe was probably a very good deal. I was told by the person that I got the leather from that the leather was used in the making of Justin brand boots. That leads me to the question in the title. Does anyone know what type of leather this is? What types of projects would it be good for? I apologize for the quality of the pictures. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handstitched Report post Posted April 15, 2022 G'Day and welcome to the world of leather. If it came from a boot maker, the first thought that popped into my head was sole leather , for the soles of boots, shoes etc. as you did mention that its quite stiff. May also be good making leather sandals perhaps? HS Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LatigoAmigo Report post Posted April 15, 2022 15 hours ago, midwestwelder said: That leads me to the question in the title. Does anyone know what type of leather this is? What types of projects would it be good for? It doesn't look like leather at all, as leather comes in hides, sides, shoulders, etc., not in 3'x4' rectangles. This looks more like bonded leather and probably used for insoles. It is real leather, but is much like particle board and has no grain. I use bonded leather all the time, but in a much thinner weight, for stiffening bags. Sorry, but I have no idea what this would be good for. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
midwestwelder Report post Posted April 15, 2022 Thanks for the replies folks. In my research on it I wondered if it might leather that has dried out. Bonded leather isn't something that I had thought about but I now think that it might very possibly be exactly that. On my next day off next week I intend to take a piece of it to Tandy Leather or Springfield Leather. They are a 2 hour drive for me but should be able to give me a definitive answer. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chrisash Report post Posted April 16, 2022 Either of those companies should point you into the best leather for your situation, to start with you may find the lower value leathers a good choice to learn the basics on and then progress to the better leathers as it always seems silly to over spend whilst you are learning new skills and making mistakes just like everyone else has. a shoulder of veg tan gives a lot of practice on smaller items JH Leather videos on Youtube is quite a good starter for many items you may like to make https://www.youtube.com/c/JHLeather/videos Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handstitched Report post Posted April 16, 2022 I knew that I have seen those before. At a used machinery seller here in West Oz. It was listed as " shoe shop leather" "Sorry you missed this one, please look in our listings for more we may have, or phone us ***** . Price: $20.00" ( all sold) thats $20- each ...I think I did think about those a while back .....but thought....yeh...nah !! At $20 ???? Whats wrong with them ?? HS Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
