what parts of a cow used best as....

[krains]

I've been searching around the website and I can't find it, so if this is answered in a previous post, I apologize.

Are there any parts of the cow that "perform" better on different projects? I know where the shoulders, sides, belly etc are, but I haven't found anything to tell me to lean towards this part when doing this. Such as bellies are best for tooling, shoulders are great for making wallets, bends are best for belts (these are probably all wrong, but that is an example of what kind of info I'm looking for.)

I know leather from one cow might be a little bit better than another, and I know grade effects this. but as a general rule with all cows being #1s (only in my dreams) are all leather parts of same cow equal to its other parts?

Edited February 13, 2008 by krains

[Hilly]

I've been searching around the website and I can't find it, so if this is answered in a previous post, I apologize.

Are there any parts of the cow that "perform" better on different projects? I know where the shoulders, sides, belly etc are, but I haven't found anything to tell me to lean towards this part when doing this. Such as bellies are best for tooling, shoulders are great for making wallets, bends are best for belts (these are probably all wrong, but that is an example of what kind of info I'm looking for.)

I know leather from one cow might be a little bit better than another, and I know grade effects this. but as a general rule with all cows being #1s (only in my dreams) are all leather parts of same cow equal to its other parts?

Haven't been doing this all that long, but I know that if you don't want a ton of stretch in your leather, don't use bellies. Backs and (I think) butts are the toughest parts best used in belts and straps, and stuff you don't want to stretch/break.

[Luke Hatley]

Haven't been doing this all that long, but I know that if you don't want a ton of stretch in your leather, don't use bellies. Backs and (I think) butts are the toughest parts best used in belts and straps, and stuff you don't want to stretch/break.

I would like to add that the shoulders or double shoulders are good also.

Tandy will run them on sale and sometimes one can find excellent pcs

[Johanna]

A F & G aren't going to get used for much except small items, or the piece of leather you put unfder another piece when you're punching holes to protect your tools. B & C is the double shoulder, the prime part of a hide. For straps, you'll want sides B+D or C+E, and the thicker part of the hide will be at the top. Since leather is animal skin, there will be some variation in thickness on a hide, which is why the weight is usually expressed in a range (8/9 oz for example). Does that help a little?

Johanna

[howardb]

Helps me and I didn't even ask the question!

[TracyMoss]

I wouldn't call the shoulders the prime part of the hide. They are good for small items that aren't exposed to functional stress (portfolios, dayplanners, rope cans, etc), but there is still too much stretch over the shoulder for items requiring strength. All to often, double shoulders have too many wrinkles to suit any functional uses. IMO

[krains]

thanks for all the help guys. mucho appreciated!