J Hayes Report post Posted March 5, 2012 I have made a holster from one of Springfield's hores butts. I am curious if anyone eles has used their butts. It seems maybe a bit thin and I'm not sure what the weight is but it measures 0.110-0.100" . Is this heavy enough or is there another supplier I should look at for horse hide? Or just forget the suff all together? Thanks Jeremy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
markush Report post Posted March 5, 2012 (edited) If I'm reading the charts right, your .110 horsehide is the equivalent thickness of 7oz cowhide. Having never used horse hide but knowing that many if not most holsters are in the 6-8oz thickness range I'd guess your horsehide is good to go. Edited March 5, 2012 by markush Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cjcinin317 Report post Posted March 5, 2012 I've gotten horsehides from Springfield and Zack White. The Zack White ones were much nicer. Larger and thicker. They were a few dollars more but much nicer. Still much prefer leather to the horse though. FWIW CJ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lobo Report post Posted March 6, 2012 Working with horsehide has been an interesting experience. The horse butts offered by Springfield Leather Company are from Horween's Tannery, a very reputable source. Those I have received (over 100 so far) have varied in size, weight (thickness) and surface appearance. These are vegetable tanned and suitable for a variety of uses. Sizes have run from around 12" width up to around 20" width, lengths overall from around 40" to about 52", probably averaging around 5 sq. ft. total each of which nearly all is useful for various projects. Weights have varied from about 5/6 to around 7/8 oz overall with the edges (flank areas) noticably thinner, down to around 3 oz. or so. Exterior surface condition has varied from plain to spectacular, with some abrasions and spotting noted on some pieces. The flesh sides have all been very nice, uniform, and exceptionally smooth. It has all been good stuff and very usable for a variety of projects from holsters to pouches and belts. Horsehide is much more dense than cowhide, providing equal strength with less thickness. The denseness provides for extremely smooth cutting of edges. Sharp tools are required to avoid the need for excessive effort. Polishing and burnishing edges is very easy to do. Horsehide resists moisture infiltration much more so than cowhide from any source. Wet-forming requires much longer immersion in water to achieve the flexibility required to mold and model the leather to desired shape. There is a definite learning curve involved in boning horsehide, as the range of temperature and moisture content permitting good results is quite narrow as compared to cowhide. After wet-forming the horsehide products are very rigid in form and resist deformation very well, and this has been noted on pieces that were air-dried as well as those dried using heat. One of the first products I made was a two-layer belt that I have now worn for about 9 months, and it remains incredibly sturdy and rigid. Horsehide does not tool well at all. The density of the leather prevents any significant depth to tooling impressions. Basketweave tooling resulted in a very flat-looking result. Simple embossing (such as trademark stamps) is clear, but very shallow in appearance. I had my carver try out a couple of pieces, and he reported that horsehide is not suitable for carving. Horsehide takes leather dyes quite readily, but the resulting colors and shadings are noticably different than similar applications to cowhide. When wet horsehide has a strong odor, which my assistant compares to that of a wet dog. When finished there is no objectionable odor, but the smell remains different than cowhide. One customer has reported that his horses do not like the smell of his horsehide holster (pretty smart critters, horses). For those willing to spend the time learning to work with horsehide the results can be very interesting and rewarding, and the horse butts offer a lot of good leather at very reasonable prices. For those without the patience to learn a few different approaches to the work horsehide will not be a good choice. Best regards. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rayban Report post Posted March 7, 2012 I don't know if there's a food chain of retailers getting the strips from Horweens, I'm guessing they sell them by the pound and they are piled up according to grades. Anyway, I find that Zack White has nicer ones, longer ones which is good for belts.....and hardly any "spur marks" on them as I experienced from other retailers. And they are only $10 a strip if you buy wholesale...best price for them I have found. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sovran81 Report post Posted March 8, 2012 How stretchy is horse? Would it be suitable for braiding? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ferg Report post Posted March 8, 2012 Have never tried to make lace or braiding from it, the leather is very dense, not particularly hard but dense. ferg How stretchy is horse? Would it be suitable for braiding? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sovran81 Report post Posted March 8, 2012 (edited) Have never tried to make lace or braiding from it, the leather is very dense, not particularly hard but dense. ferg I have a splitter to reduce the thickness. It sound like you are saying it may be harder to split. How do you consider it stretch wise when compared to cow? I guess what I am asking is if it is stronger then cow, and doesnt have a lot of stretch then it should be good for braiding. Granted its not roo, and goat is supposed to be the next best, but goat has such horrible stretch that you waste alot of leather trimming your strands after stretching. Horse is affordable compared to either roo or goat. Would you mind cutting a 1/4" strand and measuring it before and after stretching it like you would for a braid strand? Horse hide is all butt so it would seem to be a fair test of stretch Vs. other types of hide. Edit: abrasion resistance is another question. how does it compare to cow? I would guess better because of superior density. Edited March 8, 2012 by Joe M Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ferg Report post Posted March 8, 2012 I cannot stretch the horse hide strip with my hands. If you were tugging on a horse or something of that sort it might be another story. I did not wet the leather, it may stretch some if it got wet. ferg I have a splitter to reduce the thickness. It sound like you are saying it may be harder to split. How do you consider it stretch wise when compared to cow? I guess what I am asking is if it is stronger then cow, and doesnt have a lot of stretch then it should be good for braiding. Granted its not roo, and goat is supposed to be the next best, but goat has such horrible stretch that you waste alot of leather trimming your strands after stretching. Horse is affordable compared to either roo or goat. Would you mind cutting a 1/4" strand and measuring it before and after stretching it like you would for a braid strand? Horse hide is all butt so it would seem to be a fair test of stretch Vs. other types of hide. Edit: abrasion resistance is another question. how does it compare to cow? I would guess better because of superior density. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sovran81 Report post Posted March 8, 2012 I cannot stretch the horse hide strip with my hands. If you were tugging on a horse or something of that sort it might be another story. I did not wet the leather, it may stretch some if it got wet. ferg Sounds like it worth the $30 bucks to try out. Thanks Ferg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
