Leather For Tooling Practice

[Dallas Cowboy]

Well i will be ordering my tools this week and want to start practicing. But what leather does everyone recommend i get for practicing. SHould i buy a remnant package from springfield or get a side? Some say the remnant packages are the way to go and some say they are a waste of time because they are not a good enough quality or not thick enough at times. So what should i get for starting out and practicing? THanks DC

[mlapaglia]

what are you practicing to make? Tandy has a sale on double shoulders for 3.99 a sq ft until the end of the month. Thats a great price for practice leather.

[electrathon]

Buy a tannery run "TR" hide. They are relatively cheap (about $120 I think) and you will get more usable leather than you will if you buy $120 worth of scrap. As a side the TR Herman Oak hides are far better than you would expect from "flawed" hides.

Aaron

[Dallas Cowboy]

Gonna be practicing my sheridan tooling. Also practicing for belts and holsters. Stamping and tooling and just getting familiar with my tools.

[THein]

Well i will be ordering my tools this week and want to start practicing. But what leather does everyone recommend i get for practicing. SHould i buy a remnant package from springfield or get a side? Some say the remnant packages are the way to go and some say they are a waste of time because they are not a good enough quality or not thick enough at times. So what should i get for starting out and practicing? THanks DC

Check around and find someone making saddles or other large items. You might get a pile of scraps free for the asking. I know I'm swimming in scraps and not enough time to utilize them for smaller items. Skirting leather will allow you to get some good practice on thick leather.

Terry

www.singletreeleather.com

[mlapaglia]

Gonna be practicing my sheridan tooling. Also practicing for belts and holsters. Stamping and tooling and just getting familiar with my tools.

What every you buy get an 8/9 oz thickness. Great for belts and holsters. Good to learn tooling on. Wither its a TR hide or the double shoulder from Tandy a solid piece will give you more usage than scraps.

FYI, the sale at Tandy is over for the general public. If you are a gold or elite member you can buy it at $3.99 a sq ft. It can be worth it being a Gold member at $35.00 a year. Some great discounts.

[KAYAK45]

Do what the Presidant does. Use dog hide. Good practice.