Seperating The Back From The Belly

[SooperJake]

Where, approximately, do you draw the line to cut off belly leather from a side? What am I looking for specifically?

[Cyberthrasher]

it's hard to explain, but you'll notice a difference in the firmness of the back. The first thing I check for is a big fleshy spot on the rear of the hide (stringy mess where the rest of the flesh side is nice and solid). A lot of times those are primarily located on the belly (not always though). Also, you'll notice that belly has more give in it. If you push up on the flesh side of the back, you'll see how it pushes up most of the leather because it's rigid. If you push up on the belly, it might give and look more like a dent.

Use the charts available as a guideline to get you looking in the right location, but just use it as a guide. The main thing to remember is why we don't like bellies for belts - because they've been stretched out by the animals natural contractions. So, any part of the side that has these stretched out characteristics, whether it's technically "belly" or not, should be avoided.

[Beaverslayer]

here's a picture that may help a bit.