Is Thicker Leather Always Darker?

[NicoleAlaine]

I have been buying my leather exclusively from Tandy and have found that it is really easy to find nice white hides in very light cuts (2-3oz) but in the thicker cuts I use for dog collars (9-10oz) the leather is always quite dark tan. Is this normal for all suppliers or is it just a Tandy thing? I just finally got my Springfield Leather catalog (AWESOME!) and was thinking about getting a hide from them but was hoping for some input on this before I order. I am in Portland, Oregon so I only have a few local suppliers I can go to and actually see the hide.

Is this something others have experienced? I am able to get really nice light pastel-ey colors on my lighter leather but those colors are impossible to get on my thicker leathers. It is bumming me out!

Thoughts?

[electrathon]

The color of the leather is dependent on how much dye is added during the tanning process. Veg tan is nearly white, so some color is added to make it look natural. Thickness has no affect on color.

Oregon leather has a lot larger selection of leather than Tandy does and the leather is usually better quality. Go in and talk to Abdul, he will point you in the correct direction.

On Sept 7 we will be having a club meeting at Tandy. It will be an informal get together of leatherworkers, hoping to make it a regular thing to exchange information and ideas. Also a place to work on projects with support from others.

Aaron

[NicoleAlaine]

Thanks Aaron, I have never been to Oregon Leather and was actually planning to visit there tomorrow in hopes of finding better quality leather (it's closer to me too!). I will be curious to see what they have.

I will also try to make the meeting on the 7th. It would be great to meet some other makers in the area!

[Matt S]

Well the colour also depends upon the type of tanning material used. In the old days different barks (hemlock, oak, mimosa...) would all impart a different shade of "buff-beige-pink". These days processed veg tan concentrates are used in almost all large tanneries, and I doubt your Tandy worker would know or even understand the differences in tannage.

[Ed in Tx]

If you have only purchased leather from Tandy then you have probably not been getting good quality leather. When I first started working with leather I bought from Tandy because they were close by and I didn't know any better. Occasionally I would get decent leather from them, however, most of the time it was questionable. I found out about Springfield leather and started ordering from them after a year or so, since then I have only purchased leather from Tandy a couple of times. Order some of the Hermann Oak from Springfield and you will probably never buy from Tandy again. My biggest issue with Tandy besides quality is their pricing, I can order Hermann Oak craftsman leather for $6.49 sq. ft. from Springfield, any leather from Tandy that is close to that quality is going to be more than $10 sq. ft. As far as the color question, what I personally have found is the leather that is almost white is usually import stuff, at least that is from Tandy and weight didn't matter.

[St8LineGunsmith]

another thing about veg tanned leather it is very light sensitive, with time even a white piece of leather will tan darker however for the most part the color of the veg tannedleather is depensant on what kind of bark and the steps taken in how the tannery process their leather one tannery may uae more of a bleaching agent opposed to another tannery which can make the pigment lighter

I think Royal Meadow is Tandys premium leather and is good quality however for that price point I would rather have Herman Oak

Here is a youtube video that is very informative on the yeg tan process

[NicoleAlaine]

Thanks everyone, it sounds like I should be able to find something at least somewhat lighter. Let the search commence! I would love to try some of the Hermann Oak, I might have to buy my next hide at Springfield.

All the info you gave me reminded me how much I still have to learn. I am such a newb!

[electrathon]

The veg tan at Oregon Leather is Herman Oak.

[leatherjunkie]

What Aaron said. Oregon Leather sells Herman Oak veg tan leather.

The lowest grade that Oregon leather sells is better grade than Tandy leather sells.

Herman Oak is tanned in the US, Tandy's is European tanned.

Also try some Wicket and Craig leather.

Once you try Herman Oak you wont want tandy leather again.

also check out the Leather trade show that will be in pendleton on 24 October. just click on the link to find out more. you dont need to sign up for the classes to go to show.

http://pendletonleathershow.com/classes-available/

[NicoleAlaine]

You were all right, I went to Oregon Leather last weekend and got a side of Hermann Oak 9/10 and it is great! It is darker than the very pale stuff I had before but it still took the colors really well. Thanks for all the tips!

[benlilly1]

The color of the leather is dependent on how much dye is added during the tanning process. Veg tan is nearly white, so some color is added to make it look natural. Thickness has no affect on color.

Oregon leather has a lot larger selection of leather than Tandy does and the leather is usually better quality. Go in and talk to Abdul, he will point you in the correct direction.

On Sept 7 we will be having a club meeting at Tandy. It will be an informal get together of leatherworkers, hoping to make it a regular thing to exchange information and ideas. Also a place to work on projects with support from others.

Aaron

So if veg-tan is nearly white when tanned, can you request it in the light color? Or can you? Or you just get what you get? I have projects that I would like the light color so this makes me curious.

[electrathon]

I don't know that much about it. I just remember reading a few times that the tanning chemicals are so harsh they "bleach" out most of the color. So the tanneries add a little color to make the leather look more natural. Every now and then I see veg tan that is almost white, other times it is one of many shades of brown.

As to ordering it, I would guess if you ordered enough you could get a production run. My guess though is that would be more leather than you will use in your lifetime.