Good Horsehide At Last

[malabar]

I started showing off some products in marbled horsehide on my website and at gunshows, and the demand really boomed. The fly in the ointment is that there's a shortage of horsehide. I sent back more than half of the order I got in May from a reseller, because the quality was so poor.

So, in desperation, I contacted Horween, and they directed me to their direct sales team. They'll sell horsebutts in small quantities by the pound, at 11.50 per pound. So I ordered 25 pounds of the soft-rolled, 7-9 ounce horsebutts and crossed my fingers.

There was nothing in stock; I was literally waiting for a lot to come out of the tannery vat. Can take up to 12 weeks.

The butts arrived today. They look gorgeous. All of them have some degree of marbling, and many have extravagant figure. I'll post a picture of a holster as soon as I make one from this stuff. Gee, maybe I'll make something for ME out of one (my kid will probably sell it out from under me. He once sold the belt I was wearing, during a gun show <g>).

So how does it do costwise? I had been paying $20 per butt for seconds from the resellers. Sometimes the quality was very good, sometimes it wasn't. There was a lot of inconsistency in the thickness of the hides.

Buying first first quality from Horween is about 10% more expensive -- it works out to about $22 per butt. But shipping also was high -- it added almost $3 per butt to the cost.

OTOH, these are beautiful butts. Very consistent in color and texture, and lots of beautiful marbling.

Can't wait to make something.

tk

[Big Sioux Saddlery]

"There was nothing in stock; I was literally waiting for a lot to come out of the tannery vat. Can take up to 12 weeks."

Yet another reason we need a horse kill plant in this country! Better supply to fill the demand.

[electrathon]

Malabar, any explanation on the rest of the hide? I have wondered for years why we can buy butts, but not the side.

[malabar]

My understanding from the good folks at Horween is that virtually every part of every horse is spoken for before it ever gets to the tannery. Various specialty manufacturers -- from Major League Baseball to luxury shoe makers -- have contracts for the various parts of the horsehide. The reason that horsebutts are such an odd shape is that they are cut around the two oval pieces directly over each cheek of the horse's ass. Those two pieces are coveted as "shell cordovan" -- the ne plus ultra for making high-end men's loafers.

[harley45]

Do they have a minimum order I really like Horse and need to order some more?