Shell Cordovan Comparison

[Andrew Chee]

Hello all. Just figured that some folks here might be interested in a photo comparison between Horween, Clayton, and Shinki shell cordovan. I recently have been able to purchase a bit of each to compare. As you will see in the pictures below, the darkest one is the Horween shell. The middle brown is the shinki, and the tan one is a Clayton. They are all around 3-4oz in thickness.

Horween is the most expensive by far, almost twice as expensive as the other two. In terms feel, Clayton's is a little bit softer than the Horween but comes closest in terms of touch on the front and back side. The back side of the Shinki is rougher kinda like if they put the shell through a splitter (although the fact that the shell runs from 3-4oz makes me think they didn't).

If you were looking for something that most closely resembles Horween shells then the Claytons will come the closest. The Shinki is nice but has a slightly firmer feel with a slightly rougher backside. They are all very nice shells and pretty similar to each other but those are the differences that I can tell.Of course neither the Clayton nor the Shinki give you the nice "Horween" stamp on the back that people look for...

The Horween shells have to be purchased from Horween. The Claytons can be purchased from Booth and Co in Peabody Mass. The Shinki I won't say cause the people selling it didn't really seem like they wanted to sell them so they probably wouldn't appreciate a bunch of people ordering it.

Edited September 19, 2014 by Andrew Chee

[EricIsaiah]

I've heard that the shinki can feel a bit plasticy. Is this a statement you'd agree with?

[voxfini]

I've heard that the shinki can feel a bit plasticy. Is this a statement you'd agree with?

Yup, I've had the luxury of seeing both shinki and horween hides. I like horween better as it looks and feels more natural. The shinki to me feels like formica tabletops and is pretty shiny.

[MonicaJacobson]

What do people use the shell cordovan for, aside from shoes? I've seen a few wallets and some watch bands, and that's all.

[Andrew Chee]

They're mostly good for small leather goods. Wallets and such. They're too small to make bags with really and too expensive. Nice stuff though.

As for shinki plasticiness, it is a bit more but it's not plasticky like cheap leather, just when compared to the other two. I think the Claytons is a great option when horween is available.