Alternative To Austin Leather

[MonicaJacobson]

I'm in a bit of a fix. I made this bag in Austin leather, and now I want to move away from using Tandy leather. Don't get me wrong, Tandy was awesome and I wouldn't have been able to get started without it, but at $14.60 per square foot, I could do better buying Horween from Tannery Row.

However, a lot of people really like the textured look. So what kind of leather could I use that would be a good stand-in, but good quality?

I saw that Springfield has Waterbuffalo, some of it done Crazy Horse style, but I don't know how waterbuffalo wears, or anything about the Crazy Horse stuff.

Thanks,

Monica

[biglew]

try springfield leather or maverick leather....

[Red Cent]

I thought Maverick Leather was relocating out of the country.

ThoroughBred Leather

http://www.sheridanleather.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=1829

[MonicaJacobson]

Thanks biglew - I bought some very nice Horween Dublin from Springfield, and I've been trying to get up the gumption to buy from Maverick. I hope they're not leaving the country...


@Red Cent - Thanks, I'll look into those. I'm going to try some Bridle Leather from Wicket & Craig, but that's still a smooth leather. Maybe it won't matter, and no one will ask for a more textured look once I've made a few things with nicer leathers.

[Hi Im Joe]

I have a hard time believing Maverick is moving out of the country. It would make no sense at all to do something like that.

I've ordered from Maverick numerous times. They are AWESOME to work with. Their customer service is top notch.

Having said that...there are some drawbacks. Most of the stuff they have is seconds. You will get sides with bad areas or stains or some loose break etc...They are usually really good about taking photos of the bad area so you have an idea of what you are getting into.

Having said that...I have got some stuff from them that didn't look like a second at all. It looked FANTASTIC. But it is hit or miss.

Also, it is pretty rare for them to have really big lots of the same leather that hang around for a long time. So if you find a leather you love it would be unlikely that you could order it over and over again.

Edited October 30, 2014 by Hi Im Joe

[MonicaJacobson]

Okay, I wondered about that. I wasn't sure they'd have the time to pay such close attention to each hide. I thought it'd be more like, "throw it in the box, out it goes." And whenever I looked at the webpage, everything was so dauntingly varied, textured, lined, and mottled. I guess that means you're getting a real picture. There's nothing more frustrating than a tiny, generic color when you're trying to see what a hide is like. So... cool. I'll definitely try to order some Horween from them. I had resigned myself to picking up whatever Springfield had and hoping for the best.

[Hi Im Joe]

I think you should definitely try out Maverick. Also, a great positive is as long as you don't cut into the side they will take it back. You have to pay return shipping but being able to return it is quite nice.

Most of the time the picture is not the exact side you are getting but sometimes it is. They try to list the actual price of the side if they only have one.

[MonicaJacobson]

Okay, that's awesome. I do like the hide from the last roll top bag you made. It was intentionally rough looking in a cool way.

Yeah, I get you. It's a picture of a hide from a general batch, and that's better than a picture of a 2 inch square bit of hide.

[Hi Im Joe]

A lot of the stuff I've made is leather from Maverick. That roll top bag was dark cognac essex.

Here is something Maverick has that I think would be pretty similar:

http://www.maverickleathercompany.com/horween/horween-seconds/marbled-cognac-essex/

or

http://www.maverickleathercompany.com/horween/owners-specials/double-fudge-tumbled-essex/

The tumbled essex is awesome stuff. Really any of the Horween veg tan tumbled leathers are great for making bags.

[MonicaJacobson]

Oh yeah, that cognac essex looks beautiful. I should probably call them - I really like 8-10 oz chrome tanned leathers because they're soft, yet they still hold their shape. Most things I saw were 5-6 oz, which was another thing that put me off. However, I'm sure there's something Horween sells that is that thick. If not, I'll just start lining things.