Do Not Order From Springfield Leather

[bikermutt07]

On 2/6/2016 at 1:15 PM, Art said:

If you want hand selected leather, you better go someplace where you can hand select it yourself. Nobody will be as picky as the end user. Even at that, you need to have places where you can use the "less than your desires and specifications" parts that come with even the highest grade hide. This gets to the point of buying leather by the piece. Where do you think those pieces come from? They are the parts that the seller didn't want to use in his own production, or for small pieces, they may be perfectly fine but not big enough to make something out of. So either you TALK to the owner and let him know you gotta have the good stuff and holes, tears, cuts, barb wire marks, and insect bites just won't do, or you buy whole hides and reject anything that doesn't meet your criteria. You have to trust your supplier to give you what you need (and cut him just the tiniest bit of slack), or you need to go to a show, and buy a whole years supply, that you select, and best of all, there are multiple dealers there who don't want to pack anything home. Many are the $20 full hides (chrome tan mostly and often 2 sides) that really are looking for a home. I know guys who buy a whole years worth this way because they live in the boonies, literally, and like to pick hides themselves.

As to sharpness of tools as provided by the factory; they do sharp to the level they think is sufficient for the job, or they don't put much other than a bevel on the tool, if at all. Of all the tools from C.S. Osborne I have either bought for myself or received to sharpen (most new in the box), nothing (including the knives for ghod sake) vaguely resembled sharp. My theory is that they were old school, and the apprentices at the end user's shop did all the sharpening, so why bother having a line worker do it. The tool and often the edge are designed to take abuse, and the lack of apprenticing and training raise the level of abuse.

On machinery, there is no excuse for a dull blade. Most of the time, the blade is away from the operator and is only presented to the work by the machine. Sometimes the selection of blade steel defines how sharp blades can get. Stainless will not attain, and hold an edge like O-1 or O-6 tool steel, which will rust while you are looking at it. Everything is a tradeoff, but sharpening is a skill AND an artform, you can't just pass an abrasive over it and declare it done, finished, put it in a box and sell it. In fact careful appraisal in every step of the sharpening process is required to attain and maintain a superior edge. Why go to all that trouble and COST when the customer is very likely to buy with a large emphasis on the price of the product.

Since I have retired, I have been doing a lot of scissors (barber, stylist, but I'll do anything) and the quality control and out of the box sharpness is the best I have seen in any industry. Sharpening these things is not for the uneducated or under equipped. The technology employed in the sharpening phase of manufacture is comparable or higher quality than the finest surgical instruments. Some companies actually vary the angle of a convex edge over the length of the blade, think about that. But their reputation depends on that technology much more than a head knife that the end user is going to put on a grinder before they do any serious cutting.

Art

Mr. Art, this is a great post. Thank you.

[DoubleC]

Art what a great post. I get so tired of people complaining when they take absolutely no responsibility themselves.I was at SLC yesterday and saw some bracelets on sale for $2.99. I clicked on the link and it said they were 3.50. I could've have ordered and expected SLC to figure out the mistake and go fishing, or call them and figure out what was up. I know if I had a box full of receipts of returns, I'd simply not order there again, even if it was my own damn fault. Cheryl

[Ken Nelson]

I purchase from suppliers, for the most part, that supply professional leather workers.  I have been in my main suppliers business a lot of times.  I hand picked leather there for 5 years and they know what I like and don't.  I don't cost compare with other companies to them. They will on a rare occasion make a mistake.  A phone call (and a congenial one) always get fantastic results.   I understand leather grades somewhat and am willing to pay for what I get.  When someone tells me they cannot afford to buy # 1 Hermann Oak or W/C I have to wonder how professional they are.  I cannot afford to not use  #1 leather in most of what I build.   If lesser quality leather is called for, I use it.   My customers know # 1 from craft grade and do not accept lesser quality materials in the products they order.  In short, You get what you pay for most of the time.   If you purchase from a company that specializes in supplying hobby workers that are beginners,  expect to pay more than the professionals do.   But at the same time,  What choice does a person starting out have when you cannot justify several sides of #1 tooling leather in1 order.   I do not order from suppliers that send me junk at # 1 prices.  But at the same time it is just a fact that even on a #1 hide,  some of that hide is scrap and I send a little of every hide to someone wanting practice leather or to the landfill. That is just my 2 cents worth.  Ken

[JLSleather]

7 minutes ago, Ken Nelson said:

I do not order from suppliers that send me junk at # 1 prices.  

There's the bottom line right there.  I don't mind PAYING PREMIUM prices, long as I'm GETTING PREMIUM leather.  This is true wherever I purchase.  It does seem like some places rely on people who won't know the difference.