cedarWood Report post Posted January 15, 2020 Hi there, I am new here and new to leather work. I am hobbyist of course and interested mostly on small goods like wallets and such. But I am about to start a moccasin project. Anyways, I got couple of Bison (American Buffalo) Chrome tanned Full grain leather (different colors), but I noticed that when I cut the leather, there is a blue/gray layer in between the grain side and the suede. I read about it a lot and all I see is that this is because it is not dyed all through (obviously :). But does it affect the durability of the leather? or is this type considered "cheap" leather and will break and crack easily? Why I am asking, is because I was watching the saddle back leather on the product he uses and he (Dave) has a video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a11wlngpuSY) explaining the leather properties (https://saddlebackleather.com). He mentioned that the blue/gray is because the leather is not tanned longer time, therefore the oil/dye is not penetrated well and it will break and crack. I know some of it is marketing and would like to understand from people who work directly with these type of leather and what is their opinion. Thanks in advance Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LatigoAmigo Report post Posted January 15, 2020 9 minutes ago, cedarWood said: He mentioned that the blue/gray is because the leather is not tanned longer time, therefore the oil/dye is not penetrated well and it will break and crack. I am using quite a bit of chrome tanned bison these days. It has the lack of color in the middle (not blue/gray but light tan) which indicates that the color has not fully penetrated the hide, and I've had no problems with the leather breaking or cracking. I use chrome tanned leather almost exclusively, and find that most of what I have is not dyed all the way through. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arturomex Report post Posted January 15, 2020 This is an interesting article that addresses some of that marketing hype: https://nstarleather.wordpress.com/2018/05/31/the-grades-of-leather-hierarchy-youve-probably-read-about-is-a-myth/ Regards, Arturo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cedarWood Report post Posted January 15, 2020 Thank you LatigoAmigo, Yeah it is not a blue color per say..it is more as light gray and some blue trace in it...the thinner the hide, the color is more toward "light tan". Arturo, this is a great article on the grading too. Thank you. It doesn't highlight on the dye and chrome leather specifically though. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chrisash Report post Posted January 15, 2020 (edited) All sofa's, Chairs, quality Ladies Bags (some are made of veg tan), Car interiors etc are all made of chrome leather and stand up to many years service, tops on many shoes are made of Chrome, but the soles traditionally made of veg tan Edited January 15, 2020 by chrisash Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arturomex Report post Posted January 15, 2020 Yeah, I know he's more about the grading thing but I thought you might find the reference to the producer of the video you referenced interesting. There's an interesting little nugget on chrome tanned leather here: https://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/71045-how-to-identify-chrome-or-veg-tan/ in the fourth post. Regards, Arturo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cedarWood Report post Posted January 15, 2020 Chris, Yes, you're right. That is why I am using Chrome for all my goods projects now. I know it is durable. I actually tested it out with a rasp file and sand paper. It is highly abrasive resistant. Arturo, I will read the article again. I missed that part. But thank you for that post; this is exactly what I would like to know. That post looks like a reply to my first question Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
