Thread: Leather Questions

Hello Gents!
While looking for leather to make strops I've come up with some questions.
This company in England told me (if I understood this right) that English bridle leather is different than American. Is this true? How so?
Also, some say English bridle may not be good for stropping due to the large amounts of waxes and oils.. is this true? How would this make it better or worse?
I know that "preference" is key.
Please give me your preferences and also facts if you can.
Thank you very much! I'm still learning and really appreciate all the info.
Mike T.

EDIT: Oh and one more thing... bridle vs latigo?

Don't know if there is a difference. You can get the leather at Tandy Leather. I bought a piece in the bargin bin 2 1/2 x 68" for $29.00. Worked great.

Yea, probably… each tannery will have their formulas and process and result may differ.

But, can you feel the difference in a strop? Depends…

For most new guys, I doubt it will make much of a difference. Like most things in this hobby there is a lot to be said for quality gear and gear that just looks good and how it makes you feel.

If you are confident in your stropping skills, do not be afraid to invest in quality, beautifully made leather. A quality new strop is still a drop in the bucket, for the amount of work involved, and is a multi-lifetime purchase.

I am glad to see leather artisans making some gorgeous new strops from quality materials again. Do not overlook vintage strops though, if you are willing to put in a little work there are some great deals to be had, in vintage leather and linen and they are finishers.

If you will go to Straight Razor Designs web site you will discover some of their top strops are made from English Bridle leather. I have one of their Premium Strops and love it. If it wasn't quality leather Don & Lynn would not put their name on it............

Thanks for the info! Much appreciated.
Did some reading, so if I have this right, latigo has another step in the process that makes it more flexible than bridle. Both are packed with oils and waxes. Have not read much about American vs English latigo and bridle but I'm sure there are both varieties available in the states (oil and wax laden and without oils and waxes).
I'm going to try out the English bridle leather though it is an expensive company, the leather looks amazing (but you don't know until...)

Which company are you dealing with MikeT? I've been in contact with a few recently, trying to source the right leather at the right price. One of them was good enough to send me samples.

Leatherworker here. American Bridle leather doesn't have quite the amount of waxes and oils as English. It is closer in feel to a raw vegetable tanned leather. Both bridle and latigo leather are made from vegetable tanned leather (tooling or saddley leather) treated with waxes, oils, and fats to get the right temper (consistancy) and level of waterproofing in the leather. As I have gotten into straight razor shaving, I haven't noticed a difference on my edges in using any of the leathers. Each has a different draw and feel, but they all seem to accomplish the same thing with the edge.

Try Home - Springfield Leather Company as a source. They are a full Tandy distributor, and also carry a lot of other leathers. They do carry Horween horse butt strips, Herman Oak vegetable tanned, Wickett & Craig American Bridle and Latigo, and a lot of import leathers. They will also cut small pieces and sell by the square foot. If you call them and tell them what you are looking for, they are awesome to work with.

Originally Posted by wayne394

Which company are you dealing with MikeT? I've been in contact with a few recently, trying to source the right leather at the right price. One of them was good enough to send me samples.

I've been in contact with Equus Leather & Co. The company is known for very high quality leather. Although more expensive. And obviously color comes after other qualities, they have some great ones, just what i was looking for.
But there are several other companies that i haven't been able to get a response. This is surprisingly common it seems; I am also looking for a larger piece of bog oak and 50% of companies do not even respond. Total crap.
Which leather companies have you been in contact with? Free samples? That is quite generous of them!

*just thought I'd put it out there: if anybody has a lead on a company for bog oak that comes through, I will send you some. I'm at my wits end with these basta**s.

Originally Posted by MikeT

I've been in contact with Equus Leather & Co. The company is known for very high quality leather. Although more expensive. And obviously color comes after other qualities, they have some great ones, just what i was looking for.
But there are several other companies that i haven't been able to get a response. This is surprisingly common it seems; I am also looking for a larger piece of bog oak and 50% of companies do not even respond. Total crap.
Which leather companies have you been in contact with? Free samples? That is quite generous of them!

*just thought I'd put it out there: if anybody has a lead on a company for bog oak that comes through, I will send you some. I'm at my wits end with these basta**s.

With leather distributors and tanneries, they often look at anything under 200 square feet as a small order, and won't do a lot to help with it. I have only worked with one company that sends samples, (Wickett & Craig in Pennysylvania). If you are looking for Horween leather, check out thier Tannery Row which targets hobbiests. Another supplier I like is Maverick Leather, who like working with the small hobbists.

When you say you are looking for "Bog Oak" leather, what do you mean? Are you looking for vegetable tanned using oak extracts?

Originally Posted by Drygulch

With leather distributors and tanneries, they often look at anything under 200 square feet as a small order, and won't do a lot to help with it. I have only worked with one company that sends samples, (Wickett & Craig in Pennysylvania). If you are looking for Horween leather, check out thier Tannery Row which targets hobbiests. Another supplier I like is Maverick Leather, who like working with the small hobbists.

When you say you are looking for "Bog Oak" leather, what do you mean? Are you looking for vegetable tanned using oak extracts?

Thank you for those links, I will check them out.
The company I was referring to will cut me strips.
They charge by the 1"x60" and so i would be purchasing 3"x60".
Sorry for that about bog oak, wrong thread.. I was referring to the wood, bog oak. But, I can imagine that leather using bog oak might give a great colour. Though I'm not qualified to do more than speculate at best.