Leather!

Leather 101

This post will guide you on how to tell quality of leather, types of leather and how they cheat. you'll soon understand why some leathers are priced highly and why some are more durable then others.

Steps of how leather is made:

1. Cow is skinned and hide is taken to a tannery where excess meat, fat and hair are removed.


2. Moisture, oils and natural preservatives are extracted and the leather will be in a state known as wetblue.


3. The wet blue hides are dumped in a giant drum where new oils, preservatives and colouring are introduced and left till the liquids penetrates all the way to the middle/


4. The leathers are then pressed in heated presses, hung up at controlled humidity level, sprayed with finishes and sealers before being pressed again.

Cheating!:

Some tanneries try to make as much money, therefore they cut the tumbling times by up to 90%. This not only allow them to tan more leather, but also reduces the amount of oil, colours and preservatives used. Suc leathers will fade and crack easily.

A good way to tell its quality is to look at its seams and needle marks. If they are of differnt colour, they are surfaced dyed merely to cover up the leathers defects. If they are the same colour, they are anline-dyed where the oil and preservatives pentrates fully. However its hard to tell simply cos most companies will fold, sew or paint their edges

Leather Types

Generally, theres 4 grades of leather that can be attained from a single hide, they are commonly available in our markets. Definetly there are other forms of leather, but this are the main 4.

Full Grain Leather:

• Best form money can buy, coming from the top of the hide where the grains are retaining strength and durability. Plus the grain also has breathability and rather then wearing out it will create a patina over time.


• It also refers to hides that have not been sanded, buffed. It retains all the natural imperfections on the animal, which are considered desirable as it gives the product more character. This kind of scarring however are not common on cow leather as cows are more gentle creatures as opposed to pigs.

Top Grain Leather:

• 2nd best grade of leather, its fibres are more horizontal as compared to full grain making them more pliable and pulled apart. The surfaces are sanded to remove scars and scrapes thus removing the strong fibres and a finish coat added removing its breathability, and giving it a plastic feel.


• However it has a greater resistance to stains as long as the finish coat remains.

Genuine Leather:

• Most common form of leather available in our market, but its 3rd grade and produced from the layers of the hide that remains after the tops are splited of for the better grades. generally its painted to resemble a higher grade. Suede is also an example of genuine leather, however they do have a full grain grade that resembles suede which is also known as nubuck.

Bonded Leather:

• Made from left over junks composing of 90%-100% leather fibers bonded together with latex binders to create a look and feel that is simliar to leather. It is not durable and is reccomended only for use on products that are not frequently used, ex. bible covers.

Threading and Seams

Threads:

• Cotton: ($1.5/km) rots with moisure and low abrasion resistance. Turns to ash when burned.
• Nylon: ($3/km) standard for sewing of leather products. Made of thousands of nylon strands that can be rubbed apart and detoriates in direct sunlight. Balls up when burned.
• Polyester: ($10/km) thread used for making airbags and all weather gear. Its 4 times as strong as nylon
• Sinew:(>$50/km) made from tendons and used during pre-industrial eras as tough durable fibre for sewing and lashing of tool blades to shafts. It is incredibly strong, contains natural glues and shrinks as it dries doing away with the need for knots.

Seams

The fewer the seams the stronger the leaher, it is cheaper to use many small pieces as it reduces wastage.

This is just a rough guide on leathers and i hoped it helps you when you purchase your next leather product. There are many other forms of leather out there, ostrich(the ones with the goose bumps) crocs etc and many forms of leather tanning like chrom-tanned and vegetable-tanned.