Leather Supplier and Type

[Sean_the_Kilted]

These are all great suggestions. I knew someone(s) on here would know. On belt making, do you guys buy blanks usually or cut your own out of huge sheets? If you buy blanks, where do you buy them wide enough for kilt belts?

[cavscout]

I've never found blanks wider than 1.75" By blanks I mean, prepped for a buckle.

You will have to plan to rip your own or have your leather supplier do it for you if you want to be able to get over 1.75"

[A Hay]

I've never found blanks wider than 1.75" By blanks I mean, prepped for a buckle.

You will have to plan to rip your own or have your leather supplier do it for you if you want to be able to get over 1.75"

I did find a 3" wide blank in a Tandy Leather store in St. Louis last year, but it was outrageously expensive. About $22. I cut it down to 2 1/4 " and had a 3/4" strap left over for a sporran strap.

Haven't seen anything that wide in the Tandy Catalog.

Tom

[CameronTaylor]

Aye, Tandy is the place. I told them I wanted a few sides for a leather kilt and they showed me exactly what I needed. I really should wear it down there to show them what their efforts yielded. Excellent, knowledgable staff.
That's where SK gets his leather now too (I told him).


CT - maybe they ship overseas

[A Hay]

CT - maybe they ship overseas

I don't know this for a fact, but there might be a problem shipping leather hides from USA to Germany. Customs duties for example. Although you might get away with it if shipping through to an APO address.
That's one reason I buy my tanned leather over here.

Tom

[RossCroft]

i buy most of my leather from tandy, not all though. i don't like to have it shipped to me - i like to personally look at the leather i'm buying. i have a small leather shop so i don't need the large quantities of leather some folks would. if i'm making a regular belt i use belt blanks. the time involved in cutting the belt from the hide and doing the punching and skiving makes it more expensive than buying the blanks. over 2 inches wide and i cut it from the hide. again, because it winds up cheaper. then again, i have uses for the extra leather after cutting it from the hide. most of the scrap even gets used.

side notes: if you decide to cut from the hide, invest in a strap cutter. it's faster and more accurate than cutting that long, straight edge by hand. and if you're cutting 9-10 oz hide (or heavier) you are really going to need more than a knife and a pair of scissors. which means a cutting surface too. i have a cutting table i built for $300, but for occasional work that's a bit extreme. a kitchen cutting board will work for small areas. long straight lines won't cut well that way though.

fwiw