Leather Keyword

Crust:
light leather not treated after tanning, but only dehydrated: usually they are tanned by chrome or vegetable.

Pelt:
general term used for shaved leather. This terms is also used for shearling in its natural state.

leathers in brine:
leathers treated in advance with a solution of salt and acid.

Wet Blue:
term used to identify every chrome leather and still damp. Blue is its typical color, due to the use of chrome.

Wet White:
leather treated in advance without chrome. It is characterized by its white color.


Leather Characteristics

The quality of leather depends on breed, gender, life of the animal, age and place where he lived, environmental conditions, farm and feeding. All these factors determine, therefore, the quality and structure of leather.
We can detect:

  • BEEF: slaughtered animals within 4/5 mouths from 150/200 kg.
  • BABY BEEF: male under 24 mouths and slaughtered on 650/700 kg.
  • BULL: over 24 mouths. They can get up to 900/1200kg.
  • STEER: castrated steer within 4 to 6 mouths. After 24 mouths he names Ox.
  • SCOTTONE: female under 24 mouths that have never given birth. They are slaughtered on 550Kg.
  • COWS: female that have given birth once and that are over 24 mouths.

Cows live till 18/20 years, but they are usually slaughtered when they are 6/8 years old and they give birth on average to 5 beeves. Like us, they have 9 mouths gestation. For this reason, the cow’s leather has a weaker fiber, is thinner and presents a grain leather with many imperfections.

Several problems could caused wrinkles and signs on leather, that are considered as defects.
The farm for example: the animal can pick up lesions on the enclosures usually made on wood or barbed wire, or he could get scratched on shrubs or prickles.
The farmers also could damage leathers: he could prick the animal with fork creating numbers of little goads and he could brand the animal, practice that is still used nowadays above all in South America. Lack of hygiene into farms bring to burns on leather due to urine and dungs.
The animal could be subjected to attack by parasites, as ticks and louses, or he could present little imperfections due to warts, and marks into leather.
The curing and the conservation of coarse leather could cause defects to his grain leather... because it is a natural and alive product that if it is not cured at the right time, he could be subject to damage.


Different Cuts of Leather

HOW IS LEATHER GENERALLY CUT?

Leather is composed by these following parts:

Rump 45 - 55%
Shoulders 20 - 25%
Flanks 20 - 205%

Rump is the most rare side of leather: it generally presents less lesions and his fibers have an unrelieved and tick structure; his thickness is regular. Shoulders have a thicker structure than fibers, a good thickness but wrinkles could be present. Flanks are thinner than rump, because they are the part of the body into which leather is more subject to movements of animal. Especially the so called belly is very soft.


Composition and Content of Leather

The leather and tannery world need knowledge into historical, science and above all chemistry field. Here you are some important information to satisfy the curiosity of both experts into this sector and who are not.

WHAT IS MADE THE LEATHER OF AN ANIMAL The leather is composed of water (about 65%), protein (about 33%) mineral material (about 0,5%). The remain is composed of fat materials, whose quantity depends on the animal: 2 - 6% for beeves and calves, 2 - 10% for goats, 5 - 30% for sheep. The leather is about the 10 % of the carcass or death animal.

WHAT IS THE CONTENT OF LEATHER? HOW DOES IT CHANGE FROM ANIMAL TO ANIMAL?
It is the structure of leather, for what regards thickness, fiber force and his consistency.