Dennis Morland
KNIFE MAKER
Very nice sir - at beginning you mentioned 5-6 oz leather. There are many options Shoulder, double shoulder, belly First, for the ol' hillbilly - can I get nose or other 'special request' areas? and second - other than that - what leather would you recommend - thank you
Great question. Answer is “just depends”. Leather is just like steel. You have a myriad of price ranges. If you want cheap leather choose bellies. I would suggest in the 5-7 oz. range. Bellies will vary greatly in thickness from top to bottom and left to right. It is one of the drawbacks to bellies. They also tend to stretch more than other cuts. But for price $5 to $10 for a belly will get you enough leather for several sheaths. For a beginner they are hard to beat.
On the top end of the spending scale Double Shoulders and Double Bends. You will get much more consistent leather from these areas. Consistent for lower stretch and consistent for more equal thicknesses throughout the piece.
I buy sides of decent quality. It will have range marks, brands, scars, bug bites, etc. I just work around them.
I prefer leather from Wickett and Craig. But, if I can personally look at it I will buy leather at Tandy. You can get it from a variety of sources. Weaver comes to mind. There are others.