Some of this is just to gather my own thoughts and observations but I’d like the communities take on this as well, particularly those that have been around a long time…..
Has anyone noticed how modern cow veg-tan rarely seems as dense as it used to be? Recently I looked through some old scraps I had from many years ago before I stepped away as well as some vintage cowhide pieces and I don’t think I’ve seen anything outside of horse butt with this density in years.
I know some of this is the cows age, most are slaughtered within their first 2 years of life for the meat industry and Interestinly I don’t really see tanneries or suppliers talk about steers ages. Are older age steer hides impossible to find? Anyone have any leads on this?
(FYI, the catalyst for this was a Chahine side i bought and I was really surprised at the lower density and sponginess compared to others like Herman Oak, but even those aren’t like what I used years ago).