Four Tips to Help You Identify Genuine Leather
Release Time:
2011-01-05 19:16
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Natural leather is mainly divided by type into pig leather, cow leather, sheep leather, horse leather, donkey leather, and kangaroo leather, with smaller amounts of fish leather, reptile leather, amphibian leather, and ostrich leather. Among them, cow leather is further divided into yellow cattle leather, water buffalo leather, yak leather, and hybrid cattle leather; sheep leather is divided into mutton leather and goat leather. By layer, there is top-grain leather and split leather, with top-grain leather including full-grain leather and corrected-grain leather; split leather includes pig split leather and cow split leather. Among the main types of leather, yellow cattle leather and mutton leather have smooth and fine surfaces, small pores, dense and compact internal structures, and the leather body has good fullness and elasticity, with excellent physical properties. Therefore, premium yellow cattle leather and mutton leather are generally used for high-end products, and their prices are among the highest in bulk leather.
Among the many types of leather, full-grain leather should rank first because it is made from high-quality raw hides with minimal damage, retaining the natural state of the leather surface, with a thin coating that showcases the natural patterns of the animal skin. It is not only wear-resistant but also has good breathability.
Corrected-grain leather is made by lightly sanding the leather surface with a sanding machine, then coating and embossing it with corresponding patterns. Essentially, it "renovates" natural leather surfaces that have damage or roughness. This type of leather almost loses its original surface state, has a thicker coating layer, and its wear resistance and breathability are inferior to full-grain leather.
Split leather is obtained by splitting thick hides with a splitting machine; the top layer is used to make full-grain or corrected-grain leather, while the split layer undergoes coating or film application processes to become split leather. Its strength and wear resistance are poor, making it the cheapest among similar leathers.
Next, we will introduce several commonly used methods:
1. Touch: Using the hand to feel the leather surface; if it feels smooth, soft, full, and elastic, it is genuine leather; synthetic leather generally feels rough, stiff, and lacks softness.
2. Visual inspection: Observe the genuine leather surface for clear pores and patterns. Yellow cattle leather has relatively uniform fine pores; yak leather has coarser and sparser pores; goat leather has fish scale-like pores; pig leather has triangular coarse pores. Although synthetic leather imitates pores, they are not clear. Below are the characteristics and identification methods for pig leather, horse leather, cow leather, and sheep leather: Cow leather has a fine surface and high strength, making it most suitable for making shoes; sheep leather is light, thin, and soft, ideal for leather clothing; pig leather has good breathability and moisture permeability, suitable for underwear and children's products; horse leather has a tighter fiber structure and higher strength, making it good for leather pants and boots. Generally, the size, density, and distribution of pores on the leather surface are the main basis for distinguishing cow, pig, horse, and sheep leather.
Pig leather: The pores on the leather surface are round and large, extending obliquely into the leather. The pores are arranged in groups of three, and the surface shows many small triangular patterns.
Cow leather: Both yellow cattle leather and water buffalo leather are called cow leather, but there are differences. Yellow cattle leather has round pores that extend straight into the leather, with pores that are dense and uniform, arranged irregularly like a starry sky. Water buffalo leather has larger pores than yellow cattle leather, fewer pores, and a looser texture, less delicate and full than yellow cattle leather. Horse leather has oval pores slightly larger than yellow cattle leather, arranged more regularly.
Sheep leather: The pores on the grain surface are flat and round, clear, grouped in several, arranged in a fish scale pattern.
3. Smell: Genuine leather has the smell of leather; synthetic leather has a strong plastic odor that is irritating.
4. Burning test: Tear off a small fiber from the back of genuine or synthetic leather and burn it. If it emits a pungent smell and forms hard lumps, it is synthetic leather; if it smells like burnt hair and does not form hard lumps, it is genuine leather.
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