I really stink at carving and practice is expensive. Make sure if you get Buffalo, it is vegetable tanned. My first leather purchase was 10 oz. Black latigo, a full side (29 square feet). I was inexperienced and thought it would be a good idea. It made good plain holsters and belts, absolutely impossible to carve or stamp. I guarantee I could put this stuff outside for a month or two and it wouldn't hurt the leather though. It is my understanding that if you get a veg tanned, you can carve to your hearts content regardless of the origin of the beast. Moscow Fur and Hide has several beasties you can order. A friend wanted me to make him a holster set including a knife sheath from Moose, and he wanted me to make a knife handle and grips from a moose antler. I would do it for cost and get all the left over. He saw the cost and decided he would grab some of those black latigo holsters. I was happy, because I had no equipment to be making grips. I plan on expanding my garage, but my wife has so many projects lined up for me now, I think it will be in 2010, before I get to expand.
