Product Details
Latigo leather
Because latigo is infused with oils & waxes, it is the perfect leather to use for leather leashes. Latigo is strong, durable and easily maintaintained. It requires no oiling, like saddle & bridle leathers do, and becomes more pliable with use.
The base leather for all leads & leashes is approximately 1/2" wide, 7 -- 9 oz. latigo, and it comes in black and burgundy. The highlight colors are lighter-weight suedes or decorative leather, serving only to accent the black or burgundy latigo. They add little or no strength to the lead.
How leashes & leads are braided
A strip of highlight leather is bonded to the base leather (latigo) and then short slits are hand cut down the middle of the lead. Next, a "slit braid" is made by pulling the end of the strip through each slit. This is repeated for each slit (15--40 times, depending on the length of lead) resulting in the braided leather look seen in the photos below. This is what sets Dashing Dog Leads apart from other braided leather leashes.
The differences among suede, regular (smooth) leather, & metallics
Suedes tend to look rough or "fuzzy" in texture. This photo shows several suede highlight colors. From left to right: bone, lime, cobalt, red, green, green teal, purple, red, green teal, purple, denim, & "American Flag" (cobalt & bone with a silver star rivet in the middle of the lead.)
These can be a bit more difficult to keep clean if you compete in muddy or dirty conditions (like dirt arenas,) but there are more colors to choose from. Use a suede brush to remove dirt.
Smooth highlight colors (at left,) by comparison, are made of light weight but sometimes higher quality leather, including upholstry leather (see the black, tan, & navy.)
From left to right: black, white, tan, navy, white, yellow, royal, green teal.
In some cases, the "suede" is simply the back side of the hide. This is the case for the green teal, pictured at left and above. It's the same leather hide, just reversed sides.
Notice also, lighter colors (esp. white & yellow) are more difficult to keep perfectly clean when making the lead. The black latigo can smudge on to the yellow, for example.
The "Metallics"
Note: These are NOT metal, nor do they contain metal. They're simply leather with a shiny silver or copper colored finish.
Metallic silver & copper are smooth, of course, but also have a bright, shiny surface. These are potentially the "blingiest" (is that a word?) of all highlight colors.
Practically speaking, these should shed dust more easily than other colors (especially suedes).
