Horsehide

• A grazing black horse.horse image by Penny Williams from Fotolia.com
  
  Widely used until the end of the 1930s, horsehide holsters are still manufactured, but are more expensive than cowhide. Soft and pliable, horsehide is also non-porous, allowing for durability and water repellency. This is excellent for holsters concealed inside the waistband but inconvenient because it will not dye uniformly, leaving either the choice of a spotty natural color or all black.
  
  

Cowhide

• Cowhide is easily attained in North America.Heads of Cattle image by Rosie Black from Fotolia.com
  
  Horsehide is hard to come by since horse meat only regularly appears on menus in Europe, but cowhide is local and plentiful, bringing shipping costs and therefore retail costs down. Most manufacturers utilize the skin on the shoulder which is then tanned and wet-blocked. It will always retain its stiff shape and will easily dye any color.
  
  

Leather Tanning

• A close-up view of leather.leather close up image by Dmitry Rukhlenko from Fotolia.com
  
  When tanning horsehide and cowhide, two processes are used. Chrome tanned keeps the leather soft and pliable, such as the top part of a shoe or a jacket. Most holster manufacturers use vegetable tanning, or sometimes referred to as bark tanning, to keep the leather stiffer, more durable and naturally water repellent.