Abstract

The commercial value of leather is diminished by a lower substance in the flanks as compared with the butt. Various types of retannage de signed to correct this shortcoming alter the reactivity and handle of the leather. By choosing conditions appropriate to the tannage and textile flocks of suitable dimensions, extra substance can be obtained in the flanks by a drum process. Work, done mainly with sheepskins and wool flock, shows that appreciable amounts of wool can be incorporated into the leather, preferentially taken up in the flanks and permanently fixed by entanglement with the leather fibre and, possibly, by felting. Wool fibre does not penetrate the hair follicles; the handle of the leather is unimpaired; dyeing is level