Today McRostie still use solid brass and nickel hardware and the best of bridle leather, reminiscent of that which once harnessed the pulling power of the mighty Clydesdale workhorse - materials you can rely on.

The Leather - Best British bridle leather.
Bridle Leather is strong, durable, functional and has character!

The Hide.
We accept only Domestic Cowhide i.e. home produced in the U.K. These hides are then transformed from raw material into a workable product - finished leather. This all takes place in the U.K.

When the hides arrive at the tanners, they undergo traditional tanning methods before going on to the curriers. The tanning stage takes time and cannot be speeded up without losing out on quality. Once at the curriers, the combination of traditional hand finishing skills and modern machinery helps to achieve consistency and quality producing leather to suit many different purposes.

The Cut
There are different cuts of the hide - just like there are different 'cuts' of meat at the butcher. Our specification is for 'first selection full grain bridle butt'. In our opinion this is the best cut and this is what you get with a 'McRostie'. It is no coincidence it is also the most expensive cut.

Bridle Butts are used in 99% of our production.

Natural Properties
Due to the natural properties of the hide -remember, it was once was on the back of an animal - there may be what appear to be slight blemishes on the leather. Please be assured, these are not signs of substandard hides being used. Such marks are to be expected as a result of using a 'live' organic material, where a uniform appearance is not always possible.

The Buckles

	br solid brass, high shine. Looks 'gold' coloured. This will dull naturally over time, but can be polished back to high shine with brass / metal polish, such as 'Brasso'.
	brsf solid brass, satin finish. The satin finish removes the high shine by a brushing process.
	np nickel plated solid brass, by process of electro-plating. Looks 'silver' in colour. This has and will maintain a high shine.
	npsf nickel plated solid brass, satin finish - The satin finish removes the high shine by brushing, giving it a 'stainless steel' effect.

Being originally harness-makers, this is also the origin of many of our buckles and other hardware. Some have been resurrected from the past and others are still in current use today, yet others have undergone some 'fine tuning' to meet our own design requirements.

Apart from two buckles, which are hand made and imported from France - all our buckles are U.K. sourced and cast in solid brass. Many have tongues of mild steel for strength.

If you would like a solid silver buckle, please ask