I had a call from Mr Scott of Scotts Leathers this morning to let me know they were still in the business of supplying leather for bags and bellows. This was in response to a call I made to the firm last week wondering if they were still operating. He said they had rented out the majority of their factory space as rented lots for storing furniture,etc. but still had a part that they used to keep a stock of leather. The main point of this posting is to say to those of us who make pipes that we need to keep firms like Scoots going by buying the good quality leather they supply or they may eventually go out of business. I did make the point with him that we are never going to buy in the quantity that say Highland pipemakers buy in setting up pipebands as we are dealing with single pipers most of the time. If we buy a skin for pipebags we may get half a dozen bags out of it which may represent more than a years work which is fine for us but he as the supplier is not going to make a living from selling it to us. I am not advertising for Scotts but I can say that the Stormforce leather they sell is absolutely airtight and soft enough to make the ideal small pipe bag, and the Scawfell leather is also airtight and the right thickness for bellows leather. The survival of pipemaking is in the hands not only of us makers but also in the hands of the suppliers of the materials we need. If any one wants any details of how to contact Scotts let me know and I will give you his address. Colin Ross Technical adviser NPS
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