Hey ChuckBurrows
Thanks for the Informations. We can not know it all
Anyway, the have tooled leather since the 1000 years bevor Jesus was born, and most of them use metall tools. It is not the Question of tooling, it is the question of the style of tooling. May be the old leathercrafters use Navajo siver tools, have never seen that
I have not seen much cartridge or gunbelts tooled in the 1850´s. Most of them where straight belts, most of the time only with a simple border line. Ore figural stitching. On Holsters they use knifes to cut out little lines, or use simpel leather tools, most of them where selfmade.
As I know the first stamping tools, as we know them, came out in the 1860.... may be you´ll know it better.
For the crome leather. Well, the have crome tanned leather since 1865 - 1867, and some saddlerys use them on chaps as well. I does not use it for my chaps. Most of the well known Companys use the natural tanned stuff. R.T. Frazier use crome Lather for chaps since 1895, mostly on batwings, sometimes on shotguns. H.H. Heiser and C.P. Shipley use crome tanned stuff as well on the havy rodeo and working chaps since ca. 1910. Many saddle Companys use the chrome stuff for saddlestrings, because it was much more stronger (sorry, dont know the right word) than natural tanned straps and strings...
No Question, if you do no reproductions it is up to you what leather you use and which stams you use. The main thing is that the customers love it!!! Andyway you also do great job.
Have a wonderfull day
Andy Rombach