Comparing the leather of two of the same model jacket?

[JackBroChill]

I am buying a leather jacket, made of a beautiful cowhide roughout leather from Japan, and at the moment have two of the same model to see which fits better as there are slight variations from piece to piece given the handcrafted nature of the item.

I'm just curious, given the variability of something like cow hide, all things being equal how to compare the two pieces on a strict leather comparison basis?

Roughout doesn't really show things like loose grain or other imperfections quite like typical leather would. And the items are both of very high quality so it's a bit redundant. But I'm just curious if there are any specific things to look for to indicate if one piece is cut from a better hide than the other.

 

[ton312]

With something like roughout maybe just look for thin spots.

 

[navetsea]

you can compare the flesh density, a good part would have dense and uniform suede flesh, the bad part would have looser, clumpy shaggy flesh.