Cured skins are not actually leather. They are raw-hide, yes, just like the things you buy for your dog to chew on. This is not suitable as a replacement for leather in any application, at all, ever. Yes, I know lots of people make things like hat bands out of cured snakeskins...I stand my ground and say it's wrong, not simply another way to do it.
Leather is tanned. There are numerous methods for tanning. Each has pros and cons. I have seen people bash certain leathers and tanning methods here in these forums that often really wasn't quite right. There is a lot to know about such matters really. I don't claim to be an expert, but I am learning.
Different tanning methods produce leathers suited to different purposes. What some people call "junk" or "cheap" really isn't, it's just not the right leather for their purpose.
To be sure, there are inadequate tanning processes and they lead to very unsatisfactory leathers than can even frankly rot. Usually this is an effort on the part of the tannery to save money and not necessarily that the process can't work...they just skimped on time and materials.
Not all snakeskins are alike by a long shot. Those with looser scales can be used quite nicely in such applications as this but require special tanning methods. If properly prepared the stereotypes of loose scales and other such things are simply not true. Some have said the only way to use them is to put a clear finish over them but that's only true for the skins that are not tanned and prepared properly for the application.
I had a rattlesnake skin seat on my Triumph chopper for years. It was custom made and the skin was not cheap. It never lost a single scale and you know that a motorcycle seat gets a lot more brutal wear and exposure than a pool cue wrap.
In short, if you think you are going to use a cured skin for something like this you will be disappointed. Cured skins aren't even leather at all.
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