Y3 - Tumbled Steerhide Leather

This series offers a glimpse into the origins of the materials and processes behind our gloves. Each post is designed to spark curiosity and guide you toward a deeper understanding of ball glove construction. These stories will be added to the Glove School page on our website.

Let’s take a look at our tumbled leather, which we call “Y3.” Our tumbled leather is made from the same cowhides we use to produce our pro grade gloves. During the many steps of leather production, such as hide preparation, splitting, and finishing, some hides may develop imperfections like tears, scratches, or nicks.

These hides are tumbled to reduce the signs of those imperfections. The leather is tumbled until it receives a natural pebble pattern that hides any scratches or blemishes. This also softens the leather, making it a great option for players who want a glove that feels more broken in right away.

During the past few months, we have relaced many of these gloves from our initial batch, made over 4 years ago. We are happy to report that even though this leather is considered our lowest grade, it continues to perform at a high level. The gloves hold their shape well thanks to the high quality felts and liners we use in all our gloves. While the leather may show normal signs of wear over time, it is built to last just like our pro gloves.

If you are looking for a youth glove for players ages 8 to 12, we highly recommend trying our Y3 tumbled youth collection lineup. We are also working on expanding this lineup to include more options for players who want a great glove at a lower price than our pro grade models.