Quality Sporrans for less money

[OC Richard]

Hey, Richard, I was just looking at this sporran. There's no indication where it's made, and the seller isn't sure. You think it's Scottish made?

And it looks like the seller has added a picture where the middle tassle is extended out to its full length. Nice looking little vintage piece.

It's not 100% of course, but I've seen enough Scottish-made and Pakistani-made sporrans that I can usually distinguish between the two. There are puzzlers sometimes!

Often it's little things that give Pakistani sporrans away, perhaps the shape and/or placement of the leather tab on the back for the strap to go through, or the shape of the "bells", or the quality of the casting of the cantle (the Pakistani ones are nearly always re-casts from Scottish originals and have less detail).

In any case that one "feels right" to me.

Now here's one that doesn't feel right to me https://www.ebay.com/itm/36340442559...ndition=4%7C10

It's getting bids so it must look good to at least two people!

But I think it's Pakistani. Why? On sporrans there's usually a piece of leather under the cantle, following the shape of the cantle, sort of a gasket/liner/washer. I wish I knew the proper term.

On top-quality sporrans this liner follows the outline of the cantle closely, and traditionally has been cut with pinking shears giving a zig-zag or toothed edge.

On this Ebay sporran the liner is thin and cheap-looking, perhaps vinyl.

Also there's the shape of the bells. Traditionally they're spherical, but quite often on Pakistani sporrans the bells are slightly elongated, with flattened sides.